Pallet Home Site ‘Slap In The Face’ To Disabled Community

There are many questions that remain about Pallet shelter, but the most pressing question is why temporary shelters were placed on the only field in the city designed for the disabled.

According to latest reports, the Pallet shelters (30) will be located in the Pomona Park outfield.

Pomona Park’s ball field is the only one that has been built and designed to be accessible for the disabled.  The Eagle Scout project funded the construction of the field with $200,000 from private donations. This was to create a specialized infield surface and flat outfield for children who are in wheelchairs or use walkers.  According to one person who has been familiar with the field’s activities, even small divots can cause problems for the users.

The schedule is not perfect.  According to the city, the Pallet shelter project won’t interfere with the activities on the field because the field isn’t used in the winter.  The practices for the leagues that play on this field begin in March, and the Pallet shelters are expected to be in place until April.

Practice could be held in most cases on another field during March. However, this field is unique in Greensboro, and it is the only field where teams of disabled children can practice.

Donna Gray, who retired from her long career with the City of Greensboro as the Community Relations Division director in 2021 and also served as the city’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) coordinator, said, “To choose the only disabled accessible site in Greensboro is a slap in the face to people with disabilities in our community.”

She claimed that The Arc of Greensboro, the Special Olympics, and The Arc of Greensboro had not been informed by the city of their plans to use the field for Pallet shelters.

Gray indicated that she was in favor of Pallet shelter but not the choice to locate on the only available field in the city for the disabled.

City Councilmember Zack Matheny said, “The manufacturer doesn’t recommend that the shelters be placed on grass.”

He said, “They’re going to destroy the field and then come back to us and request more funding to fix it.”

He said, “What if a handicapped child or family wants to go out on a nice day this winter and play.  That is the only field in the city that is accessible to them.”