Disability Advisory Committee - Regular Meeting

Here we go. Welcome to the disability advisory committee for the city of Charles Town. Today is Monday, November the 10th, 2025. Time is 5:00 p.m. We are being live streamed by Ender Production Multimedia. We will begin with the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Right. Let the record show that all committee members are present with the exception of our new member, Cindy McNeel. We have an agenda that's been provided by Secretary Liz Hardy. I need a motion to approve.

A motion to approve. All right, Perkins and second. I'll second. All right. All in favor say I. I.

All right. Motion approved. And one extension. I wasn't here for that meeting. Okay. All right. We have our standing business which includes the minutes from Monday, September 8th, 2025. I need a motion to approve. All right. Second. Second. All right. Motion approved. All right. And before we uh about business. Oh, I'm sorry. All in favor say I.

I. Motion approved. Yes.

All right. So, at this time, I'm going to open the floor if we have any public comments. Nothing. Okay. All right. Then we will move on to All business. All right. All right. Think we had our event trailer went smoothly. We had a record-breaking crowd. I do believe we uh had community days on September 19th and 20th. That was pretty great event. Anybody have any comments or anything they want to add? Uh any suggestions for either event? All right. Um we also talked about uh breakfast with the mayor. We had decided to table that after the first of the year um maybe towards um Easter we would uh revisit that um that suggestion that we had brought up last meeting for our new business. Um we've got a few things we're going to uh go over but first uh Mayor Tree Hajes is going to come up and talk about the review admission and procedures.

Hello board. I also have um an item an update about the A&E. So when you get to a point in the agenda where you want to hear that update about the accessibility of the basement, just let me know. I've got um some cost estimates to run through with you and a schematic to show you. So we okay with that? We'll just go right into that.

Okay. Um so I'll do that first and then we'll go over the procedure. So you have in front of you a letter from hearts surveying and engineering. Um I have a schematic here that you're welcome to kind of it's kind of big. I'm sorry. It's kind of the way if you want to share it and then we can pass it around. You can see what we're talking about. I'll describe what's on it. The letter summarizes what's on the on the schematic. So, we've been looking at how we create uh full accessibility into the basement primarily because we use the basement as an emergency storm shelter and open it to the public. Right now, we have a lift assist that can be used to transport people down the stairs. That's not ideal. We want to be able to have it fully accessible. We discussed at one point installing a lift and unfortunately due to the design of the sanctuary on top of where the basement is. There is no safe place to put a lift that would get people down into the basement. The only option would be the boiler room and we really don't want people landing in the boiler room. So, I approached parts surveying to have them do a rough schematic and cost estimate of how we could create accessible access from the exterior doorway that's on Water Street. Since the basement is only used for storm shelter, this isn't something we use. The upstairs floor for rentals is already compliant and accessible. Um, but we needed something to when we opened it for storms for people to be able to get in safely as well. So, what I recommended was finding a way to create a ramp to that basement door on Water Street. Due to the short distance between the door and Water Street, this isn't something that can go straight in. The the grade would

be too steep. We're not creating an adventure trail here. Um, so what we looked at was a complete remodel of that entryway. What you see on the schematic under the current conditions, if you look at the entryway, it has two retaining walls and stairs that go down into sort of the pit that is the door. The recommendation is to pull the stairs completely out and pull out both retaining walls and then come out from the south side of it, build an L-shaped retention wall that then goes down the length of sidewalk to Harrison Street and then build another retention wall opposite that so that the entryway instead of being straight in would come down the side from Harrison and then in. This also requires some additional drainage work because water ponds at the bottom of that little pit and so it would require a sump to a sump pump to get the water out over the top and it would require guard rails because you're creating basically two retention walls. What this does though is it creates full accessibility through that doorway so that when we do open the basement for storm shelter, everybody can get in. Um what you see is a letter from Harts. What they did was they did this design schematic. This would be used for bid purposes. And then they reached out to cutter construction to develop a preliminary cost estimate due to the require of the removal of existing sidewalk, replacement of that sidewalk, retention walls, some all of that. Um it's shown to be between 170,000 to 180,000 additional 10,000 in contingency. And it's because it exceeds the $50,000 threshold, it would have to be put out for public sealed bid. Um, when we get to the point where we can do that, I will tell you as a mayor, this is incredibly frustrating because we are

facing significant budget cuts and this is something I'm committed to doing. We're going to be exhausting any effort we can to find the money, but as you can see, this is an incredibly expensive project. Um, we will continue to open the storm shelter because I believe that in the interest of public safety, it's better to have shelter available rather than none. Um, and since we do have the lift assist device there, um, when we open that storm shelter, we notify our police and fire department as well. So, if there is an individual who needs assistance getting downstairs, we will we will get them down the stairs. Um, in the interim, we will continue to find and secure the funding we need to get this done. Um, I will be presenting this as well to the city council as a memo so that they can see what is a goal for us to to find ways to allocate to make this happen. But that's our update on the most logical way to get accessibility into the basement of the center for safety and welcome your feedback on that um at any time.

Carol does a good job with with getting um and I told him I wanted it specifically for this meeting. So he he he did that for for this meeting. I want to thank the board members who provided feedback to the two projects that I sent out. Um I sent the the plan for the commons development and got some good feedback and the design team was able to incorporate that feedback immediately. So when that project begins, they're supposed to break ground in in January on that project. They are incorporating the elements that were recommended. Specifically, they will be extending the paved portion at the front of the stage so that people can access the kind of dance floor areas. We're calling it the pit, mosh pit, whatever you want to call it, right there in front of the stage and be able to access that without having to go across the ground to do so. It'll be a hard pan surface for everybody to access that space. We are incorporating benches that have backs and rails. Handrails was one of the recommendations. At some point in the future as we build out and install bathrooms, they will be accessible bathroom single use with adultsiz changing tables in them as well as the larvar filling station. So they're able to incorporate all those things but most immediately um and then officially the builder of this project is making that initial change on the accessibility for the dance pit at no additional charge. So they were very subjective to that feedback and I thank you for that. The other project is the expansion of or the master plan for the bank activities part. And while we are not moving forward with all of those at once because that would be multi-millions of dollars that we do not have. Um they were grateful for the feedback and incorporated I don't know if you saw the presentation that was made to the reveling commission but they incorporated that and specifically addressed the ADA compliant um recommendations that they received from this board into that design. So as that as we move forward with various phases of that those features will be considered. The first phase is going to be the installation of the basketball court and pickle ball court and those of

course will be accessible features. So thank you for your feedback on that. What I have for you tonight is a couple or just some additional documents that I thought would help with understanding and reviewing. We've had some change in membership. So, you're still a relatively new board. Um, having only been appointed in 2023, we've had so many new members since then. It's been some flexibility with the board. So, I wanted to go over some of this. I think it's good to do this once a year, especially towards the end of the year as you move into the next year. So, the first document I have for you is just the purpose of the disability advisory committee. Um, it was created by Maywal executive order 2023-01 with the purpose to identify opportunities within the city to expand access to locations and programming for individuals who have disabilities. We operate under the the assumption and knowledge that making our programs and our spaces accessible means that they're available for everyone because when they're accessible, there's no one held back and that's our goal. Um the committee consists of seven members appointed by the mayor. Membership should prioritize people who live with disabilities as follows. We always want to have at least three members on the board who live with disability themselves. Two members who are guardians of a minor who live with disability. One member who is a representative of disability service provider and one member who is also an adult advocate. effort is made to make sure that all members reside within the municipal limits of the city of Charletown or that they have children who attend or they have an employment relationship with Charlestown schools. However, if it becomes difficult to find a member who meets those criteria and is willing to serve, we are also willing to accept members who meet those criteria and who live in the township because arguably they use the city of Charletown for many services. Uh when you accept an appointment, you're agreeing to to attend meetings and contribute to the mission of the committee. Members who miss three consecutive meetings may be treated as if they have resigned with the discretion appointing authority. That's

in there as an official. However, I also recognize that, you know, people have lives and children and things go on. So, as long as we understand why a person is out and we know they're still committed to the overall mission of the organization, this isn't something we're going to penalize people for. The DAC is an unfunded volunteer advisory committee. I'm grateful for your service. On a personal note, um, and we are required to operate under the um, as governed by the Indiana Open Door Law. So, by executive order, I ask that you meet at least four times a year. You can meet more often than that should you decide. We just have to follow the rules of posting those meetings, which includes a 48 hour business day notification of every meeting that you attend. Every year, you should elect three positions, a chairperson, a vice chairperson, and a secretary. The chairperson has the responsibility of leading the meetings. However, any board member can call a meeting at any time just with notice to the chair. If you decide there's something that you need to meet, you can notify the chair and the chair can organize a meeting. The vice chairperson who leads the meetings in the absence of the chairperson and the secretary who supplies the minutes and agenda for the meetings um each calendar year. So, I recommend that you do that at their last meeting of every year so that that way you know going into the next year what it's going to be. I also gave you a sample of the meetings. Um the meetings follow a very simplified Robert's rules of order which I realize if if you haven't had the opportunity to sit on the board sometimes that is new information for people. So what I did was I took your agenda and I just put in a a kind of a rough example of what that looks like. I want to encourage the members to assist the chair in the making of and seconding of a mo of motions and moving through items of business. But for the sake of the record keeper and the secretary um who may or may not be in a meeting, if the secretary has to miss the meeting, they may have to watch the meeting. It's good to call out what happens because it makes it easier to take minutes. That's why I have the example set where someone makes a motion with the chair announces

who makes that motion by name, who makes the second by name, and then calls out the results of that vote that it's approved unanimously or that it's approved with one extension or whatever the results may be. Um, it helps the person who's taking the minutes and it helps those who are watching live and listening to the meeting because it adds that in the closed captioning which is a benefit. So, I just have an example of what the meetings would look like with that. Um, and I have a simplified Robert's rules of order for public meeting at the bottom. For the most part with our meetings, the only issue, we don't have to get into the weeds with the Robert's rules of order. This is not a huge parliamentary group. Um, but just the simple making of a motion, seconding a motion, any amendments to motions that might happen, tableabling an item, which you've had experience doing. Um, if anybody needs to call a recess, realizing that sometimes an emergency might happen, the meeting might need to be briefly recessed and called back to order. Um, there's a procedure for that. And of course, a journment because we don't want to be every night. So, um, with that said, I'm happy to answer any questions, but I wanted to make sure I was providing documents for you.

Right. Thank you. Thank you.

Okay. Um, I'll be pretty brief. Just wanted to let you guys know that we now here in Charles Town have a special need parent support group um calling it Beyond the Village. We meet once a month uh at the Arts and Enrichment Center here in Charles Town. The next meeting happens to be this week at 5:00 PM. Um we don't always have a topic to discuss. I mean, a lot of times it's free discussion. However, this week, just to give us some structure, um the topic will be the importance of self-care and stress management. And I do want to be transparent in letting everyone know that this group was formed um pretty much what it comprise of parents, caregivers that um do have kids or individuals u with special needs. However, we would not limit it to only us. We for anyone to come. Um, kids are welcome to attend as well. Um, so that's kind of the basics. It will be once a month. Um, I have shared out in several different places um, a flyer that I've been creating each month. Um, so be on the lookout for that. Anything else I need to add to that? That's about it. So hopefully we can get some new members. Um, I think it's been a very great resource for people that don't always know what their resources are out there. Um, it's a great way to connect with people in your community um that have similar threads of how they manage life as a special needs caregiver. So, I'd love for anyone to attend.

What day did you see that one? It's this week on Wednesday. Yeah. at five center. Is it always first Wednesday of the month? I think we have we have it scheduled for November and December that way. I mean, I'm willing to, you know, if anyone wants to change that around. We haven't scheduled really into the next year yet at the A& center, but I plan to. That's probably what our December meeting will look like is seeing how things work for other people and if time You know, it's hard to hard to accommodate everyone's schedules, but we certainly try.

Thank you for that. Sure. Amazing resource.

Yeah, I think it's a great way to everyone I mean for everyone just even to connect, you know, I mean it we may not, like I said, we don't always have a topic to discuss. Doesn't always have to be a topic. I would like to know, you know, into next year. My plan is to add speakers. I have quite a actually quite a few people that are willing to come speak on different topics. Um several of them I actually personally know, but I want to make sure that we have a decent sized group, you know, for it to be worth their while. But um I think it's it's a great thing. I don't think we really have enough support um as special needs caregivers. Definitely we don't. A lot of us are learning as we go. So, I hope to be, you know, an advocate and help others that may have younger children or hopefully even to learn from people that, you know, have been through the ropes a little more than I have. So, yeah,

I know we're just meeting, but I'm a licensed clinical social worker. Part of my job is to provide support and resources and tools. Um, so if you need anything, need speaker, please let me know. I'd be happy to help. Sure. Thank you.

All right. Holiday events. We have um the event coming up. You hear a blink. But before that, we have our light of Charles Town event. Um, that would be on the day after Thanksgiving. We light up at 6. Did you just say six? Six o'clock. Uh, local celebrity. And my nephew Harrison Adams will be the light lighter up. I don't know what you want to call him, but will be lightening us up that night. I'm excited for that. Um you guys can attend. Parking will be for um handicap at the same places that the last few events have been. We have the HMR block uh space. We need to find a name for that space, that parking lot, don't we? Uh but we have that. And then down in the um by the ball park or sorry the basketball court should I say we have um that's also um marked off as handicap parking for the event. Um and then that's I think that's some great spaces. We've got nice walking paths to get from both parking lots. So, both of those events um will be here before we know it. Um and then of course all of our stuff at

the family activities part last year we did we gave away reindeer food as uh from the committee. I think it's a good idea that we don't do that this year because the kids were a little confused on why they couldn't feed it to the reindeer because it but it was full of glitter. So, we tried to be at the exit but where it was just so there's so many people for that event. Everybody is just everywhere. We figured out that this year that would probably be just us. We'll just skip the reindeer food. Um, and maybe figured something out uh differently for that. But yeah, oh, and then I do want to say one. We the city uh got us bubbles for the trailer. And I cannot even begin to tell you how many bubbles we passed out. And they rocked it. They bought bubbles of every size. People were like, "Are you selling those?" Nope. Here you go. We handed I I mean I I guarantee we handed out over 2,000 things of bubbles. So uh I want to say thank you to uh TVA and to uh Carrie and and all the girls that made sure that we had that that box of of bubbles and our member that couldn't be with us tonight, Cindy McNel. She uh came and helped me um hand those out and and it was a really great event. We had a good time. So, does anybody have anything else they want to add about any of the holiday events?

Do we have a date for the reindeer? It is the 22nd of December, I believe. It's Yeah. 6 p.m.

Yeah. I believe it's following kind of the same format last year. They'll have a couple u two or three food trucks are usually there in the grassy area and um uh the concession is open. Bathrooms and all the stuff. Everything's open down there that night. Yeah. Any additional items that has any anything?

I was going to ask uh I know parking last year was a little bit of a issue although we also got all that construction. Um is there any different changes happening this year?

Are you talking about on the square for Yes. So, um, typically Lightring is closed at that time and we usually give them an insurance rider that allows for us to have parking there. Um, we usually do not block off handicap parking except for light at night down in Greenway Park in a reindeer event just because there are handicap spots marked on the square and we will not be restricting parking against um on the square. We talked to the train drivers. We trained we trained the train drivers um how to navigate that carefully. There might be oneway traffic, but the parking will not be limited. People will be able and they won't start construction on the commons project until January. So, that should not be an issue.

Thank you.

All right. Um for our next meeting, um is everyone okay to meet Monday, December the 8th. I have that date right? Five o'clock. At that time, we will uh have our election of officers for 2026. Um we also we will be having one of our members will be leaving and um so we will be on the active hunt for a new member. So glad that Mayor TVA talked about a little bit about what we do and what our mission is. And so anyone is interested in um joining our group, we um we are looking for a new member. Does anyone have anything to add before we adjourn?

December 8th, the next meeting Monday, December 8th, 5:00. Okay, I need a motion to adjourn the meeting. Motion to adjourn. Just a minute. A second. Thank you for my second. All in favor say I. I. Motion approved. Meeting is adjourned at 5:27 p.m.