THE JOINT PEEL- CALEDON

ACCESSIBILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Glenn Barnes, Chair - presided

1. CALL TO ORDER

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Minutes of the Joint Peel - Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee Meeting held on September 14, 2004

RECOMMENDATION AAC-27-2004

That the minutes of the September 14, 2004, Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee meeting be amended to reflect that Councillor Saito was absent due to Other Municipal Business;

And further, that the minutes of the September 14, 2004, Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee meeting be approved, as amended.

3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

RECOMMENDATION AAC-28-2004

That a presentation to introduce the Draft Communication Strategy for the Accessibility Planning and Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee be added to the agenda as Item 8a;

And further, that a discussion regarding the format of site and floor plans required for presentations to the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee be added to the agenda as Item 8b;

And further, that the agenda for the October 19, 2004 Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee meeting be approved, as amended.

Staff Direction AAC-10-2004-01

The Regional Clerk was requested to ensure that all future agendas are circulated one week prior to the meeting.

4. COMMUNICATION ITEMS (Nil)

5. PRESENTATIONS

a. Gerry Belanger, Principal of Gerald P. Belanger Architect Inc., Presentation of the Additions and Alterations to the Cheltenham Pumping and Fire Station 304.

Deferred to a future meeting of the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee

Staff Direction AAC-10-2004-02

The Regional Clerk was requested by the Members of the AAC to direct all future presenters to ensure presentation materials are provided in a manner that is accessible to all of the Committee Members.

b. Kent Gillespie, Commissioner of Corporate Services, Region of Peel, Charlotte Gravlev, Director of Clerk's and Regional Clerk, and Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Coordinator, Region of Peel, Update of the Accessibility Advisory Committee Terms of Reference

Received

Charlotte Gravlev, Director of Clerk's and Regional Clerk presented an overview of the current Terms of Reference for the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC). Additional information was provided to the Committee regarding possible changes to the Terms of Reference for consideration by the members.

Currently the Committee is comprised of ten members; seven community members (a minimum of one must be from Caledon), two elected members of Regional Council (one must be from Caledon) and the Regional Chair (ex-officio). Quorum for the Committee is six. There is currently no requirement for either Brampton or Mississauga to be represented by elected officials, the only requirement is that there must be two elected members appointed to the Committee for the term of Council (one must be from Caledon). The current Terms of Reference requires the three area municipalities; Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga to have representation on the Committee as a whole, which is accomplished through the Community members who serve on the AAC.

The AAC was requested to report to Council within 18 months of its first meeting (the first meeting was held on August 5, 2003) with a proposal for the long-term composition of the Committee.

Councillor Saito suggested that quorum for the AAC should be five, not six, given that the Regional Chair serves in an ex-officio capacity.

Charlotte Gravlev confirmed that staff can attend a meeting on behalf of the Regional Chair but that staff cannot be counted for the purpose of quorum nor can the attending staff member exercise a vote.

William Goursky suggested that the Terms of Reference for the AAC be altered to require representation by elected officials from each of the three area municipalities; Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga. This suggestion was favourably acknowledged by members of the AAC.

Councillor Saito inquired if there was a process or policy in place requiring that the position of the community representatives be re- posted. Kent Gillespie, Commissioner of Corporate Services and Regional Solicitor responded that there is currently no policy in place that would override the Terms of Reference for a committee as it relates to the appointment of community members on a committee.

H. Bajwa arrived at 2:20 p.m.

Councillor Saito suggested that consideration be given as to the implementation of a policy regarding the appointment of community members to Regional committees. She further added that the term of appointment for the community members of the AAC should coincide with that of the elected officials.

William Goursky suggested that a maximum number of terms, with a gap in service to the committee prior to a further term(s) would be an effective means of ensuring turnover in the community membership.

Councillor Paterak noted that staff should retain a qualified pool of candidates should a successful community representative applicant withdraw from the Committee after being appointed by Council.

Naz Husain recommended that the current term of the AAC community members be extended until December 31, 2006 to coincide with the appointment of elected members to the committee.

Councillor Saito reminded staff and the members of the AAC that they can not make appointment decisions that would bind the next term of Council.

Glenn Barnes, Chair of the AAC, concluded that he supported having the term of the community members mirror those of the elected officials.

6. REPORT FROM THE ACCESSIBILITY PLANNING COORDINATORS

a. Eriks Eglite, Acting Director of Recreation and Property Services, Town of Caledon

Received

Eriks Eglite, Acting Director of Recreation and Property Services, Town of Caledon, informed the Committee that the Council of the Town of Caledon passed the Update to the 2004 Town of Caledon Accessibility Plan. He noted that the Senior Management Group at the Town of Caledon met regarding Bill 118 and they are currently reviewing the proposed Bill. Finally, he noted that Town of Caledon staff representation is currently under review and at a future date there might be a different staff member representing Caledon at AAC meetings. The AAC will be advised when the staffing decision is finalized.

M. Tymkow departed at 2:50 p.m.

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

Received

Meenu Sikand, Accessibility Planning Coordinator, Region of Peel indicated that she has been approached by the City of Mississauga AAC requesting that a joint communications strategy be initiated between the Mississauga AAC and Joint Peel-Caledon AAC. Contact at the staff level has been initiated.

Councillor Saito informed the Committee that feedback from fellow Regional Councillors on the sensitivity training session, presented at Regional Council on October 7, 2004, was very positive. She expressed her thanks to staff and the members of the AAC for all of their efforts in providing the training and valuable insight.

Meenu Sikand informed the AAC of plans currently underway to recognize the United Nations International Day of Disabled Persons on December 3, 2004. Activities will include: proclamation of the day by Regional Council, information tables to be placed in the lobby of 10 Peel Centre Dr., electronic posting of the 2004 Accessibility Plan, banners on Pathways directing staff to the current accessibility web pages and sensitivity training sessions for staff.

R. Paterak departed at 3:04 p.m.

RECESS

Committee recessed at 3:05 p.m.

Committee reconvened at 3:45 p.m.

ROLL CALL

Members Present: G. Barnes; H. Bajwa; W. Goursky; N. Husain; P. Saito

Members Absent: T. Hamilton; M. Horn; E. Kolb; R. Paterak; M. Tymkow

Items 8a and 8b were dealt with.

8. OTHER BUSINESS

a. Mike Goldrup, Director of Communications and Jana Manolakos, Senior Public Affairs Associate, Presented an Overview of the Draft Region of Peel Communications Strategy for the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee

Received

b. The Joint Peel - Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee held a discussion regarding the format of site and floor plans required for presentations to the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee

Received

Eriks Eglite asked the Committee for input regarding how staff might best present floor plans and site plans to the members for review.
Glenn Barnes suggested that all plans submitted for consideration should be made available in an electronic format so that members could enlarge the magnification and view the detail of the plan.

Councillor Saito added that staff should brief the presenter prior to the presentation of the important role that the AAC plays in the review of plans. The material should be accessibile and the presenter should be made aware of the various requirements of the members of the Committee. She suggested that the members of the AAC should provide their ideas and comments in this regard to Meenu Sikand.

Naz Husain indicated that her reader would not function adequately if the plans were provided in a pdf file format and requested that the presentations include a verbal component.

Kent Gillespie noted that there is currently no formalized process to include in contracts, a presentation to the AAC, nor the form that such a presentation should be provided in, thus guidelines from the Committee would be advantageous.

Meenu Sikand informed the AAC that she has begun to receive requests from some departments to review the text of contracts and to provide wording which ensure inclusion of accessible features when considering products and services required by the Region; one such review has been completed.

 

7. REPORT OF THE ACCESSIBILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHAIR

Received

Glenn Barnes informed the members of the AAC of recent problems he encountered involving GO Transit and accessible cabs while trying to attend the introduction of Bill 118 at Queen's Park. He concluded that proper communication from GO Transit at the beginning of future construction projects will help to avoid confusion and inconvenience for persons requiring accessible service.

Naz Husain suggested that Glenn Barnes document the incident in writing to GO Transit and request a follow up response. Councillor Saito suggested that the letter be copied to Mayor Hazel McCallion.

8. OTHER BUSINESS

a. Mike Goldrup, Director of Communications and Jana Manolakos, Senior Public Affairs Associate, Presented an Overview of the Draft Region of Peel Communications Strategy for the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee

This item was dealt with earlier in the meeting

b. The Joint Peel - Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee held a discussion regarding the format of site and floor plans required for presentations to the Joint Peel-Caledon Accessibility Advisory Committee

This item was dealt with earlier in the meeting

9. NEXT MEETING

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 (1:45 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.)
Region of Peel Headquarters
Council Chamber, 5th floor
10 Peel Centre Dr.
Brampton, Ontario

10. ADJOURNMENT

Meeting adjourned at 4:29 p.m.