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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJune 9, 2020 Revised Minutes/Meeting Summary Accessibility Advisory Committee June 9, 2020 Electronic Meeting 7:00 pm Attendees: Peter Bashaw Bianca D’Souza Saima Fatima Donna Holmes Dan Hughes – left at 8:55pm Glenn Lang Megan Thorpe Ross David Wysocki Tim Higgins, Staff Representative Rumali Perera, Recording Secretary Devin Poole, Clerk -Typist Guests: Isabelle Janton, Planner II -Site Planning, City of Pickering Vince Plouffe , Manager, Facilities Capital Projects, City of Pickering Absent: Anthony Lue Sue Wilkinson John McLellan, Ajax-Pickering Board of Trade Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) 1. Welcome & Introductions T. Higgins welcomed members and guests to the electronic meeting. 2. Disclosure of Interest No disclosures of interest were noted. 3. Review and Approval of Agenda T. Higgins reviewed the agenda items. Agenda approved. Page 1 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) 4. Review and Approval of Minutes Moved by D. Holmes Seconded by G. Lang That the Minutes of the May 13, 2020 meeting of the Accessibility Advisory Committee be approved. Carried 5. New Business 5.1 Site Plan Review -S11/18 -Metropia Isabelle Janton, Planner II -Site Planning, City of Pickering, appeared before the Committee to provide an overview of the Metropia – Townhouse development site plan which is to be located at the intersection of Pickering Parkway and Notion Road. She noted the following features of the site plan:  130 3 storey townhouse units – a mix of standard townhouses and back to back vertically stacked townhouses;  260 resident parking spaces, 33 visitor parking spaces, and 2 barrier free parking spaces;  Contains an outdoor amenity space with play structures on rubberized surface, berm with vegetation, and seeding walls;  The 2nd open space is a storm water management pond which will not be accessible to the public;  Concrete sidewalks all around the development; and,  The townhomes do not contain ground level living areas. Page 2 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) Members noted the following comments: • The townhouses are not accessible as they are vertically stacked; • The design of the townhouse complex demonstrated little in the way of accessibility features or options; • questions were raised regarding access to green space, accessible parking spaces, and specifications for the surfacing of the play area; • The site’s concept and design does not address accessibility – encourage the developer to rethink the appeal this site would have to individuals with disabilities as both residents and visitors; • Invite the developer to connect directly with the Committee to receive input; and, • The site plan does not complement City Age-Friendly strategies/plans geared towards the growing aging population of Pickering. 5.2 Navigation Study Update Vince Plouffe , Manager, Facilities Capital Projects, City of Pickering, appeared before the Committee to provide an update on the City’s Signage & Wayfinding Program. He noted the following of the program:  The intent of the program is to be cohesive to enable individuals to navigate through City of Pickering buildings;  The study looked at the City’s current signage and compared to the Province’s Page 3 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) industry standards working alongside Bennett Design and Entro;  The study looked at fonts, colours, contrast, spacing between letters, and pictograms;  The City will be creating a committee and engaging with stakeholders for input for a policy to be endorsed by Council. The Policy will include general statements of criteria and specific guidelines for wayfinding to be used in City buildings;  The City will be implementing these guidelines to the City’s Operations Centre first before moving on to the City’s Recreation Centre;  The Operations Centre already has coloured exterior doors to assist with navigation for delivery vehicles;  The Operations Centre will be used to test the new guidelines as the building does not see much public traffic; and,  The signage will be rolled out in 2021. Members noted following comments/questions:  Questions were raised regarding the study’s role in creating the policy with Vince Plouffe noting that the study and consultation with stakeholders will both be used in the creation of the policy;  Questions were raised regarding lighting levels with Vince Plouffe noting that lighting levels are mandated by the building code;  If the study will look at parks and trails with Vince Plouffe noting that this policy is only for buildings; Page 4 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate)  The use of beacons in this study with Vince Plouffe noting that the City is exploring this; and,  Navigation for the ‘new normal’ post COVID- 19 5.3 Alternate Formats – Closed Captioning & ASL Interpreting T. Higgins noted that due to COVID-19 and the closure of City Hall to the public, the City has moved to an electronic meeting platform for Council and Committee meetings. In doing so, the City is considering the need to provide closed captioning for livestreamed meeting videos, and American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation D. Wysocki appeared before the Committee to provide a brief presentation on Listening Accessibility: Captioning. He noted the following:  captioning will benefit a broad spectrum of Pickering’s residents: the aging population, persons with hearing loss, attention related issues, learning disabilities or other audio/visual–perceptual challenges, population with English as a 2nd language, and the general audience;  nearly 1 out of every 4 adult Canadian reports having some hearing loss;  Two types of captioning -Real-Time Live captioning (Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) and Video/Recorded captioning (e.g. YouTube);  Real-Time Live captioning uses an outside source to ensure that the captioning displayed on the screen is what the speaker is saying in real time; Page 5 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate)  Video/Recorded Captioning, the most frequently used, captions what has already been said;  For chamber meetings its best to use CART – infrastructure can best be implemented during Council Chamber renovations;  For electronic meetings – ensure all videos are captioned;  The best time to build accessibility is when planning new initiatives;  In doing so the City joins best-practices leadership and becomes responsive to the entire population;  Prepares the City for forthcoming AODA refresh, Federal Accessibility Legislation, United Nations (UNCRPD) Canadian Optional Protocol implementation, and current Human Rights requirements; and,  AODA and the Human Rights Code requires that obligated organizations and employers provide reasonable accommodations for alternate formats once it is requested. 5.4 Canada Day Planning T.Higgins noted that a YouTube video from the Pickering Accessibility Advisory Committee could be displayed during the City’s virtual Canada Day celebration. D. Wysocki noted that members could all submit a short video of personal meaning of accessibility to be compiled into one video. 6. Other Business & Updates Page 6 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) 6.1 Member Updates T. Higgins surveyed the Committee members for updates and final remarks. No action items from updates. T. Higgins noted that representatives of the developers of the Jerry Coughlin Centre may be attending a future informal meeting to consult the Committee further on its site plan. 7. Adjournment Meeting adjourned at 9:20pm :rp Page 7 of 7