ADA Transition Committee

CITY OF NORWALK ADA COMPLIANCE AND TRANSITION REGULAR MEETING JULY 12, 2023 ATTENDANCE: Carol Frank, Chair; Katie Bendazi, Daisy Franklin, Beatrice Lane STAFF: William Hnatuk, ADA Coordinator; Carlos Duque, Fair Rent Director; AnaVivian Estrella, Human Services Director; Bill Ireland, Building Official; Michael Sgobbo CALL TO ORDER Mr. Hnatuk, ADA coordinator, called the meeting to order at 10:12 a.m. A quorum was present. Ms. Estrella, the Human Resources Director, introduced Mr. Bill Hnatuk and gave a brief overview of his accomplishments. Mr. Hnatuk introduced Mr. Carlos Duque, the Fair Rent Coordinator. Commissioner Frank then said that the former ADA Committee had done work, but the public still needs to be education that disabilities are not always visible. Mr. Sgobbo introduced himself and said that most of his career had been in building management. He is on the Board of the Norwalk Senior Center. Commissioner Lane, the director of the Norwalk Senior Center, introduced herself. Commissioner Franklin said that she had been on the committee previously and enjoyed the work that they have been doing involving the handicapped spaces at City Hall, the lights and sidewalk ramps. She said that she was pleased to see the work at the beach that allows everyone access to the water. She works on Fair Housing Commission. Commissioner Katie Bendazi, Director of STAR, introduced herself to the group and gave a brief overview of the work that STAR does. Ms. Estrella introduced herself and said that she had been in Norwalk for about a year. She has a Masters in Social Work. She oversees Fair Rent and has a number of other duties. Commissioner Pride introduced himself and said that he was on the Fair Rent Commission. City of Norwalk ADA Compliance and Transition Regular Meeting July 12, 2023 Page 1 Mr. Bill Ireland, introduced himself and said that he was the Building Official, and the NPS Coordinator for ADA Compliance. He will be reviewing the plans for the new NHS and the SN School. Commissioner Franklin asked if they could have a committee for education. Mr. Hnatuk said that during his police career, he had done many presentations and was a certified instructor. Commissioner Franklin asked if the Commissioners would receive training as well. Mr. Ireland said that when they redid one of the schools, they had more handicapped spaces than required, but the required number were within the designated distance from the building. Commissioner Frank asked if how a member of the public would go about requesting more handicapped spaces. Mr. Ireland said that for every 50 spaces, there needs to be one handicapped space. For every six handicapped spaces, one must include van accessible. Discussion followed about various businesses that have ADA accessibility issues. Mr. Hnatuk then said that there were three proposed committee members: William Ireland, Michael Sgobbo and Atty. Alon Sugarman. Mr. Hnatuk said that everyone ultimately will be impacted by disability. He then reviewed the census bureau figures from the Norwalk Health Department and the 2020 U.S. Census. He reminded that there was also a growing number of veterans, many of which have disabilities. Mr. Hnatuk then reviewed the current status ADA issues in City Hall. Mr. Ireland pointed out that when a plan is submitted, the work starts from the outside of the Building, in order to get the individual into the building (parking spaces, walkways, ramps, etc.). With a project for $100,000, $20,000 would need to be applied to exterior improvements. Ms. Estrella gave a brief overview of the decision making process for projects. She said that the Commissioners had agreed to work towards best practices. Discussion followed. Mr. Ireland left the meeting at 10:59 a.m. The discussion moved to the details about the ramp between City Hall and the Health Department. Commissioner Pride pointed out that there had been alterations made to the ramp between the buildings and DPW did not notify the ADA Committee who was paying for the project. Mr. Sgobbo said that he remembered that there was a specific lack of communication between ADA Commission and DPW. Commissioner Frank asked how much funding was left in the budget. Mr. Hnatuk said that they had $250,000 per year, and thought that they had about $300,000 in the account. However, he said that there were still bills outstanding from the bathroom renovation at the Senior Center. City of Norwalk ADA Compliance and Transition Regular Meeting July 12, 2023 Page 2 Mr. Hnatuk then displayed a slide listing priorities, including Accessible routes – egress, signage, bathroom access, major program areas that would require lower counters, and renewal of existing projects (maintenance and repair). Commissioner Pride left the meeting at 11:06 a.m. Mr. Hnatuk then displayed slides showing the emergency egress routes from wheelchair seating in the Concert Hall. He noted that there needs to be two egress routes. One door opens on to grass lawn and the other needs improvement. Now that the renovations in City Hall have been completed, the signage needs to be completed. Mr. Hnatuk said that he had toured the building with the Fire Marshal and a sign company. He indicated where there was compliant signage and where signage is needed. He noted that while they were doing City Hall, they might as well do the Health Department as well. Mr. Hnatuk displayed a photo of the exterior stairs at the Norwalk Concert Hall. This area does not get a lot of use, but the City will be redoing the steps in the coming months. The architect has been notified. Mr. Hnatuk said that he would like to have the Commission cover the additional cost of the ramp. Mr. Hnatuk said that he hoped to meet quarterly. If the cost estimates come in before the next scheduled meeting in October, he will be schedule a meeting. Mr. Hnatuk listed a number of potential projects once the top three projects have been completed. Mr. Sgobbo left the meeting at 11:20 a.m. Commissioner Bendazi said that lifts often break, but ramps are long. Mr. Hnatuk said that he had considered this and was looking at placing the ramp along the wall. Ms. Estrella said that the staff was working on communications so that the projects could move forward ADJOURNMENT ** COMMISSIONER FRANKLIN MOVED TO ADJOURN. ** COMMISSIONER LANE SECONDED. ** THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. The meeting adjourned at 11:27 a.m. Respectfully submitted S. L Soltes Telesco Secretarial Services. City of Norwalk ADA Compliance and Transition Regular Meeting July 12, 2023 Page 3