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DUSTIN LUCA/Staff photoSalem Public Works employees install a Mobi-Mat at the entrance of Dead Horse Beach at Salem Willows. The mat adds accessibility for users of wheelchairs, strollers and more.

DUSTIN LUCA/Staff photoA Mobi-Mat has been donated and installed at Dead Horse Beach in Salem, providing users of wheelchairs, strollers and more a path on the beach this year.

DUSTIN LUCA/Staff photoGarcia Linton, a Salem Public Works truck driver, helps hammer stakes to anchor down an accessible path Friday at Dead Horse Beach.  

DUSTIN LUCA/Staff photoSalem Public Works employees install a Mobi-Mat at the entrance of Dead Horse Beach at Salem Willows. The mat adds accessibility for users of wheelchairs, strollers and more.

DUSTIN LUCA/Staff photoA Mobi-Mat has been donated and installed at Dead Horse Beach in Salem, providing users of wheelchairs, strollers and more a path on the beach this year.

DUSTIN LUCA/Staff photoGarcia Linton, a Salem Public Works truck driver, helps hammer stakes to anchor down an accessible path Friday at Dead Horse Beach.  

SALEM — The city has rolled out a welcome mat at Dead Horse Beach for people who use wheelchairs. 

A 50-foot-long Mobi-Mat, an accessible rollout path, has been installed at the entrance to the main beach leading into Salem Willows. Starting at the break in the beach's concrete wall, the mat provides an immovable, stable surface for any wheeled vehicle or carriage to roll on without getting caught in the sand.

Trish O'Brien, Salem's park and recreation director, said the mat, which costs roughly $3,500, was given to the city by an anonymous donor. 

"A few years back, the donor had reached out to the city and (state Rep.) Paul Tucker to donate an accessible beach wheelchair with the wide tires, which roll easier over the sand," O'Brien said. "I had done some research on accessible beach mats, and the donor had seen this particular style in Florida and liked it as well."

The mat is made of a rubber-like material. It's stiff to the touch and creates a solid, non-buckling surface wherever it's set up. It has been anchored down at Dead Horse Beach and will stay there until park staff remove it at the end of the season, O'Brien said. It will be reinstalled at the beginning of each year.

Steve Kapantais, a Salem accessibility rights advocate who also worked with the donor on the gift, said the mat will make a big difference for residents.

"It's just bringing people where they can't go today, which is a huge thing," Kapantais said. "And it doesn't just make it accessible for the disabled community — it helps the mother who has strollers going to the beach with her kids, or the parent bringing the kids with the wagon. It helps if you take your bike to the beach.

"We're a seaside community," Kapanatais continued, "and this opens up the ocean to so many people."

Officials want to bring more to the city, and the timing may be perfect for that, O'Brien said. The city is in the process of pumping more than $30 million into its largest parks over the next several years, leading up to the city's quadricentennial in 2026.

"I'd like to see how this one works and then possibly put one at Forest River," O'Brien said, referencing the park using the bulk of the city's "Signature Parks" spending. "The new Forest River Pool will offer great accessibility with a chair lift as well."

To respond to this story or suggest another, contact Dustin Luca at 978-338-2523 or DLuca@salemnews.com. Follow him at facebook.com/dustinluca or on Twitter @DustinLucaSN.

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