Accessibility Advisory Committee Meeting Agenda March 1, :00 PM Committee Room One Whitby Municipal Building. Page

Transcription

1 Accessibility Advisory Committee Meeting Agenda March 1, :00 PM Committee Room One Whitby Municipal Building Page 1. Disclosures of Interest 2. Approval of Previous Minutes 2.1 Minutes - February 2, Recommendation: That the Accessibility Advisory Committee minutes of February 2, 2016 be approved. 3. Presentations/Deputations 4. General Business and Reports 4.1 Confirmation of Election of Chair 4.2 Meeting Guidelines Subcommittee Updates / Work Plan Updates 5. Correspondence 6. Council Update 7. Other Business 8. Next Meeting 8.1 Tuesday April 5, :00 p.m. Whitby Municipal Building, Committee Room 1 9. Adjournment Page 1 of 9

2 February 2, :00 pm Committee Room One Whitby Municipal Building Present: Also Present: Jeffrey Beaton Naji Hassan Sharon Johnston Denise Laframboise Allyson Partridge-Rios Richard Turner Councillor Leahy Sarah Klein, Manager of Recreation Michele Cotton, Staff Liaison, Accessibility Coordinator Jonathan Gilston, Committee Secretary Regrets: James Lawrie Amanda Murray Kalpna Sheth The meeting began at 7:01 p.m. 1. Appointment of Chair and Vice-Chair 1.1 The Committee was advised that the appointment for the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee would take place at this time. Michele Cotton called for nominations for the position of Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee. Richard Turner nominated James Lawrie for the position of Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee. James Lawrie was not present to accept the nomination, but sent an to Michele Cotton, Staff Liaison, on February 1, 2016 advising that he would stand for re-appointment to Chair. There were no further nominations and the nominations were closed. Michele Cotton called for nominations for the position of Vice-Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee. Page 2 of 9

3 February 02, :00 PM Naji Hassan nominated Jeffrey Beaton for the position of Vice-Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee. Jeffrey Beaton accepted the nomination. There were no further nominations and the nominations were closed. Moved By Richard Turner That James Lawrie be appointed Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee for a term ending on December 31, Moved By Naji Hassan That Jeffrey Beaton be appointed Vice-Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee for a term ending on December 31, Disclosures of Interest 2.1 There were no disclosures of interest. 3. Approval of Previous Minutes 3.1 Minutes - January 5, 2016 Moved By Allyson Partridge-Rios That the Accessibility Advisory Committee minutes of January 5, 2016 be approved. 4. Presentations/Deputations 4.1 Sarah Klein, Manager of Recreation Re: Ethno-Cultural & Diversity Advisory Committee Forum Sarah Klein appeared before the Committee to present information regarding the Ethno-Cultural & Diversity Advisory Committee's (EDAC) Page 3 of 9

4 February 02, :00 PM Diversity Forums, including: the location and length of the Forums; topics and themes from previous events; and how many panellists normally participate. She advised that EDAC expressed an interest in working with the Accessibility Advisory Committee to develop a Forum, with a focus on accessibility, for the 2016 International Day of Persons with Disabilities on December 3. Discussion ensued regarding: the potential topics and themes for the Forum; the importance of having at least four panellists for the Forum; and meeting with EDAC's Forum subcommittee to discuss the details and potential topics. Moved By Sharon Johnston That the Communication Subcommittee arrange a meeting date with the Ethno-Cultural & Diversity Advisory Committee's Forum Subcommittee to discuss the logistics and potential topics for a Diversity Forum on December 3, General Business and Reports Work Plan/Priority Items - Report to Council Michele Cotton advised that the 2016 Work Plan was presented to the Planning and Development Committee meeting on January 25, 2016, and that the requested funds for the 2016 Work Plan will be supplied from the Accessibility reserve fund. 5.2 Subcommittee Schedules 6. Correspondence Discussion ensued regarding the 2016 subcommittee meeting schedule and determining each subcommittee's meeting date and time. 6.1 GO Transit Brochures Michele Cotton provided copies of Metrolinx's Accessibility brochures to the Committee. Page 4 of 9

5 February 02, :00 PM 7. Council Update 7.1 Councillor Leahy provided an update regarding: the Fire Master Plan, which was presented to the Special Council meeting on January 25, 2016, and the increase in servicing levels required from the fire department; the submission of the Committee's 2016 Work Plan to the Planning and Development Committee on January 25, 2016; and the 2016 budget process. 8. Other Business Discussion ensued regarding the redevelopment of Town Hall, including: the required capital funds for the project; the current dispersal of Town Staff in various municipal buildings; and the financial pressures and other commitments facing the municipality, including the infrastructure requirements for new development areas and the construction of the proposed Brooklin recreational building. 8.1 Richard Turner presented the January 27, 2016 article from the Whitby This Week that details Council's decision to keep the Whitby County Town Carnival event at Victoria Fields. Discussion ensued regarding: Town Staff's consultations with the Committee with regards to accessibility at Town events; Mobi-Mats that can be purchased or borrowed for Town events to assist participants with accessibility needs; developing other solutions to assist transporting participants with accessibility concerns to Town events; and determining how many citizens were unable to attend Town events due to accessibility concerns or issues. Michele Cotton advised that she would: contact neighbouring municipalities to potentially borrow the Mobi- Mats used for the 2015 Pan-Am Games; investigate the costs associated with the purchase and installation of the Mobi-Mats; forward the Mobi-Mat information to Councillor Leahy for potential financial assistance from the Town of Whitby; and present the Committee's concerns to the Whitby County Town Carnival Committee at their February 23, 2016 meeting. Page 5 of 9

6 February 02, :00 PM 8.2 Michele Cotton provided copies of an Age-Friendly Whitby Community Survey to the Committee for review and comment. She requested that the Committee submit their comments to her by February 5, Next Meeting 9.1 Tuesday March 1, :00 p.m. Whitby Municipal Building, Committee Room Adjournment 10.1 Motion to Adjourn Moved By Richard Turner That the meeting adjourn. The meeting ended at 7:45 p.m. J. Gilston, Committee Secretary Jeffrey Beaton, Vice-Chair Page 6 of 9

7 Agenda Item # 4.2 Accessibility Advisory Committee Meeting Guidelines Attendance: Members will be present at all meetings (if possible). Members will notify the Accessibility Coordinator or the Chair as soon as possible in advance of the meeting if you are unable to attend the meeting. Unexplained absence from three consecutive meetings is cause for termination of your placement on the committee. Minutes and Agendas: Agendas and Minutes for the Committee will be posted on the Town of Whitby website. Each member is responsible for registering on CivicWeb to receive notice of this information being posted. Committee members are responsible for reviewing the minutes prior to the meetings and bringing forward any corrections at the following meeting. Committee members are responsible to read the agenda prior to the meeting and be prepared to discuss the items. Additions to the agenda can be made by any member at the meeting. Topics for discussion at the meetings are to be focused within mandate and responsibilities of the Committee. Topics outside the mandate of this committee will not be addressed during the meeting. Topics that are not concluded or determined to exceed time limits of the meeting will be moved to the next meeting s agenda for further discussion. Meeting Etiquette: To be respectful of member s time, we will start our meetings on time; any member who arrives late is asked to quietly take their seat without disrupting the meeting. Meetings are for the benefit of all members and no one person has the right to dominate or be disruptive. People should feel comfortable that there is enough time to make their contributions. Page 7 of 9

8 Agenda Item # 4.2 All members need to be respectful of others by participating in the meeting and only one conversation at a time, no sidebar conversations. Listen to each other. Do not interrupt the speaker. Members are not to use the meeting to have personal questions answered or take the meeting off topic by sharing personal stories. Those wishing to speak should signal their intention to the Chair and wait to be invited to speak. To be respectful of members time, speaking should be concise to the topic at hand and without repetition. Once a topic is concluded, it will not be readdressed unless new information is available. Before speaking, you should construct the points to be made and stick to them, speaking for as short a time as possible without repetition, using clear, acceptable non-defamatory language. If you fail to make all your points, it may not be possible to have another chance to speak if a lot of people are waiting, so it is advisable to make a quick note of bullet points to be made. Responsibilities of the Chair: The Chair is responsible for managing the meeting. The Chair will aim to ensure that meeting times and agenda items are managed well so that everything can run to time. The Chair also needs to manage contributions, keep contributors from repeating themselves, and ensure a few individuals do not monopolise the time. This will ensure that equality and courtesy are maintained. The Chair will recognize members wishing to speak and invite them to take the floor when it is their turn. The Chair may need to take a firm line with people who speak out of turn or taking the meeting off topic. The Chair is to stay neutral on content. Avoid the temptation to offer opinions about the topic under discussion. Use questions and suggestions to offer ideas. Never impose opinions on the group. The Chair should synthesize ideas: Get people to comment and build on each other s thoughts and reflect the collective thinking. This builds consensus and commitment. The Chair is responsible for letting group members know when they re off track. The Chair will place the sidetrack on hold and get back to the agenda. The committee can decide at the end of the meeting to pursue the sidetrack or have it included on a future agenda. Page 8 of 9

9 Agenda Item # 4.2 Meeting Checklist: Here s a checklist of activities you should go through as you prepare to attend the meeting. They give you a clear summary of what everyone is expected to be able to do, and how they can expect to be treated. Agree these at the start to ensure a good meeting. Ask yourself Have I Read the minutes Checked the agenda Made notes on what I want to say Arranged to be there for the whole meeting Tell yourself I will.. Really listen to what people say Leave my personal concerns at the door Not use my position to get my personal questions answered Make my criticisms constructively Make at least one well prepared contribution Make sure I m not contributing to side conversations or speaking over another member Honour the limitations of time, speak concisely Page 9 of 9