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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDisability Advisory Board - MINUTES - 04/21/20254/21/25– MINUTES Disability Advisory Board REGULAR MEETING Monday, April 21, 2025 – 5:30 PM 300 Laporte Avenue and Microsoft Teams 1. CALL TO ORDER: 5:31 PM 2. ROLL CALL a. Board Members Present – Linda Drees (Chair), Amber Kelley (newly elected Chair), Daisy Montgomery (newly elected Vice Chair), Scott Winnegrad, Kristin White, Anais Campbell, Cassidy Dellemonache, Matthew Cicanese b. Board Members Absent – Amanda Morgan (unable to log in) c. Staff Members Present – Jan Reece, Katlyn Kelly, Gretchen Gramley, Spencer Smith d. Guest(s) – Liri 3. AGENDA REVIEW No changes. 4. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION None. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – MARCH 17, 2025 Kelley made a motion to approve March 17, 2025 minutes as presented. Winnegrad seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously. 6. BUDGET Chair Drees commented on the current budget balance. 7. GUEST PRESENTER a. Katlyn Kelly/Gretchen Gramley – Transfort and Spencer Smith – Engineering Katlyn Kelly, Transfort Dial-a-Ride Program Manager, provided an update on upcoming Dial-a-Ride technology projects, including the notification project which will send either a phone call or text message to Dial-a-Ride clients to confirm trips a day ahead of time and provide a ten-minute notification prior to 4/21/25– MINUTES vehicle arrival. Additionally, the web portal is currently being designed. Montgomery requested some background on the projects in terms of benefits for the disabled community. Kelly replied Dial-a-Ride currently requires booking at least a day in advance by calling into the call center during business hours and the web portal and mobile application will provide more options for managing trips. She noted all software will be accessible and screen reader friendly. Montgomery asked if Dial-a-Ride only services Fort Collins. Kelly replied Dial- a-Ride is Fort Collins’ paratransit program that is required by the FTA of all transit operators and the service area for Dial-a-Ride is based on where there are currently fixed bus routes. She noted there is an additional service that provides a $20 taxi voucher to Dial-a-Ride customers for rides outside of the service area. Kelly noted Transfort’s overall software system has to be upgraded to a new version prior to the web application being developed, and the current estimate for the upgrade is June of this year. Kelly also noted Dial-a-Ride is working to build a secure, compliant on-line form to apply for services. Scott Winnegrad asked about the beta testing group for the technology projects. Kelly replied the test group is current users who have shown interest. Linda Drees asked if there is still a 21-day waiting period for applicants. Kelly replied in the affirmative, but noted the wait is frequently for doctors to complete their portion. She stated the hope is to ultimately digitize that process as well. Kelly provided an update on the 2024 paratransit passenger survey, which was done via phone calls this year rather than a mailed form. She stated surveys were completed by about 93 of the 305 active clients and results showed similar satisfaction results overall between 2022 and 2024. She noted a key improvement from the 2022 survey was a 14% improvement in the excellent and good categories for complaint resolution. She stated results also showed a slight shift from excellent to good for call center staff customer service so that will be an area of focus moving forward. Kelly stated there was a new question this year regarding feedback about the application process, which is currently a paper form. She stated the hope is that satisfaction will increase with the on-line form. Montgomery asked if the call center is in Fort Collins. Kelly replied the service is contracted to Z Trip, but the office is in Fort Collins. Kelly commented on the survey results from the taxi voucher program, noting the survey included two new questions, one related to drivers’ customer service and one related to wait times. She noted there was an improvement in excellent scores for service reliability, though 18% of respondents still felt it was poor. She stated the wait times also average below good. 4/21/25– MINUTES Kelly discussed Transfort and Dial-a-Ride’s ongoing trainings around acceptance, inclusion, and customer service for people with disabilities. Gretchen Gramley, Transfort Senior Project Manager, provided an update on Transfort bus stops noting there are 416 bus stops in its jurisdiction, all but 34 of which have an ADA compliant boarding zone. She stated the focus on updating bus stops over the coming years is somewhat tied to funding sources. She stated the first phase of the next updates for 12 stops is being funded by an FTA grant. Montgomery asked how many ADA compliant bus stops will end up being in northeast Fort Collins. Gramley replied she would follow up with that information. Montgomery commented on the collaborative work with Engineering regarding bus stops. Spencer Smith, Special Projects Engineer, stated Engineering has a pedestrian program which is funded with a chunk of sales tax revenue that is part of a larger tax initiative. He stated the pedestrian program is focused on ADA compliance for city sidewalks, ramps, and other pedestrian facilities. Smith outlined the sidewalk prioritization study and commented on coordination with Transfort, FC Moves, and other City departments. Liri asked if crosswalk buttons are planning to be updated. Smith replied those fall under Traffic Operations, and there is a list of crosswalks buttons that need to be upgraded. Smith discussed some upcoming Transfort/Engineering coordinated projects which include sidewalk and bus stop improvements. Kelly asked how it is determined whether to add a shelter to a bus stop. Gramley replied that is based on a number of data points, including ridership, exposure to elements, zoning, and funding. Campbell asked if Access Fort Collins complaints factor into prioritization. Smith replied in the affirmative. Smith commented on Engineering coordination with FC Moves and the Active Modes Plan to develop creative solutions for sidewalks and bike lanes. He also discussed planned 2025 pedestrian program projects, including one related to a request from an individual in a wheelchair. White commended the work on the Azalea ramps. Members discussed the fact that these types of improvements are life- changing for individuals with disabilities. Dellemonache noted she intermittently uses a wheelchair and some of the 4/21/25– MINUTES ramps are quite steep. She asked how staff gets notified of such issues. Smith replied individuals can report on Access Fort Collins or reach out directly to staff. He stated much of that data was collected as part of the sidewalk prioritization study and noted there are specific ADA standards regarding slopes. He stated that will be part of revamping the conditions assessment. 8. NEW BUSINESS a. Election of New Chair and Vice Chair Chair Drees nominated Amber Kelley for Chair. White concurred. Kelley requested open and clear communication and patience from the members. Kelley asked Chair Drees if she would be willing to be Vice Chair. Chair Drees replied in the affirmative. Amber Kelley was unanimously elected as Chair. Daisy Montgomery expressed interest in serving as Vice Chair. Daisy Montgomery was unanimously elected as Vice Chair. b. Amber Kelley and Linda Drees Awards Update • Food suggestions for dessert bar • Art show idea • Estimate of number of attendees • Awards to be given Drees noted the thought is to do a dessert bar at City Hall, the Senior Center, or the Discovery Museum. Kelley stated there is also a thought to utilize art from community members with disabilities as decorations and have Starry Night provide desserts. Drees suggested copies of the artwork could be used as the awards. She also stated the plan is to bring the number of awards down to three to five, including potentially the Dorothy Lasley Memorial Award, individual, educator, organization, and team award. Members discussed consolidating the number of awards. Drees noted the criteria and directions for nominations have already been completed. Dellemonache questioned what types of standards will be applied to the artwork provided. Members discussed how to address this given the subjectivity of art and AI exploitation of artists. Kelley noted the Human Relations Commission also uses artwork as awards. Members discussed having a contest or call for the artwork pieces. 4/21/25– MINUTES Members also discussed using the Center for Creativity as a location. Drees suggested the awards committee, consisting of Dellemonache, Campbell, White, Drees, Cicanese, Montgomery, and Kelley, meet to do some more in-depth planning. Reece noted the meeting will become an open meeting with that many members and suggested the possibility of breaking up the committee into smaller groups. Members discussed the expected number of attendees. c. Does the DAB want to continue providing meals at meetings Drees noted the Board has about $4,000 to fund the event and artwork and asked if the members would be wiling to forego meeting meals to fund it. Scott Winnegrad made a motion, seconded by Anais Campbel, to discontinue providing Board meals to add funding to the awards event. Members discussed having some type of snack available as many members come straight from work. The motion was adopted unanimously. 9. OLD BUSINESS a. Banner Update – Scott Winnegrad Winnegrad stated the Board’s banner arrived last week; however, it was damaged, though it could potentially be taped. She stated the cost of the banner was $166 and the Board approved a budget of $250 so it could potentially be replaced with a cloth banner. b. Briefing Papers – Linda Drees Drees stated she drafted a position paper on Transfort/Dial-a-Ride and sent it to Terry Schlicting to review. She stated this paper will be used as a model for other position papers to be sent to Council. 10. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS 11. STAFF REPORTS 12. OTHER BUSINESS a. Jan Reece Report • Attended Autism Awareness event for City employees – Montgomery provided the two day presentation, survey sent out to employees to determine what future presentations should include • Will be attending ADA training in June for continued education – in Atlanta, Georgia • Autistic Joy event – April 30th, 5:00-7:00 PM – provided fliers for the 4/21/25– MINUTES event 13. ADJOURNMENT a. 7:32 PM Minutes approved by the Chair and a vote of the Board on 05/19/2025 Signature: