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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuman Relations Commission - Minutes - 01/09/20141 City of Fort Collins Human Relations Commission Regular Meeting Minutes January 9, 2014, 5:30 p.m. CIC Room, 300 Laporte Avenue, City Hall West Fort Collins, Colorado 80521 The Human Relations Commission promotes acceptance and respect for diversity through educational programs and activities to discourage all forms of discrimination based on age, disability, gender, race, religion etc. Council Liaison: Mayor Karen Weitkunat Staff Liaison: Melissa Herzog Recorder: Michele Scalva Commissioners Present: Myles Crane, Christy Doyon, Christine Hays, Mary Lyons, James Owiny, Preety Sathe and Faith Sternlieb Others Present/Guests: Mayor Karen Weitkunat; Greg Tempel, Senior Assistant City Attorney; Jenny Lopez Filkins, Assistant City Attorney; and Chief John Hutto, Fort Collins Police Department Excused Absent: Colleen Conway and Victor Smith CALL TO ORDER Chair Myles Crane called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. PUBLIC INPUT No public present. CALL TO ORDER Chair Myles Crane called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. PUBLIC INPUT No public comments. AGENDA REVIEW Chair Myles Crane requested a motion to move the Agenda review to be after the speakers’ presentations. Commissioner Mary Lyons motioned and Commissioner James Owiny seconded and it passed 7:0. Meeting Summary: 1. Three guest speaker presentations: HRC Council Liaison, Mayor Karen Weitkunat welcoming new HRC members Tempel on HRC’s compliance with its role in City Code and FC Police Chief John Hutto on body-worn cameras. 2. Presentation by Christine Hays, Chair Educational Outreach Committee on mental health forums program schedule, speaker resources and organizational contacts 2014-2015. 3. Approval of HRC Annual Report 2013 as presented by Vice Chair Colleen Conway. Agreement for Report to be submitted to City Clerk by Staff Liaison Melissa Herzog. 4. Approval for proposal by James Owiny, Chair Media and Community Recognition Committee to present 2014 Human Relations Awards on Human Rights Day December 2, 2014. Acknowledgment to Commissioner Mary Lyons that Senior Advisory Board had voted unanimously to nominate the HRC Senior Awards recipient for 2014. Approval for Commissioner Christine Hays, Liaison to Women’s Commission (WC), to inquire if WC would like to present their Marcile N. Wood award on December 4, 2014 together with the HRC. 5. Preliminary discussion of five year City Priorities and agreement for Vice Chair Colleen Conway to consolidate HRC responses and submit the top three to Tim Allen, Director of Communications after review and approval by HRC at its February 13, 2014 meeting. 2 GUESTS Mayor Karen Weitkunat was the first guest and thanked the HRC members, on behalf of City Council, for the work they have accomplished and expressed appreciation to each member for his/her commitment. The Mayor reiterated how important HRC’s work is and how much it is appreciated. Mayor Weitkunat briefly discussed how there are many community members who wish to contribute to the improvement of Fort Collins. She said that City Council is exploring different ways in which community members could volunteer their talents. The Mayor clarified that any changes in the current structure of boards and commissions would happen overtime and would not disrupt any work in progress. Greg Tempel Assistant Senior City Attorney, and Jenny Lopez Filkins, Assistant City Attorney, were also guests at the HRC meeting. Mr. Tempel stated that one of his roles is to provide advice on personnel and liability issues for the City. Mr. Tempel said he also takes requests and questions via email as they relate to the work of boards and commissions. He reviews these questions/requests based on the function and scope of boards and commissions as outlined by the City. He provided excerpted copies of the guiding documents he references when reviewing requests, Fort Collins Code, and the Boards and Commissions Manual, and advised HRC members to act within the guidelines provided when performing the Commission’s work in the community. Mr. Tempel discussed how board and commission members’ actions must be done in the context of the board or commission they are part of, in order to be protected by the Government Unity Act, which enables the City to provide appropriate legal support. Mr. Tempel clarified actions taken as a private citizen versus being a board or commission member. Commissioner Christine Hays asked for clarification of when actions by the HRC needed to be approved by City Council. Chief John Hutto attended the meeting as a guest speaker and offered to return to future meetings for ongoing communications between HRC and the Police Department. Chief Hutto then presented camera technology that patrol officers are implementing. He discussed how the purchase of the cameras had been thoroughly researched. The process is widely accepted as a good practice in policing. He added that the American Civil Liberties Union also supports the use of cameras. Chief Hutto mentioned that there are 20 body-worn cameras in use and that the goal is for all patrol officers eventually to wear them. He explained how the cameras work and that officers are held accountable to activate body worn cameras by, like most devices, pushing a button. The camera has a 30 second buffer window, which means it starts recording video back 30 seconds from the time the activation button is first turned on. In those initial 30 seconds, the camera does not record audio, but only video instead. Officers wear the camera at eye level. The camera is attached by magnet to a type of headband. The camera is also hooked up to another device that is worn on the officer’s belt. A red light blinks while the camera is rolling. Video is recorded digitally onto an SD card. Chief Hutto said that a police officer never has direct access to the video that he or she is recording because it gets automatically uploaded to a secure server. Chief Hutto addressed issues of privacy and the importance of protecting video evidence. Some video will be deleted after a period of time, and other video retained, depending on policy considerations. Chief Hutto stated one benefit of the camera is mutual accountability as this technology seems to improve behavior by all involved - both officers and residents. Chief Hutto also made reference to license plate readers, which are not used in Fort Collins. He said that there are no plans at this time for their implementation. Staff Liaison, Melissa Herzog, raised a question regarding the cameras ability or inability to capture an officer’s conduct, due to the camera being worn on his/her head and not facing the view of the officer. Chief Hutto stated that officers have the right to use the cameras in Colorado and that there does not need to be a two-party consent for their use. Currently, the FCPD have body worn cameras but the Sheriff’s Department and CSU police do not have them. Commissioner Sternlieb asked if the change in Colorado gun laws have affected the Fort Collins Police. Chief Hutto stated that the transfer of gun ownership between citizens requires a third party background check to be conducted. An unintended outcome of this new law is when officers transfer guns between other police officers. They now have to get a background check too, even though they are law officers and already have had previous thorough background evaluations. On January 30th, Chief Hutto will present information on body worn cameras to the Fort Collins community at large. 3 Commissioner Christine Hays complimented the Fort Collins Police and expressed appreciation for their work. Commissioner Faith Sternlieb asked how someone can report inappropriate police officer behavior. Chief Hutto replied that residents can make a report with Internal Affairs. Chair Myles Crane noted that there is a form on the City’s web site to do this and that as part of their Citizens Liaison Program, the Human Relations Commission stands ready to offer help to any resident who might require assistance in completing these forms. MINUTES REVIEW Chair Myles Crane asked if there was a motion to approve the December 12, 2013, Minutes with inclusion of commissioners’ requested changes. Commissioner Mary Lyons motioned for approval of Minutes and amendments. Commissioner Christine Hays seconded the motion and it passed 7:0. BUDGET REPORT The 2014 budget is $4,135.00. Commissioner Christine Hays suggested a meeting, separate from the monthly HRC meeting, to outline a budget before April 2014. Commissioner James Owiny recommended that the Executive Committee outline an initial budget and then ask for input from the other members. Melissa Herzog, Staff Liaison, will email information to Chair Myles Crane on how the money has been used in recent years, which can provide a basis to outline a budget. STANDING COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS Executive Committee - Myles Crane and Colleen Conway CPD/CSU HRC received an email report. LCOA A handout was circulated about Larimer County’s Senior Tax Program which provides assistance to seniors with limited resources and enables qualified seniors to work off a portion of their tax bills. A second handout, Powerful Tools for Caregivers, was circulated and listed date and time of presentations for caregivers sponsored by LCOA and the Eldercare Network. Government Relations Committee – Preety Sathe and Faith Sternlieb City Council Meetings Commissioner Preety Sathe sent out an email with City Council meeting dates. She requested HRC members to please let her know if they would like to attend the meetings on any specific dates. Commissioners Mary Lyons and Christine Hays inquired about the City Council meeting schedule provided by Commissioner Preety Sathe and asked for clarification on the attendance schedule that Commissioner Preety Sathe is coordinating. Commissioner Preety Sathe stated that she is attending one Council meeting per month and she is looking for interest from other HRC members to attend the second Council meeting held each month. HRC members will email Commissioner Preety Sathe which meetings they can attend. Citizen Liaison Program No report. 4 Educational Outreach Committee (EOC) – Christine Hays and Mary Lyons Mental Health Initiatives Commissioner Christine Hays provided a handout, which she also sent via email prior to the meeting, and explained how HRC members were assigned to organize future mental health presentations hosted by HRC. The assignments are flexible and can be changed. Commissioner Christine Hays further clarified what the members would need to do to organize and host their assigned presentations. The handout she provided also included a list of organizations that could provide potential speakers for the presentations. Commissioner Christine Hays asked for a date and time that would work for all HRC members for training on AV technology at the Harmony library where presentations will be held. She will send dates via email to further organize this. Commissioner Christine Hays stressed the need for advertising these events as soon as possible. This will be further discussed at the upcoming EOC meeting on Tuesday, January 14th 4 - 5:30pm at Whole Foods. Women’s Commission, The Center No report. SAB/Livable Communities Commissioner Mary Lyons sent her report for this topic to all HRC members prior to the meeting. Media and Community Recognition Committee - James Owiny HRC Marketing Brochure Chair Myles Crane stated HRC members saw the new draft brochure and liked it. Additional photos will be incorporated to complete it before printing. HRC Awards Breakfast Commissioner James Owiny asked for a motion to have the award presentation held on Human Rights Day, December 2, 2014. Commissioner Mary Lyons motioned to have the awards presented during the Human Rights Day proclamation at the City Council meeting. Commissioner Christine Hays amended this motion by adding that the Women’s Commission award(s) is optional, depending on if they prefer to do their own event separately. Commissioner Preety Sathe seconded the motion as presented and amended, and it passed 6:0 with Commissioner Christy Doyon abstaining. There was also discussion about having the award presentation and reception on the same or different days, and possible options for a reception such as taking awardees to dinner in lieu of a reception. OLD BUSINESS Social Sustainability Gap Analysis Chair Myles Crane previously emailed a report with regard to the Department of Social Sustainability before the meeting. Any further discussion on this topic will be deferred to the next HRC meeting in February. HRC 2013 Annual Report Vice Chair Colleen Conway had received and incorporated comments from all members for the 2013 Annual Report. Chair Myles Crane requested a motion for the report’s final approval. Commissioner Preety Sathe motioned to approve and Commissioner Christine Hays seconded; it passed 7:0. NEW BUSINESS Welcome New HRC Members HRC welcomed new member Christy Doyon. The HRC looks forward to welcoming Victor Smith on February 13, 2014. 5 City Priorities 2014-2018 Chair Myles Crane reported that input was sent to Vice Chair Colleen Conway and suggested that all HRC members who have not yet done so to please send their ideas to her, as she had requested earlier by email. The Boards and Commissions Coordinator had asked Board members to email three suggestions for City priorities for the next five years as well as one area that the City does not need to focus on to Vice Chair Colleen Conway. Chair Myles Crane cited some priorities for HRC consideration that he had emailed Vice Chair Colleen Conway. Commissioner James Owiny suggested that mental health be one of the priorities. Commissioner Mary Lyons recommended that the City build a culture of inclusivity, with mental health being part of that. Chair Myles Crane added that the HRC consider that a priority for building community inclusivity should include all disenfranchised individuals. Commissioner Faith Sternlieb asked for the priorities to fit within all seven outcome areas as outlined by the City. Commissioner Christine Hays stated that it is important for boards and commissions to continue in the City and allow for community participation, and added this would be one of her suggestions for a City priority. There was further discussion amongst members on the roles of boards and commissions for the City. The subject was left with all members agreeing to send two additional priorities to Vice Chair Colleen Conway and she will tally them and bring the results to the next meeting. UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS Commissioner James Owiny reminded members that Monday, January 20th is MLK day. He asked if the HRC would be carrying the banner. Commissioner Christine Hays inquired about scheduled meetings for the Media committee. Commissioner Mary Lyons asked about combining the EOC and Media committees meetings on Tuesday, January 14th. Commissioners agreed to do that. Commissioner Christine Hays took a poll of how many people would be at the EOC meeting on Tuesday, January 14th. HRC March Elections, Committee Assignments & Volunteer Liaisons Next month there will be a review of current roles and assignments of HRC members in terms of being liaisons and serving on committees. HRC members will have an opportunity to make changes to their current assignments. CLOSING/CALL FOR ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Christine Hays motioned for adjournment and Commissioner Faith Sternlieb seconded, it passed 7:0. The next HRC regular meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 13, 2014, at 5:30 p.m. in the CIC room. A list of handouts provided and/or passed around at the meeting:  Fort Collins Code, City Boards and Commissions Handbook  Mental Heal Forums 2014-2015 schedule and event resource list  Veterans Forum for Seniors, Wednesday, January 15, 2014, 3-5pm, Chilson Center, Loveland  2014 Senior Tax Work-Off Program  Powerful Tools for Caregivers: A No-Cost Class for Family Caregivers, Elder Care Network of Northern Colorado/LCOA on Tuesday, January 14th 3:30-4:45pm, Loveland Library