Kala, Bonnie, Skye 🐕🐕🐕🐾🐾 Kitty (mum)

Admin Post: Heavy snowfall warning—15-30 cm possible starting tonight. And I'm still trapped behind ice I can't cross from New Year's snow. My heart #&*%ing hurts. Gutted. Exhausted beyond words. Weeks of great weather: no snow, above freezing, paths I could've used. Days to get out with my service dog or walk the puppy, feel alive, fight the darkness in my mind that grows and smothers me when I'm housebound. But it's bigger than mental health—it's total isolation from the world. Two houses on my street never cleared their sidewalks. Thick, rutted ice like a wall. My power wheelchair can't cross. That blocks my route to the nearest bus stop. Impossible to reach transit. Parking a van with a ramp in winter in most areas? Forget it—"accessible" stalls too small, windrows piled high, street designs like snow covered boulevards that are hostile to anyone with mobility issues who needs to drive. No safe spot to deploy the ramp without risking the street or getting stuck. So what does that mean? Cut off from doctor's appointments. Groceries. Pharmacy runs. Community resources that keep me going. Everything essential. My world shrinks to this house while the city claims "accessibility is a priority." I call BS. Priorities are the things that get done. Reported to @CityofEdmonton via 311 two weeks ago. Screenshot attached: photo of the ice, report still "open." No update, no officer visit, no warning. Their process: investigate within 4 business days, then often a "courtesy" warning (not required) for voluntary compliance. This means a disabled persons right to access the community is less important than someone's opportunity to comply with a by-law. Weeks get wasted. Melt days gone. Beautiful weather I could've used—slipped away while I waited, trapped. The bylaw requires sidewalks clear of snow/ice. Enforcement? Drags. Warnings first (even after weeks), $100 fine + cleanup only if ignored. No priority for accessibility complaints, even though blocked paths don't inconvenience—they disable. They isolate. They harm mental and physical health. Year after year, it's the same failures. No change. I'm not just sad. I'm furious in a quiet, bone-deep way. My dog stares at the door, tail low, confused why we don't go. I choke out "not today" and it rips my heart out every time. This isn't living. This is surviving. @CityofEdmonton @AndrewKnack: This system is failing disabled Edmontonians. Fix it now. For accessibility-impacting cases (mobility/mental health/transit access at stake): skip courtesy warnings. Issue the fine immediately after confirming violation. Make it waivable—if homeowner proves cleared (photo/receipt), waive. If valid reason (illness, disability) and they contact the city within 2 days—waive if legit, connect to community shoveling resources. Escalate fines for second/third offenses to deter chronic neglect. Benefits: One officer visit vs. multiple follow-ups. Faster compliance. Less burden on bylaw. Real priority for people who can't wait weeks/months to access their city. The only real reason not to change this—to hold negligent homeowners more accountable—is that it would force the city to hold *itself* more accountable too. And let's be real: the city's own snow-clearing delays, windrows blocking paths, slow responses to complaints, and hostile designs have been huge accessibility fails for years. If we're serious about inclusion, everyone—including city operations—needs to step up. This incoming weather buries paths deeper. Buries hope. More snow coming, and who knows when the next chance to successfully get anywhere will come. If your sidewalk's blocked, or you've been stuck waiting on 311—reply, quote, share. Tag the city and mayor. Make them hear us. We deserve access. Not excuses. Not "open" status while we're shut in. #Edmonton #Accessibility # DisabledInYEG #WinterInYEG #BylawFail #MentalHealthMatters #311Fail #TransitAccess