Commission on Disabilities

BRAINTREE COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES Meeting Held Via Zoom Monday, September 9, 2024, 6:30 p.m. IN ATTENDANCE: Crystal Evans, Treasurer Mary Russo, Member Robin Torpey, Member Scott Lamphere, Member ALSO PRESENT: Marybeth McGrath, Director of ML & I Kristina Ziniti, ADA Coordinator Call to Order: Crystal Evans served as Acting Chairperson for this meeting. Meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by roll call vote: Crystal Evans-yes; Robin Torpey-yes; Mary Russo-yes; Scott Lamphere-yes Approval of Minutes: The minutes of July 1, 2024 were reviewed. Motion made by Crystal Evans to approve the meeting minutes of July 1, 2024. Motion seconded by Robin Torpey. The motion passed by a roll call vote: Crystal Evans-yes; Mary Russo-yes; Robin Torpey-yes; Scott Lamphere-yes Informational: Safety Net Bracelets: Ms. McGrath reported she reached out to Jay St. Ives of the Braintree Police Department. He reported originally the police department received a grant from the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office to receive equipment through their Project Lifesaver program. The equipment consists of a watch-like transmitter that is placed on the wrist with a band designed to be difficult to remove. They have the ability to track those who may wander with equipment at the station. In addition, they partnered with the Department of Elder Affairs, who also had a grant, and were able to get additional equipment for individuals with Alzheimer’s. Officer St. Ives stated he believes Project Lifesaver is similar to the Safety Net program. They have outfitted five to six transmitters with children who are autistic as well as two individuals with Alzheimer’s. She stated she is trying to contact him again to ask if this is going to be an ongoing program. Ms. Russo asked what steps are taken if an individual gets out of a program or out of a house. She stated with Safety Net you must call the State Police headquarters and they put the individual’s frequency into their system which gives the local police identifying areas where the individual might be. Ms. McGrath responded this is part of the Braintree Commission on Disabilities, September 9, 2024 Page 2 of 3 information she is trying to get from Officer St. Ives. She believes the equipment at the police station ties into the watch transmitter, but she needs more information on this. Ms. Evans stated when searching the company names she found they are interchangeable and wondered if it is the same company with a new name. Ms. Russo stated she can contact a representative from Safety Net to get that information. Ms. Torpey asked if this works similar to Lifeline. Ms. McGrath stated this is different as it runs on transmitters on the wrist of the individual. Ms. Evans stated Lifeline provides a method of dispatching help in the case of falls or other incidents, but Safety Net can actually track the location of an individual. Ramps at Historical Society Building: Ms. Ziniti stated she does not have any update on the ramps. The Facilities Department has been busy with projects over the summer but she will try to get information from them. Ms. Evans stated she had recommended a path be paved from the ramp to the barn because this is an unstable surface. However, she was wondering if they still have access to the mats that used to be used at the beach, which could be put in as a temporary path until they can address this problem. Ms. McGrath stated she is unsure if the mats are still available as there was a problem with them disintegrating with use and wear. She stated she can reach out to the Highway Department to see if they are still available. It was agreed she would also reach out to the Historical Society to determine who has control over the property and bring back information at the October meeting. Mr. Lamphere stated he assumes the lack of accessibility at the Historical Society is on the list of recommendations in the townwide assessment. Ms. Ziniti stated this property was not assessed as it is not owned by the town. Ms. Evans stated the Historical Society does receive some funding from CPA funds. Mr. Lamphere stated CPA has funded paving for other projects so may be able to do so in this location. Handicapped Accessibility at the South Shore Plaza: Ms. Evans stated for years the South Shore Plaza has had ongoing issues with their elevators going down. She filed Mass Architectural Board complains in January of 2018 because of how frequently the elevators were not working. As a result the state mandated that South Shore Plaza had to put a cooling device in the elevator room near Target. She stated the escalators are frequently broken, causing increased use of the elevators, which then overheat causing them to break down. She stated the cooling device was installed and the elevators were working well for a while but now, again, there are multiple elevator issues. Ms. Evans stated on Labor Day all three elevators and five escalators at the Plaza were broken. She took photographs and documented everything. She also checked 14 elevators throughout the Plaza and noted that 11 of them had expired inspection certificates and three were missing certificates entirely. Mr. Lamphere stated elevator certificates are no longer required to be posted in elevators, which may explain the expired certificates. She also raised concern that in the stores where there are elevators which could be used in an emergency there is no signage directing people to the elevators. She feels this is an emergency evacuation problem which needs to be addressed with public safety and Simon Properties. Braintree Commission on Disabilities, September 9, 2024 Page 3 of 3 Ms. McGrath stated there was a notification sent to Simon Properties from the Massachusetts Architectural Board on September 6 regarding the elevator issue at South Shore Plaza. Ms. Torpey stated years ago they had an issue with Simon Properties and one of the liaisons for Simon Properties attended a Commission meeting and was able to help out with some of the issues raised. Ms. McGrath stated she could reach out to the General Manager at the Plaza and ask if a representative could attend a Commission meeting. Ms. Evans reviewed many other issues she would like to discuss with a representative and stated she can put together a slide presentation for that meeting. She also stated the Braintree Police officers who are patrolling the Plaza on a daily basis should be noting when elevators and escalators are broken and passing that information along to the Fire and Building Departments as a public safety concern. Handicapped Parking Fund Account: Ms. McGrath reported the current balance in the handicapped parking fund is $41,225.78. She stated they were able to order the ADA accessible benches that will be placed at Elder Affairs. The company constructing the benches stated they will provide continuous updates as to their progress. Ms. Ziniti reported the money for the benches was paid from this account at the end of July. Other Business: Ms. Evans stated the sidewalks at Pearl Plaza are constantly blocked by bicycles, but there are no bicycle racks at any Messina properties. She asked if the Commission could request that bicycle racks be placed at all their properties. She asked that this be put on the agenda for discussion at the next meeting. Next Meeting: October 7, 2024 Adjournment: Motion made by Mary Russo to adjourn the Commission on Disabilities meeting at 7:24 p.m. Motion seconded by Robin Torpey. The motion passed by a roll call vote: Crystal Evans-yes; Mary Russo-yes; Scott Lamphere-yes; Robin Torpey-yes