Page One

The Ed Roberts Campus proposed for the Ashby BART station got a boost from the federal government Saturday, when United States Secretary of Transportation Rodney E. Slater presented the sponsoring organization with a check for $300,000. 

The grant, given in recognition of the 10th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, went to a nonprofit formed by nine groups involved in the independent living movement for people with disabilities. 

It will fund the design and environmental review of the campus proposed for the east entrance of the BART station. 

In addition to offices for the founding organizations, the campus is to have a conference center, a library on the disability movement, a computer/media resource center, a fitness center, a café, a children’s play center and space to lease for commercial and office uses. 

The entire project will cost about $30 million, of which $800,000 has been raised. Organizers hope most of the money will come from grants, donations, loans and a bond measure. 

Ed Roberts, after whom the campus will be named, contracted polio and became a quadriplegic at the age of 14. He was the first student with significant disabilities to enroll at UC Berkeley during the 1960s. Roberts was appointed by then-Gov. Jerry Brown to direct California’s Department of Rehabilitation during the 1970s. He died in 1995. 

Roberts had connections to several of the groups now involved in the campus. He founded the Center for Independent Living and served as president of the World Institute on Disability. 

A crowd gathered at the site of the proposed project to listen to speeches by its sponsors, as well as by local and national officials. 

After Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek welcomed all to the ceremony, Jan Garrett, secretary of the Ed Roberts Campus, gave an overview of the project and stressed the importance of linking the campus, BART and the community. 

“Ed Roberts was a great leader of the disabled community,” Garrett said. “He was a great leader in collaboration and working together. When he died in 1995 it was clear that he deserved a memorial.” 

Michael Winter, well-known to local advocates for the disabled community and currently associate administrator of the Office of Budget and Policy Federal Transit Administration, moderated the event. 

“Secretary Slater has put his money where his mouth is in terms of this program,” he said. 

BART Board of Directors Vice President Willie Kennedy spoke about the history of BART and how it has been influenced by the disabled community. She mentioned that BART has become a model for new transit systems since its beginning in 1972. 

“Some day the Ed Roberts Campus will stand on this site and symbolize the gains and struggles that continue today,” she said. 

Alameda County Supervisor Mary King, also representing the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, talked about the importance of linking a service center such as the Ed Roberts Campus to public transportation. She was followed by Congresswoman Barbara Lee, who praised Ed Roberts and thanked Slater for the donation to the campus. 

Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean spoke about the collaboration among the Ed Roberts Campus supporters, BART and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. She expressed enthusiasm about the opportunities the campus would bring to Berkeley. 

“I want to applaud the partnership that has made it possible for the Ed Roberts Campus to obtain this,” Dean said. “What began as a small group sitting around, talking, has blossomed into a shining vision that will improve services to the disabled, assist in the revitalization of South Berkeley and be an important asset to the great neighborhoods around this area.” 

Slater’s speech underscored the importance of linking transportation and the disabled community. 

“Accessibility is a civil right and every American is entitled to it,” he said.