Item 11.1 - Attachment 1 |
Access Advisory Committee Minutes 15 December
2009 |
MINUTES OF THE ACCESS
ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING HELD IN MEETING ROOMS 1 & 2, GROUND FLOOR,
COUNCIL CHAMBER BUILDING, CIVIC PLACE, PARRAMATTA ON TUESDAY 15 DECEMBER 2009,
COMMENCING AT 5.30PM.
PRESENT
Leonie
Clarke,
IN ATTENDANCE
1. WELCOME
2. APOLOGIES
There
were no apologies received for this meeting
3. CONFLICT OF INTEREST DECLARATION
There
were no declarations made regarding conflict of interest at this meeting.
4. Election of Chair and Deputy
Chair Persons
The nominations received for Chairperson, in alphabetical order,
were:-
(1) John Moxon
There being no further nominations,
The nominations received for Chairperson, in alphabetical order,
were:-
(1) Debbie Manuel
There being no further nominations,
RECOMMENDATION (Grainda/Clarke)
That John Moxon and
Debbie Manuel be confirmed as the Chair and Deputy Chair of the Access
Committee for the next 12 months.
5. GENERAL BUSINESS
5.1 Contacting former members of
the committee
5.2 International Day for People
with Disabilities
The
International Day for People with Disability was on 3 December 2009.
The
Lord Mayor, Councillor Paul Garrard, spoke at the event and launched the
wheelchair rugby team.
5.3 Westfield Carpet
The
Committee discussed the fact that the carpets on levels 3 and 4 of Westfield do
not meet the standards for underlay or pile. It was also discussed that the
carpets are necessary to help reduce the noise in the shopping centre.
RECOMENDATION (Grainda/Clarke)
That Council write to Parramatta
Westfield’s on behalf of the Access Committee in relation to:-
(a)
The carpets on Levels 3 and 4 restrict access, especially for manual wheelchairs
and should comply with the industry standards in regard to underlay and pile
length.
(b)
The noise levels in
5.4 Automatic ramps at Parramatta
Train Station
The
committee discussed the instillation of automatic ramps from trains to the
platform for Parramatta station. John Moxon stated that this has been an issue
for over 20 years and is not a priority for CityRail due to numerous problems
including:-
-
The reliability of automatic ramps
- Ramps would have to be built into the trains
rather than the platforms due to different train designs and the inability to
always stop at exactly the same spot.
-
Platforms do not have a uniform
height.
RECOMMENDATION (Manuel/Nguyen)
That Council write to CityRail on
behalf of the Access Committee recommending that CityRail look at incorporating
automatic ramps, suitable for all platforms into future train designs
5.5 Free Travel Cards
Duy
Quang requested more information regarding free and concession travel cards.
John
Moxon indicated that the $2.50 travel pass, taxi vouchers and parking authority
permit were also available.
5.6 Letter form Tony Stewart MP
Duy
Quang indicated that he has made representation to Tony Stewart MP regarding
access at Yagoona and Lidcombe Stations and received the following advice:-
That
Yagoona and Lidcombe stations are not on the forward planning agenda for access
related upgrades, however there is a long term plan to make all stations
accessible and that is being rolled out to Hub stations and through heavily
frequented lines and stations.
5.7 Corner of Harris and Crown
Streets, Harris Park
Leonie
Clarke stated that the corner of Harris and Crown Streets is dangerous for
pedestrians, especially as it is near a nursing home.
RECOMMENDATION (Moxon/Clarke)
That
If this is not the case, That the
Traffic committee investigate the possibility of installing a pedestrian
crossing with refuge island at the corner of Crown and Harris Streets, Harris
Park.
5.8 Review of Public Domain
Details for Disability Access
Several
members of the committee noted that the report was difficult to read as it was
a technical document, but also that the font size was too small, and that the
freehand diagrams where difficult to see.
ACTION:
5.9 Communicating with the
Hearing Impaired
Leonie
Clarke tabled an information sheet on communication with the hearing impaired.
ACTION:
5.10 Arts and Disability NSW
ACTION:
5.11 Footpaths in Parramatta
Duy
Quang Nguyen raised the issues of footpaths in Parramatta. John Moxon stated
that the condition of footpaths would be covered in the report by Eric Martin
on design standards.
5.12 Disability Authority Pass
Duy
Quang Nguyen enquired how to obtain a parking authorisation permit. John Moxon
advised that the GP could provide a form.
5.13 Parking in Westfield
Duy
Quang Nguyen enquired about disabled parking in Parramatta Westfield’s. John
Moxon explained that there is plenty of free disabled parking if the parking
ticket is validated with an appropriate parking authority.
5.14 Proposed meeting times for
2010
The
committee agreed to meet on the third Tuesday bimonthly on even numbered
months. The dates being:-
Tuesday
16 February 2010
Tuesday
20 April 2010
Tuesday
22 June 2010 (15 June is a Council Meeting due to the Queens Birthday)
Tuesday
17 August 2010
Tuesday
19 October 2010
Tuesday
21 December 2010
5.15 Evac Plus Chair in Council
Chambers
The
committee suggested that Council investigate having evacuation chairs installed
in the stairwell of the Council Chambers Building to use in case of fore where
the lifts are not operational.
NEXT MEETING
5:30pm Tuesday 16
February 2010
Meeting Rooms 1 & 2
Council Chambers Building
The meeting concluded at 6:50 pm