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Americans with Disabilities ActFY 2007-2008 ADA Implementation ReportIntroductionADA History Departmental Submissions FY 2007-2008Austin Convention Center Department and Austin Energy AMCPD FY 2007-2008Introduction Attachments FY 2007-2008Budget 2008 ADA ImplementationIntroductionIn 1973, Congress provided protection for people with disabilities through its enactment of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Although other pieces of legislation were enacted between 1973 and 1990, it was not until 1990 that Congress took a step forward and enacted legislation prohibiting discrimination against people with disabilities. On July 26, 2008 the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) celebrated its 18th anniversary. The ADA, the most sweeping piece of civil rights legislation, is an extensive law, which affects every aspect of life for over 54 million Americans by ensuring equal opportunity in the areas of employment, state and local government services, public accommodations and telecommunications. Although the ADA was signed into law in 1990, it did not become effective until January 26, 1992. At this time, state and local governments were required to insure non-discrimination on the basis of disability in all public programs, services and activities. This grace period allowed these entities to assemble the necessary staff and develop a plan for its full implementation. The City of Austin, however, saw this as a priority and initiated implementation of its compliance program in 1991, before the mandated date set for local governments. In January of 2008, the City entered its seventeenth year of implementation under the ADA. Briefly, the ADA offers protections, under five separate titles or sections, which covers various areas. The five areas are: Employment, Public Services, Public Accommodations, Telecommunications and a miscellaneous title, which prohibits threatening or coercing people with disabilities or those who associate with them. Currently, the law outlines the following definition for protection. A person must meet at least one of the following tests: 1) he/ she is substantially impaired with respect to one or more major life activities; 2) he/ she has a record of such an impairment; and 3) he/ she is regarded as having such an impairment. City of Austin ADA OfficeSince the signing of the ADA, the purpose of the ADA Coordinator’s Office has been to facilitate the implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act within the City of Austin as an organization. The ADA affects many areas including: physical and programmatic public services, employment issues, communication, dispute resolution and accountability. Although the appointment of the City-wide ADA Coordinator was a requirement of the ADA, the City committed to complying with the legislation, and required each department designate an ADA Departmental Coordinator. In fact, some of the larger departments have designated additional representatives, who as a team, address employment issues, facility issues, and coordinate the dissemination of information in alternative formats. Together with the City-wide ADA Coordinator, this network of ADA departmental coordinators has helped to expedite the implementation of the ADA in the City of Austin. Duties and ResponsibilitiesTo help facilitate communication and discussion, the ADA Office invites and encourages ADA Department Coordinators to attend training sessions and events sponsored by this office and the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities. As a result of these efforts, the ADA Office has created more friendly approaches to assist Departmental ADA Coordinators. Another component of compliance is to visit all departments on an annual basis and go over a survey tool that identifies ADA requirements and provides guidance on City processes for complying. On-site visits produce information that is much more valuable to the City and to the department as they provide a standard for comparison and a foundation for analysis. The most important responsibility for the City-wide ADA Coordinator is to monitor effective compliance with the law. Compliance is required, not only in the area of physical accessibility, but also in the services the City provides and the programs it administers. Without the current network of people monitoring the compliance by their respective departments, an accurate assessment would not be possible. In addition to working with the network of ADA coordinators, the ADA Office so serves as the liaison to the Austin Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities, provides the City of Austin with a wide-range of training and awareness workshops, provides consultations on ADA compliance issues and reasonable accommodations, and offers a variety of print, reference, and video resources on the ADA. This year the ADA Office conducted 26 trainings and disability awareness sessions. The City ADA Coordinator also represents the City of Austin in all media related situations including radio, TV and print. This year Ms. Gonzalez was invited to present at the National ADA Symposium hosted by DBTAC in St Louis May 12-14, she offered two presentations as part of the ADA Coordinator track at the symposium: City of Austin- Model City for Compliance, and Planning for Success- the Transition Plan. On-site VisitsAs part of the City-wide effort to ensure its compliance and obtain a more complete analysis of implementation, the ADA Office conducts annual on-site visits with each department. This on-site visit provides the department coordinator with an opportunity to discuss implementation issues and individual department needs. In order to formalize the visit, a survey tool was developed and the results are submitted in summary form to the coordinator and kept on file. Upon request, the survey assessment tool is shared with the Departmental ADA Coordinator ahead of the meeting time. Additionally, the Departmental ADA Coordinator may choose to invite other pertinent staff, thereby ensuring that more than one person is aware of their ADA responsibilities. This year the ADA Office conducted 17 On-site Visits. Recent DevelopmentsIn 2007,an assistant ADA Coordinator came on board in a full time role, to assist the coordinator in various duties. The addition of a skilled full time staff person has streamlined the office areas listed below:
FY 2007-2008 Departmental EvaluationsThe Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) called for the designation of a City-wide ADA Coordinator. The City of Austin, committed to its compliance with this legislation, designated departmental coordinators, in addition to the mandated City-wide Coordinator. Together with the City-wide ADA Coordinator, the ADA department coordinators work to ensure the City complies with the legislation in the programs it administers and the services it provides. Monitoring, a chief component of the compliance effort, has been, and continues to be a challenge. Complying with the law required each local entity to produce a transition plan and conduct periodic self-evaluations. Briefly, the transition plan identifies structural changes needed to provide equal access to programs. The self-evaluation is meant to provide a review of a covered entity’s programs, services, facilities, policies and aide in identifying potential areas for discrimination. The City’s strategy was to produce a self-evaluation and transition plan for each department. Periodically, each department is required to complete self-evaluation forms. These forms are independent of the annual on-site visits conducted by the ADA Office. Together these documents provide the City and the individual departments with information that aids in, not only improving their respective departments, but also the City program as a whole. Individual departments recording submissions this year include: Departmental Submissions for FY 2007-2008Austin Convention Center DepartmentWith a commitment to accessibility, the Austin Convention Center Department (ACCD) continues to make improvements to its existing facilities. ACCD has made tremendous efforts to train staff in disability awareness, assuring better service to customers. The following are highlights from the department for FY 2007-2008 including:
ACCD will continue to be innovative with their thinking to improve their facilities and knowledge when it comes to ADA programs and projects. Any new ideas will be added to their FY 2008-2009 projections. Austin EnergyDuring FY 2007-2008 Austin Energy (AE) continued ADA improvements at it’s main facility, Town Lake Center located at 721 Barton Springs Rd. Details of those improvements are listed below: Emergency Medical Service DepartmentEmergency Medical Services (EMS) constantly strives to provide and accommodate people with disabilities, when on emergency and non emergency calls. They assist people with disabilities in moving to and from ambulances, as well as making sure those with special equipment or service animals can carry them onto ambulances. EMS constantly stresses care and attention when serving people with disabilities. EMS’ goal is to provide ADA quality service in terms of accessibility and special accommodation to people with disabilities that use the system. In addition to serving people with disabilities, the department has also made great strides with employee accommodations. Our limited duty program is designed to provide employees with temporary limited duty assignments when injured on or off the job. EMS has continued to revamp the limited duty program, by working closely with their Occupational Health and Safety Coordinator and Specialist. By utilizing the skills and expertise of these individuals, the employees’ physical restrictions are carefully evaluated making their assignment safer, thus limiting further occurrences of injury. The program continues to be a great success. It provides employees the necessary time to heal, while keeping them active and productive. The experience creates positive employee relations and a feeling of commitment towards the organization. Recently, EMS has formed a Community Integration Workgroup. This Workgroup will solicit responses and data from the community concerning ways EMS can best serve the community in addition to emergency response calls. The goal of this initiative is to provide the community with information and resources in order for each individual to have a better quality of life. Library DepartmentDuring FY 2007-2008, the Austin Public Library (APL) continued its ongoing efforts to improve services for library customers with disabilities, focusing on the following facility improvement project: Manchaca Road Branch Library Neighborhood Housing and Community DevelopmentDuring FY 2007-2008, the Neighborhood Housing and Community Development Department (NHCD) has continued its commitment to serve the needs of the disability community and to make efforts to increase reasonably priced and accessible housing options for people with disabilities. NHCD PROGRAMS NHCD funded the following programs to promote equal access to housing for people with disabilities: OUTREACH Information about NHCD’s programs and services is available in alternative formats in their offices and by request. Two NHCD staff members use virtual TDD modems. NHCD works with the disability community during its annual planning process. Members of the disability community participate with other stakeholders in stakeholder meetings, public hearings, and community needs surveys throughout the planning process. Copies of all published documents are available by mail and in alternative formats, upon request. Through its partnerships with various organizations and development of initiatives to eliminate some of the barriers to affordable accessible housing options, NHCD continues to demonstrate its commitment to serving the needs of the disability community and to increasing affordable, accessible housing options for people with disabilities. Parks and Recreation DepartmentThe Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) remains committed to making all of their programs and services fully accessible to everyone. More and more park facilities and programs have improved accessibility; this has allowed many individuals with disabilities to enjoy the public parks, lakes, recreation centers, hike and bike trails, disc golf courses, museums, golf courses, nature preserves, wilderness parkland, swimming pools, transportation for senior citizens and various summer programs. PARD is primarily responsible for these projects; however, they do work closely with other departments to combine resources for further improvements. One fine example of program access is the regular provision of Sign Language Interpreters for the traditional Zilker Tree Lighting Ceremony. Below is a list of project improvements for this year: Public WorksPURPOSE The ADA Sidewalk and Curb Ramp Program (ADA program) under the Public Works Department (PWD) manages current curb ramp and sidewalk projects. To facilitate the selection and prioritization of sidewalk and curb ramp projects, PWD works with the ADA Access and Sidewalk Task Force (ADA Task Force) and the project selection criteria to set priorities. The ADA Task Force is comprised of members of ADAPT, the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services -Division of Blind Services, City of Austin staff, Austin Energy, Capital Metro representatives and interested citizens. They assist in providing recommendations and input, as well as site specific suggestions for the ADA Program’s general protocols. BACKGROUND The City of Austin contracted in 2003 to complete Phase I of a Pedestrian Master Plan to include: meeting Austin’s need for assessing and prioritizing sidewalk infrastructure and to update the existing ADA Title II Transition Plan. The scope of the project was to create an interactive software tool that uses spatial analysis of a predetermined set of criteria to identify and rank absent sidewalks, as well as provide a plan to execute improvements. Phase I covered 31% of the City’s area. In 2006, work was began on Phase II of the Pedestrian Master Plan, (later renamed Side Walk Master Plan), to incorporate the entire City limits and further develop the prioritization matrix. The Phase II Matrix is more sophisticated and was developed through an extensive public process. The Phase II Matrix also includes an emphasis on components and elements that will improve pedestrian mobility for the ADA community. ACCOMPLISHMENTS The absent-sidewalk prioritization matrix (the "matrix") is the basis of the Sidewalk Master Plan and facilitates the prioritization of absent sidewalks throughout the city based on objective, fact-based analysis. The matrix is divided into five parts as follows: The Pedestrian Attractor Score accounts for 50% of the base score. Points are awarded to a sidewalk segment based on the segment’s proximity to pedestrian attractors such as schools, transit stops, government offices, etc.; median household income; residential population density; presence of existing facilities on the street; ADA Task Force and/or citizen requests; proximity to a core transit corridor; and existence of bicycle lanes on the adjacent street. The Pedestrian Safety Score accounts for 40% of the base score. Points are awarded based on the street classification, health status of the area and occurrence of automobile / pedestrian incidents. The Fiscal Availability Score accounts for 10% of the base score. Points are awarded if fiscal funding can be made availible for the segment under consideration. The Neighborhood Plan Score is added to the base score for sidewalk segments requested in an adopted neighborhood plan. This is an additional score since not all neighborhoods have adopted a plan. The score is based on the age of the plan; one point per year can be added with a maximum of 10 points. The Special Consideration Score is also added to the base score and allows for consideration of specific areas known to attract a higher volume of pedestrian traffic than would be suggested by the surrounding criteria (i.e. Zilker Park). Additionally, the special consideration score may be awarded to absent sidewalk segments which serve to implement an identified trail system within the City’s Trail Master Plan or included in the City’s safe route to school program. Points are discretionary and must be approved by the Director of Public Works with a maximum of 10 points. This matrix tool integrates with GIS software to evaluate each sidewalk segment based on the criteria listed above and then rank them as: Very High, High, Medium, Low, and Very Low. These ranking categories will be used by the City to prioritize segments for future sidewalk programs. Through these and other efforts, the ADA Sidewalk and Curb Ramp Program constructed approximately 194 curb ramps and over 35,000 linear feet of sidewalk. Below is a list of some of the projects completed by PWD: PWD SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS 2007-2008 FY Public Works Bike and Pedestrian Program In addition to the sidewalk improvement projects, a member of the Pedestrian and Bike Program is licensed by the State of Texas as a Registered Accessibility Specialist (RAS). New standards passed this year require holders of this certification to annually complete eight hours of continuing education in Texas Accessibility Standards (TAS), which are the same standards used by the City’s Watershed Protection, Development and Review Office. TAS is the certified equivalent to the U. S. ADA Accessibility Guidelines. This program’s RAS has provided numerous consulting services to other divisions and departments throughout the City, as well as third party entities, as appropriate, in the community. A partial list of these services is listed below: PLANS FOR FUTURE PROJECTS Phase II of the Pedestrian Master Plan also included an update to the City’s Title II ADA Transition Plan, including a field condition assessment for approximately 300 miles of existing sidewalk (13% of existing infrastructure). It is estimated that the City will require $120 million to improve existing sidewalk infrastructure to ADA compliance including the complete the condition assessment. The Transition Plan includes a recommended example schedule for implementing improvements to existing infrastructure. An example of an aggressive schedule to make the repairs in fifteen years includes spending $5 million for 2009 and 2010 and $10 million for each subsequent year. Austin Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities Introduction In addition to ensuring the compliance with ADA in the services it provides and the programs it administers, the City wide ADA Coordinator also serves as the liaison to the Austin Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities (AMCPD). As such, the ADA Office offers assistance to the AMCPD in developing, coordinating and administering all of their programs and projects. The AMCPD was established in 1987 by City Ordinance 870319-J, which states the purpose is "to carry on a program to encourage, assist and enable persons to participate in the social and economic life of the City of Austin and achieve maximum personal independence; to become gainfully employed; and to enjoy life fully and use all public and private facilities available within the community." AMCPD operates within the geographic city limits of Austin in cooperation with the Governor’s Committee for People with Disabilities. The committee’s membership is made up of seven local residents appointed by the Mayor and Council, who serve two-year staggered terms. Other interested citizens known as Associate Members volunteer their unique skills and knowledge and work alongside committee members in pursuing AMCPD goals. Winners- 2008 Governor’s Committee Martha Arbuckle Award- Right to Risk Awareness Screening This year the Austin Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities (AMCPD) won the Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities- Martha Arbuckle Award for their public awareness screening of Right to Risk. Right to Risk is a PBS documentary film that follows eight individuals with significant physical impairments, on a 15 day, 225 mile, white water rafting trip up the Colorado River. This was a partnership between AMCPD, KLRU, the Coalition for Texans with Disabilities, and The Lonestar Paralysis Foundation. The documentary shatters many of society’s misconceptions about people with disabilities, and is the foundation of a national campaign to improve the lives of individuals with disabilities by changing perceptions, removing attitudinal barriers and increasing opportunities. Following the screening, a dynamic discussion panel discussed how public and private recreation programs can successfully include people of all abilities. A number of vendors were also on hand providing demonstration of adaptive recreation equipment. The award was presented to Commissioner Chip Howe, on October 25, 2008 in Arlington, Texas. Congratulations to the AMCPD and all community partners, who helped to coordinate this event. Access Subcommittee The Access subcommittee’s focus is on insuring accessibility and barrier removal throughout the community, providing citizen input on accessibility projects, promoting ADA compliance, and providing information and policy recommendations on accessibility of City of Austin services and facilities. ACCESS SUBCOMMITTEE ACCOMPLISHMENTS FY 2007-2008 AWARDS SUBCOMMITTEE ACCOMPLISHMENTS FY 2007-2008 EMPLOYMENT SUBCOMMITTEE ACCOMPLISHMENTS FY 2007-2008 YOUTH SUBCOMMITTEE ACCOMPLISHMENTS FY 2007-2008 Conclusions and Recommendations/Actions: 2008 The information in this report has been carefully gathered and analyzed; it accurately represents current compliance in the City as a whole. After evaluating all the city departments, the ADA Office assembled a list of needs and recommendations. The results are as follows: Need: Recommendation/Actions: Need: Recommendation/Actions: Additionally, the Task Force continues to monitor the Sidewalk Master Plan. The group meets every other month or as needed. Additionally, a five member ad-hoc subcommittee was formed to address immediate concerns or questions that may come up between meetings. Staff also contacts members to meet at site locations to get input and recommendations on specific projects. The Task Force is proving to be a very useful tool for City staff. Current participants include members of AMCPD, ADAPT, Capital Metro, Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services DARS- Blind Services Division, Austin Energy, Watershed Protection, Development and Review, Travis County, Public Works and Transportation, and some individual members of the community at large. Need: The ADA Employment Training though modified with a Power point presentation, a quiz and practice exercises, has not yielded the results in terms of goals for employees trained. Individual sessions for requesting departments have been more successful. Departments taking advantage of this service include the Police Department, Public Works and Parks and Recreation. We designed a new display and successfully used it for exhibits, but also at training sessions marketing upcoming sessions and other services provided by the ADA Office. This has been enhanced by a Power Point that accompanies the display. Recommendation/Actions: Need: Recommendations/Actions: Need: Recommendation/Actions: Summary This report identifies positive actions taken by the City. Compliance is an ongoing process. The City continues to offer consultation to cities, counties and state agencies on their current progress of ADA implementation. Even though there is still work ahead, the City of Austin has an enviable record of compliance, in large part, due to the support of upper management including Mayor and Council, City Manager and Executive Team. The City should continue proactively including individuals with disabilities in the planning process to utilize its limited resources to yield the maximum level of accessibility. Citizen request programs, advisory committees, and citizen led taskforces are an effective means of gathering this information. When readily achievable and fiscally responsible, the City should exceed the minimum standards of accessibility to allow greater opportunities for Austin citizens with disabilities to participate in the economic and social life of their community.1 The City ADA Office works to make Austin the most livable city in the nation for all its citizens through proactive programs to implement the ADA and increase community-wide inclusion. The City of Austin has demonstrated state and national leadership in its accessibility practices through innovative policy initiatives that remove barriers to inclusion for individuals with disabilities. This entire document serves only as an information piece and is not intended to reflect the legal opinion or position of the City of Austin with regards to ADA. For legal issues, consult with your legal advisor. Please visit us at: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/ada/ ADA OFFICE BUDGET FY 2007-2008
ADA Office Training Breakdown FY 2007-2008
Review of FY 2007-2008 Trainings During FY 2007-2008 over 182 City employees from 16 different city departments participated in ADAtude training. Of those trained 92% gave the training a 4-5 rating. (a 4-5 rating indicates an exceptional score for the training. Departments with the highest numbers of employees attending training were PARD, ACCD, APD, HHSD, AWU and FASD. Below is the breakdown by department, number of trainees, and overall percentage of employees trained. Summary of trainees by department for FY 2007-2008
ADA OFFICE Annual Service Engagement TrackingFY 2007-2008 What is a service engagement? What method is used to track service engagements? Summary of Service Engagements for FY 2007-2008
Volunteer Disabled Parking EnforcementFY 2007-2008 Background of Volunteer Disabled Parking Enforcement Program In 1994, the City of Austin deputized 28 volunteers to issue parking tickets, to assist the City of Austin Police and Parking Enforcement Officers. This established a core of volunteers responsible for issuing citations within the Austin city limits to vehicles parked illegally in spaces on public and private property, blocking ramps or any other access reserved for people with disabilities. During a meeting with the City Manager in July 99, the members of AMCPD requested for the money generated through the program to be earmarked for use in the ADA Office. See attachment detailing uses for budget year FY 2007-2008. Program Statistics-FY 2007-2008
1 City of Austin 2008 Implementation Report |
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