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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSeptember 16, 2020 Page 1 of 7 Minutes/Meeting Summary Accessibility Advisory Committee September 16, 2020 Electronic Meeting 7:00 pm Attendees: Bianca D’Souza Peter Bashaw Saima Fatima Dan Hughes Glenn Lang Anthony Lue Tim Higgins, Staff Representative Rumali Perera, Recording Secretary Devin Poole, Clerk - Typist Guests: Isabelle Janton, Senior Planner - Site Planning, City of Pickering Vince Plouffe, Manager, Facilities Capital Projects, City of Pickering Absent: Megan Thorpe Ross David Wysocki Sue Wilkinson Donna Holmes 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. 1. Review and Approval of Minutes - June 9, 2020 and August 26, 2020 Page 2 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) Moved by D. Hughes Seconded by A. Lue That the Minutes of the June 9, 2020 meeting of the Accessibility Advisory Committee be approved pending minor edits. Carried Moved by G. Lang Seconded by A. Lue That the Minutes of the August 26, 2020 meeting of the Accessibility Advisory Committee be approved pending minor edits. Carried 4. New Business 5.1 Motion to amend the Accessibility Advisory Committee meeting schedule T. Higgins noted that the City is unable to livestream multiple meetings concurrently with the current technology in place, and that the Committee would need to amend the meeting schedule due to the livestream scheduling conflict with the City’s Committee of Adjustment. Moved by A. Lue Seconded by D. Hughes That Accessibility Advisory Committee meetings be rescheduled to the 3rd Wednesday of each month. Carried 5.2 Site Plans i) Fire Station #1 Headquarters – Duffin Heights Isabelle Janton, Senior Planner, Site Planning, and Vince Plouffe, Manager, Facilities Capital Projects, appeared before the Committee via electronic participation and noted: - Page 3 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate)  the proposed Fire Hall is to be located at the northwest corner of Brock Road and Zents Drive;  that the land is owned by the City with the proposed Fire Hall to only occupying part of the land;  the entrance into the proposed building is located at the North end;  parking located at the back of the proposed building and linked to pedestrian walkways;  the lower space is to consist of the Fire Hall, while the upper floor is to replace the existing headquarters office space currently located at Fire Station #5, as the new proposed Fire Station #1 would be centrally located in Pickering, it would allow access to incidents across the City;  the proposed building is to be 2 storeys in height and consist of an apparatus bay, garage, shared kitchen, dining area, workout space, a screened patio, sleeping quarters, washrooms, training rooms, showers, walker rooms, storage areas, maintenance and repair areas, generator, offices for staff, and a hose tower to be located along the outside of the building;  large bi-fold doors would be used instead of standard overhead garage doors, as the bi- fold doors would open very rapidly, helping to minimize response time;  the proposed building is to use a combination of brick and metal cladding;  landscaping features include a flag pole and an art feature, with a competition being held to select the art piece;  the architecture of the ground floor has limited exposure as the proposed Fire Hall consist of inward facing spaces;  the exterior of the proposed building would include concrete sidewalks and walkway surfaces; and,  that the proposed building would have a towering presence due to the elevations of the land. Committee Members noted: Page 4 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate)  whether the walkway could be extended to go beside the benches to allow someone in a mobile device to be able to sit along the benches located at the two entrances;  whether there is a bus stop near the proposed building;  why the renderings of the site plan include ramps instead of stairs if there is a possibility for a steep incline as it would not meet the 12:1 ratio needed for ramps; and,  whether the washrooms are fully accessible. Vince Plouffe, Manager, Facilities Capital Projects noted that this project showcases that accessible design is no longer a secondary consideration or an afterthought, rather accessible design is an integral component of the plan and the layout. The City no longer has to push for its consultants for compliance with standards that move beyond the building code, rather it is accepted that accessible design is good practice. ii) Mattamy Homes - S 07/20 - 1033 Reflection Place Isabelle Janton, Senior Planner, Site Planning, appeared before the Committee via electronic participation to provide a high-level overview of the site plan and noted:  the proposed homes are to be located close to the corner of Taunton and Sapphire Drive;  the proposed homes are to consist of 50 standard townhouses and 28 stacked townhouses;  the site is in the process of an official plan amendment application to reduce the density, and a rezoning application to allow for a medium density development;  duplex units to be located along the edges;  multiple staircases inside the homes;  living space are to be located on one level and bedrooms to be located on the top level; Page 5 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate)  the proposed central landscape feature includes a playground;  concrete sidewalks through the entire development connecting to Taunton Road, Reflection Place, and Sapphire Drive;  accessible parking spaces are proposed as part of this development; and,  1 parking space per dwelling; Committee Members suggested the inclusion of an elevator in the parking garage to be an option to buyers to ensure accessibility into the homes. 5.3 Website Accessibility T. Higgins noted that the AODA has raised Information and Communication Standards across Ontario and that the new standards would affect the design, implementation, and content of websites facing the public. He noted that by January 1, 2021, all public websites and web content must meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA, meaning public facing websites must be navigable and its content accessible. He stated that over time content was added to the City’s website intending the website to be informative; however, the content was often not prepared with accessibility in mind. T. Higgins noted that Senior Management of the City have been informed, Staff have formed a steering committee and a working team to reach out to Staff who have content on the City’s W ebsite, and an inventory of content on the Website is being analyzed to assess accessibility. He stated that Staff are to consider whether the content is needed, in the best place, and if so meets the WCAG 2.0 AA accessibility requirements. He stated that while software can identify many accessibility issues, Staff resources are required to remediate the identified issues if the content is to remain on the website. T. Higgins further noted that a software scan of Pickering.ca produced an inventory of approximately 1,700 PDF files that had accessibility compliance issues. The Project Steering Committee is considering the outsourcing Page 6 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) of the remediation work, and/or potential hiring of a Co-Op student to assist Staff in the remediation work. He advised that Staff are expected to meet the requirements and report back on whether the City has met the requirements. There is a risk, come January 2021, of monetary penalties up to $100,000 per day for failing to meet these WCAG 2.0 AA requirements. T. Higgins noted that there is support from Senior Management and Staff in conducting this work and that Staff are collaborating with Ontario Network of Accessibility Professionals (ONAP), Durham Region, and Durham tier-two municipalities. Committee members questioned whether there are specific requirements for content that is not in PDF format. T. Higgins noted that webpages are designed in a format that is largely accessible by its nature, and that the bulk of technical issues are concerning PDF and other files linked to the Website. One strategy to remediate PDF files that are not accessible is to transform their content into webpages. T. Higgins noted that the City’s website is quite new in its design, is for the most part considered accessible and has won several awards. 5.4 Service & Support Animal Initiative T. Higgins provided a brief update of the Service & Support Animal Initiative (SSIA), noting that the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility had granted approval in principle to proceed with the Initiative, approving a grant of $50,000 to be spent by March 2021, and noting that D. Wysocki would be leading this project. T. Higgins added that changes are required to the Transfer Payment Agreement (TPA) with the Province due to the limitations created by COVID-19. For example, T. Higgins noted that the proposed Innovation Lab, which was initially to be held in-person would now, be required to move to a virtual setting. A Monograph (research study) would be published to highlight the findings of the SSIA and would be shared with other municipalities and businesses to provide clarity around service and Support animal issues as well as identify and share best practices. T. Higgins advised that the Page 7 of 7 Item/ Ref # Details & Discussion & Conclusion (summary of discussion) Action Items/Status (include deadline as appropriate) Innovation Lab component of the SSAI is planned to commence by end of October, the Monograph is planned for completion in February, and the public Launch event is scheduled to occur towards the end of February in the form of a webcast. T. Higgins advised that, in light of challenging project timelines, he would be looking for volunteers from the Accessibility Advisory Committee to help carry some of the workload of the Initiative. T. Higgins noted that he planned to share a draft of the 5 Year Accessibity Plan with Committee members by e-mail before the next AAC meeting to obtain the Committee’s input prior to submitting the plan for Council approval, possibly in November. Other Business & Updates T. Higgins surveyed the members for updates. P. Bashaw noted that he completed the 6-week certificate course on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). G. Lang enquired about support available for seniors in Pickering, with T. Higgins noting that there is an Age Friendly Initiative underway in the City. A. Lue noted that he received news that he has become a “carded athlete”, noting that carded athletes receive funding from the Government as a form of recognition of an individual’s sporting skills and accomplishments. Adjournment Meeting adjourned at 9: 10 pm.