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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Human Relations Commission - 12/06/2001 SUMMARY MINUTES—QUORUM MEETING HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION MEETING December 6,2001 Commissioners-Present Commissioners-Absent Chairperson:Mr.Oscar Hinojosa, Sr. Vacancy(Sandra Terrell-Davis) Ms.Betty Black Vice Chair:Dr. Sylvester Peterson Dr. Stuart Elovitz Ms.Laura Aguifiaga Mr.Daniel Gonzales Mr.Richard"Dik"Johnson Ms. JoAnn Kernick Ms. Wendy Lai Ms. Crystal Lyons Mr. Joey Maldonado Ms. Amy Rhoads Ms. Stephanie Saenz Mr.Errol Summerlin Ms.Nancy Vera Staff—Present HRC Legal Advisor—Absent L.David Ramos Mr.Joseph Harney June Shultz The Human Relations Commission held its Regular Monthly Meeting on December 6,2001 at 5:00 p.m.,in City Hall, 1201 Leopard St., Council Chambers, Corpus Christi, Texas. This meeting was a quorum meeting. The following are summary minutes of the meeting. ATTENDANCE: Roll Call — Absences: Dr. Peterson, Laura Aguifiaga and one absence - due to Commission vacancies. Currently there is one vacant position-a replacement for the position vacated with Sandra Terrell-Davis' resignation. The Council appointment is pending. PUBLIC COMMENTS/PRESENTATIONS: Assistant Chief Villagomez provided public comments. He discussed the recent presentation that he and the Police Department provided on Hate Crimes. He thanked Chairperson Hinojosa for the opportunity to give the presentation. It took longer than originally planned to audiovisual related problems on the day of the event. The presentation is a two-part program—Power Point and a video. Mike Wallace with CBS did the video. The video was very popular. Many persons who attended contacted him afterwards. Assistant Chief Villagomez commented that the Commission is welcome to use the video. However, he prefaced that it is important to address initial information prior to the video. Otherwise the information loses some of its touch. The video covers events that occur throughout the Country. We are not in the forefront here. But he wanted to let the Commission know that he didn't mind sharing the information. Also, if the Commission would like, they can copy the video. (He mentioned the very first part of the video was damaged at the last presentation, so that portion would be missing.) The Chair asked Assistant Chief Villagomez if there were any hate crimes here in Corpus Christi? Assistant Chief Villagomez indicated that in the past there were possibly 5 to 6 hate crimes per year. However, in 2000, 12 hate crimes were reported, and this year (2001) there have been 13 reported so far. Part of the problem is that it requires extra training,application of that knowledge and screening of the crimes to identify a crime as a hate crime. Some information or things may be missing at the point the patrol officer makes the initial report. Often,it isn't until a Detective gets involved that during the follow-up process, sufficient information is obtained to properly designate it was a hate crime. It is also important to note that this is only information on the crimes that are reported. Often, victims are afraid to make a formal report. The Chair asked Assistant 1 : ; ' Az Chief Villagomez if these cases have gone to Court? Assistant Chief Villagomez indicated he would research the issue and get back with the Commission. Commissioner Elovitz indicated that the presentation was excellent. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES: The November 1, 2001 (quorum meeting)Minutes were reviewed for approval. A Motion was made by Commissioner Lyons to accept the minutes as presented. Commissioner Johnson seconded the Motion. There were no questions,a vote was taken and passed unanimously to accept the minutes as presented. CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT: Mr. Ramos and the Chair met with the CCISD Superintendent, Dr. Chavez. The meeting was to discuss some concerns raised regarding ARD Meetings and Harassment of children with special needs. CCISD indicatedthey wanted to work with the City on addressing concerns. Dr. Chavez indicated he would look into the matter, then follow-up with the parents. They discussed the Commission's Education Subcommittee and the plans for outreach in the community and schools. They told Dr. Chavez about the Youth Commissioners. Dr. Chavez was very much in favor of the program plans. The date of the meeting was November 19,2001. Commissioner Johnson asked if Dr. Chavez indicated a time when he would get back with Human Relations or the Commission? Mr. Ramos indicted that Dr. Chavez said that he would be contacting various persons about the allegations. He would then check the information and contact Ms. Shultz. The Chair indicated that he trusted him—he's sure he'll look into it. Commissioner Vera asked if the Department sent a follow-up letter to cover what was discussed in the meeting? The Chair indicated, "No,he provided written information provided by Ms. Shultz on some of the specific concerns. Mr.Ramos indicated they could go ahead and send a follow-up letter. Commissioner Vera indicted that it is a good practice to document what has been discussed. It is good to trust,but it is also good to document. Things happen. The Chair asked Commissioner Vera if she was a member of the Education Subcommittee? Commissioner Vera confirmed she was. Commissioner Lyons asked if Dr. Chavez provided any information on the formal grievance procedure or indicated when he will follow-up? Mr. Ramos indicated that he had told Dr. Chavez that he would send him a copy of the Ordinance, which reflects the City's authority to address certain aspects of the complaint. Then Dr. Chavez was going to send Mr. Ramos a copy of the procedure. Commissioner Lyons asked Mr. Ramos to share a copy of what is sent by Dr. Chavez with the Commission. She was interested in what they say is their procedure. Mr.Ramos indicated he could do that. Commissioner Black indicated that she agreed with Commissioner Vera,that it would be good to have a record of the meeting and discussion. Mr. Ramos indicated that Dr. Chavez asked if the Commission got involved with Title 10 (or 9)? Mr. Ramos indicated, "No, that's not the role of the Commission. However, it was bordering on a hate crime issue and that's why they got involved. There was discussion about our Mission Statement. Commissioner Vera said that there is a School Board Procedure as well for grieving any issue. Mr. Ramos indicated that Mr. Chavez wanted to know our areas of authority. The Chair indicated that since Dr. Chavez is new in town, he wanted to provide him with information about the Commission. Mr.Ramos and Ms. Shultz briefly discussed the issues involved in the complaint. The Chair indicated that they would follow-up with Dr. Chavez. Commissioner Elovitz asked who was in charge of Special Education issues? Commissioner Vera indicated that would be Dr. Goodlow. The Chair indicated that they would follow-up with Dr. Chavez,as they had initially spoken with him and he is the Superintendent of the School District. COMMITTEE REPORT Housing Committee: Commissioner Maldonado was not present. They have not met yet. Committee for Persons with Disabilities: Commissioner Crystal Lyons is the Chair. The CFPWD met on December 5th. On Tuesday, Ms. Lyons will give a resolution to the City Council regarding the Building Code Ordinance Revision project. This pertains to bringing the City's Building Code up to TAS standards. In January,the Committee would like to begin work on an Accessibility Guide. She hopes that some of the Commissioners might like to become involved in developing the list of places and public access, an reference source for showing what is accessible. Next week,they have scheduled a meeting for forming a 2 steering committee. Anyone interested in participating, please contact Commissioner Lyons. She has spoken to the Mayor about the project. The Chair asked if Mr. Ramos has been meeting with City Departments regarding the ADA Transition Plan Project? Mr. Ramos indicated that yes he was meeting with the departments and discussing the self-evaluation process for facilities and programs offered to the community. They are to note any concerns on the self-evaluation forms. He has held approximately 8 to 9 meetings with various departments. The self-evaluation forms are due back in January 2002. The information should include summaries of deficiencies to present to the Core Group. They will review all the information and the present a report to the City Manager. They will then hold public meetings for community input—i.e.: City Hall,then possibly at Flour Bluff or Calallen. If the Commissioners have any suggestions, please let Mr. Ramos know as soon as possible. The process plans are to bring in people's input from the community at the public meetings, incorporate the information, provide an update to the City Manager, then proceed with a report to the City Council. They are projecting to have a working document by July 2002. Mr.Ramos expressed a concern that there is a need to ensure that this continues to be a working document, with involvement by the Commission, the Committee for Persons with Disabilities, the City Manager and the Core Group. Mr. Ramos indicated that they would try to start working on identified deficiencies as soon as possible. He will be working with Commissioner Lyons. If you have input information, please let Mr. Ramos know. They are developing plans regarding media releases,flyers and/or notification through the City's utilities bills. Education Sub-Committee: Commissioner Laura Aguiliaga is the Chair. However, she wasn't present. Commissioner Vera is on the Committee and she indicated that they hadn't had a meeting. However, she discussed the work that had been done on the project to date and that they had encountered resistance from some of the local area Principals. Commissioner Vera indicated she had spoken with some others about the possibility of providing Human Relations sensitivity training. But now that Dr. Chavez has indicated that he is amenable to educational opportunities they could do provide it there as well. Ms. Shultz mentioned that Commissioner Aguinaga has mentioned wanting to get the names of volunteer in the areas of: • Training Materials • Speakers • PSAs • Outreach Events It was discussed that some Commissioners might feel more comfortable working in one or another of these areas, so it was going to be left up to the Commissioners to volunteer under a particular area they were interested in. The Chair also asked committee members to let him know if the Principals are uncooperative. Mr.Ramos suggested that the committee work through Dr. Chavez's office. They need to come up with the curriculum, and then Mr. Ramos can review it. Once approved, then it could be shared with Dr. Chavez. Dr. Chavez wanted to know what content would be shared. They (the School District) would also need to approve the training or presentation materials. Commissioner Vera indicated that they were also looking at a smaller scale presentation that would be less disruptive. Mr. Ramos discussed the concern the school had on any inappropriate information being distributed—that the information should be related to a class. Commissioner Saenz questioned that position. She indicated that she has attended assemblies dealing with pregnancy issues, drug issues, etc. — they had nothing to do with a class. Commissioner Elovitz indicated that he believed it was just a standard process to screen content. OLD BUSINESS: Transition Plan-Update. Public Form—Attendance by Commissioners. Mr. Ramos had already provided an update on the Transition Plan Project. He also provided information on the plans for the public forum meetings. NEW BUSINESS: Postponement of January 2002 Meeting: There was discussion about the possibility of postponing next month's meeting that would be held on January 3,2002. The Chair indicated that it is too close to the holidays and many people would be gone. General discussion ensued. The Chair indicated he would be gone. Dr.Elovitz indicated that he would also be absent. Commissioner Lyons asked what the Ordinance requires? Ms. Shultz indicated that it has been a past practice that the Commission could postpone or cancel a meeting. Both have occurred. Commissioner Lyons indicated that she was not in favor of canceling the meeting,she would rather postpone it. The Chair indicated that the meeting is normally held on the first Thursday of 3 the month. Commissioner Vera indicated that she concurred with Commissioner Lyons. Commissioner Kernick asked if the Vice Chair could conduct the meeting? The Chair indicated yes,but he wasn't sure if the Vice Chair would be present. Commissioner Lyons raised a motion to postpone the regular monthly Commission Meeting to the second Thursday of the Month (January 10th). Commissioner Vera seconded the motion. Further discussion ensued. Commissioner Summerlin indicated that he thought this was probably a valid motion,but if there was a concern,then they could amend the motion to put forward a proviso, that if this wasn't a valid motion,then the Commission will proceed to hold the meeting on the first Thursday of the month. A vote was taken,6 in favor, 6 opposed. There was further discussion, the Commissioner Kernick made another motion to move the meeting to the second Thursday (January 10th),which was seconded by Commissioner Vera. A vote was taken,7 in favor, 5 opposed. Therefore the next meeting will be held on January 10,2002 at 5:00 p.m. It is unknown at this time if the Council Chambers will be available for the meeting. The location will be determined at a later date,and notice will be sent to the Commissioners. ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT: Mr.Ramos provided the Administrator's Report and reviewed the information. HUD accepted another charge. We are half way through the investigative process on the first complaint. The Compliance Officer is getting ready for the On-Site visit. We will close the case within the next thirty days. (There is a requirement to complete an investigation within one hundred days, or you must request an extension through a written request and explain the circumstances for the extension request.) That case was filed under the Basis: Race and Disability, Issue: Eviction. The second case is at the point in the process of being entered into the Teapots system. The case was filed under the Basis: Disability, Issue: Eviction. Mr.Ramos will keep the Commission informed as the investigation proceeds. One Compliance Officer has been assigned to each case,but all the staff are working on it and being included in the training process. EEOC—the Office has now completed the second month of the contract. We closed 12 cases toward the 128 case, and 22 intakes toward the 172 intakes—where cases are taken in the office and then referred to the San Antonio District Office for investigation and closure. Therefore, although we have other pending closures, presently we have 15 closures and 30 intakes. There are 96 pending cases. As cases are closed, they are replaced with new cases added to the existing caseload. Now they have two Compliance Officers, the caseload has been divided between them. He is also assisting with investigations and closures. The average case age has lowered to 267. He believes the average case age will continue to drop, as the older cases are closed. Of the 96 cases, 15 are over 365 days. This month we have closed additional older cases. Staff are diligently working on lowering the age of the cases. A new case management process has been implemented. Cases are identified and separated or targeted to be worked on, on a weekly basis. All the files were moved to a central location and they are filed by where they fall in the timeline of the investigation,i.e.:Requests for Information need to have a response in a designated time and they are set up on a suspense calendar. The new process seems to be working. We hope to have all the older cases closed within the next month. Once a case gets older,it is more difficult. Rodney Klein,the previous State and Local Deferral Coordinator came from San Antonio in November and provided Intake Services Training. The new Coordinator,Jaime Valdez,will be coming on December 13th, to provide additional training. There haven't been any public accommodations complaints lately. However, the Office continues to receive ADA inquiries and complaints. Last month, the Office received thirty complaints regarding Solid Waste Services(pertaining to the new trashcans),this was a reduction from the sixty-two from the previous month. Mr.Ramos also addresses citizen complaint forms—he received two formal complaints. Commissioner Rhoads asked if the Commissioners could receive the Monthly Report in writing? Mr. Ramos didn't have copies on hand of this month's report. Mr. Ramos thought they had not wanted to receive it in writing,but just a verbal review. However, he will provide them in the future. There are the City Performance Reports, and the Weekly Reports, which is what the Commission seems more interested in. 4 PUBLIC COMMENTS:None at this time. COMMITTEE CONCERNS/ITEMS FOR NEXT AGENDA: Commissioners Lyons and Vera requested follow-up with CCISD. Draft Annual Report due January 15th and discussion about CDBG Proposals February 2002 deadline. Sub-Committee Reports ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Johnson made a Motion to Adjourn,which was seconded by Commissioner Elovitz. A vote was taken to Adjourn and passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at approximately 6:22 p.m. 7:9,=zet_, //0 Oscar Hinojosa, Sr., hairperson Date 5