2009-Annual Town Report - Laserfiche WebLink

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Report of the Mashpee Americans with Disabilities Act Committee To the Honorable Board of Selectmen and the citizens of the Town of Mashpee: The members of the Mashpee Americans with Disabilities Act Committee are pleased to report continuing progress toward our goal of providing a maximum degree of access to the disabled. This progress has been possible only through the hard work of committee members and the continued support and cooperation of town officials, town boards and committees and local businessmen and business women. Our efforts in 2009 were hindered somewhat by a number of medical issues that limited participation of several committee members for extended periods and the mid-year departure of Patricia Lugo, representative of the School Department. However, since we continue to be blessed by the conscientious involvement of Marilyn Farren, Charlie Maintanis, Patricia Lugo and her replacement, Maria Hortaridis, representing various town departments and Terrie Cook, our liaison with the Board of Selectmen, the multiple requirements were handled quickly and skillfully. Significant contributions also were made by Patricia Parolski, Mert Sapers, Bill Dundon and Beverly Wooldridge each of who bring a wealth of experience dealing access issues. Thanks to the efforts of Patricia Lugo and Brad Tripp of the DPW handicapped parking has been upgraded and new safety features were installed in the areas designated for wheelchair seating in the high school auditorium thereby eliminating a potentially serious hazard. As in previous years, disabled persons attending the two Town Meetings were aided by the closed captioning provided by the Communications Access Real Time Translation (CART) system. Large-print warrants were available and close-in parking was provided and heavily used. This support was only possible through the extraordinary efforts of Kathleen Moore, Administrative Assistant to the Board of Selectmen. Thanks to Sherry Bergeron of the Audible Local Ledger, Terrie Cook and Wayne Taylor were able to make audio tapes of the town meeting warrant which were subsequently distributed to the Town Clerk's office, Senior Center and the library for use by the vision and reading impaired residents. A new initiative this year involved posting a text version and an audio stream of the warrant on the town web site. Thanks to the efforts of Dave DelVecchio and Bruce Stello. In 2010, we hope to have copies of the warrant available on CDs in order to reach a wider audience. We continue to receive several requests for assistance from disabled residents encountering difficulties dealing with a variety of obstacles. With the cooperation and assistance of the Town Manager, Joyce Mason, DPW Director, Catherine Laurent, Fire Chief, George Baker, Police Chief, Rodney Collins, Jim Long and Lynne Waterman of the Council on Aging and others to numerous to name, most issues were resolved quickly and satisfactorily. The handicapped parking and access situation in South Cape Village remains a significant concern. Charlie Maintanis has held numerous discussions with South Cape Village representatives in an attempt to reach a mutually agreeable solution. Following a number of on- 106