JOINT PEEL-CALEDON

ACCESSIBILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE (AAC)

William Goursky, Chair, presided.

1. CALL TO ORDER

William Goursky, current Chair of the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC), thanked Glenn Barnes, former Chair of the AAC (August 2003 through December 2006), on behalf of the Committee members for his dedication and commitment to the citizens of Peel.

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

RECOMMENDATION AAC-6-2007:

That the minutes of the January 30, 2007 Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) meeting, be approved.

3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

RECOMMENDATION AAC-7-2007:

That the agenda be amended to include an oral report on the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) "Accessible Mainstreet" initiative under Other Business - Item 9a;

And further, that an item be added under Other Business - Item 9b regarding the theme for the next joint meeting of the municipal AAC's in Peel Region;

And further, that an item be added under Other Business - Item 9c regarding distribution of the Joint Peel-Caledon AAC Pending Items report;

And further, that the agenda for the February 27, 2007 Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee meeting be approved, as amended.

4. COMMUNICATION ITEMS

a. Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, Access Update, Volume 4, Issue 1, Winter 2007

Received

b. Disability Law Centre, ARCH Alert, February 9, 2007

Received

STAFF DIRECTION AAC-02-2007-1

R. Kent Gillespie, Commissioner of Corporate Services and Regional Solicitor, Region of Peel, was requested to provide information regarding a possible resolution for Regional Council consideration requesting that the Canadian Federal Government become signatories to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.

c. Accessibility Directorate of Ontario, E-mail Bulletin to Public Sector Organizations, dated February 9, 2007

Received

 

5. PRESENTATIONS

Naz Husain requested that whenever possible, copies of all presentation to the AAC be provided electronically in advance to allow adequate time for members to review and prepare for meetings. Further, she asked that staff work with members to ensure the format of the material is as accessible as possible.

a. Member Accommodation Request Forms and Consent Forms Overview provided by Susan Fisher for Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Specialist, Region of Peel (Oral)

Received

Glenn Barnes requested that Committee members that have a photograph and biography on file from a previous term be exempted from resubmitting. Charlotte Gravlev, Regional Clerk, concurred.

Members with specific accomodations requests were advised to contact Meenu Sikand.

Maureen Tymkow, Citizen Member, arrived at 1:18 p.m.

b. Accessibility Topics for the 2007 Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) Agenda Group Discussion facilitated by William Goursky, AAC Chair (Oral)

Received

Group discussion occurred regarding potential topics for upcoming Joint Peel-Caledon AAC meetings. The following potential agenda items were discussed:

• Distinction between area municipal and Regional services and determination of the appropriate point of contact regarding accessibility related inquiries, related presentations to include:

  1. Region of Peel Customer Contact Centre (Consolidated call centre to access all Regional services); and
  2. 211 (Community Agencies) and 311 (Government Services) initiatives.

• Review of AAC profile and role:

  1. Community Outreach role; and
  2. Continue to promote accessiblity audit services for Regional programs.

Members were requested to bring forward any additional potential agenda items for 2007 to the AAC Chair for consideration.

c. Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) 2007 Subcommittees Group Discussion facilitated by William Goursky, AAC Chair (Oral)

Received

The current list of AAC Sub-Committees include the following:

• Facility Audit
• Peel Children's Water Festival
• Disability Education and Sensitivity Training
• International Day of Disabled Persons (IDDP)
• Accessibility Awards
• Lunch and Learn Events

Members were asked to review the current list of AAC Sub-Committees and submit, by e-mail to Meenu Sikand, their expression of interest prior to the March AAC meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, March 27, 2007.

STAFF DIRECTION AAC-02-2007-2

Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Specialist, Region of Peel, was requested by William Goursky, to consider establishing a Site Plan review Sub-Committee;

And further to review the possibility of the members of this Sub-Committee receiving high-level training in the review and interpretation of plans.

d. Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Specialist, Region of Peel, Providing an Overview of the Region of Peel Accessibility Program and Expense Procedures for Members (Oral)

Referred to the March 27, 2007 Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee Meeting

e. Steering Committee Activities Update provided by Charlotte Gravlev, Regional Clerk and Director of Clerk's (Oral)

Received

William Goursky advised the members of the AAC that the Steering Committee (formerly the Staff Working Group), comprised of Region of Peel staff members from across the organization, will be meeting in early March 2007 to review an action plan of proposed projects. Charlotte Gravlev explained that the Steering Committee will provide recommendations to the Region of Peel Executive Management Team and report to the AAC on the outcome.

f. Accessible Parking Permits Group Discussion facilitated by William Goursky, AAC Chair (Oral)

Received

William Goursky informed the members of the AAC that he had sent a letter to the Ontario Minister of Transportation, Donna Cansfield, requesting that the matter of over issuance of disabled parking permits in Ontario be reviewed.

Group discussion occurred regarding both abuse of and improper signage for disabled parking spaces throughout the Region of Peel.

Harvinder Bajwa provided the Chair with a copy of a recent report that appeared before the City of Brampton AAC advising of various disabled parking infractions throughout the City.

Colleen Grant, Town Prosecutor and Solicitor, Town of Caledon, advised that the Caledon detachment of the OPP is very focused on the enforcement of parking spaces reserved for persons with disabilities. She also noted that any witnessed abuse of such reserved spaces can be reported to the Town of Caledon By-Law Enforcement Office for follow up.

STAFF DIRECTION AAC-02-2007-3

Meenu Sikand was requested to work with William Goursky, Chair of the AAC, to prepare a letter to the Chief, Peel Regional Police and the Detachment Commander, Caledon OPP regarding the enforcement of by-laws pertaining to disabled parking spaces.

William Goursky was further requested to suggest in the correspondence to the Chief of Peel Regional Police that consideration be given to the establishment of a Peel Regional Police Accessibility Task Force or Unit similar to that of the Toronto Police Services.

6. REPORTS

7. REPORT FROM THE ACCESSIBILITY PLANNING COORDINATORS

a. Colleen Grant, Town Prosecutor and Solicitor, Town of Caledon (Oral)

Received

Colleen Grant, Town Prosecutor and Solicitor, Town of Caledon, advised the members of the AAC that staff at the Town of Caledon are also in the process of establishing a Staff Steering Group to address issues related to accessibility and that further updates on activities of the group will be brought to future meetings of the AAC.

b. Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Specialist, Region of Peel

Received

8. REPORT OF THE ACCESSIBILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHAIR

9. OTHER BUSINESS

a. Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) "Accessible Mainstreet" initiative (Oral)

Received

Glenn Barnes advised of the TABIA "Accessible Mainstreet" initiative and requested that members of the AAC take some time to navigate the site and provide him with feedback. The site is located at the following address:
http://www.toronto-bia.com/resources/accessibility.php

See also RECOMMENDATION AAC-7-2007

b. Joint Meeting of the Municipal AAC's in Peel Region (Oral)

Received

William Goursky informed the members of the AAC that the proposed theme for the upcoming joint meeting of the municipal AAC's in Peel Region is Housing. The meeting will be hosted by the Region of Peel in the spring of 2007 at a date to be determined. Feedback from the members was sought.

Glenn Barnes noted that accessible affordable housing is an issue of importance to all persons with disabilities across the Region, the Province and the country.

Maureen Tymkow stated that the joint meeting of municipal AAC's in Peel Region should focus on services where change can be readily affected. She suggested that the joint meeting of AAC's focus upon Emergency Services (Ambulance, Fire and Police) and their protocols in dealing with persons with disabilities.

Glenn Barnes suggested that members from the three AAC should meet to discuss the joint meeting agenda.

STAFF DIRECTION AAC-02-2007-4

Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Specialist, Region of Peel, was requested to coordinate a presentation from Peel Regional Paramedic Services for an upcoming AAC meeting.

See also RECOMMENDATION AAC-7-2007

c. Distribution of the Joint Peel-Caledon Pending Items report (Oral)

Received

Staff was requested to circulate the AAC Pending Items report along with the March 27, 2007 agenda.

See also RECOMMENDATION AAC-7-2007

10. NEXT MEETING

Tuesday, March 27, 2007
1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Region of Peel Administrative Headquarters
Council Chamber, 5th floor
10 Peel Centre Dr.
Brampton, Ontario

11. ADJOURNMENT

The meeting adjourned at 2:53 p.m.