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Mayor’s
Disability Council
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D
R A F T
Minutes
of the Mayor’s Disability Council Meeting
Friday,
January 21, 2000
|
Willie
L. Brown, Jr.
Mayor
Frank
Marone
Chair
Sergio
Alunan
Vincent Behan
Claudia Center
Ed Evans
Viola Jackson
Michael Kwok
August Longo
Damien Pickering
Grayce Regan
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1 CALL TO ORDER
The Chair called the meeting
to order at 1:20 p.m. Roll was called.
MAYOR’S DISABILITY COUNCIL
MEMBERS PRESENT: Sergio Alunan, Vincent Behan, Claudia Center, Edward Evans,
Viola Jackson, Michael Kwok, Frank Marone, Damien Pickering.
Excused: August Longo, Grayce
Regan,
STAFF: Walter Park, Director, Mayor’s Office on Disability, Richard Skaff, Deputy
Director, Susan Mizner, Assistant Director, Carolyn Snipes, Office Manager.
2 APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA:
Mr. Hopper requested that
his item be move up to follow item 6, before the discussion on parking and traffic.
The Chair entertained a motion that the agenda be approved as revised. All MDC
members present adopted the motion.
3 APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
The Chair requested that
MOD staff provide copies of the minutes in advance, preferably with the new
agenda. The Director responded that new staff were taking over this responsibility,
and that the minutes for January would be sent before the next meeting .
Vince Behan moved that the
approval of the minutes be held over until the next meeting at which time both
sets of minutes can be approved. The Council voted to move the minutes of December
17 to the agenda of the meeting of February 18th.
4 REPORT FROM CHAIR
The Chair welcomed the audience
and welcomed anyone with a disability issue to join the Council at its meetings
on the third Friday of each month from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in Room 400 on
the fourth floor of City Hall. The Chair may be reached by telephone or fax
at 415 753-5695 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Telephone bridge for Council meetings is 415 554-9632 and can be reached only
during the live presentation of a Council meeting. Broadcast of tapes of Mayor’s
Disability Council meetings can be viewed on Channel 26. A schedule can be obtained
by calling Channel 26 at 415 557-4293.
Dr. Marone said that the
first Public Forum meeting would be held Friday, January 28 at City Hall, Room
400 from 1:00 p.m.- 3:00 p.m. This public forum will focus on Public Works and
Public Transportation. Audience members, the public and viewers with questions
may contact the Mayor’s Office on Disability staff at 554-6789 or 554-6799 TTY.
President Clinton recently
signed into law the Work Incentives Improvement Act, which essentially extends
SSI benefits for a longer period than previous, when a person affected by disability
acquires a job. This is an incentive to get a job and earn money to work instead
of receive disability benefits.
A Town Hall meeting on work
incentives will be held on Monday, January 31, 2000 from 1:00 - 5:00 p.m. at
the Federal Building Auditorium located at 12th and Clay Streets
in Oakland, CA. Take BART to 12th Street Civic Center and exit toward
plaza with shops and walk through plaza.
The Chair then read the
headlines of a number of news clippings.
The Chair noted some confusion
in obtaining videotapes of the MDC meetings at the San Francisco Main Public
Library. Marty Goddard, Access Services Manager, San Francisco Main Public Library
responded that the Government Information Center is located on the 5th
floor. She will locate the Mayor’s Disability Council tapes and move them to
the first floor AV Center. Ms. Goddard can be reached anytime at 557-4557. You
may also contact David Schwabe at the Public Library at 415 557-4288 for further
information.
The Chair said he had received
several requests that public meeting rooms in City Hall be evaluated to determine
whether the front row of seats can be removed to create greater access for wheelchair
participants. Dr. Marone also requested that benches be restored or added for
seating on the main floor of City Hall in public locations so that people can
rest if needed. Dr. Marone has received a request that blue zone enforcement
around City Hall be reviewed and evaluated.
Claudia Center requested
MOD staff to forward flyers and information regarding the Self-Evaluation Transition
Plan and public forums to Council members.
5 REPORT FROM STAFF
Director Walter Park stated
that there would be a series of public forum meetings over the next several
months. The next public forum meeting will be held on Friday, February 25. The
topic for the February meeting is Public Protection and Emergency Services.
This forum, like the next five forums, will be held in Room 400 of City Hall
between 1:00 and 3:00 p.m.
6 PUBLIC COMMENT
Stanley Power voiced his
concern that there is not sufficient public notice asking people not to wear
perfumes or scented products. Mr. Power also stated, in reference to a larger
attendance at MDC meetings, that the City has a program to provide temporary
blue zones upon request.
Tom Karnes requested the
MOD staff to include reports along with the agenda and minutes for those who
are unable to attend the meetings.
Wayne Sherman expressed
his concern about the lack of accessibility in city Hall for those who use wheelchairs.
The button to open door was not responding when he arrive to Room 400. The door
button was fixed before the meeting. There are other rooms in City Hall which
lack seating space designated for those in wheelchairs. Mr. Sherman has repeatedly
request that the front row of chairs be removed.
Theresa Gallegos stated
her concern that while people with disabilities are initially placed in housing
specifically designated for people with disabilities, once the original occupant
moves out, there is no follow-up. The landlord makes no effort to place another
person with a disability in the accessible unit. Thus, many people are unable
to get accessible housing. She would like to see qualified people placed in
these units.
Walter Park responded that
the Mayor’s Office on Housing has been asked to produce a report on the use
of accessible housing and how much of it is occupied by people with disabilities.
This report is in progress.
Karen Young-Simmons request
that the Mayor’s Disability Council allow reasonable accommodations for persons
with impaired speech and that time to speak is extended. This would set a precedent
for other Councils and commissions.
6A SELF EVALUATION AND
TRANSITION PLAN
Logan Hopper stated that
his firm is involved in performing physical access surveys and creating a database
of all the facilities for the Mayor’s Office on Disability. Surveys of all libraries,
office facilities, social service facilities, and assembly facilities have been
completed. Monday, January 31, will be the start date for the survey of the
most difficult and interesting set of facilities, the health facilities. Everyone
is encouraged to call the hotline about access problems at: voice 415 364-1848
or TTY 415 554-6799.
On behalf of Margen &
Associates, the agency conducting the Self-Evaluation portion of the ADA project,
Mr. Hopper explained that the public forum meetings would provide a forum for
public input on program accessibility issues. During the past month Peter Margen
has focused on questionnaires and information from individual programs and departments.
The deadline for the program accessibility report is summer 2000.
Ed Evans, who has received
some complaints, asked Logan Hopper if surveys had been conducted at San Francisco
General Hospital and other facilities to see if rooms and restrooms were accessible
to individuals who use wheelchairs. Mr. Hopper has recently started the survey
of S.F. General Hospital.
7 PARKING AND TRAFFIC
PRESENTATION & DISCUSSION
Vince Behan chaired this
discussion item. He stated that the focus of this Council meeting is to present
and gather information concerning the accessibility of the city’s sidewalks
and streets for people with disabilities. Mr. Behan then outlined one of the
problems the City faces: vehicles blocking curb ramps or sidewalks. This causes
wheelchair users to either take long detours or to endanger their lives by going
out into the street to continue on their way. Further, Traffic Control officers
seldom cite such vehicles, and need to increase enforcement. One method would
be to hire wheelchair users to ticket violators or act as Sidewalk Control officers.
Department Presentation
Mr. Sunshine agreed that
the first step in working together is to present information and receive information
to address the issues impacting the disability community. Mr. Sunshine introduced
three main Directors of DPT, Traffic Engineer, Bond Yee; Enforcement Director,
James Howard; ADA Coordinator, Mary Ellen O’Brien, and asked each of them to
speak.
Bond Yee, DPT Traffic
Engineering - Mr. Yee is in charge of Traffic Engineering for DPT. He and
his staff are responsible for the engineering and planning aspects of access
for the transportation facility. Traffic Engineering is a strong advocate of
disabled access. Many of Traffic Engineering’s accomplishments involved working
closely with Richard Skaff while he was employed by DPW.
Traffic Engineering was
a key participant in the MUNI Key Stop Program. They worked closely with MUNI
and the disabled community to identify the Key Stop locations.
Traffic Engineering is also
a pioneer in the Talking Sign technology. San Francisco is still the first and
only city that uses the talking sign technology. The challenge for the next
two years is to use Talking Signs to navigate through the city’s street system
at intersections.
Since 1984 Traffic Engineering
has been involved in the color zone program. Traffic Engineering worked closely
with the disabled community to develop policies and guidelines. Traffic Engineering
has surveyed neighborhoods to locate areas that are in need of blue zones. The
City has more than 500 blue zones at present. Mr. Yee worked with Mr. Skaff
to develop a temporary blue zone program to be used for special conventions
and meetings.
Traffic Engineering has
also been involved with wheelchair access. The fine for blocking a wheelchair
has been substantially increased. There are over 10,000 wheelchair ramps in
the City. Three years ago, all 10,000-wheelchair ramps were repainted. DPT has
developed a program with DPW as additional wheelchair ramps are installed; Traffic
Engineering will paint them.
James Howard, Deputy
Director DPT Enforcement Division - Mr. Howard explained that DPT does not
tow vehicles from blue zones because they do not want to aggravate the problem.
He stated that a person driving a car does not always remember to display a
placard. If the vehicle is towed, problems for the driver are magnified.
In regards to sidewalk obstruction
DPT handles vehicles and motorcycles, but for sidewalk displays, garbage bins,
etc they coordinate with the Department of Public Health, DPW and the Police
Department to remove the obstacles. When a vehicles is on the sidewalk, the
Police Department handles enforcement between midnight and 6:00 a.m. Officers
are dispatched to handle a particular citation at specific locations. Officers
must handle that particular citation before they can cite other violations on
the block.
Regarding the confiscation
of disabled placards when a citizen does not have proper identification, the
procedure is the following: Placard enforcement is done in teams of two. A person
is asked for identification, and if they have proper identification, the placard
number is run, to see if it is valid. If the person who has the placard is in
the vicinity, verification is requested. If the person is not in the area the
placard is confiscated and a citation is issued. The person is notified that
they have 21 days to make a protest. The person who the placard is issued to
must be in attendance or very near by. Most placard confiscation is done when
person who is issued a placard is not with the person driving the vehicle, but
drives to another location and parks in blue zone. Ramp taxis are not ticketed
if they are parked in a blue zone and they are picking up or dropping off passengers.
Ramp Taxis are allowed to pick up and drop off in blue zones, bus zones or wherever
practical. DPT would like to be notified if drivers are being cited for this
activity. Mr. Howard can be reached at 553-1325.
Mary Ellen O’Brien, Constituent
Service Director, DPT. Ms. O’Brien is the liaison to community attend community,
neighborhood, and merchant meetings and to listen to the concerns and complaints
of those groups. She informs DPT of concerns and complaints and works with community
and DPT and the Enforcement Division’s Community Patrol Officer Program in resolving
issues. She is also, the Director of Parking Services, Manager of the Citation
Division. She is responsible for the Citation Division and the administrative
review process, payment process and protest process. As ADA Coordinator, all
grievances come through her office from MDC. She directs complaints to the respective
divisions. She reviews all confiscation narratives. She investigates complaints
from MDC. She can be reached at anytime at 255-3950. She can expedite a PCO
or get a tow truck.
Ms. O’Brien said she is
a proponent of zero tolerance on sidewalk complaints. She stated that San Franciscans
consider their driveways to include the sidewalk in front of their garage. .
She would like to work with the Council on trying to educate people on sidewalk
violations. She receives 46,000 sidewalk violation complaints per year.
Council Member Questions:
Councilmember Evans had
a number of questions: 1. Why buildings in the Tenderloin, especially those
designated for seniors and people with disabilities, do not have blue zones
around them, 2. Why the blue zones that do exist are not maintained, 3. Why
Flagstops for MUNI are not regular stops, 4. Why does DPT not use disabled and
senior citizens to help enforce the sidewalk violations for DPT, 5. Why the
traffic lights in areas frequented by seniors and people with disabilities are
not lengthened so that these pedestrians have time to cross the street. 6. Why,
given the perceived abuse of disabled placards, the picture of the person with
a disability is not displayed on the placard.
Mr. Sunshine stated that
the City and County of San Francisco has 23,000 parking meters and 24,000 disabled
placards issued in the County of San Francisco. Drivers from other surrounding
cities that use City blue zones complicate this. DPT employs two teams of disabled
placard detail that make sure that zones are clear for legitimate users with
valid placards. Mr. Sunshine requested the Council’s assistance in clamping
down on the fraudulent use of disabled placards. However, Mr. Sunshine would
not recommend using volunteers to enforce sidewalk and curb cut violations.
Parking Control officers are verbally abused on a daily basis and physically
abused on a weekly. Mr. Sunshine stated that this is not a position where he
would place an untrained person in enforcement of citations. He recommended
a phone system that would enable DPT to internally get the assistance of the
disabled community in helping highlight areas that need more enforcement, such
as curb cuts and sidewalk complaints.
In reference to time limits
on zones and the fading of zones, Mr. Sunshine said that DPT conducts monthly
merchant walks and corridor walks through commercial districts and neighborhoods.
DPT then paints zones, eliminates zones, create zones and installs signs. DPT
walks with merchants and residents and attempts to get a better idea of the
needs of the community. DPT has created a community policing and parking officers
program in which staff partner with neighborhood groups in order to develop
a better understanding of the issues. This enables DPT to do a better job. The
City has over 500 blue zones and it is a priority for DPT to maintain the color
curb program. DPT will need to work with Municipal Railway on flag stops.
Mr. Sunshine stated that
the Community Parking Program was created because DPT has a limited enforcement
staff. CAC was incorporated in to Proposition "E" which was the creation
of the Municipal Railway. DPT will be folded into the Municipal Transportation
Authority next year. He will speak to their staff on how they are setting up
their CAC, so they will understand DPT issues
Mr. Behan asked Mr. Sunshine,
how a person using a wheelchair should deal with cars parked across driveways.
Mr. Sunshine stated that DPT could try to dedicate personnel to deal with this
specific violation. DPT may have to take a look at their entire enforcement
deployment strategy to see what they can do to help address these issues.
Mr. Behan asked, what can
be done when a person using a wheelchair request a Traffic Control officer to
have a vehicle moved. Mr. Sunshine answered that DPT can not tow a vehicle from
a sidewalk. DPT issues citations for vehicles only.
Damien Pickering stated
that blockage of sidewalks and curb ramps is an issue for the blind community.
In regard to the volunteer enforcement force, Mr. Picking said that there are
other locations in which such programs have enjoyed success. Mr. Pickering wanted
to know what the logistics of such a model in San Francisco would entail. Mr.
Sunshine stated that he will get back to the Council with ideas and he hoped
to develop a solution to tap into the resources of those who want to help.
Questions From The Public
Bruce Oka expressed concern
over ramp taxi drivers who have received citations while dropping off passengers
in bus zones and blue zones. He stated that Mr. Sunshine said that when those
citations are protested they are dismissed, but those have to be contested and
adjudicated. This process takes time out of a driver’s work-day. He asked, is
there any way to resolve these issues without a cab driver losing a day’s wages.
Theresa Gallegos expressed
concern that DPT does not enforce blue zones in private parking lots. She also
complained about City vehicles parking in blue zones without being cited by
City employees.
Chuck Lane, Operations Manager,
MV Transportation stated that the best place to load and unload wheelchairs
is the bus zone. Mr. Lane said sometimes the driver may have to assist a senior
with access into the residence. He cannot stay with the vehicle and do his job
at the same time.
Pirate, a Paratransit Broker,
stated that, ticketing of MV and Ramp taxis is not an isolated issue. DPT is
causing barriers for the City paratransit brokers and discouraging drivers from
doing their jobs. He also expressed concern that when one neighbor asks another
to move his car, that can cause conflicts between the neighbors. He thinks DPT
should do more enforcement.
Vince Behan, stated that
with the help of Mr. Sunshine the Mayor’s Disability Council would be happy
to work with setting up tasks to try and solve citywide parking problems. He
thanked DPT for their attendance.
The Chair thanked DPT for
their attendance. He noted the strong support among members of the Council and
Public for the use of volunteer assistance to supplement DPT Traffic Officers.
He then summarized contact numbers:
Mary Ellen O’Brien, the
ADA Coordinator for DPT can be reached at 415 255-3950.
James Howard, Deputy Director,
Enforcement, can be reached at 415 553-1325.
Bond Yee can be reached
at 415 554-2307.
Stuart Sunshine, Director,
DPT can be reached at 415 554-9835.
Complaints re: zone repainting
for blue zones or wheelchair ramps should be phoned into: 554-2300
Dr. Marone stated that the
Council would work with DPT on starting legislation to help DPT have enforcement
authority. He asked Mr. Sunshine, or a representative, to return to the Mayor’s
Disability Council meeting in three months to report on progress
9 BY-LAWS
The Chair suggested that,
because Council members did not get a final copy of the by-laws in advance,
the issue should be placed on the February 18th agenda.
10 ANNOUNCEMENTS
Claudia Center stated that
the United States Supreme Court recently issued a decision that The Age Discrimination
and Employment Act is unconstitutional as applied to State entities. Some advocates
are afraid that this same reasoning will be applied to The Americans with Disabilities
Act. Ms. Center suggested that, as topics for the February meeting the Council
should: 1) ask the Mayor and the Board of Supervisors to declare that it is
the opinion of the City and County of San Francisco that the Americans with
Disabilities Act is, in fact, constitutional. 2) Discuss how to celebrate the
tenth anniversary of the signing of the ADA, which is approaching on July 26,
2000.
Edward Evans would like
to see open captioning on all City broadcasts. The Council should make an effort
to reach out to obtain sponsorship of open captioning from corporations and
foundations.
11 ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned.