· March 24^th - Public Health

· April 28th - Culture and Recreation,

· May 26^th - Human Welfare & Neighborhood Development,

· June 23^rd - Housing.

The future topics for Mayor’s Disability Council meetings are as follows: April 21^st - Parks & Recreation Accessibility Issues, May 19^th - Public School Services Birth Through 12^th Grade, June 16^th - Services Assisting Children with Disabilities and Accessibility in Public Settings. Copies of the Mayor’s Disability Council Meetings are available in the AV section of the San Francisco Main Library. Parking & Traffic has improved enforcement of parking violations.

5 REPORT FROM THE DIRECTOR

The staff has been involved in discussions with the Attorney General and the Governors office on the threat to the constitutionality of Title II of the ADA, the Americans with Disability Act.

The City is purchasing new voting machines for 146 precincts to place at least one machine in each district and a few in City Hall will be accessible for people who are blind. (Damien Pickering stated that an access overhaul of the voting system is needed. Michael Kwok spoke of his difficulty with inaccessible voting equipment.)

City Attorneys are discussing Laguna Honda Hospital. A working group on Laguna Honda institutionalization and independent living includes Mitch Katz, Director of Pubic Health and Sergio Alunan of the MDC.

The Mayor’s Office on Disability helped promote and design an accessible ramp for the Church Street youth shelter. The Mayor’s Office on Disability has improved City departmental relations with informal discussions on accessibility issues.

6 PUBLIC COMMENT

Bob Planthold announced the MTC conference: "Improving Transportation for Older Adults" on Thursday, March 30^th and cars are still being parked in the City Hall blue zones and bus zones.

Wayne Sherman requests the removal of the front row of seats in Room 400. The City Architect is working on a solution.

Elizabeth Grigsby is concerned about department stores placing accessible signs on the front of buildings that are not accessible.

Gordon Row voiced concern about handicap stops and A-frame signs in the Haight area. Vincent Behan also experienced these problems. Grayce Regan added that neighbors rejected installation of a wheelchair ramp.

Laurie Hodes, Access Advisor announced an April Fools’ Day celebrating featuring Tricksters and Illusions on April 1^st, 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park. For reservation call 750-7645 or

Victoria Tedder, of the Independent Living Resource Center, stated that developers often build new housing, such as townhouses and live/work lofts, that do not have to comply with Fair Housing laws. Thus, the City is allowing new housing to be built that is not accessible. Presently, Section 504 requires all housing have at least 5% of their units wheelchair accessible. The State Independent Living Council commissioned a survey that stated that approximately 15% of the population of California will be disabled by the year 2010. Federal funding is needed to make the 15% access possible. Fair Housing laws don’t really require the landlord to do any access work. Federal funding in block grants could help to repair or replace old elevators. Federal funding could fix the elevators. If this was done with federal funds, the owner wouldn’t have to pay, then the cost wouldn’t have to be passed on to tenants, and raise rents.

Mr. Park asked for clarification on the 5% minimum requirement. Bonnie Milstein answered that the 504 regulations that HUD published in 1988 state that the 5% is a floor. If the need is greater, then the Housing Authority or the City can petition HUD for permission to raise the percentage.

Jim Huett of the Senior Housing Action Collaborative said that his organization focuses on maintaining and developing affordable housing for seniors. Presently, they want to slow down evictions of seniors from affordable units. Thousands of people wait years for affordable housing. The Housing Authority has a 20-year waiting list with over 7,000 seniors waiting for affordable housing. The City has not requested money for HUD 202 (Senior Housing) for two of the past four years. This source of funding for senior and disable housing has never been refused when requested.

In addition to providing new affordable housing units, there is also a great need to preserve existing affordable housing. SHAC supports legislation that would make it more difficult to convert rental housing into condominiums, and would protect seniors and people with disabilities when a unit is sold. San Francisco needs access to all available lands and funds to build affordable housing for seniors and people with disabilities.

Shelagh Hoeg, Project Developer from the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation, stated that over the past 20 years her agency has developed a thousand units of affordable housing, mainly in the Tenderloin area. In the housing development unit, emphasis has been in balancing the desire to move beyond the legally required standard of accessibility, the 5% rule, while staying within the constraints of public funding sources. TNDC typically renovates old buildings in the Tenderloin that are largely SRO and studio apartments. These can be difficult to make accessible. They have approached funding sources with the Mayor’s Office on Housing for additional housing funds to address accessibility needs. The development is in partnership with Conard House and is actively involved in the provision of supportive housing for people with mental health disabilities. They have established a working relationship during the design phase with Richard Skaff of the Mayor’s Office on Disability.

Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation sets aside accessible units for people who really need them. TNDC has two waiting lists: one list is for the general public, and the other only people needing accessible units. At this time, there is no limit to the accessible unit waiting list. (Though only one accessible unit is currently available.) The list is open at all times for anyone who needs a unit. To apply, phone 415 776-2151 Ext. 7, or fax 415 776-3952.

PUBLIC COMMENT

Mr. Park asked for clarification on the number of accessible units TNDC now has. TNDC now only has 12 accessible units. However, in new construction, such as the Sierra Madre Hotel, three out of 47 units will be accessible, at the Dolt 12 out of 175 units will be accessible, and at the Ambassador seven out of 130.

Wayne Sherman addressed the subject of maintenance of accessibility.

Once accessibility housing is built, it should be maintained so that people with disabilities can acquire it.

Mr. Marone asked if it was possible to keep accessible housing reserved for people with disabilities. Mr. Latorre stated that the accessibility subcommittee is currently looking into a regulation to establish better mechanisms for ensuring that the units that are developed as accessible housing are actually occupied by people with mobility impairments. Information is currently being gathered on regulatory agreements on some of the existing buildings.

Bob Planthold announced a Community Design Review meeting to be held on the evening of Tuesday, April 4^th. Call the Senior Action Network office for the time and location. He is seeking support from supervisors for funding of subsidized housing.

Magdalena Soul expressed concern for the lack of subsidized housing for people who are disabled, due to psychiatric or mental disabilities.

Peggy Coster voiced concern over businesses, clubs, restaurants and homes not being accessible to people who use wheelchairs or persons who have mobility problems.

Ms. Milstein added that Congress has funded the 811 Program specifically for people with disabilities, and can be used to house people with psychiatric disabilities. There are 811 housing developments that are "disability specific", such as for people with cerebral palsy only, or people with mental retardation. The 811 Program, which obviously raises Fair Housing issues, was the outgrowth of a Congressional battle at the end of the 1980s about the purported difficulty in 202s that seniors were having living with non-elderly people with disabilities. As a result, the definition of elderly, which since 1957 had included non-elderly people with disabilities, was changed to include people only 62 and over. Because the disability community had grown strong enough through its advocacy on behalf of the Fair Housing Act, the ADA and other disability legislation, Congress funded a second form of housing just for people with disabilities, which is the 811 program.

Ms. Milstein addressed the issues of invisible disability and programmatic access. The Fair Housing office and the DFEH receive a large number of complaints that don’t being to reflect the number of reasonable accommodation and modification problems that people face. Ms. Milstein added that HUD has been working to develop guidelines for the local housing application process.

Ms. Grigsby notified the Council that the housing complex, TODCO, does not provide closets in its accessible units.

Mr. Brooks responded that, unfortunately, a closet is not required in the code.

Mr. Evans requested that everyone take into consideration what HUD and the agency people and the Mayor’s Office on Housing can do to create more housing in San Francisco?

Mr. Latorre responded that funding is a major limitation. Costs to build in San Francisco are high.

8 AB 1800 PRESENTATION

Ms. Deborah Sanders, Esq. gave background on how people with psychiatric illnesses are treated in this country. Historically, people with mental disabilities were warehoused in19^th Century asylums and in the 20th Century mental hospitals. Thirty years ago, a revolution occurred, with new medications that have become more and more sophisticated in controlling symptoms.

California was the first state to change the ways in which people would be involuntarily committed to a mental hospital. The LPS Act, In 1967, stated that only persons who were dangerous to themselves or others, or gravely disabled could be confined against their will. A person who was gravely disabled was defined as someone unable to find food, clothing or shelter for herself.

This standard worked well until major cuts were made in funding for mental institutions. With the rise of homeless people with mental disabilities, has come a corresponding desire to force treatment on people who are on the street. The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill produced a report called the White Paper, which includes provisions that would radically change the LPS Act.

AB 1800 is the codification of these changes. This bill would expand the definition of gravely disabled to include anyone who:

has a prior history of mental illness and again presents clear evidence of a recurrence that poses a serious risk of substantial deterioration that is likely to result in serious harm to the person in the absence of treatment." that of one who has a prior history of mental illness.

One of the problems with the definition is how broadly the words can be interpreted. The words "serious risk" and "substantial deterioration" and "likely to result" are not defined. These are things that a court won’t know how to evaluate.

The bill also increases the initial holding times. Anyone picked up under the bill can be held for 180-days. The bill would also limit choice that now exists, whereby a person who has been held is given the right to refuse medications, as long as the hearing officer determines that he or she is competent to refuse the medications. The hearing to determine this would be eliminated under the bill.

Ms, Saunders urged the Council to oppose AB 1800 and asked that people write to their assemblyperson, Carol Migden in opposition to AB 1800.

Michelle Magar of Protection and Advocacy also spoke in opposition to AB 1800. Ms. Magar is working with the California Network of Mental Health Clients and the California Association of Mental Health Patient Rights Advocates.

The present law states that people who are a danger to themselves or others and can’t provide for food, clothing or shelter can be forcibly treated. The law represents a system of checks and balances between psychiatrists and the rights of people with disabilities and it provides a way in which judges can provide judicial review over the decisions and judgments of psychiatrists.

Under AB1800, there is no handle for a judge to use to decide whether someone meets the commitment criteria. This is different from the criteria that have been working for many years to provide objective criteria that a judge can use to verify whether it is appropriate to hold someone against their will.

Advocates are concerned about people being placed involuntarily into community placements. Any treatment noncompliance is sufficient to return a person to an institution. In order to provide voluntary mental health services and to empower clients to be able to take more control over their lives, a provision should be written into the law stating that discharge planning is provided. There should be an advance directive such as a power of attorney that is written when a person is competent and should take effect at the time a person is judged incompetent. The State should enforce these directives in order that consumers may be empowered to have control over their treatment.

Mr. Park drafted a motion for the Council. The motion was to resolve that the Mayor be urged to oppose AB 1800 in its current form. AB 1800, Alquist Et al. is an amendment to the LPS Act which would effect people with mental disabilities. The Council has heard expert testimony that the bill is unwise and that there are other options which can be more productive. The Mayor will be asked to urge the City’s lobbyist in the State and also the assemblyman and Senators to oppose the bill.

The motion was unanimously approved with a roll call vote.

THE SELF-EVALUATION AND TRANSITION PLAN REPORT:

Logan Hopper reported that the Self-Evaluation Transition Plan should be complete by July or August 2000.

REQUESTS FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

Completion of the Self-Evaluation Transition Program report.

A-frame signs and the Department of Parking and Traffic

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Damian Pickering announced that the Programmatic Access Committee will meet every first Friday, 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Rose Resnick Lighthouse for the Blind, 214 Van Ness Avenue.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 4:19 p.m.