Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutGRAAC 2015-12-17Grand River Accessibility Advisory Committee Date: Thursday December 17th, 2015 Location: Conestoga Room, Kitchener City Hall Present: Amanda Moorhead, Greg Moore (Co- Chair), David Kuhn (Co- Chair), Keri Cameron, Donna Hartzler, Rob Bender, Andrew Tutty, Sharon Giles, Carrie Speers, Mike Shipley, Dawn Clelland, Brenda Robinson, Lolita Paroski (City of Kitchener /City of Waterloo), Vanessa Lopak (Region of Waterloo), Kaitlyn Werth (Township of Wellesley),Wendy Smith (Township of Wellesley), Johanna Ellis (City of Kitchener, Recorder), Julie Forth (Township of Woolwich), Julia Sippel (Township of North Dumfries), Dawn Mittelholtz (Township of Wilmot), Councillor Sue Foxton (Region of Waterloo). Regrets: Laura Master, Paula Saunders, Kathie Must, Councillor Bob Mavin (City of Waterloo), Councillor Kelly Galloway - Sealock (City of Kitchener) 1.0 Welcome and Introductions • David welcomed everyone • Round table introductions 2.0 Approval of November Minutes and December Agenda • Motion by Greg Moore, seconded by Sharon Giles to accept the November minutes, carried. • Motion by Dawn Clelland, seconded by Carrie Speers to accept the December agenda, carried. 3.0 Declarations of Pecuniary Interests • None 4.0 Township of Wellesley 2015 Status Update — Kaitlyn Werth • All staff, council, volunteers have been trained /refreshed on the Human Rights Code and Accessible Customer Service. • Completed the AODA compliance reporting for 2015. • Completed and implemented: - Return to work process for employees who have been absent from work due to a disability and require accommodation in order to return to work. - Updated the Employment Standards so when recruiting new employees, they are aware of the accommodation upon request piece. - Individual Emergency Response Plan for employees has not been requested yet. • Feedback form has been provided on the website under the accessibility tab. - Also under the tab is information about accessible document requests available upon request. • Sidewalks were installed and replaced throughout the township and will continue into 2016. All are 5' wide with steel plates as per our Development Standards. - Also in Development Standards, all trails installed now are to be asphalt and not stone dust. • Zoning By -Law parking regulation has been updated and is compliant with the AODA. • The Trails committee was formed and meet once a month. They decide where trails are needed and implement a plan for the proposed sidewalks. Plans for 2016 • New website, hopefully, to be consistent with the Region and Townships. - All documents uploaded to the website will be accessible. • There are only a few people who know how to answer the TTY. Training and retraining will be completed. • Training employees on how to create accessible documents. • St. Clements will be constructing an accessible playground and Wendy will bring information to GRAAC. :1 5.0 Township of Wilmot Multi -Year Accessibility Plan (DRAFT) — Dawn Mittelholtz Highlights: • The Township of Wilmot is pleased to present its multi -year municipal accessibility plan (2016 -2020) in accordance with the requirements of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001(ODA, 2001) and the Integrated Standards. • The population of the Township of Wimot is approximately 21,000 residents. Includes the areas of New Hamburg, Baden, New Dundee, St. Agatha, Mannheim, Lisbon, Petersburg, Foxboro Green, Morningside, Philipsburg, Haysville, Wilmot Centre, Shingletown, Sunfish Lake and Luxemburg. • The Township of Wilmot formally joined GRAAC in 2015. • Compliance with the AODA: Customer Service Standard —listed on the DRAFT Plan on page 5 and 6. • Once the Accessibility Plan is approved by Wilmot Township Council, it will be made available on the Township's website; www.wilmot.ca • Dawn went through pages 8 to 20 reviewing the goals and actions from 2011 — 2015. Highlights of these goals and actions are as follows: a) Accommodations for persons who are deaf, deafened or hard of hearing in Municipal Services. The Clerk's office will engage ASL interpreters through the Waterloo Branch of the Canadian Hearing Society, on an as needed bases, for public meetings of Township -wide interest. (No requests have been made to date for this service). The TTY component of the new telephone system with computer based technology was installed in June 2014. b) Corporate Communications — Alternate Formats - To provide municipal information in `alternate formats' to residents with disabilities. - Upon request, information in alternative formats will be provided as per the Township policy. c) Technological Barriers GRAAC — December 2015 Minutes Page 2 - To improve the Township's website accessibility. - A Website Steering Committee was established to work in conjunction with eSolutions to design a new website for the Township that meets accessibility standards to 2021. The new website was live as of December 7th, 2015. It includes a `Feedback" button for comments about the website and Accessibility Feedback relative to the website, municipal facilities, municipal services and by -law enforcement that impedes mobility. d) Policy /Practice Barriers - PAL card was expanded to include public skating at the new recreation complex. The availability of a PAL Card on the municipal website, and will be advertised in the municipal information pages of the Wilmot Recreation Guide in 2016. e) Accessible Parking: Wilmot Township established By -law No. 2003 -56 regarding accessible off street parking. A minimum provincial fine of $300 has been approved by the Attorney General for any violators found parking, setting or standing in a space marked for disabled parking. f) Election Accessibility is outlined on pages 10 to 14. Pages 14 to 17, of the DRAFT document, addresses all Barriers in Municipal Facilities. • The Employment section addresses the following; Recruitment — Notify the public and employees about availability of accommodations for job applicants with disabilities. - Employment Accommodation — Ensure the availability of supports to employees with disabilities. - Employees returning to work — Put process into place for employees returning to work requiring disability - related accommodations. • Transportation — GRT Transit Trial; Wilmot does not directly provide transportation service, however, the Region is providing transit service on a trial basis in 2016 to estimate demand. • Built Environment — Trails Master Plan. AODA criteria to be considered includes; operational experience, width, longitudinal /running slope, cross slope, total slope surface, changes in level and signage. Guidelines and technical requirements in the Built Environment Standards will be referred to during trail design and construction. Questions /Comments: • Question: Are there other places other than kitchens, where guide dogs are not allowed? Answer: Aquatics Question: Do you have an automated tactile machine for elections? Answer: Yes Question: Are there any adult change tables in your facilities? Answer: No GRAAC — December 2015 Minutes Page 3 6.0 City of Kitchener 2015 Status Update — Lolita Paroski - The status update for the Cities of Kitchener and Waterloo will be presented separately this time. - Design of Public Spaces Standard has been added. Highlights: • In 2015, the Customer Service training and IASR training including OHRC, duty to accommodate were combined into a single module and delivered as "Accessibility at the City" for both on line and in class. • City of Kitchener direct volunteers receive training through a joint City of Kitchener /City of Waterloo Customer Service training brochure and joint City of Kitchener /City of Waterloo OHRC, duty to accommodate training brochure. The staff lead of the volunteer group is responsible to ensure the volunteers are trained prior to starting the volunteer role. • TTY training sessions are offered every two years. Staff received training in the Spring of 2015 by the Canadian Hearing Society. Training resources for staff are made available on the City of Kitchener intranet. Next training session to be planned for the Spring of 2017. The Inclusion Coordinator provides training and training resources to new staff. • "Supply Services: Who, What, Where, When and Why" staff training addresses the importance of accessible purchasing. Staff is also made aware of resources available to them on the City of Kitchener intranet. • All formal bid solicitations have an AODA clause which links them to legislation documents. All other purchases have the terms and conditions attached to the purchase order which includes the AODA clause. Posted on The City of Kitchener website on the bid /tender webpage is accessibility information for third party contractors. • The City of Kitchener has a statement on The City of Kitchener website informing people that accessible formats and communication supports are available upon request. • In 2015, the implementation of including the City of Kitchener Corporate Contact Centre phone number as the main point of contact for requests. This allows for more efficient customer service. • In 2015, an accessibility button was created for the front page of the City of Kitchener website. This button will take you to a page which will provide you with accessibility information. • The city has been conducting a website review. Through the website review, staff is reviewing each document to see what needs to stay on the website, which are no longer relevant and which need action to ensure they are accessible to WCAG guidelines. • In 2015, The City of Kitchener online employment application form has added a field for an applicant to include a TTY number as a method of contact. This will allow staff the opportunity to contact the applicant through TTY. Lolita will present the Design of Public Spaces Standard, section 80.44, maintenance of accessible elements during the City of Waterloo status update. At the end of the Status Update a list of GRAAC's City of Kitchener activities for 2015 is included. GRAAC has provided advice to The City of Kitchener on several projects. GRAAC — December 2015 Minutes Page 4 7.0 City of Waterloo 2015 Status Update — Lolita Paroski Highlights: • New staff received Accessibility training through Corporate Orientation. Part time and seasonal staff receive training through an e- learning module created specifically for City of Waterloo staff. • City of Waterloo direct volunteers receive training through a joint City of Kitchener /City of Waterloo Customer Service Training brochure and OHRC, duty to accommodate training brochure. Volunteer Services is responsible to ensure the volunteers are trained prior to starting a volunteer role. • TTY training sessions are offered every two years. Staff received training in the spring of 2015. Training resources are made available to staff on the City of Waterloo intranet. Next training session to be planned for spring 2017. The Inclusion Coordinator provides training and training resources to new staff. • Existing purchasing training addresses accessible purchasing. In the upcoming year, staff will be working on a more formalized training plan for purchasing and will include accessible purchasing. • All formal bid solicitations have an AODA clause which links them to legislation documents. • The City of Waterloo has a statement on the website informing people that accessible formats and communication supports are available upon request. The City of Waterloo letterhead has included the statement as a footer. • In 2015, the corporate website policy was modified to reflect incorporation of web content accessibility best practices. • Staff that create documents for the web have been trained on how to create accessible documents. Creating accessible document tutorials with an emphasis of adobe acrobat has been created for staff as a toolkit. • In 2015, City of Waterloo updated accessibility training materials for Adobe Pro 11. Accessible templates have been developed and shared with staff for public documents required to be posted on the web. • In 2015, the City of Waterloo online employment application form has added a field for an applicant to include a TTY number as a method of contact. This will allow staff the opportunity to contact the applicant through TTY. The Design of Public Spaces Standard, section 80.44, maintenance of accessible elements states that multi -year accessibility plans shall include procedures for preventative and emergency maintenance of the accessible elements in public spaces and procedures for dealing with temporary disruptions. • Our current City of Kitchener /City of Waterloo joint multi -year accessibility plan guides us • Lolita went through the chart highlighting all the sections within the DOPS and sharing what the City of Waterloo and City of Kitchener are doing with preventative and emergency maintenance. At the end of the Status Update a list of GRAAC's City of Waterloo activities for 2015 is included. GRAAC has provided advice to the City of Waterloo on several projects. 8.0 City of Waterloo Accessibility Guide Update — Sasha Oliveira • Sasha shared that since the last time they presented to GRAAC changes have been made to the Accessibility Guide. • Changes include; the introduction has been updated; who the users are; purpose of how the document is used and including sections for on street parking. • Sasha shared that she attended the November GRAAC meeting when Vanessa presented the Regional draft DOPS guide and is aware that GRAAC recommended coordination between the Region and the two cities. • Sasha is hoping that GRAAC would, today, endorse the idea of the City of Waterloo Accessibility Guide. • The committee indicated that they would need to see the final document before agreeing to anything. 9.0 Approach to Position Papers — Greg Moore • A template will be created to help meet timelines. • Looking for volunteers to meet between this meeting and January's meeting to work on a template and how position papers will be written. • Volunteers are; Brenda, Dawn, Sharon, Carrie. • Will copy the group with meeting date(s) just in case someone else's schedule frees up. 10.0 Councillor(s) Report(s): • Sue Foxton — With all the work completed on position papers that the committee does, it would be nice to see them come up at council meetings. • Comment was made by a GRAAC committee member that they need more representation from other Councillors at GRAAC. 11.0 Transportation Committee Update — Sharon Giles • Last meeting was cancelled. • Will try to reschedule a meeting in January. 12.0 Co -Chair Report — David Kuhn /Greg Moore • Greg shared that his intention is to step down as Co -Chair but to remain on GRAAC. • This is David's final meeting. Encouraged committee members to think about Co -Chair position and Sub - committee chair positions. Elections will be held at the January GRAAC meeting. • David thanked the Committee for their involvement. GRAAC — December 2015 Minutes Page 6 13.0 Staff Report(s) — All staff • Lolita will forward December 3 d email to the committee for input on The City of Kitchener's website. • Vanessa presented David with a certificate of appreciation and gave a background of David's leadership and contributions, not only to GRAAC but to the Community as well. 14.0 Adjournment • Motion to adjourn by Dawn Clelland, seconded by Andrew Tutty, Carried Next meeting is Thursday January 28th, 2016 from 1:30 — 4:00 pm at Kitchener City Hall in the Conestoga Room. GRAAC — December 2015 Minutes Page 7