Broomfield Digital Access Project
Broomfield had a legal deadline, no accessibility process, and 200+ tools to audit. Here's how they turned a one-time project into a lasting program.
The Challenge
Colorado law HB21-1110 required local governments to make all digital services fully accessible. For the City of Broomfield's IT department, that meant starting from scratch.
There was no process, no training, and no institutional knowledge of accessibility. The main website ran on CivicPlus, a platform with known access barriers. Beyond the website, the city relied on more than 200 third-party tools, many with no documented accessibility status. A new Accessibility Specialist was hired to lead the Broomfield Digital Access Project (BDAP) and build the program that didn't exist yet.
The goal: reach full legal compliance and create a process that would hold up long after the initial push.
Our Solution
Phase 1: Audit the full digital ecosystem
The first step was understanding the scope of the problem. We ran deep audits of the website and key vendor software, identifying critical barriers on the CivicPlus platform. Working directly with Broomfield's Marketing department, we fixed the most urgent issues. Where barriers lived inside vendor-controlled components, we contacted vendors directly and pushed for formal fixes.
For the 200+ third-party tools, we built a tracking system. Each vendor was contacted for a VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) and a formal accessibility plan, giving the city a documented baseline for every tool in its stack.
Phase 2: Build a training program that scales
Fixing existing barriers wasn't enough. Staff needed to stop creating new ones. We designed a five-unit training curriculum:
- Accessibility core concepts (required for all employees)
- Basic document creation
- Advanced document creation
- PDF remediation
- Additional resources
Because Broomfield operates as a Google Workspace environment, training centered on Grackle, an accessibility tool built into Google Suite. The full program launched through Cornerstone, the city's existing learning management system, with no new infrastructure required.
Phase 3: Build the support infrastructure
Training alone doesn't change behavior. Each department designated an Accessibility Rep, a staff member responsible for identifying critical documents and keeping accessibility visible day to day.
We also set up a ticketing and feedback system so employees could submit complex documents for expert review. That feedback loop gave each department targeted guidance based on their actual work, not generic training slides.
Results
BDAP did not end when the audit closed. The project became the Broomfield Digital Access Program, a permanent structure for ongoing digital governance.
The department-level data collected during rollout showed exactly where support was most needed, letting the city direct resources where they would have the most impact. Progress is published on Broomfield's official public page, making accountability visible to residents.
The clearest outcome: accessibility shifted from a compliance checkbox to a shared responsibility across the organization. That shift required technical fixes, yes. But it also required training, support structures, and a feedback loop built for the long term.