Accessibility

Summary

We are located at 2482 Maynard Street in the north end of so-called Halifax, Nova Scotia, which is in Kjipuktuk and on unceded and unsurrendered Mi’kmaq territory. Eyelevel's staff and board acknowledge our organization's settler history and recognize our responsibilities as an uninvited guest operating in Mi'kma'ki. Eyelevel also maintains 6 artist studios at 2177 Gottingen Street. Eyelevel strives to accommodate the needs of our visitors as best as possible, mitigating the barriers to access. In order to send an inquiry of our facilities or feedback about your experience, please contact Eyelevel's Artistic Co-Directors Sally Wolchyn-Raab and Cinthia Arias Auz at sally@eyelevel.art and cinthia@eyelevel.art or by phone at (902)425-6412. 

2482 Maynard Street is a wheelchair-accessible building. The building has visitor parking with reserved accessible parking spots. There are push-button door openers at the main entrances, and a button-operated lift to the second floor. The building has wide hallways and all doorways are a minimum of 36" wide. 2 non-gendered washrooms (one with a changing table) are located on the first floor, and 2 non-gendered washrooms without changing tables are located on the second floor. All washrooms have sharps containers and room for a wheelchair to turn - each floor has one large wheelchair-accessible washroom that has grab bars and room to accommodate an aid/personal support worker. A quiet room is also located on the first floor. 2482 Maynard Street is a low-scent, all-ages, low-stimuli building. The second floor is not open to the public except for special events and is normally locked with keypad entry. 

Wonder'neath Art Society, our landlord, has published a comprehensive access guide for 2482 Maynard, which can be found here. Please note that this guide covers a lot of information about the space, but does speak specifically to Wonder'neath's programming and operations, not Eyelevel's.

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Eyelevel's Studios

Eyelevel's Gottingen studios are in a formally residential space on a second floor. All visitors must climb a full flight of stairs (with a railing) to enter. Four of our studios are located on the top floor, which is up a spiral staircase that has a railing and wedge-shaped stairs. This space has one non-gendered washroom and a small kitchenette. Studios are not open to the public except for special events, and are located directly above Radstorm, which hosts all-ages music events on Friday and Saturday nights. Radstorm's programs such as Inkstorm, the People's Photocopier, the People's Fridge, the People's Kiln and Sadrad are available to studio residents. 

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Programming Access/Culture at Eyelevel

Eyelevel's Major Projects occur in spaces throughout the province, the majority of our workshops and events take place in Wonder'neath's Project Room (more info here). Unless advertised otherwise, Eyelevel’s programming and events are in English only. Translations, braille, and live transcription are not part of our regular programming. ASL interpretation and/or automated closed captioning is generally offered at events. If you require language services in order to access our programming, please reach out, and Eyelevel will work to accommodate these needs. 

Eyelevel wants to ensure our visitors and members feel safe, welcome, and comfortable in our spaces and at our events. We do not tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind including but not limited to racism, ableism, ageism, sizeism, white supremacy, heterocentrism, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, etc. If you require immediate assistance, please call or text Eyelevel’s direct line at 902-425-6412. If you would like to contact Eyelevel’s Human Resource Committee with a confidential complaint, please email our HR committee at HR.committee@eyelevel.art. Please know that any concerns or feedback brought to Eyelevel's staff or volunteers will be taken seriously and addressed immediately. 

All Eyelevel programming is fully masked - free respirator masks (KN95 and N95) are provided at all events

Eyelevel's detailed access notes for our general programming and the spaces that we typically operate out of are located below:

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DETAILED ACCESSIBILITY AT EYELEVEL

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COVID-19 Safety Protocols

Bookstore, Office and Programming Protocols:

2482 Maynard Street is a building accessed by a group of around 20 artists and staff from Wonder'neath, Art Bikers, and Eyelevel regularly. These safety measures are specific to Eyelevel's programming and bookstore hours. 

At this time, all visitors to Eyelevel's bookstore and programming participants must:

• Wear masks as required by all visitors to 2482 Maynard. Free respirator masks (KN95 and N95) are provided at all events.

• Eyelevel will have two Blueair Pure 211i Max air purifiers with HEPA and carbon filters working before, during, and after when hosting in-person events.

• We will have a CO2 monitor on-site.

• We will have hand sanitizer and Lysol wipes at the entrance of all of our events.

• Visitors are requested to rapid test before attending events, and to not attend any events if they are feeling sick, or have had a recent COVID-19/airborne illness exposure.

We will do our very best to accommodate the health and safety needs of our visitors. 

• Staff wear respirator masks at all times while on-site and at Eyelevel events.

• Staff rapid test regularly and get PCR tests after travelling.

• Eyelevel has a flexible and generous sick leave policy which allows staff to take time off or work from home if they are feeling ill or have had a recent COVID-19 exposure

• Curbside pickup is available for online purchases, which can be booked here: https://eyelevel.appointlet.com

2177 Gottingen Street Covid safety protocols

• N95 respirator masks are available in the studios and are replenished regularly.

• There are two CR boxes each with four MERV 13 filters on both floors which remain on at all times.

• Lysol wipes are available on-site.

• There is a door that leads to a balcony that can be opened to improve ventilation. 

• This space is not monitored and is not open to the public. When having public events masking is required.

If you require measures beyond our regular COVID-19 protocols, please let us know before your visit to Eyelevel. There is a space in our appointment booking section where you can ask for special measures to be taken by Eyelevel's staff to help you safely visit our space and pick up your bookstore order.

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Physical accessibility

Eyelevel is located in Kjipuktuk (Jeh-Book-Dook), Mi'kma'ki (Meeg-Mah-Gee), the ancestral unceded and unsurrendered land of the Mi’kmaq (Meeg-Mah) and Wolastoqiyik (Wool-Us-Too-We-Ig). 

2482 Maynard Street 

This is a wheelchair-accessible building. The building has wide hallways and all doorways are a minimum of 36" wide. There are push-button door openers at the main entrances, and a button-operated lift to the second floor. The second floor is not open to the public except for special events and is normally locked with a keypad entry. 2482 Maynard Street is a low-scent, all-ages, low-stimuli building. 

2482 Maynard Street has four (two per floor) large, private, large non-gendered bathrooms with grab bars and room to turn and for a support person. First-floor bathrooms have free tampons and pads. Washrooms on the first floor also have changing tables. All washrooms have sharps containers and room for a wheelchair to turn.

Eyelevel Bookstore & Office 

There are two entrances to the building. The door on the left leads up to the second floor and is generally reserved for office use. Eyelevel's office is on the second floor which is closed to the public. Visitors can access our office for meetings and events by contacting Eyelevel's staff when they arrive at the building. 

The second floor can be accessed via a full flight of stairs with a railing, or the accessible lift located at the far end of the Wonder’neath Project Space. The office has room for a wheelchair to make a 360° turn and a 36" wide unobstructed path to and from each workstation. The office has fluorescent overhead lighting, a window and desk lamps with warm LED lights at each workstation. 

The door on the right is propped open for public access during Eyelevel's bookstore hours (Wednesdays to Fridays 12 PM-5 PM) and leads to a foyer with a second door that generally remains closed. This second door is a pull door but can also be opened with a push-button door opener. The bookstore is located on the first floor through Wonder'neath's Project Space. The Project Space can sometimes be loud due to programming in the space. 

The bookstore is wheelchair friendly with display tables at 36" and room to pull a chair underneath. The till is mobile and there is room to turn a wheelchair 360° in the bookstore. 

Books are a tactile experience, blind and partially-sighted folks are invited to explore our bookstore with touch and ask staff for any assistance they require. At present, Eyelevel’s co-directors are trained as sighted guides. Eyelevel’s bookstore and the project space are lit with adjustable overhead fluorescent lighting and natural light. 

Transportation to 2482 Maynard Street and the Eyelevel bookstore

• Bus routes #2 and #3 stop on North Street, 3 blocks from 2482 Maynard. 

• The building has visitor parking with reserved accessible parking spots. 

• Both sides of the street at 2482 Maynard are intended to be paved and pedestrian-friendly. Presently, there is a lot of construction resulting in road and sidewalk closures often limiting access and forcing street crossing. Construction noise may also be a concern for some folks. 

Eyelevel's Gottingen Studios 

Eyelevel operates 6 private artist studios at 2177 Gottingen Street in a former character apartment. This space is closed to the public except for special events. Please note that this once was a residential space that has undergone limited, temporary renovations to become a shared and open (no individual locking studios) studio space.

Physical space: Eyelevel’s space at 2177 Gottingen Street is distributed over two floors. The downstairs houses our 2 large studios, one non-gendered washroom, and a small kitchenette. The upper floor is broken up into 4 small studio spaces via temporary plywood walls. The upper floor has a peaked ceiling. 

Stairs: Visitors to Eyelevel's studios must follow the hallway up a full flight of straight stairs, with a railing on the right-hand side, and a wall on the left. Four of our studios are located on the top floor, which is up a spiral staircase with a railing and wedge-shaped stairs of standard height and is a free-standing structure. The staircase is built from reinforced steel and aluminum. The railing will shift while visitors climb or descend stairs, creating the illusion that the stairs themselves are moving (they aren't!) 

Doors: Eyelevel's studios are located through a non-automatic door that pushes in (opened with a handle) and requires a step up to enter the hallway. 

Washrooms: Eyelevel's studios have a single non-gendered bathroom on site. The bathroom is located down a hallway adjacent to the stairs on the second floor. The bathroom has a sharps container but is not equipped with grab bars or changing facilities.

Lighting and environment: Eyelevel's studio has warm, ambient light and natural lighting. There is a balcony opened to the residents for use with a picnic table. The top floor has minimal natural light, and there are clamp lights available for each studio. 

Noise: Studios are located directly above Radstorm, which hosts all-ages music events on Friday and Saturday nights. The studios are generally quiet during the day. 

Resources: Radstorm's programs such as Inkstorm, the People's Photocopier, the People's Fridge, the People's Kiln and Sadrad are available to studio residents, subject to Radstorm’s respective rules and criteria to access these resources. 
 

Transportation:

• Gottingen Street is a main thoroughfare for bus routes. The #1, #7, #10, #41, #53, #61, #68 heading north-bound (leaving the Bridge Terminal) all stop less than 80 meters from our bookstore on the same side of the street that Eyelevel is on.
• From the North End via Gottingen Street, visitors can take the #7 towards downtown, which stops across the street from Eyelevel 100 meters away. 
• From Mumford Terminal the #2 and #29 will stop within a 600-meter uphill walk on Barrington St. and Cornwallis Street, the #1, which will go through downtown before heading to Gottingen Street, can also be taken from Mumford Terminal.

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Language

• Unless advertised otherwise, Eyelevel’s programming and events are in English only, and staff members are only required to speak and write fluently in English.

• ASL interpretation and/or automated closed captioning on online platforms such as Zoom meetings, videos on social media and training videos are generally offered at events. 

• Eyelevel aims to use plain language and clear communication in all correspondences and program support material.

• Braille, visual descriptions and translation are not currently a regular part of Eyelevel’s programming.

• Eyelevel’s publications are published primarily in English with some exceptions for thematically relevant languages.

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Online Accessibility

Eyelevel makes use of accessible design for all online communications which include high-contrast images and infographics, readable fonts, image descriptions, plain-language communication and breaking down large amounts of information into small sections with clear headings.  

Eyelevel uses Google Forms as an easy and accessible means of accepting submissions, all submissions are also accepted via email with questions/prompts and directions posted on our website to accommodate text-to-speech readers. Submissions in handwritten forms (available at our bookstore) and phone/zoom interviews are also accepted.

Eyelevel offers virtual options for programs whenever possible, and virtual events will be accompanied by ASL interpretation.

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Allergies

As a public space, Eyelevel cannot guarantee our location is free of allergens. We discourage staff, board, volunteers, and guests from using scented products and offer pre-packaged food when catering that accommodates common dietary restrictions and allergens. 2482 Maynard Street is a low-scent building. First Aid Kits and Emergency Eye Wash Stations are on-site in the Wonder'neath Project Space. If you have severe allergies (particularly allergies to a service animal that may be present) please let us know in advance so that we can navigate conflicting access needs.

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Low scent 

2482 Maynard Street

• No smoking in the event space or within 25 feet of the event entrance.

• Two Blueair Pure 211i Max air filtration systems with HEPA and carbon filters are on at full capacity before, during and after events, and during bookstore hours. Filters are replaced yearly.

• We check for off-gassing materials in the space. 

• Before any event, we request that participants refrain from using strongly scented body products and smoking immediately before entering. 

• Staff and volunteers will not wear heavily scented body products. 

• Eyelevel does not manage cleaning in the building. An external cleaning company is contracted meaning we do not control the cleaning supplies used in the space. 

• 2482 Maynard Street has an internal policy of not wearing patchouli-scented products.

• Smudging is permitted. 

2177 Gottingen

• The studios are not well ventilated but the tenant contract states that it is prohibited to use toxic and/or have off-gassing materials in the space. 

• There are two CR boxes each with four MERV 13 filters on both floors which are on at all times. Filters are replaced yearly.  

• A door that leads to a balcony can be opened to improve ventilation. 

• We have no rules around scented products in the studios.

• This may change if we have a tenant with chemical sensitivities. 

• Smudging is permitted. 

Our low-scent practices are communicated in advance to registered attendees and visiting artists and in our access notes for the general public. We include guides on scent-free approaches. We also acknowledge the strong possibilities of access friction and racialized aggression that can happen when enforcing low-scent environments. Unless necessary, our scent policies will only be enforced by gentle, general reminders rather than asking people to leave or wash. These practices regard toxic materials, body care products and smoking which can trigger allergic reactions and chemical injury. These practices do not apply to body odours and food.

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Financial Access 

Eyelevel has no entrance fees during regular hours. The majority of our public programming is free to the public. Occasionally Eyelevel programs events and offers services on a PWYC (Pay What You Can) or by-donation basis. Eyelevel does not turn away visitors due to a lack of funds. We want visitors from all backgrounds to feel welcome at Eyelevel, including those who are systematically, sporadically, or temporarily facing financial barriers. Many of our in-house publications are PWYC, whereas the consignment items in our bookstore are priced by the artists, and are non-negotiable. Memberships to Eyelevel are also offered on a tiered system with a free/PWYC option. Studios are rented at cost.

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Quiet spaces

Wonder'neath has a low-stimuli quiet room located next to the bookstore on the first floor of 2482 Maynard Street (enter through the Project Space) that is available during all events hosted in that space, including Eyelevel events. 

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Relaxed installation periods

• We will work with artists to determine a schedule that works for them. In addition, we can offer assistance in creating and managing the schedule.

• We will schedule longer than usual install periods. Allowing for troubleshooting, snack breaks and rest. We plan for 7-day install periods of six hours a day (including lunch breaks) as a standard, but longer installations can be accommodated at the artist’s request.

• CARFAC installation fees are paid when project grant budgets allow.

• We will gather access support information for installation on the artist’s access rider.

• Funding permitting, we work with trained installation technicians to support artists. 

• Eyelevel’s Co-Directors are experienced exhibition installers and many of the venues that we work with have their own trained technicians.

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Relaxed space

At Eyelevel, we use principles of relaxed performances to make our spaces more comfortable and welcoming to disabled audience members, particularly those who are neurodivergent and have sensory, communication, and/or learning disabilities. By relaxing our bookstore, studio, and event spaces, we create environments which let bodies be bodies. People can arrive late, leave early, move around, make noise, sit or lie on the floor, and do whatever else they need to do to feel comfortable in our spaces. We also do our best to communicate what is going to happen at an event so people can prepare and attenuate their participation to ensure they continue to feel comfortable and relaxed throughout. 

Below is an overview of some of the things we do to create a relaxed space:

Decompression space

During events where the intensity of subject matter is expected, Eyelevel has begun to provide a “decompression space” where stimulus is reduced, and seating is available if someone needs to take respite. We welcome visitors to use the low-sensory room at 2482 Maynard. This small room has low ceilings, a desk with chairs, two adjustable lights and a library. The low sensory room has its own door, however the door does have a large glass window. It is available for all events taking place in the Project Space. 

Content Warnings

Eyelevel aims to notify visitors of possible triggering subject matter through the use of “content warnings.” This may include warnings about flashing lights, loud noises, violence, explorations of trauma, mental health, loss, death, human remains, graphic imagery, sexual content or nudity, etc. Content warnings are not an artistic or ethical judgment on what is being presented at Eyelevel, just a way for audience members to decide if a specific program is right for them. If you have questions about subject matter or images not included in content warnings, please contact staff for a more detailed description. 

Active Listeners

When potentially triggering or activating content is programmed at Eyelevel, we work with trusted community members experienced in de-escalation and emotional support to serve as active listeners. While not trained therapists, active listeners are available to provide validation, an open ear, and resources on a strictly peer-to-peer basis when audience members are feeling activated and need someone to talk to. 

Active listeners are not available at all Eyelevel events. When we plan to have one on-site their presence will be communicated in promotional materials and they will be introduced at the start of the event in addition to the expectations around using their services.  

Relaxed performances

• When having performances Eyelevel will describe the space, what will happen during the performance and what can the audience expect. This will be published before the event. 

• Avoid or communicate the presence of strobing/flashing lights. 

• Dim lights at the venue.

• Sound will be kept between 60 - 80 decibels and we will communicate in our content warnings the presence of loud noises, sudden noises, high-pitches, droning and/or sudden volume changes. 

• We will provide a decompression space in the venue. 

• Audience members are free to come and go. 

• We will select venues that are physically accessible and have good ventilation.  

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Service Animals

Service animals are always welcome in our space and events. Please let a staff member know if your service animal requires water or if you need directions to an area where they can relieve themselves. If you are attending an event or performance with your service animal, we appreciate knowing in advance to ensure they are comfortable and happy and to pre-empt/mitigate any conflicting access needs.

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Touch tours

Eyelevel’s staff will arrange touch tours for projects wherever possible. For visual art exhibitions, Eyelevel will gather approval and any guidance from the artist on conducting touch tours. Eyelevel staff will lead tours throughout the duration of the exhibition on a drop-in basis during open hours, or at specific times which will be communicated as part of the exhibition’s promotions. 

Touch tours of our bookstore are always available during our open hours and Eyelevel’s Artistic Co-Directors are trained as sighted guides to support blind and partially-sighted visitors with safely navigating our space. 

One-night events and performances may include touch tours before or after the event. These guided tours invite folks to touch costumes, sets, props, performance ephemera, etc. These will be arranged with the approval and guidance of the artists. 

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Workshops

The majority of our workshops and events take place in Wonder'neath's Project Space. The main door is automated and equipped with a bang bar automatic door opener to the left of the door, which leads to an interior vestibule, followed by a second bang bar door opener located on the right-hand side of the wall. This second door leads to the main Wonder’neath’s Project Space. The door will be open for your visit. The space has a variety of sitting areas including tables and chairs, couches and a children’s area. The overhead lights have a dimmer switch that allows you to adjust the brightness to your preference. The tables can be moved to accommodate any needs and the walkway toward the lift is kept clear. 

Wonder’neath’s Project Space is a multi-purpose community studio accessed by multiple organizations and groups. It can be visually stimulating and is designed to be a working space, allowing for messy processes. The Project Space is also a throughway for the accessibility lift to the second floor and studio renters will pass through on their way up to their studios.  (more info here).

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All-ages programming

Unless otherwise specified, all events at Eyelevel are all-ages. Guardians and caregivers are invited to contact Eyelevel for further details on events they need to assess its kid-friendliness beyond any content warnings we provide. We do occasionally serve alcohol by donation, but will always accompany bar service with non-alcoholic drinks and snacks. Wonder'neath's Project Space, where we program most events, is clean, but not precious. Objects in our bookstore are meant to be explored and handled. Young children and toddlers are invited to explore Eyelevel's bookstore with supervision. 

While not part of our current programming, Eyelevel is working on making child-minding services a part of our program offerings.