2012-Annual Town Report - Laserfiche WebLink

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Catherine Laurent and the Department of Public Report of the Works for the installation of the mat, construction of Americans with Disabilities access walks and realignment of the handicapped Act Committee parking spaces. Without the extraordinary efforts of Gus Frederick and Heidi McLaughlin of the Recreation Department the acquisition of the beach i. To the Honorable Board of Selectmen and the wheelchair would not have been possible. Finally,we Citizens of the Town of Mashpee: are indebted to the Beach Supervisor and the life- guards for maintaining the equipment and assisting i The members of the Mashpee Americans with people using the beach wheelchair. i Disabilities Act Committee are pleased to report con- r tinued progress toward our objective of making In response to a request from a disabled i Mashpee the most accessible town on Cape Cod.This Mashpee resident a mail box accessible to a disabled progress is due in no small measure from the contin- driver has been placed by the exit from the parking ued support and encouragement of town officials and area in front of Town Hall. The box has a "snorkel" of local businesses. extension allowing a driver to deposit mail from the the cooperation driver's seat.Many thanks to Kathleen Moore and the j This year saw the realization of one of our long Postmaster for making this happen. standing objectives -increasing the handicapped . accessibility at South Cape Beach. A 33' long Mobi- DPW and the Harbormaster are working closely Mat was installed on the beach at the beginning of the to make repairs to the boat ramps. Initial planning is underway for significant upgrades to the landing at season. This enables the mobility-impaired to get Y g Pg g 3 onto the beach and sit with friends and relatives. Great River and if funding is available improvements Additionally, the Recreation Department procured a will include increased accessibility. DPW also has fabulous beach wheelchair which enables the disabled been making steady progress on improving accessibil- t tog et across the beach and into the water. ity at the recreation areas. A ribbon-cutting ceremonywas held on June 20, Michele Brady continues efforts to ensure 2012. Attendees included members of the Board of Mashpee schools are easily accessible to disabled staff Selectmen, the Town Manager, DPW Director and members,students and visitors without compromising members of her staff, Director and Program security. Additionally,Michele and Charlie Maintanis Supervisor of the Recreation Department,members of are reviewing plans to establish "areas of refuge" in the ADA Committee,representatives of CORD and a each school. Such designated areas are required as a Mashpee Enterprise photographer/reporter. gathering spot for individuals with disabilities in an emergency so they may be reached quickly by emer- gency responders. Thanks to the efforts of Kathleen Moore,special accessibility features are provided for Town Meeting attendees. These include; large-print warrants, Communications Access Realtime Translation (CART) and reserved close-in parking. Additionally, thanks to the assistance of the selectmen and the Audible Local Ledger audio recordings of the warrant are available prior to the meeting at the Library, Senior Center and Town Hall. In the upcoming months, committee members will be working with the Mashpee Chamber of Commerce to review accessibility of commercial and Our thanks go out to those individuals and orga- nizations who contributed to the purchase of these professional facilities in Mashpee. Accessible facili- items. We are also grateful for the support of ties will be specifically identified in the annual Mashpee Guidebook. 27