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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Committee For Persons With Disabilities - 07/02/2008Committee for Persons with Disabilities Summary Minutes — 07/02/08 Page 1 of 4 1. Call to Order was at 3:32 p.m. by Chairperson, Abel Alonzo. A. Roll Call was taken, establishing a quorum. In Attendance CFPWD: Abel Alonzo, David Walker, Thomas Dreyer, Herman Lee Jones, Irene Martinez, Harvey Salinas, Rosa Valdez STAFF: Leon Bazar, Patsy Garcia, (Human Relations) Christina Fratilia (Legal) Jamie Pyle, Gerald Tyler (Engineering Services) Yvette Aguilar(Legai) Absent CFPWD: Clifford Bost, David Ramos B. Requests for Excused Absences None 2. Approval of Minutes Chairperson, Abel Alonzo, called for Approval of Minutes. Motion to approve the minutes as written made by Rosa Valdez and seconded by Irene Martinez. Motion passed. 3. Public Comments (Limited to 3 Minutes) Rebecca Whittaker recently relocated to Corpus Christi from Annapolis, Maryland. Ms. Whittaker is permanently disabled and confined to a wheelchair due to a motor vehicle accident in 1996. Ms. Whittaker stated she is a Registered Nurse who relies on the RTA B -Line for transportation and offered to be of assistance to the Committee on a volunteer basis. Cecil Henry is a USA Retiree who obtained a Disabled Parking Permit approximately five years ago. Mr. Henry stated he has never witnessed a Police Officer write a ticket to citizens who are illegally parked in disabled parking spaces. Mr. Henry asked the Committee for information on who he can contact to report illegally parked vehicles. [Christina Fratilia and Gerald Tyler arrived at 3:40 pm] 4. Presentations A. EOC Emergency Preparedness Update - Randy Sijansky Randy Sijansky is the Emergency Management Coordinator for the City of Corpus Christi. Mr. Sijansky provided the Committee members with Waterproof Emergency Document Bags. The bags contained brochures with valuable information on how to prepare for emergencies. The PowerPoint presentation included the following: • EOC participates in continuous programs such as: Outreach, Coordination, Planning, Training and Exercise • IV Phases of Emergency Management: Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Recovery • Special Needs Working Group consists of: Office of Emergency Management, Regional Transportation Authority and B -Line, EMS District Chief, Coastal Bend Center for Independent Living, Health Department, Corpus Christi Independent School District and Salvation Army SCANNED Committee for Persons with Disabilities Summary Minutes — 07/02/08 Page 2 of 4 • Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster: Office of Emergency Management, American Red Cross, Food Bank, Community Action, Catholic Charities and United Way • For more information contact: City of Corpus Christi's Office of Emergency Management — 826-1100, Information Line — 826-4636 and/or www.cctexas.com [Harvey Salinas arrived at 3:48 p.m.] [Chairperson Mr. Alonzo proceeded to ask if there were any other Public Comments] 3. Public Comments (Limited to 3 Minutes) Continued Judy Telge from the Center for Independent Living asked if the Committee and the Center for Independent Living can work together in recognizing the Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA Anniversary will be on July 26, 2008. [Chairperson, Abel Alonzo, continued with Item 4.] 4. Presentations B. ADA Parking Violations Update - Presentation City of Corpus Christi Municipal Court employee, Trisha Dang, provided the Committee with Parking Enforcement Statistics Reports. The reports included statistics from August 1, 2006 thru July 1, 2007 and August 1, 2007 thru July 1, 2008. Ms. Dang explained how the Municipal Court handles ADA parking violations. The minimum fine (first offense) for a person who is not insured is $150.00. The minimum fine (first offense) for a person parked in a designated disabled parking space is $250.00 - $500.00, (second offense) $300.00 - $600.00 and (after third offense) up to $1,000.00. [David Walker arrived at 4:10 p.m.] 5. Chairperson's Report Chairperson Alonzo asked for the Committee's support so he can speak at the next Council Meeting to express concerns regarding the reduced funding in the Human Relations Department. Motion to approve Mr. Alonzo to address the City Council at the next meeting made by Harvey Salinas and seconded by Rosa Valdez. Motion passed. 6. Staff Reports/Comments A. Human Relations Department 1. Department Monthly Performance Report Leon Bazar provided the Committee members with copies of the June 2008 Human Relations Monthly Performance Report and spoke regarding the following: • The number of intakes and accessibility complaints has increased. • ADA Trash Pick -Up Service is a good program and there have been four new requests processed in the month of June. • Mr. Alonzo and Mr. Bazar encouraged the Committee to attend next week's Council meeting to support the Human Relations Department. • Mr. Bazar provided the Committee members with copies of a The New York Times/June 26, 2008 article entitled "House Votes to Expand Civil Rights for Disabled." (A copy is attached to the back of the minutes.) • Mr. Bazar has purchased four tickets for the Coastal Bend Area for the Blind Luncheon/Fundraiser which will be held on July 25, 2008 and invited Mr. Alonzo, Committee for Persons with Disabilities Summary Minutes — 07/02/08 Page 3 of 4 Mr. Walker and Mr. Dreyer to the event. If tickets are not accepted, Mr. Bazar will extend the invitation and contact other members of the Committee. • Mr. Bazar has begun drafting a Proclamation recognizing the Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The target date for the reading of the Proclamation is July 22, 2008. B. Engineering Services Department 1. Project Update — Greenwood Drive, Wooldridge Road and Everhart Road Jamie Pyle updated the Committee on the Greenwood Drive, Wooldridge Road, Everhart Road and other projects that include ADA Pedestrian Components. • Greenwood Drive - 19% complete • Wooldridge Road - 84% complete • Everhart Road - 14% complete • Doddridge Road - 24% complete • Garcia Arts Education Center — 79% complete; ADA compliant bus stop is being constructed at 17th Street and Agnes • Ongoing ADA improvements on Staples Street from Leopard to Six Points, on Water Street from Coopers Alley to IH 37, on Staples Street from Six Points to Louisiana • Opening of ADA compliant walking trail at the H. P. Garcia Park C. Parks and Recreation Department 1. Summer Programs Overview Billy Delgado and Sally Gavlik were not present. No report. D. Development Services Department 1. Commercial Development(s) ADA Overview No report. 7. Subcommittee Reports A. ADA Title I/Employment Comprehensive Subcommittee No report. B. Engineering Subcommittee No report. C. Latchkey Subcommittee No report. Leon Bazar stated a family with a child with a disability who inquired if the child's caretaker would be allowed to be with the child during the latchkey program. Mr. Bazar stated that the request was approved; however, the family did not follow through with the request due to caretaker no longer employed by the family. 8. Committee Education and Goals Workshop Leon Bazar encouraged the Committee meet on a Saturday morning to focus on the Committee's goals and priorities. Mr. Bazar and Mr. Alonso will look at available dates and will notify Committee members via e-mail. Committee for Persons with Disabilities Summary Minutes — 07/02/08 Page 4 of 4 9. Committee Agenda Item Requests The Committee considered asking the Metropolitan Planning Organization to provide a presentation at a future Committee meeting. 10. Adjournment Motion to adjourn was made by Harvey Salinas and seconded by Irene Martinez. Motion passed. The meeting adjourned at approximately 4:58 p.m. The New York Times June 26, 2008 House Votes to Expand Civil Rights for Disabled By ROBERT PEAR WASHINGTON - The House passed a major civil rights bill on Wednesday that would expand protections for people with disabilities and overturn several Supreme Court decisions issued in the last decade. The bill, approved 402 to 17, would make it easier for workers to prove discrimination. It would_ explicitly relax some stringent standards set by the court and says that disability is to be "construed broadly," to cover more physical and mental impairments. Supporters of the proposal said it would restore the broad protections that Congress meant to establish when it passed the Americans With Disabilities Act that President George Bush signed in 1990. Lawmakers said Wednesday that people with epilepsy, diabetes, cancer, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis and other ailments had been improperly denied protection because their conditions could be controlled by medication or were in remission. In a Texas case, for example, a federal judge said a worker with epilepsy could not be considered disabled because he was taking medications that reduced the frequency of seizures. In deciding whether a person is disabled, the bill says, courts should generally not consider the effects of "mitigating measures" like prescription drugs, hearing aids and artificial limbs. Moreover, it adds, "an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active." The chief sponsor of the bill, the House Democratic leader, Representative Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland, said the situation was now bizarre. "An individual may. be considered too disabled by an employer to get a job, but not disabled enough by the courts to be protected by the A.D.A. from discrimination," Mr. Hoyer said. The chief Republican sponsor, Representative F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. of Wisconsin, said the Supreme Court had "chipped away at the protections" of the 1990 law, leaving millions of Americans with no recourse or remedy for discrimination. His wife, Cheryl Sensenbrenner, has testified in support of the bill as chairwoman of the American Association of People With Disabilities, an advocacy group. Mrs. Sensenbrenner suffered a spinal cord injury in 1972, when she was 22, and sometimes uses a wheelchair. In addition, she noted in an interview, she has a sister with Down syndrome. Supporters of the bill immediately shifted their attention to the Senate, which is expected to pass a similar bipartisan measure. Senator Tom Harkin, the Iowa Democrat leading the effort, predicted that the Senate would act "in the near future." The White House said that although President Bush "supports the overall intent" of the House bill, he was concerned that it "could unduly expand" coverage and significantly increase litigation. The House bill reflects a deal worked out in months of negotiations by business groups and advocates for the disabled. The United States Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers helped shape the bill and endorsed it as a balanced compromise. Representative Jerrold Nadler, Democrat of New York, called the Supreme Court reading of the 1990 law "cramped and misguided." Remedial legislation is needed now more than ever, Mr. Nadler said, because "thousands of men and women in uniform are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with serious injuries, including the loss of limbs and head trauma." The House Republican whip, Representative Roy Blunt of Missouri, said the bill "puts people to work, creates opportunity and makes America a more productive country" by unlocking new pools of talent. The 1990 law said "individuals with disabilities are a discrete and insular minority." The bill passed Wednesday deletes that phrase, which the Supreme Court has cited as a reason for limiting the definition of disability. The law generally prohibits an employer from discriminating against a qualified individual who has, or is perceived as having, a disability, defined as a physical or mental impairment that "substantially limits" one or more major life activities. The Supreme Court said in 2002 that "these terms need to be interpreted strictly to create a demanding standard for qualifying as disabled." To meet this test, the court said, a person has to have "an impairment that prevents or severely restricts the individual from doing activities that are of central importance to most people's daily lives." Under the bill passed on Wednesday, Congress would establish a less stringent standard, saying an impairment qualifies as a disability if it "materially restricts" a major life activity like seeing, hearing, eating, walking, reading or thinking.