SHARE:  
February 8, 2022
Cambridge Commission for Persons with Disabilities (CCPD)
AccessLetter
News and Information for the Access-Minded
The City of Cambridge is Hiring a New
City Manager and Wants to Hear from YOU!
Cambridge City Manager Search
The City has begun its search process for the new City Manager. The first step is gathering feedback from residents, stakeholders and employees on what we should be looking for in the next City Manager. 

As part of this process, the Cambridge City Manager Search is looking for 8 members of the Cambridge Disability Community to join an online focus group next week:

Focus Group for Cambridge Disability Community
CART/closed captioning will be provided
ASL interpreters have been requested
Monday, February 14
2:30 - 4:00 PM
Registration required through the Local Voices Network
Limited to 8 attendees

If you're unable to attend the focus group, there are several other ways to share your thoughts:


  • Communicate with Randi Frank, LLC, the search firm hired to guide the City through this process, by emailing them directly at: cambridge@randifrank.com

  • Attend a Town Hall for residents on Wednesday, February 16th at 6:00 PM. Residents have the option of attending in person or online. Learn more here!
Snow and Winter Weather Resources
  • The Cambridge Council on Aging offers a Snow Exemption Program and Student Shoveler Program to people with disabilities and Cambridge seniors (adults over the age of 60) who need assistance shoveling. Click here or call the Council on Aging at 617-349-6220 to learn more.

  • During winter storms, the City's Snow Center website is continually updated to share storm updates, City service and program impacts, and winter weather resources - www.cambridgema.gov/Snow

  • Want to report an icy or blocked sidewalk, a broken curb ramp, or an audible/accessible traffic signal that no longer works? Use Commonwealth Connect (powered by SeeClickFix) to request services or get help fixing issues. Learn more!
Louis A. DePasquale Universal Design
Playground Open at Danehy Park!
Accessible play features at the new universally designed playground at Danehy Park
The Louis A. DePasqale Universal Design Playground is now open for the Cambridge community to enjoy! Located at Danehy Park between Field Street and the Briston Arms residential complex, the 30,000 square foot play area is the first in Cambridge to fully incorporate Universal Design (UD) - the concept that all parts should be as usable as possible, without changes, by everyone. In addition to physical accessibility, UD takes sensory, cognitive, and emotional abilities into consideration to create an environment that is welcoming to all people to the greatest extent possible. The park was designed for children, caregivers, and visitors of all ages and abilities to play, experience and enjoy. 
Cambridge Program's Annual Play Celebrated the
Voice, Resilience of People with Disabilities
young adults on stage acting in the Cambridge Program's annual play
In December, the Cambridge Program for Individuals with Special Needs made a triumphant return to the stage with three sold out shows of “Say It Isn’t So, Joe.” The play is a journey through the year 2020, chronologically tracking the Covid-19 pandemic and the divisive political atmosphere leading up to the 2020 Presidential Election. Central to the play’s storyline is the Cambridge Program itself.

“The play captures the turmoil of 2020 through the lens of people with disabilities,” says David Tynes, Director of the Cambridge Program. “People with disabilities were greatly impacted by Covid-19, including the social isolation that many experienced. We saw this firsthand in our program when we could not meet in-person during quarantine.”
NOTE: The next CCPD meeting will be held via Zoom on
Thursday, February 10 from 5:30 - 7:00 PM.
The meeting agenda can be found online.
All are welcome!
Commission for Persons with Disabilities | 51 Inman Street, 2nd Floor, Cambridge, MA 02139