Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Accessibility Committee March 31, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 7:30 pm Link to rebroadcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. Chair, Wolfgang Keppley, called the meeting to order at 7:30 pm. b. ROLL CALL i. Wolfgang Keppley ii. Sue Lewis c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None. b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None. 3. WORK SESSION a. ADA Office priorities i. Allyson Finchum (ADA Coordinator) lists priorites 1. Update ADA Transition Plan a. Intersection curb ramps are a priority 2. Supporting the ADA Advisory Committee a. Committee holds primary task of transition plan update 3. Addressing complaints a. Allyson receives and attempts to resolve b. Committee holds hearings if cannot resolve 4. Need to figure out how ADA Advisory Committee fits with HRC Accessibility Committee b. Status of ADA Advisory Committee i. Previously HRC Commissioners sat on ADA Advisory Committee 1. Sue Lewis, Olivia Boykin, and Charlene Green served on the Committee ii. Committee has not yet met during the time Allyson has been on staff 1. Allyson has list of members 2. Can invite Commissioners to upcoming meeting 3. Previously met quarterly iii. ADA Advisory Committee 1. Staff advisory committee that is not appointed by Council iv. Allyson has asked Missy Creasy about HRC Commissioner presence on ADA Advisory Committee 1. Awaiting response 4. Transition plan update focuses a. Allyson consulted with Jim Herndon regarding needed changes b. Curb ramps installation is the priority i. She will work to make sure this project is adequately funded ii. This is currently behind schedule iii. ADA requires that any time a street is resurfaced the curb ramps should be installed iv. ADA Committee, Public Works engineers, and Allyson’s supervisors at NDS all support prioritizing this work 5. Site plan reviews a. ADA Coordinator works with engineering staff to review site plans b. Reviews for ADA compliance and rights of way c. Some site plans already underway others are pending review 6. Accessibility of City resources a. Communications Department has made some advancements in accessible technology b. Other Departments have been handling pieces of ADA compliance c. ADA Coordinator can help make sure City is in compliance and that the right people are engaged in creating accessible resources 7. Other sidewalk improvements a. Public Works sidewalk improvement survey and a utility pole assessment were mentioned in 2013 transition plan i. Allyson can investigate status 8. CAT and other pedestrian transit a. Amanda Poncy has also been addressing ADA compliance in her work b. Allyson has received one complaint involving Jaunt and requests for some changes to CAT services i. These are both in process and have not yet been resolved 9. City resident participation and engagement a. Community members can file ADA complaints online through email form on the City website b. Email monitored by i. Allyson ii. Engineers iii. Brian Wheeler c. Outreach i. Not planned yet, as Allyson has only been in the position for a few weeks ii. Will be looking toward doing this in the future d. Commission suggestions i. Adding captions to broadcasts of City meetings ii. Transcriptions of City meetings iii. Translations of City documents to other languages iv. Public awareness of ASL interpretation services for City meetings 1. Make the process clear and easy to access 2. ASL interpreter at all Council meetings a. Notes that Ralph Northam always has an ASL interpreter during public presentations v. Staff suggests considering the scope of ASL interpretation services 1. Consider which meetings should have live ASL interpretation a. All boards and commissions vs. just Council and select boards and commission b. Consider making a budget recommendation to Council coupled with a proposal for the scope of services vi. Allyson replies 1. ASL interpretation could be included in the transition plan, but this may depend on the ADA Advisory Committee a. Allyson will look into this process 2. ADA compliance only requires that ASL interpretation be made available on an individual request basis a. Going above and beyond the requirement is possible vii. Commissioners suggest potential actions ahead of a larger proposal to Council 1. Greater public awareness of closed captioning on Facebook live a. Does not account for people who only access Council meetings through the television and do not use Facebook viii. Brian Wheeler replies 1. Communications has not seen an ASL interpretation request for Council meetings in the three years 2. Zoom supports live captioning (a live person types the text of the meeting in real-time) a. Not currently in the City budget 3. Boxcast also supports closed captioning for a fee and could be turned on a. This would not show up on Channel 10 broadcasts ix. Commissioner suggests asking ADA Advisory Committee members their views and ideas for ASL and captioning of City meetings 10. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. Shelby Edwards 1. Notes a specific transportation concern related to the redevelopment of one particular public housing site 2. PHAR and CAT are working to resolve the concern but there may be some ADA regulations involved 3. Asks for the best way to discuss with ADA Coordinator further b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. Allyson responds to Shelby 1. Will follow up with Shelby after the meeting by email 11. NEXT STEPS a. Allyson will look into the status of the Public works sidewalk improvement survey and a utility pole assessment. b. Allyson will look into the process of including broadened ASL interpretation services in the ADA Transition Plan. c. Allyson will confirm the date and time of the next quarterly ADA Advisory Committee meeting. 12. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 8:21 pm.