HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-COD-ltr (Article 27)
STATEMENT SUPPORTING ARTICLE 27 – TOWN WARRANT 2003
My name is Victoria Buckley and I am the chair of the Enablement
Committee. I am speaking about Article 27 – the establishment of a
commission on disability.
Currently the Enablement Committee is a subcommittee of the Human
Services Committee. The Committee is composed of Lexington residents as
appointed by the Town Manager who are committed to addressing the needs
of the disabled. This covers a wide variety of disabled individuals, including,
but not limited to: those with mobility problems, those with sensory
limitations, and those who have cognitive and/or emotional limitations.
The Committee strives to make all public buildings, spaces, town
programs, and places of public accommodations accessible and safe for all
people to use, regardless of disability.Access includes physical access as
well as communication access. Access impacts many of our citizens – those
with permanent or temporary disabilities, senior citizens, people with small
children. Some of the issues addressed by the Committee include: getting
rid of architectural barriers, setting up a grievance procedure, and ensuring
compliance with the law, the ADA, the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The ADA has been the law since 1990 and we need to get more active
in order to get into full compliance and reduce the town liability. We need to
embrace full access. Some examples of town problems are: how a disabled
student in a wheelchair cannot get into the high school from Worthen Road,
since there is no automatic door opener at that entry; how snow removal
piles are always put in the handicapped parking spaces; how disabled
individuals cannot do business inside the police station since they cannot
open the doors, how a disabled individual cannot go to the fire station for
business. People need to be more aware of these issues. For disabled
citizens, it is important to move from being reactive to pro-active.
The Committee seeks to become a Commission for several important
reasons. Under the terms of Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 40,
Section 8J, concerning the establishment of disability commissions, several
important roles are listed:
To advise and assist officials with compliance issues
To coordinate programs to meet the needs of the disabled in
accordance with the Massachusetts Office on Disability
To review and recommend town policies as they affect those with
disabilities
To provide information, guidance, and technical assistance to
individuals and agencies
To research local problems for individuals with disabilities.
The objectives of the proposed Commission and the current Committee
are the same, that is, to make sure people with disabilities are fully
integrated into all aspects of the community and that all can fully participate
without barriers.
The differences between the proposed Commission and the current
Committee are
That the Commission is further sanctioned and supported by the town
That the Commission is structured and defined by Massachusetts
General Laws, Chapter 40, Section 8J
That the Commission can provide town residents who have disabilities
a more formal presence within the town’s governing structure. This
means giving disabled people a voice and a way to share their unique
expertise constructively.
The Commission can assist in cost-saving measures, by reducing the town’s
liability, by assisting in avoiding lawsuits by ensuring that compliance
standards are met and by minimizing the need for construction re-do’s by
being involved in the early planning of projects. For example, curb cuts
should be automatically included in repaving projects. The acoustic
modifications will cost less at the new Harrington School than at Diamond or
at the high school since they were incorporated as part of the original plans,
instead of being added on or redone later. Let’s measure twice and cut once
– it saves money.
The proposed Commission has the added opportunity and ability to
receive gifts and grants in the name of the town, subject to the approval of
the Board of Selectmen. The Commission would then be able to manage
and control these gifts to support its activities. This would be a true
advantage in these times of shrinking resources and funding that the
proposed has over the current.
To summarize, the Enablement Committee would like the town to vote
to accept the statute to establish the Committee as a Commission in order to
better promote full accessibility for all the town’s citizens. Thank you.
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