Village of Oswego Committee of the Whole Met April 5.
Here is the minutes provided by the committee:
CALL TO ORDER
President Troy Parlier called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m.
ROLL CALL
Board Members Physically Present: President Troy Parlier; Trustees James Marter II, Terry Olson, Judy Sollinger and Brian Thomas.
Board Members Absent: Trustees Pam Parr and Luis Perez.
Staff Physically Present: Dan Di Santo, Village Administrator; Christina Burns, Asst. Village Administrator; Tina Touchette, Village Clerk; Jeff Burgner, Police Chief; Jennifer Hughes, Public Works Director; Rod Zenner, Community Development Director; Scott McMaster, Economic Development Director, Joe Renzetti, IT/GIS Director; Jenette Sturges, Community Engagement Coordinator, Marketing; Susan Quasney, Project Engineer; Carri Parker, Purchasing Manager; and Ryan Morton, Village Attorney.
PUBLIC FORUM
Public Forum was opened at 6:03 p.m.
Gerald Sternberg addressed the Board regarding tomorrow’s election; do not have a clue who is running and what office is up for election; have done research; some do not qualify for the job; need more transparency; no other state has as many districts as we have; should be Oswego’s goal to have educated voters; why utility billing is sent to Carol Stream; keep tax money in Oswego and not job source to an outside company.
There was no one else who requested to speak. The public forum was closed at 6:07 p.m.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS
G.1 American Disabilities Act (ADA) Self-Assessment and Transition Plan
Project Engineer Quasney addressed the Board regarding ADA self-assessment and transition plan. Building on the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and nationality, the ADA strives for equal opportunities for all persons, regardless of abilities. Instrumental to being provided equal opportunity is the idea of physical access into and navigating around buildings and other spaces. Title II of the ADA specifically addresses public facilities and right-of-ways (ROWs), requiring that public entities make every reasonable attempt to modify areas to remove barriers. Inside public facilities, these are primarily physical, such as providing ramps at the curbs, elevators or ramps to each level, door widths that will accommodate a wheelchair, braille on any signage and automatic push buttons for entrance doors and public meeting rooms. Within Title II, Section 35, there are four main requirements of public entities. Two have been fulfilled by Oswego.
1) Village has designated an ADA Coordinator, Building and Permits Manager, Jay Hoover.
2) The Board previously adopted a formal grievance policy in the event someone feels accommodation has not been adequately provided or they feel discriminated against by the Village due to their abilities. Jay’s contact information and the grievance procedure is posted on the Village’s Americans with Disabilities Act webpage. As the ADA Coordinator, it is Jay’s responsibility to investigate and respond to an allegation on behalf of the Village.
3) Perform an internal self-assessment of Village facilities and assets.
4) Based on the results of the self-assessment, the Village needs to develop a transition plan describing how the Village is approaching shortcomings.
The last two requirements are addressed by the document included in the agenda packet.
The Transition Plan is intended as a template for addressing ADA accessibility, in a manner that fits the operational style of a particular public entity. It does not dictate any time frame for full compliance, performance measures to meet, or minimum amount of money that must be dedicated. The plan is intended to be updated, as needed, to demonstrate forward progression on the removal of barriers within the Village. At this time, the inventory for the self-assessment has been approximated, and as budget is available, actual counts and locations of non-compliant assets should be provided. Having an ADA Transition Plan in place can be a requirement for certain forms of Federal and State funding. Providing a plan, even an approximate one, is an important step.
Oswego is generally in good shape with respect to ADA requirements due to the relatively young age of the public infrastructure and public buildings. All of our buildings are in compliance; there are always items that can be improved in some fashion. Based on construction dates of the various subdivisions, 91% of the Village, by area, was built at the inception of ADA or later. Because Development Services has been diligent about enforcing ADA requirements, the vast majority of the town was built to ADA standards. The bulk of the non-compliant areas is limited to the original town plus a few select subdivisions.
Concerns within the Village’s ROWs:
• Ramps at intersections
⮚ Ramp design standards have been modified several times since 1990; neighborhoods are ADA compliant, at the time of construction and compliancy is grandfathered in as standards change.
⮚ In the early 90’s, bright colored detectable warning strips were only required at busy intersections or drop offs such as railroad station platforms. Since 2010, they have been required at all intersections using a variety of textures and materials based on their age.
⮚ When an intersection is reconstructed or altered, all corners of that intersection are required to be updated to current ADA standards.
✔ Addressed through the Village’s street resurfacing program or with water system upgrades.
✔ As streets are resurfaced, all ramps along those streets are replaced.
✔ Most of the alleys and streets south of Washington and east of the Fox River were resurfaced last year. More are slated to be addressed as budget allows.
• Traffic signals
⮚ ADA design standards regulate sidewalk and ramp configuration and push button location and heights.
⮚ Do not have an ADA inventory of the traffic signals. This will be addressed in the future.
• Obstacles and tripping hazards
⮚ Examples: walking path, non-compliant slopes and older buildings built with stairs for access.
⮚ Issues are mostly concentrated in the downtown shopping area; pictures and descriptions included in the agenda packet.
⮚ Addressing the range of ADA issues along Main St is a larger and more comprehensive project potentially affecting streetlights, trees, and parking spaces, along with sidewalk configuration.
⮚ Two projects in the near future
✔ Mid-block ADA ramp
✔ Traffic light at Main and Washington
✔ A more holistic look is recommended before construction. Staff will develop a needs assessment related to Public Works assets in the downtown.
Staff will be bringing the ADA self-assessment and transition plan back to the Village Board for adoption at the April 20th Board meeting. For the next week it will be posted on the Village’s website for public review and comment.
Board and staff discussion focused on change orders or additional funding; one project in 2024; have not worked on funding yet; no state statute on when to come into compliance; no timeframes; showing forward progress; will be incorporated into building codes. There was no further discussion.
CLOSED SESSION
There was no closed session.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 6:18 p.m.
https://www.oswegoil.org/home/showpublisheddocument/4045/637553047714830000
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