Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
East Chicago NAACP president urges correction of early-voting site access problems
Loading...
Summary
At the public forum, Benita Arnold, president of the East Chicago NAACP, told the board the early-voting site at the Keri/Cary Gosch Early Learning Center is not ADA accessible, citing steep makeshift ramps and a difficult bus drop-off route; she asked the board to act before early voting begins in greater numbers.
Benita Arnold, president of the East Chicago NAACP, raised a formal public-safety and access concern during the April 14 public forum, saying the early-voting location at the (Kerigosh/Cary/Keri) Early Learning Center presents barriers to seniors and people with disabilities.
"They have put up two makeshift ramps that are not ADA accessible without even handrails," Arnold told the board. "I myself cannot walk up it. You can't — it's very steep. That's not in compliance. It's a liability." She also said the bus drop-off requires voters to walk a long route to Door G and that signage or published directions have caused confusion for seniors.
Arnold said she learned the location was advertised as an early-voting site before the board had voted on any approval and called on trustees to "straighten this out." The transcript does not record a direct board response to her request during the public comment slot.
Another public commenter, Cassandra L. Carey, a paraprofessional at Washington Elementary, urged the board to support paraprofessionals who want to pursue full teacher certification, saying barriers in the certification process and repeated retirement notices are affecting her ability to pursue a teaching career.
The board did not take formal action on the voting-location complaint at the meeting. Trustees and staff who heard the comments will need to follow up with the county election board and facilities staff to confirm ADA compliance and bus routing ahead of early voting.
