Some comments and thoughts on the CODI Transportation Commitee, and some other matters

Friday, September 03, 2010

Denise Valkema
Chair
Transportation and Transit Committee
CODI

Dear Denise:

I am gratified to see that you are finally scheduling Transportation and Transit Committee meetings. I am still at a loss, however, to know what you see as the goals of the Transportation and Transit Committee, and what issues you are planning to try to address. Perhaps if you shared that with the community, you would get greater participation, and accomplish more.

As Chair of the Committee, it is incumbent upon you to set forth what you believe you want to accomplish, and engage the community in helping you, not merely wait for a crisis to occur and then try to respond to it. Being appointed by the County to Advisory Committee after Advisory Committee should not be the goal – accomplishing something positive for the disability community should be the goal, and so should engaging and informing the disability community. When will that happen? What has been accomplished so far? How can the community help you?

As you know, during the months you served as Acting Chair of CODI’s Transportation and Transit Committee , (and held no meetings), the County created a Selection Committee to select the next provider of Paratransit services, and did not appoint a member of the disability community until several of their Selection Committee meetings had already been held, and after the disability community protested. As you know, they also failed to advertise the position, and failed to solicit members from the disability community, but rather, made selections of their choosing, behind closed doors. A regrettable failure, with significant consequences to riders of Paratransit services.

Perhaps if the CODI Transportation Committee had held meetings in a timely manner, this fiasco could have been avoided. Perhaps if Paul Edwards’ motion had not required me and other concerned members of the community to have to attend your Committee meetings in order to get the concern on COSI’s agenda (meetings you chose not to hold to hold, month after month), the appointment of a member of the disability community to the STS Selection Committee could have occurred earlier, and we would not be in the position we now find ourselves in.

I will ask Ernie to add my concern about STS needing training about domestic violence to the October CODI agenda. I will not be able to participate in the September CODI meetings. As Vice-Chair of the DCF/HHS Committee on the Settlement Agreement concerning serving DCF clients who are deaf or hard of hearing, I have to attend the next meeting of that Committee, in Orlando. The meeting is scheduled for the same day as CODI’s meeting.

Please consider having the Transportation Committee look into it, and see if David and others who are in a position to set up trainings and who would know what trainings are currently provided will be available to attend the October CODI meeting. When are the October, November , and December CODI meetings, by the way? What are the exact dates? Some of us who are trying to participate in CODI need to know in advance.

Also, as the disability community’s representative on the STS Selection Committee, why can’t you press to find out when the next meeting is, and share the agendas and minutes of the past meetings? The “Cone of Silence” excuse only goes so far – what’s the point of having a representative of the disability community participate if the community is never told anything? What happens at meetings is not covered by the “cone of silence”. Why can’t you get the information and report on it?

Finally, as the disability community’s representative on the SNAP Committee of the Office of Emergency Management, why haven’t you reported on what that Committee purportedly has done? Why is everything such a closely held secret? When did SNAP meet? What was done? What was it established to do? What is it not looking at in emergency management? Does it just serve to test disaster plans? Is it also looking at the failure of the Red Cross to have qualified sign language interpreters? Is it assessing the quality of the volunteer interpreters, as we were initially told?

How does it do so? Can you give a report on it? Again, what’s the point of having people with disabilities appointed if the information is kept from the general disability community? Being appointed to these Committees carries a responsibility to represent the interests of the disability community. I am confident you can do so – the question is how can you best do so?

Have you considered that elections occur in November? Perhaps the CODI Transportation and Transit Committee could consider looking into what arrangements, if any, are being made regarding availability of accessible transportation to the polls. Are extra buses being considered? Are the accessible polling places identified? Are they near public transportation? Is STS anticipating extra calls for service to get riders to the polls? Can people who decide at the last minute to vote get STS transportation, or will they be unable to vote because they did not schedule the ride in advance? What are the rules?

Is any advertising or public education being done? Can posters be placed on STS vehicles about the importance of voting? Is there any coordination with law enforcement agencies regarding enforcement of parking regulations? Will vehicles illegally parked in accessible spots at polling places be towed, or will they be allowed to sit there all day, preventing people with disabilities from voting? Might your Committee look into those questions, before the elections?

Thank you.

Marc

CODI Housing Committee Schedules Meeting

From Ilene Hyams:

At Ron Fulton’s request, I am sending out this announcement for the September CODI Housing Committee meeting. The meeting will be on Monday, September 13, 2010 from 1:00 till 2:30 at the Stephen P. Clark Center at 111 NW 1 Street-12^th floor ADA Office.

If you need any accommodations to participate in this meeting, please email or call me at the contact information below. Since the room was very small for the last meeting, Mr. Fulton would like to have an idea of the number of people who are coming so arrangements can be made for a larger room. Please RSVP.

Draft AGENDA

CODI – Housing meeting

Monday, September 13, 2010 – 1:00 pm-2:30 pm

I. Eric Johnson Miami-Dade Advocacy Trust - Housing Assistance

II. David Raymond Homeless Trust

III. John Prats Housing & Community Development

IV. Old Business: Update from HOPE, Inc

V. Open Discussion

Ilene Hyams

Office of ADA Coordination

111 NW 1st Street, 12th Floor, Suite 348

Miami, FL 33128

305-375-2012(voice); 305-375-4805 (TTY); 305-375-5753 (fax)

ihyams@miamidade.gov

CODI Transportation Committee meeting set

From Ilene Hyams:

At Denise Valkema’s request, I am sending out this announcement for the September CODI Transportation Committee meeting. The meeting will be on Tuesday, September 7, 2010 from 2:00 till 4:00 at the Stephen P. Clark Center at 111 NW 1 Street-12th floor ADA Office.

If you need any accommodations to participate in this meeting, please email or call me at the contact information below. Since the ADA Library can only accommodate around 8 people please RSVP so we know if we need to try to find a larger room.

Although Denise has a few items to discuss, no agenda has been set - we ask you to please send me any agenda items you might have by Thursday, September 2. Maude Lizano has been asked to participate in this meeting.

The Transportation committee will be having their meetings on the first Tuesday of each month from 2:00-4:00 to coincide with the Rider’s Meeting. There is no date for the November meeting since the Riders meeting will probably be cancelled due to the Elections.

(If you wish to participate by phone, contact Ilene Hyams) -- marc


Ilene Hyams
Office of ADA Coordination
111 NW 1st Street, 12th Floor, Suite 348
Miami, FL 33128
305-375-2012(voice); 305-375-4805 (TTY); 305-375-5753 (fax)
ihyams@miamidade.gov