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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-08-05 Committee on People with Disabilities Minutes Action Required: COMMITTEE ON PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES 1. Invite T. Brown ‚ L. Scadden 2. Letter to Mayor ‚ Friday, August 5, 2005, 10:30 a.m. L. Scadden Kona Mayors Office Conference Room PRESENT: Lawrence Scadden, Chair; Denise Cowdrey, Jack Matsui, James Souza, Laura Tobosa EXCUSED: Ted Yamanaka, Vice-Chair; Betsy Whitney, Secretary; Michael Gleason GUESTS: Malina Dravis, Interpreter; Susan Golden, Sonia Scadden, Teri Spinola-Campbell, ADA Coordinator (Equal Opportunity Officer) CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 10:30 a.m. An introduction of committee members, staff, and guests wasmade. L. Scadden reported that discussion was held at the June meeting about the order of conversation, presentation, and the like. He will continue to keep the meeting in order and be very lax with comments from the public. However, any comments from the public will be on the topic under discussion after the committee completes their discussion. APPROVAL OF MINUTES D. Cowdrey made a motion to accept the minutes of July 1, 2005. J. Matsui seconded the motion. The motion was passed with L. Scadden and L. Tobosa abstaining. STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ISSUES None. TREASURERS REPORT The treasurers report was reviewed. L. Tobosa made a motion to accept the treasurers report assubmitted. D. Cowdrey seconded the motion. The motion was passed. CORRESPONDENCE A. Memorandum from Francine Wai, Executive Director of DCAB, to L. Scadden, regarding response to June 3, 2005 meeting minutes clarifying that DCAB does not grant waivers or issue variances TEAM REPORTS A.EDUCATION/PUBLICAWARENESSTEAM‚M.GLEASON No report. Hawaii County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer B. RECREATION TEAM ‚ L. SCADDEN No report. C.TRANSPORTATION TEAM ‚B. WHITNEY No report. S. Golden reported that there was an open house on Kona road projects last night which drew more than 70 residents to update the public about ongoing and planned road projects. The Hawaii County Council and the Department of Public Works organized the open house. S. Golden said she spoke to T. Brown and they are receiving ten new buses by the end of the year and they are going out to bid for six or seven more buses in November of this year. Their concern is hiring drivers and training. She offered to help train the drivers with the lift. L. Scadden reported that he would like to invite T. Brown to the next meeting to provide an update. D. NOMINATING TEAM ‚ M. GLEASON/L. TOBOSA/B. WHITNEY L. Tobosa reported that they received copies of the applications of the applicants who are interested in serving on MCPD. However, there is only one person from Kona who applied. The team is deciding whether or not to re-advertise to obtain more choicesfrom West Hawaii. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. VOLUNTEER PARKING VIOLATION ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM UPDATE ‚ SGT. D. VERIATO No report. B. UPDATEFROM DCAB ‚ C. FLEMING/N. OLESEN/ K. SHAW The August report from K. Shaw, DCAB was distributed to MCPD members. C. ADA COORDINATORS REPORT ‚ T. SPINOLA-CAMPBELL T. Spinola-Campbell provided her report as the ADA Coordinator for July 2005. ADA Coordinators report attached. T. Spinola-Campbell reported that an issue came up through A. Mitchener regarding a female care attendant who had a male client and she took him into the female changing room to assist him with changing at a swimming pool. There were complaints from women who were in the room because the care attendant did not attend to privacy issues and her client was exposed to them. The care attendant is a young woman and it would be difficult for her to take her client into the male changing room with men in there. An idea came up to close the change room, but anissuearosewiththelifeguardclosingthechangingroomandtakingawaytheir responsibility of watching the people in thepool and tending to safety issues. 2 D. Cowdrey suggested they use the handicapped stall in the restroom as opposed to the changing room since its a biggerarea with a door. T. Spinola-Campbell reported that she received a complaint about the doors in the Aupuni Center. She is meeting with the Department of Public Works this week to address how to provide access. A woman wrote to the Mayor because she observed a man in a wheelchair outside of the Aupuni Center who couldnt get in. The woman and her daughter helped him opened the door and once inside he had difficulty getting into a department. She and A. Levin raised this issue often and now theres a complaint from a member of the public. L. Scadden said that he wrote a letter to the Mayor last November on this topic asking that the particular departments be aware of it and make it a high priority. He offered to follow up with the Mayor on making County Building entrance doors more accessibletopeoplewithdisabilities. D.PARKSANDRECREATIONREPORTANDADAGUIDELINESUPDATE‚ A. MITCHENER No report. E. EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS ‚ L. SCADDEN L. Scadden reported that he needs to follow up on getting emergency preparedness information for distribution through MCPD and other organizations locally. NEW BUSINESS None. STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON NON-AGENDA ISSUES S. Golden reported that the open house on Kona road projects held last night talked about pedestrian safety on old projects. However, pedestrian safety is not addressed at all when the county does the planning or when they do the work. The county needs to establish pedestrian safety as part of the job. Perhaps MCPD could make a recommendationtotheMayorthattheyalwaysconsiderthatinanyjobaspartofthe planning process. Before construction started on Kuakini Highway last October, she broughtuptheissueofpedestriansafety.Theanswerfromeveryonewas€dontworry well take care of it. L. Scadden offered to draft a letter to the Mayor. T. Spinola-Campbell explained that if there is some accessible route, the county has to preserveanaccessibleroute. S.GoldensaidthatconstructiononKuakiniHighwayisbeingdoneonbothsides although the contractors and the county declared last October they would never do the wholeprojectallatonce.Itwouldbedoneinsectionstolessentheimpactonthe community. T. Spinola-Campbell asked why they were working on both sides and they saidtheprojectwillbefinishedsixmonthssooner.Shealsoaskedaboutworkingat night to make it faster, but the community would not approve it. 3 ANNOUNCEMENTS The West Hawaii DD Council meeting will be held on Wednesday, August 10, 2005, at 10 a.m. in the Kona Adult Day Care Center. There will be three community meetings that Josh Green will be scheduling on the Big Island. The Finance and Ways andMeans Committee will be having a meeting on August 25, 2005. Place and time to be announced. J. Souza requested a sign language interpreter. The Legislative Evasive Species group will be having a meeting on September 1, 2005, at 6 p.m. in the Kealakehe High School cafeteria. There will be a Hawaiis Infectious Disease Forum on November 17, 2005. The next meeting will be held on Friday, September 2, 2005, at 10:30 a.m. in Hilo. Location to be announced. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 11:15 a.m. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, _______________________________ JEAN VIERNES, STAFF SECRETARY 4