Agenda - 02-21-2017-13-4 - Information Item - Memorandum - Update on Expanded Orange County Facilities Accessibility Self-Assessment

Browse Search

INFORMATION ITEM m V uMUO uuu� UIp�IuWuu9u9uWuuUumr f ( Pi III m ��O p0V uV ouuuuuum uuuuuuuu,mwm''p, u.•III "M Pry. RI' .., I IN To: Board of Orange County Commissioners From: Brennan Bouma, Sustainability Coordinator Date: February 21, 2017 Subject: Update on Expanded Orange County Accessibility Self-Assessment Summary The purpose of this information item is to provide a brief update in advance of a final detailed report on the Orange County Facilities Accessibility Self-Assessment effort and its expansion to assess all sidewalks on County-managed property and to enter a previous petition response into the public record. Much of this item consists of the response which was originally emailed on February 16, 2016 answering the petition from Commissioner Jacobs during the meeting of the Board of Orange County Commissioners (BOCC)on February 2nd, 2016. What has been added is a brief update on the status of the expanded Accessibility Self-Assessment and a plan for the delivery of the final report. With the combined effort of several disabled County volunteers, the Orange County Human Relations Commission, the Disability Awareness Council, and many County staff, all 46 facilities and 5.1 miles of sidewalks have been assessed on a set of more than 50 accessibility criteria. Assessments took place over more than a year's time and in the end 470 action items were identified The delivery of the final report was postponed until April 2017 to allow time to address findings from the Summer-Fall 2016 County sidewalk accessibility assessment. The full assessment report will be delivered in writing. Staff will be available to present the report at that time or when the Accessibility Capital Investment Plan (CIP) item is covered in more detail during BOCC CIP work sessions in the Spring. Efforts to improve the accessibility of the County's facilities and sidewalks for all County residents are underway. While these adjustments and repairs continue, further efforts and investments can be added to continually improve the accessibility of County's documents, technology, programs, and services for those with hearing and visual impairments. Background During the meeting of the Orange County Board of Commissioners on February 2nd, 2016, Commissioner Jacobs asked for staff to include an assessment of the following in the ongoing comprehensive assessment of facilities accessibility: sidewalks, elevators (braille), documents, and technology. This response contains relevant information to inform the related petition of Commissioner Price from the same meeting to assess accessibility for the hearing-and vision-impaired. The Board may recall that the Facilities Accessibility Self-Assessment began June 2, 2015 and Staff provided a report on the progress of the Assessment on December 15th, 2015. While several facilities remain to be assessed through this initiative, ongoing facilities maintenance work continues to address some of the assessment's most common findings. Asset Management Services (AMS) Facilities Maintenance technicians are also responding using updated preventive maintenance protocols to match the current ADA standard for correcting and maintaining door opening pressures. Through the assessments, the departmental safety teams and other representatives have also been trained to identify and address barriers to accessibility on an ongoing basis. P.O. Box 8181 * 131 West Margaret Lane,3rd Floor* Hillsborough, North Carolina 27278 Telephone: (919)245-2626 E-mail: bbouma @orangecountync.gov