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Home My WebLink About2004-08-06 Committee on People with Disabilities Minutes COMMITTEE ON PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Friday, August 6, 2004, 10:30 a.m. Kona Mayors Office Conference Room PRESENT: Michael Gleason, Chair; Ted Yamanaka, Vice-Chair; Denise Cowdrey, Lawrence Scadden, James Souza, Laura Tobosa EXCUSED: Betsy Whitney, Secretary; Jack Matsui GUESTS: Sergeant Randy Apele, Police Department; Nikki Cleintuar, James Cowdrey, Malina Dravis, Interpreter; Chuck Fleming, DCAB Board Member; Susan Golden, John Hartman, H.A.W.K.; Andrea Johnson, CNA; Joan Lawhead, Volunteer Enforcement Officer; Lisa Lynch, Mental Health Division; Alisa Mitchener, Recreation Specialist-Department of Parks and Recreation; Sonia Scadden, Teri Spinola-Campbell, Personnel Program Specialist CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 10:30 a.m. An introduction of committee members, staff, and guests wasmade. APPROVAL OF MINUTES D. Cowdrey made a motion to accept the minutes of July 2, 2004. L. Scadden seconded the motion. The motion was passed. STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ISSUES J. Hartman wanted to correct the record that Kahaluu Beach Park does not have rubber mats for wheelchair access and also there is no new pavilion. The accessible route was made ofmanufacturedlumber with plastics and resins and it ran from the parking lot in the south end of the park to the north end of the park to the northern pavilion with the newly renovated restrooms. There was no effort to bring this walkway to the ocean for water entrance due to the fact that the surface under the water is lava rock and coral andwouldbeimpossibleforamobility-impairedpersontowalkonit.Thebestwayto enter the water at Kahaluu would be to install a short pier/dock and have the disabled enterthewaterviaahoistordoasIdocrawldowntothewaterandfloatoutontopof the water over the bottom of the lava rock and coral. TREASURERS REPORT The treasurers report was reviewed. D.Cowdreymadeamotiontoacceptthetreasurersreportassubmitted.J.Souza seconded the motion. The motion was passed. CORRESPONDENCE CorrespondencewasdistributedtoMCPDmembers. Hawaii County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS A. EDUCATION/PUBLIC AWARENESS SUBCOMMITTEE M. GLEASON M. Gleason reported that this subcommittee did not meet this month. B. RECREATION SUBCOMMITTEE L.SCADDEN L. Scadden reported that he received the ADA Self-Evaluation and Transition Plan for Programs of the County of Hawaii Department ofParks and Recreation from A. Mitchener. He will review the report and discuss it with her. C. TRANSPORTATION SUBCOMMITTEE B. WHITNEY No report. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. VOLUNTEER PARKING VIOLATION ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM UPDATE SGT. APELE M. Gleason reviewed the Volunteer Disabled Parking Enforcement Program Statistics submitted by Sergeant R. Apele. Sergeant R. Apele provided an update of the volunteer parking violation enforcement program. Approximately four to six people will begin training in September. He indicated that they are completing recruitment for additional volunteers in Kona. Several more should be in place after training next month. Hilo had only one applicant and it is unknown if that applicant will be selected. The volunteers work with businesses to meet federal regulations with regards to signage and stalls. Sergeant R. Apele requested assistance in purchasing equipment, manuals, and T-shirts for the volunteers. After some discussion, T. Yamanaka made a motion to allocate$500fortheprogram.L.Tobosasecondedthemotion.Themotionwas passed. B. UPDATE FROM DCAB C. FLEMING/D. JACKSON/N. OLESEN No report. C.ADACOORDINATORS REPORT T. SPINOLA-CAMPBELL Report attached. J. Souza said we (the deaf community) were still having problems trying to call Mass Transit because Mass Transit had the TTY hooked up to the same line as their voice line. The staff at Mass Transit often hangs up on TTY users because they did not hearavoice.Itwassuggestedthatifwepressthespacebarrepeatedlyonour TTYs, Mass Transit will then know that there is someone calling on a TTY. However,theproblempersistedbecausethedeafcouldnothear,andhadnowayto know when the other end picked up the phone. She/he (the deaf) often pressed the spacebaratthewrongtimejustbeforetheotherendpickeduporhungupthe phone. 2 L. Tobosa offered to follow up with T. Brown. D. PARKS AND RECREATION REPORT A. MITCHENER A. Mitchener reported on the following: Summer Recreation Programs ENROLLMENT Here are the totals of children with disabilities served in Summer Fun 2004: 8 children had skills trainers as an accommodation 21 had other accommodations 29 children served We served children with autism, ADHD, asthma, a child with Asbergers syndrome, a child with Downs syndrome, a child with a hearing impairment, and a child with Albinism who had a visual impairment. We also had oneteen worker from Alu Like that said she has a disability during ability awareness training in Pahoa. She did not request any accommodations. Slightly more than twenty five percent of Mt View Gyms enrollment had disabilities, raising questions of best practices, ratios, and preparing ahead with extra staff support for programs in communities where the need is great. There may have been other children not registered, documented or observed with disabilities. Most parents do not mention disability when registering their children. Manyparentsareindenialthatadisabilityispresent,andsomeparentshave disabilities themselves and lack basic skills. Aquatics Programs served the summer fun children. There was one child with severe ADHD enrolled in swimming lessons at the Konawaena pool. KCAC has a childcare agency with 40 kids, many of whom had behavioral challenges, attend free public swim regularly (2 times a week for 2-hour segments). Pahala Pool serves Special-Ed and ARC regularly. Innovative/creative program planning initiated this quarter 1) Outlined orientation, 2) Registration with skills trainer agencies, 3) Interagency communication. Summer Fun site assist/staff counseling: Mt View, Pahoa, Waimea, Kailua Park, Yano Hall, Shipman Gym, Panaewa Park, Carvalho Park. Liaison with parents of children with disabilities: Modification plans, information and referral, negotiated reasonable accommodations. 3 Concerns/observations Lack of staff: Establishing administrative support options for Summer Fun and Aquatics ahead of time i.e. capping programs, additional staff, and volunteer development. The hiring of backup staff from Workforce development, Alu Like, etc. in May, to bond with team ahead of time. Skills Trainers: Timely registration of skills trainers, orientation, fingerprinting skills trainers from The Institute for Family Enrichment (TIFFE). Discipline/accommodation/skills trainers roles need clarification. Scheduling and transportation issues with skills trainers due to their limited hours, especially on field trips. To comply with confidentiality and interagency issues, timely parents consent to release information is essential. Children with needs not being served: Staff needs to identify children that may have special needs that are not receiving support services. Sometimes parents appear to have impairments or are in denial. The staff wants to help with referrals to DOE, DOH, and CPS. Some children need one on one support. Parents still do not identify their children with special needs or list medications at registration. Information is disclosed to staff later due to problems. Parents do not request accommodations for their kids. E. EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS L. SCADDEN L. Scadden reported that he had nothing new to report since the Countys Civil Defense Administrator has been activated along with the rest of his National Guard division and will be deployed to Iraq for the next year. L. Scadden was told to contact Lanny Nakano in the Civil Defense office. He will follow up with L. Nakano soon and provide the essential information regarding the emergency preparedness needs of people with disabilities. The meeting was recessed at 11:35 a.m. The meeting was reconvened at 11:40 a.m. F. TRANSITION PLAN UPDATE, PROGRAM ACCESSIBILITY TOOLKIT A. MITCHENER StaffDevelopment:createdcurriculumandconductedtrainingsessionsfor Recreation directors and Summer Staff on introduction to the ADA and US Access 4 Boards Accessibility Guidelines and introduction to adapted Aquatics. All of the countys Aquatics staff including summer swim instructors at the KCAC, Konawaena, and Pahala pool participated. Policy improvements 1. Added acknowledgement of ADA and access responsibilities to job duties for contracted instructors per the transition plans page 40 submittedto Arlene Miyake for Corporation Counsel 6/4/04. 2. Added language to Rule 8 Section 5: Rules relating to Operation and Parking of Vehicles: "E. Any vehicle blocking an access aisle or illegally parked in a space reserved for persons with disabilities is subject to a citation with fines from $250- $500. A placard or special license plate is required." Per transition plans requirement for proactive role in accessible parking enforcement page: 41 submitted to Byron 6/7/04. 3. Added language to Rule 8 Section 6Rules pertaining to Persons Having Exclusive Use of Park Facilities: "N. All public functions (i.e. special events, tournaments, performances, craft fairs,etc.)heldinParksandRecreationfacilitiesarerequiredtocomplywiththe Americans with Disabilities Act. The renter shall make reasonable accommodations and /or modifications as required in order to make services, programs, and activities accessible to persons with disabilities. Submitted to Byron 6/7/04. There was a policy discussion on requirements of agencies group use of pool during public swim timessupervision ratios for adaptive aquatics and lifeguard/patron ratios. Toolkit Update Accessibility reviews Researched Landeez chair loan systems on neighbor islands. ADA says OK to get deposits. Tested pool chair lifts and checked for accessibility: Konawaena and Pahala Pools not accessible: Pahalaserves the community on the public school grounds and is used by special ed and theARC of Hilo year round. Konawaena is next door to Kona Krafts, a day program for people with developmental disabilities. Lack of access is a concern especially due to their close proximity to programs that serve people with disabilities.Konawaena has a broken chair lift and an easy access ladder that needs to be installed. Work orders were submitted. Public input ResponsefromthreeparentswithkidsinMt.View:requestingmoreflexibility. DisabilityRightsHawaiirequestedthatP&Rbecomemoreinvolvedinpublic outreach. 5 Full Life: If a recreation program is to enhance social inclusion, sessions must last long enough for participants to establish relationships. One shot craft days arent enough to work toward creating friendships. Research/Best Practices Closed captioning for P&R Start Living Healthy Programs on channel 27. Adapted aquatics Pool temperature as discrimination Kids AwarenessTraining video loan from Spencer Public Library in IOWA Aspergers syndrome Exercise induced asthma/ Chlorine induced asthma attacks Inclusive Games Need to research ratio of kids with disabilities in programs. Mt. Views enrollment was 25%. Head starts ratio is 10%. Would we qualify for Federal dollars if we attain a certain ratio? Need to research DOE policy on making special education /service referrals. G. DEVELOP POLICY FOR NOTIFICATION OF CANCELLED MEETINGS M. Gleason referred to the policy written by Corporation Counsel when the committee lacks a quorum to conduct a meeting. T. Spinola-Campbell suggested that the news release include a statement about the public to call to confirm the meeting or put a notice in the newspaper canceling the meeting. NEW BUSINESS A. ELECTION OF OFFICERS J. Souza made a motion to nominate L. Scadden as chair. L. Tobosa seconded the motion. The motion was passed. Nominations were made from the floor for the following positions: Chair L. Scadden Vice-Chair T. Yamanaka Secretary B. Whitney L. Tobosa made a motion to close the nominations. D. Cowdrey seconded the motion. The motion was passed. D. Cowdrey made a motion to accept the slate of officers. L. Tobosa seconded the motion.Themotionwaspassed. STATEMENTSFROMTHEPUBLICONNON-AGENDAISSUES None. 6 ANNOUNCEMENTS L. Tobosa encouraged people with disabilities to vote. L. Scadden reported that an accessible voting machine has been selected by the States Office of Election. Training will begin this month for poll workers and interested people with disabilities. A. Mitchener announced that the Hilo World Sprints will have an adapted paddlers exhibition race on Saturday, August 14. The next meeting will be held on Friday, September 3, 2004, at 10:30 a.m. in Hilo. Location will be announced later. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 12:00 p.m. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, _______________________________ JEAN VIERNES, STAFF SECRETARY 7 ADA Coordinator Activities July 2004 Transition Plans: Curb Ramps: 9 ramps were completed in June 2004; 65 ramps are under construction, and 6 ramps have been awarded contracts for construction. For Phase III projects, 12 ramps (intersections) are under construction and 31 ramps (intersections) are under contract. In the matter of Russell v. County of Hawai`I, Paul Sheriff (Paul Sheriff Incorporated) was appointed court appointed monitor to assist in implementing the Curb Ramp Transition Plan. The monitor is responsible for reporting on, evaluating and monitoring the County of Hawaiis compliance with and efforts toward implementing the Consent Decree and Order and the Transition Plan. The County of Hawaii has accepted the Court Monitor. Both Corporation Counsel and the Department of Public Works will be working closely with the Court Monitor. Department of Parks & Recreation: Accessibility Improvements to Mt. View Park are still in progress with DCAB identifying areas of the project which do not meet minimum design requirements sin HRS 103 - 50. DCAB: Coordinated with Adele Ching, 2 workshops Parking Design NotificationProgramforHawaiiCountyoneinHilo(Aug. 18) and one in Kona (August 25). The last I heard from Adele onepersonhadenrolledinHilo,soitmaybecancelled. The has not replied to my Aloha State Association of the Deaf letter about the statusofthe Identification Cards forpeople who are deaf or hard of hearing. Complaints: Three County residents called me with complaints against private entities. I referred one to DCAB, one to Hawaii Disability Rights, and one to the Police (neighbor problem). The concern James mentioned about communications with Mass Transit Agency was resolved. They do have a TTY. Kona Ali`i Seems to be at a standstill: the contractor quit the project and nothing has happened. Hawaii County as an Employer: Drafted and distributed Memo to all employees regarding EEOC Guidelines on Emergency Evacuation Procedures that include individuals with disabilities; coordinated with Safety Department to send surveys to employees to ask if they have any special needs for Emergency Evacuations; Continuing Education: Attended ADA legislative updates by Department of Justice and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission at Tools for Life Conference, Honolulu; Attended 2 day (free) workshop, The Art and Science of Grant Writing offered by the Department of Housing & Urban Development; the presenter mentioned thatHUD needs to fund more accessible housing projects. 2