Disabled Access Appeals Board Meeting

MINUTES DISABLED ACCESS APPEALS BOARD MEETING Friday, March 9, 2018 2:00 PM MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA Board members Present: Hawkins, Stocker, Stevens Absent: None Board Staff Assistant City Attorney Karin K. Salameh, Library Director Inga Waite, Present: Interim Assistant City Manager Bonnie Gawf, Systems Analyst Les Jackson, Chief of Inspection Services/Building Official John Kuehl, and Recording Secretary Alicia Salas CALL TO ORDER The hearing was called to order at 2:06 pm CONSENT ITEMS Approval of Minutes 1. December 8, 2017 Motion to approve minutes of December 8, 2017, made by Board Member Hawkins and seconded by Board Member Stevens AYES: 3 BOARD MEMBERS: Hawkins, Stocker, Stevens NOES: 0 BOARD MEMBERS: None ABSENT: 0 BOARD MEMBERS: None ABSTAIN: 0 BOARD MEMBERS: None RECUSED: 0 BOARD MEMBERS: None PUBLIC COMMENTS None. PUBLIC APPEARANCE 2. Receive Report on Wireless Internet Access and Internet Network Technology as They Relate to Public Access to City Programs at the Library and the City Council Chambers John Kuehl gave his presentation to the Board and answered questions. Inga Waite gave her presentation to the Board and answered questions. Chair Stocker asked Mr. Kuehl what are the guidelines that we should be adhering to with regards to a “clean room”. He asked if there were direction or guidelines to follow from the government to make these changes now. Mr. Kuehl said not at this time because the Department of Justice has not set a standard. Mr. Kuehl said the City has implemented other accommodations that do not include turning off the wireless network, such as providing a Disabled Access Appeals Board Minutes Friday, March 9, 2018 telephone for phone in access to meetings. Interim Assistant City Manager/City Clerk Bonnie Gawf gave her presentation and took questions from the Board. System Analysis Les Jackson gave his presentation and took questions from the Board. Board member Daniel Stevens asked how much electromagnetic fields are within the City and if electromagnetic fields will increase in the future? Mr. Jackson said he performed a scan in front of the City Council Chambers and found 39 devices/channels at the 2.4 GHz and on 5GHZ he said he found 15 devices/channels. He went on to say that of those devices only about 6 devices/channels belonged to the City. Mr. Jackson said that in the future electromagnetic fields will increase because the major carriers are rolling out more access points. He also said all the devices in the City are FCC approved and rated below the minimum level of what’s approved by the FCC. Public comments Nina Beety resident of Monterey stated that she is disabled by Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity (EHS). She said she experiences disabling health effects from EHS and has a doctor’s note that advises her to reduce her exposure to EMF. Ms. Betty said she is looking for meaningful dialogue, reduced exposure, reasonable accommodations, and specific accommodations for her issue. She said that expecting the City to eliminate exposure would not be a reasonable accommodation and that’s why she is asking for reduced exposure. Ms. Betty asked why the computers in both the Council Chambers and library cannot be hard-wired. And also asked why the computers in both facilities can’t use an Ethernet cord for both staff and the public. Ms. Betty said she would like for the City to complete a Transition Plan. Ms. Beety said she cannot enter the library through the main entrance and would like to have an accommodation to allow her to enter via staff entrance. She said she does not want constant access but set times during the week or month where the WIFI would be disabled and to allow her entrance through the staff entry during those times. Ms. Beety also said she would like for the City to post signs at the entrance to the Council Chambers similar to the signs posted at the County Board of Supervisors meetings which advise the public to turn off their cell phones. Lois Hansen, resident of Monterey, said she is here to support Ms. Beety and wanted to know how the City is planning to handle this issue going forward. Ms. Hansen stated she thought the presentations given by staff were merely updates to say where the City and the library are currently with WIFI and how difficult it would be to disable it. She went on to say the presentations were not plans that outlined how the City is going to handle Ms. Beety’s request for more accessibility to the Library and City Hall. Board Member Comments Chair Stocker asked Ms. Salameh what is federally recognized as a disability by the ADA. He also stated he has not seen this issue has been recognized as a disability by the Department of Justice (DOJ). Ms. Salameh said the Access Board has determined that if an individual is so severely impaired that it affects the neurological, respiratory, or other functions and is substantially limiting an individual’s major life activities, then they could be considered disabled. Ms. Salameh said the Access Board, which is the DOJ entity that interprets the ADA, has recognized that electromagnetic sensitivity may qualify as a disability, but in certain instances it may not. She said this is why staff is proceeding on a case-by-case basis in this area. Chair Stocker asked Ms. Salameh what would be the next step since this meeting is to receive 2 Disabled Access Appeals Board Minutes Friday, March 9, 2018 a report. Ms. Salameh said we could wait to see if there is an appeal in the future and apply what you learned today or you could ask staff to come back at a later date with their recommendations for a policy specifically for this situation. Library Director Inga Waite said the Library is old and in need of renovation. She restated that it could possibly cause issues for others if the WIFI was turned off for the benefit one. System Analysis Les Jackson said it would be hard, but not impossible to disable the WIFI in the Council Chambers. He also said there isn’t a system in place right now to disable the access points and he is unsure about how involved it would be to disable. Chair Stocker asked if the offices on the City Hall campus use the same network. Mr. Jackson said most of the offices in City Hall are on the same Wireless Land Controller which is one network. He added that city staff and most people using the chambers and the library are using devices that do not have Ethernet connections on them, i.e., cell phones and tablets, so using an Ethernet cord for Internet connection would not be possible. Board member Stevens asked how much of a difference would it make to turn off the WIFI to the chambers since there are other WIFIs in the area. Mr. Jackson said the WIFI in the chambers is rated very low and in his opinion it would not make a difference because the Comcast/Xfinity city coverage is at its strongest levels that are allowed by the government. Board member Hawkins asked if and when the library is remodeled could there be a “clean” room with a hard wired computer. Ms. Waite said she would like to see how people with EMF sensitivity would want to use the Library, i.e. civic discussions or meetings. She said perhaps there could be a hold shelf in the “clean room” with reserved books along with the hard-wired computer. Ms. Waite said that is definitely something to explore in the future during any renovation of the Library. Chair Stocker said maybe the City could look into a device that would allow the person to appear on screen from home during public meetings. He said he felt that seeing someone speak makes a difference during a discussion. Chair Stocker said we have to continue to learn and understand this issue and listen to concerns to find out how we can make accommodations without shutting down the City. BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS Chair Stocker said we are looking for two new qualified board members to be added to the Disabled Access Appeals Board. He said the candidates should have some form of disability and/or have some sort of technical experience to be considered qualified for the job. ADA COORDINATOR REPORT No report at this time. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 3:33 pm. 3 Disabled Access Appeals Board Minutes Friday, March 9, 2018 Respectfully Submitted, Approved, Alicia Salas David Stocker Recording Secretary Disabled Access Appeals Board Chair 4