Portland Disability Advisory Committee

Regular Meeting

Portland, ME · April 3, 2019

Minutes

City of Portland Portland Disability Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes April 3, 2019 Mandy Levine, Portland’s Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Specialist, convened the meeting of the Portland Disability Advisory Committee (PDAC).  In attendance: Board Member Haley Pass, Board Member Lisette Belanger, Board Member Ken Shapiro, Kayla Moore, Sumner Ellis, Certified Interpreting ASL interpreter Arricka, Mireille Kabongo  Board members not in attendance: Jessica Russell, Derek O’Brien, Steve Leighton, Michelle Ames, John LeMieux, Bud Buzzell, Yura Yasui March 6, 2019 meeting minutes were approved.  Speaker series: recap of kick off presentation regarding Assistive Technologies with Kathy Adams, Program Director of Maine CITE, held on March 21, 2019 Mandy, Ken, Lisette, and Mireille all noted that they were pleased with the turnout for the kick off presentation for the speaker series and that the presenter, Kathy Adams, provided an abundance of very helpful resources. More information about the upcoming presentations can be found on PDAC’s Facebook page (https://www.portlandmaine.gov/1547/Portland-Disability-Advisory-Committee) and webpage, https://www.portlandmaine.gov/1547/Portland-Disability-Advisory-Committee.  All Abilities Festival August 2, 2019: Mandy shared that we will not be proceeding with the All Abilities Festival on August 2nd due to the magnitude of planning the event and recent challenges getting assistance in the planning process of recent events. The PDAC members in attendance discussed tackling initiatives and events that can be realistically organized during monthly meeting times, such as:  The Committee being the focus of a STRIVEcast podcast, https://www.pslstrive.org/STRIVECast;  Hosting the Unum disability experience with assistance from Ken and his colleagues at Unum;  Having more speakers during monthly meetings;  Expansion of the Speaker Series beyond the four already-scheduled sessions including, in part, focusing on self-advocacy: hearing from speakers with disabilities who are advocating for themselves. Some potential speakers we discussed: o Michelle Ames providing her visual/gestural communications presentation; o Brain Injury Voices; o Cromwell Center for Disabilities Awareness, http://cromwellcenter.org/; o Speaking Up for Us of Maine, http://sufumaine.org/. Mandy indicated that she would follow up with the PDAC members to explore our next priorities likely via a survey.  Upcoming 2019 meeting dates, all from 11 am to 12 pm in Room 24 in the basement of City Hall  May 1st  June 5th  July 10th  August 7th  September 4th  October 2nd  November 6th  December 4th  The meeting adjourned at 12:00 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Mandy Levine City of Portland Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Specialist

Agenda

Packet

City of Portland Portland Disability Advisory Committee Agenda April 3, 2019 1. Sign in and approval of March 6, 2019 meeting minutes a. Unapproved March 6, 2019 meeting minutes i. Unapproved March 6, 2019 meeting minutes Speaker series: recap of kick off presentation regarding Assistive Technologies with 2. Kathy Adams, Program Director of Maine CITE, held on March 21, 2019 3. All Abilities Festival August 2, 2019: review of survey results and continued planning 4. New Business Upcoming 2019 meeting dates, all from 11 am to 12 pm in Room 24 in the basement of 5. City Hall • May 1st • June 5th • July 10th • August 7th • September 4th • October 2nd • November 6th • December 4th 6. Adjournment City of Portland Portland Disability Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes March 6, 2019 Mandy Levine, Portland’s Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Specialist, convened the meeting of the Portland Disability Advisory Committee (PDAC).  In attendance: Haley Pass, Lisette Belanger, Kayla Moore, Michelle Ames, John LeMieux, Bud Buzzell, Yura Yasui, Ken Shapiro, Certified Interpreting ASL interpreter, Mike Conkright, Alizah Brandwein, Karen McPhee  Board members not in attendance: Jessica Russell, Derek O’Brien, Steve Leighton  February 6, 2019 meeting minutes were approved.  Thank you gift for Tom Handel of Portland Media Center: Mandy shared that she and Derek O’Brien had the pleasure of surprising Tom Handel with a gift bag to express our tremendous gratitude for his creation of the Public Service Announcements.  Guest speakers from Greater Portland Transit METRO: Glenn Fenton, Chief Transportation Officer and Kristy Hostetter, METRO Consultant METRO joined us to unveil and seek PDAC’s feedback on their proposed fare pricing changes and new automatic fare payment options. As described in detail in the attached flyer METRO provided, Metro is seeking public input at several public meetings on several proposed fare policy changes. These proposed fare changes include:  Introduction of Automated Fare Technology;  Replacement of paper-based passes and tickets with Smart Cards and Mobile App fare payment options;  Introduction of reduced fare monthly option for seniors (65+), persons and disabilities, and youth (ages 6-18);  Introduction of “fare capping” with Smart Card or Mobile App – fare capping is a “pay as you go” approach that provides a multi-ride discounted pass without having to pay up front costs. Riders only pay for what they use. Go to gpmetro.org to view a video about fare capping;  Proposed fare increases: the current full fare is $1.50 (75 cents for reduced fare). The proposed new fare will be $2 for full fare and $1 reduced fare.  Riders will never pay more than $6/day or $60/month;  Transfers will be replaced with a 90-minute pass that provides unlimited trips for 90 minutes;  A day cap: any ride after 3 rides per day is free.  Cash will continue to be accepted as a fare payment option but will be the most expensive process. Please see the attached METRO flyer for explanations of the proposed technology; public meeting dates and locations; and more. After receiving public feedback on the proposed fare pricing change in March, a recommendation will be brought to the METRO Board of Directors in approximately April. METRO would like to come back to speak with PDAC this summer with the final plan, which is expected to launch at the end of August /early September 2019. In anticipation of these changes, METRO surveyed their riders; 40% of survey respondents self- identified as reduced fare eligible and 14% self-identified as persons with disabilities. An unresolved issue is companion passes for disabled individuals. METRO could potentially give out tokens to social service organizations and other companions.  Speaker series update: Mandy shared hard copies of the flyer invitation to the speaker series and encouraged attendees to share information about the presentations with their contacts. More information about the events can be found on PDAC’s Facebook page (https://www.portlandmaine.gov/1547/Portland-Disability-Advisory-Committee) and webpage, https://www.portlandmaine.gov/1547/Portland-Disability-Advisory-Committee.  Seeking PDAC Committee members to provide input on Riverton playground: Karen McPhee from the Parks, Recreation and Facilities department shared that the department has $250,000 devoted to designing a new playground at Riverton and she is looking for a few Committee members to provide input on the plans. Interested members can contact her directly at kbm@portlandmaine.gov.  Upcoming 2019 meeting dates, all from 11 am to 12 pm in Room 24 in the basement of City Hall  April 3rd  May 1st  June 5th  July 10th  August 7th  September 4th  October 2nd  November 6th  December 4th  The meeting adjourned at 12:00 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Mandy Levine City of Portland Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Specialist