HomeMy Public PortalAboutWCOD Meeting Minutes July 2008_201401101411431248Watertown Commission on Disability
July 16, 2008
In Attendance: Carol Menton, Kim Charlson, Ann Doughty, Gayle Shattuck, Marilyn
Devaney, Alex Liazos, Fred Isaacs
Meeting called to order at 7:05pm
Guests: Jerry Mee, Supt. of Public Works
Roll Call
Alex asked for one addition to the agenda, the Charles Street Bridge
A vote of the minutes from the June meeting is tabled until the September
meeting.
Treasurer's report was read, and a vote to accept was made.
Announcements:
Fred said that the SEPAC is looking for co-chairs.
Kim informed the Commission of a Court decision that paper currency is
discriminatory for people who are blind. It appears that the government won't
appeal the decision. The alternatives are that some countries have a clipped
corner, something tactile like a foil shape or different size bills to indicate
differences in denominations.
Also, the President of Perkins will be invited to the September meeting as a guest
speaker.
Closed Captioning: In response to Alex's question in June about including closed
captioning into the contract with Comcast, the Purchasing Agent has indicated
that the contract between the Cable Access and Comcast is not up for renewal for
a few years. Carol suggested that this be tabled until the September meeting.
Marilyn arrived at 7:15pm from the State House.
Safety and Access:
Jerry Mee came to the meeting to give an update on the installation of tone
generating devices. He had a meeting with TriState and got them to start the
project today. Four devices have been installed with more to be done. Kim asked
that he send to Gayle the brand of the signal device and that information will be
shared with the Commission and that updates on the installation be provided so
the blindness community can provide him with feedback. Jerry said that the
devices being installed are those that were requested by the WCOD years ago.
Bus Stop update: Jerry said that the consultant's report which has a lot of
statistics and data supporting moving the bus stop to the delta has been completed
and will go to the Town Council and then to the WCOD.
Keyspan did an excavation and placed road plates in the sidewalk and in the
street. Jerry made the case that this was unacceptable and that this created an
unsafe situation for people with sight impairments. He demanded that they make
the necessary corrections immediately.
Carol said that she appreciated that Jerry came to the meeting to proactively
inform the Commission about safety issues in the Square.
Emergency Preparedness:
As a follow up to last month's meeting, Raymond Isaacs came to the meeting to
explain about his Boy Scout Troop Emergency Preparedness badge project. Fred
would like a subcommittee meeting with George and Ann to be scheduled for next
week.
Faire on the Square: Carol discussed sharing a table with the Council on Aging and
the Scouts. Alex said he will be in Greece and won't be available that day.
SPED: SEPAC will hold a special election in October for co-chairs.
Carol discussed the Watertown Library Reading program. Kim said that the Braille
and Talking Book Library will coordinate with the Watertown Free Library to make
sure that borrowers are participating in this town event.
Alex provided a follow up to the discussion on the bridge behind the swimming
pool. He had called Dan Driscoll to find out when the bridge would be brought into
compliance. Carol suggested other people to contact.
8:05pm motion to adjourn was made, seconded, voted and approved.