The Sunnyvale Sun

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Photograph by Cera Renault

Sunnyvale resident Susan Bull signs a petition asking the city to create a more convenient access from her neighborhood in the Heritage District to the Sunnyvale train station, asking too that the access comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Locals petition for more access

By JASON GOLDMAN-HALL

For years, residents of the Heritage District Neighborhood north of Evelyn Avenue and east of Mathilda Avenue have been cutting holes or hopping over the fence along Hendy Avenue to get to the Caltrain Station just south of their homes.

For as many years, Caltrain crews have been putting the fence back together.

For the residents, it's a simple entryway into the station and downtown area across the street from their homes, but for the city, it's a hole illegally cut in a fence, allowing residents to trespass.

Opponents of the fence are rallying behind Angel Avenue resident Susan Bull, who regularly uses the Mathilda overcrossing to get to downtown Sunnyvale in her motorized wheelchair. They have filed a complaint and demanded that Caltrain and the city of Sunnyvale open the fence and put in a legal access path to make it compliant with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Title II states people cannot be denied access to facilities or uses because of their disabilities.

On March 25, Bull, her mother Ada Marie and other nearby residents set up an information table next to the fence at the intersection of Hendy Avenue and Frances Street and collected 75 signatures to encourage a new access route.

But Bull's mother says the issue is not about wheelchair access; it's about giving residents and workers in the area an easy, safe access to the heart of Sunnyvale, which would in turn encourage people to shop at downtown stores and eat in downtown restaurants.

"I think the real issue is that we have hundreds of people going down our streets who use that opening to get downtown, to get their lunches, to get to the train station," Ada Marie Bull said.

Caltrain says the open fence is not a legal access point for its station, and that the open fence is a safety hazard. Residents say it is the quickest way for them to get to the station and the downtown, and, more importantly, it is the only safe way for someone in a wheelchair to do the same.

Residents in that neighborhood must either go east to Sunnyvale Avenue or west and cross over the Mathilda overcrossing to get to the station that is within a few yards of many of their homes.

Both routes present unique hazards. Sunnyvale Avenue has exposed train tracks that can cause problems for walkers, canes or wheelchairs. The Mathilda overcrossing has no barrier between the walkway and the busy traffic lanes, and the walkway itself is barely large enough for two people to pass each other while walking, let alone a pedestrian and someone in a motorized wheelchair.

To address the access problems and find a solution, the city of Sunnyvale, the Valley Transit Authority and Caltrain are holding a public meeting on April 20 at the Sunnyvale Community Center.

The city's primary concern is coming up with an access solution because right now people are breaking the law.

"It's important for people to recognize that the hole in the fence on Hendy is not for them to use," Sunnyvale communications officer John Pilger said. "It's not a legal, authorized entry point, so anyone using it is simply trespassing."

Caltrain public information officer Jonah Weinberg said his organization is going to let the city of Sunnyvale decide what to do about the access point--because it involves a number of Sunnyvale roads and residents--but will support its decision.

"We're not for the hole in the fence; we're not against the hole in the fence. We just want to find a solution that helps the community," he said. "We just want to make sure that people can access the station safely and easily. We are willing to turn it into an ADA-compliant entrance if that's what the community wants."

The meeting among the city, VTA and Caltrain will be held April 20 at 7 p.m. at the Sunnyvale Community Center, 550 E. Remington Drive.