►
From YouTube: Committee on City, Neighborhood Services and Veterans & Military Affairs on May 29, 2019
Description
Docket #0517 - Hearing regarding services for persons with disabilities
A
Welcome
my
name
is
Edie
Flynn
and
I
am
the
chair
of
the
Committee
on
city,
neighborhood
services
in
veteran
and
military
affairs.
I
am
joined
by
my
colleagues,
City
Council
Michael
Flaherty
in
City,
Council,
Lydia,
Edwards
and
they're.
Both
co-sponsors
of
this
matter,
I'd,
also
like
to
at
this
time,
introduced
our
our
panelist
Commissioner
krysta
macaws
from
the
mayor's
Commission
for
persons
with
disabilities
in
menara,
suave
language
access,
coordinate
coordinator
for
the
mayor's
office.
I
want
to
remind
you
that
this
is
a
public
hearing
and
it
is
being
recorded
in
broadcast,
live
on
channels.
A
A
We
will
also
take
public
testimony
and
would
appreciate
it
if
you
could
sign
in
to
testify
on
on
on
the
left-hand
side.
At
the
start
of
your
testimony,
please
state
your
name
address
in
affiliation.
Today's
hearing
is
on
docket
zero,
five
one.
Seven
this
matter
was
referred
to
the
Committee
on
city
neighborhood
services
in
veteran
and
military
affairs
on
March
13th,
2009.
A
According
to
the
Boston
language
and
communication
access
program,
12.8%
of
Boston
residents
identify
as
having
at
least
one
disability.
This
includes
experiencing
difficulties
in
self-care
hearing
vision,
independent
living
in
walking
and
the
city
of
Boston
has
undertaken
measures
to
ensure
that
persons
with
disabilities
will
have
access
to
various
services
with
the
mayor's
disability.
A
Commission
report
addresses
a.da
accessibility,
improvements
to
City
Hall
in
public
rights-of-way.
In
addition
to
language
access
in
services
for
those
that
are
hearing
or
visually
impaired,
the
City
of
Boston
has
greatly
improved
access
for
people
with
disabilities
and
requires
facilities
in
public
ways
to
be
a
DA
compliant.
But
there
are
still
gaps
of
services
that
exist.
It
is
the
responsibility
of
our
city's
state
and
federal
officials
to
ensure
that
all
residents
have
access
to
City
have
access
to
services,
no
matter
the
condition
of
their
health
abilities
or
impairments.
B
A
A
Every
family
has
probably
at
least
one
person
with
some
type
of
disability,
and
it's
it's
critical
that
we
ensure
that
every
person
has
the
same
access
as
as
everybody
else,
it's
about
respect
and
dignity
for
every
person
and
I'm
so
proud
of
the
great
cooperation
we
receive
from
the
mayor's
office
in
from
our
panelists
that
have
done
tremendous
work
on
this
issue
for
many
years.
At
this
time,
as
I
mentioned,
the
co-sponsors
are
City
Council
and
Michael
clarity
and
City
Council
Lydia,
Edwards
and
I.
Ask
city
council
clarity
to
make
an
opening
statement.
A
C
C
This
July,
we
celebrate
the
29th
University
of
the
Americans
with
Disability
Act,
which
is
a
landmark
federal
civil
rights
law,
prohibiting
discrimination
against
those
who
are
differently
abled
in
ensuring
that
every
American
has
access
to
the
same
services,
rights
and
opportunities,
regardless
of
their
ability
and
as
our
city
continues
to
grow.
It's
imperative
to
ensure
that
all
the
development
that
is
happening
in
our
city
is
up
to
code
with
a
DA
accessibility
regulation.
C
D
To
thank
you
for
your
work
already
and
I'm
excited
to
continue
to
work
with
you
and
I.
Think
that
this
today's
hearing
is
really
about
that
conversation
that
we
need
to
continue
to
have.
As
we
have
a
city
we've
committed
to
planning
into
2030,
making
sure
that
those
plans
are
not
only
inclusive
but
literally
led
by
folks
in
the
disability
community,
because,
as
the
Chairman
noted
at
some
point,
majority
of
Americans
will
experience
some
form
of
disability
in
their
lives,
so
not
to
plan.
For
that,
from
that
perspective
is
to
really
cut
ourselves
off
knees.
D
So
it's
your
leadership.
It's
your
voice
that
we
have
already
seen,
make
a
huge
difference
in
people's
lives,
and
so
it's
that
leadership
and
your
voice
and
your
ideas
that
we
hope
to
amplify
a
City,
counselors,
so
I'm
here
to
also
learn
as
much
as
possible
from
you
and
from
those
in
the
community
to
make
sure
that
our
efforts
are
as
impactful
and
as
actually
are
meeting
your
needs
as
well.
So
thank
you
for
being
here
and
thank
you
all
ready
for
the
good
work.
You're
doing.
E
Know,
thank
you
very
much
mr.
chair
and
welcome
everybody.
No
I
wouldn't
want
to
miss
this.
For
for
the
world
when
I
was
in
the
pole,
works
department,
I
learned
so
much
from
our
work,
trying
to
change
pedestrian
ramps
and
cuckoo
birds
and
everything
else,
I
learned
so
much
from
the
people
who
need
it
the
most
and
a
lot
of
stories.
Of
of
how
you
know
brick
sidewalks,
you
know,
don't
work
for
people
in
wheelchairs
and
things
that
you
take
for
granted
and
I'm
very
happy
and
proud
of
my
colleagues
for
for
calling
this
hearing.
E
A
Thank
You
council
McCarthy
and
before
I
introduce
the
the
Commissioner
I'd,
also
like
to
recognize
the
large
audience
members
that
we
have
here,
especially
members
of
the
mayor's
Commission
for
persons
with
disabilities.
Thank
you
for
being
here
and,
more
importantly,
thank
you
for
your
tireless
work
on
behalf
of
persons
with
disabilities
across
our
city
and
our
state.
F
Thank
You
councillor
Flynn,
council,
Flaherty,
councillor
Edwards
and
councillor
McCarthy
I,
appreciate
your
time
and
devoting
this
time
of
your
day
to
this
issue.
It
is
a
critical
issue
in
Boston
and
to
echo
council
of
Lowry's
words,
we've
celebrated
28
years
of
access,
and
now
we
need
to
move
on
to
real
inclusion.
We
know
inclusion
is
a
lot
more
than
accessibility.
We
can
build
ramps,
we
can
designate
parking
spots
but
to
give
people
with
disabilities
access
to
jobs,
access
to
housing.
It
goes
a
lot
more
than
four
walls
or
concrete
brick
and
mortar.
F
It's
really
about
involving
people
with
disabilities
in
the
community
in
the
government
in
the
economy.
So
that's
what
we
hope
to
accomplish
in
the
next
phase
of
the
celebrating
the
a.da
between
the
ninth
anniversary
this
year
to
talk
briefly
about
my
office.
Our
vision
is
to
create
a
diverse
City
that
not
only
welcomes
people
of
all
abilities
but
provides
them
with
an
opportunity
to
create
a
meaningful
life.
F
Boston
has
a
long
history
of
progressive
social
policy,
education,
research
and
innovation,
we're
in
a
unique
position
to
become
a
model
city
where
people
with
disabilities
can
live,
learn,
work
with
every
expectation
of
access,
include
inclusion,
enjoyment
and
success.
So
what
my
office
does
basically,
in
a
nutshell,
is
we
provide
critical
insight
to
the
mayor,
the
administration
and
city
councilor
on
the
needs
of
persons
with
disabilities
and
issues
of
importance
to
them.
We
coordinate
the
city's
compliance
efforts
with
the
other
departments,
and
I
am
responsible
for
overseeing
compliance
with
the
Americans
with
Disabilities
Act.
F
We
provide
technical
assistance
on
required
accessibility
and
we
engage
stakeholders
and
community
residents
in
framing
a
meaningful
dialogue
and
getting
their
priorities
known
to
the
administration.
I
would
also
like
to
thank
the
members
of
our
community
who
came
out
today,
I'm
always
proud
to
welcome
them
into
the
renovated
city
council
chamber,
which
I
know
a
lot
of
the
council
has
worked
on
with
us.
I
feel
personally.
F
So
I
would
like
to
talk
a
little
bit
about
some
of
our
services.
We
only
have
a
few
direct
services,
we
oversee
the
accessible
parking
program
and
we
do
technical
assistance.
I
have
two
architects
on
my
staff,
who
do
technical
assistance
on
building
plans
that
go
through
the
BPD
a
also
they
work
with
the
PSC
problem:
approval
commission,
BTD
and
Public
Works.
So
those
are
the
main
services
that
we
provide,
because
we
have
a
very
small
staff
of
five
assumed
to
be
seven
I
appreciate
all
the
council
support
and
also
councillors
Aiken.
F
F
Other
than
the
services
we
provide,
our
main
goal
is
to
increase
systemic
accessibility
and
what
I
mean
by
that
is.
We
don't
have
a
staff
person
in
every
department,
but
we
communicate
with
staff
in
every
department.
For
example,
Minar
has
been
a
champion
in
ensuring
communication
access
with
all
departments.
F
It's
something
that
I
could
never
do,
because
I
don't
have
that
specific
focus
or
expertise,
although
I
do
have
one
staff,
member
who's
fluent
in
American,
Sign
Language,
and
also
several
staff
members
who
speak
other
languages,
but
having
these
key
relationships
with
other
departments
really
helps
include
increased
accessibility
in
all
ways
in
the
city,
whether
it's
the
schools,
the
library
housing
DND.
We
need
to
ensure
that
every
department
is
working
on
accessibility
and
inclusion,
so
I
feel,
like
we've
established
good
relationships
with
other
departments.
F
We
love
to
see
increased
funding
from
an
office
for
our
office
for
accessibility
projects.
We
appreciate
you
supporting
all
those
things
and
with
that
I
feel
like
I
would
like
to
also
I'd
like
to
mention.
We
do
information
and
referral,
so
in
any
constituents
call
our
office.
We
have
expertise
on
number
of
disability
areas
or
we
know
where
for
people
to
get
that
information
so
with
that
I
will
turn
it
over
to
back
to
councillor
Flynn
Thank.
A
G
G
So,
as
you
mentioned
so
I'm,
the
director
of
language
and
communications
access
here
in
the
city
of
Boston,
the
scope
of
our
work
is
really
making
sure
that
individuals
who
use
languages
of
in
English,
as
well
as
individuals
who
have
at
least
one
disability,
are
able
to
access
all
of
our
city
services.
So
this
is
in
terms
of
city
services,
city
activities,
any
sort
of
information,
that's
going
to
the
public,
and
so
the
way
that
we
do,
that
is
really
by
partnering
across
all
of
our
different
departments.
G
Internally,
we
see
that
the
way
to
do
this
appropriately,
you
know
in
the
way
that
even
Commissioner
Micajah
was
saying
in
this
systemic
way,
is
to
really
make
sure
that
it
starts
from
planning,
because
we
know,
as
for
as
long
as
the
city
has
existed,
a
lot
of
services
have
existed
and
our
team
is
really
looking
at
what
are
the
different
ways
that
services
exist
and
then
what
are
the
ways
that
we
can
increase
its
accessibility
to
everybody?
So
in
particular
we
do
this
by
emphasizing
three
types
of
accommodations.
G
The
first
one
is
interpretation.
This
also
definitely
includes
American
sign
language
as
well
as
cart,
which
is
communications
access,
real-time
translation,
which
is
basically
on-demand
captioning.
We
also
another
type
of
accommodation,
is
translation.
So
this
is
not
just
you
know,
texts
from
English
to
another
language,
but
also
thinking
about
alternative
formats,
so
whether
that
might
be
Braille,
whether
that
might
be
large
text
thinking
about
creating
audio
video
with
transcripts
and
captioning
as
well
as
well
as
assistive
technology.
G
So,
in
addition
to
these
accommodations
really,
our
team
is
really
thinking
about
planning
the
planning
efforts
we
talked
about.
You
know
the
way
to
do
this
is
really
making
sure
that
our
staff
are
prepared
for
this.
That
they're,
not
it's
not
just
sort
of
sprung
upon
them
and
the
expectation
is
there.
G
You
know
best
practice
for
everyone
involved,
some
other
things
that
we
want
to
highlight
our
team,
we're
really
interested
in
working
with
external
community
groups,
because
we
know
without
feedback
we're
not
going
to
be
able
to.
You
know
best
our
own
practice.
Internally,
we
have
an
internal
volunteer
list
of
community
members
and
staff,
who
are
multilingual
and
across
30
different
languages,
which
is
a
lot.
This
also
includes
American
Sign
Language,
which
we're
really
excited
about
some
other
things
that
we
do
in
terms
of
assistive
technology
equipment,
lending
that
out.
G
We
do
a
lot
of
work
in
terms
of
data
collection.
You
mentioned,
you
know
one
of
our
resources
that
we
created.
Thank
you
and
we
have
a
whole
host
of
resources
on
our
website.
So
we're
really
excited
about
this
work.
We
want
to
thank
everybody
for
all
the
support
that
you've.
Given
us.
You
know
between
FY,
19
and
FY
20.
We
saw
about
150
percent
increase
in
funding,
and
that
includes
another
full-time
permanent
employee
as
well.
So
we're
really
excited
to
be
able
to
push
this
this
work
forward.
G
A
A
So
those
quality
of
life
issues
for
persons
with
disabilities
are
critical
to
me
and
I
know
they're
critical
to
to
the
City
Council
and
to
the
mayor
as
well.
Kristen
I
was
wondering.
Could
you
talk
a
little
about
the
the
communication
you
have
with
city
department,
heads
as
it
relates
to
maybe
ongoing
development
projects
in
how
your
voice
is
impacted
by
making
sure
that
persons
with
disabilities
are
their
issues
affected
in
during
development,
during
the
development
phase
of
construction
and
before
I?
A
F
Certainly
Thank
You
councillor
Flynn,
so
one
thing
I
didn't
mention
in
my
opening
statement
was
that
we
do
series
of
events.
Every
year
we
host
four
main
events.
We
do
an
ad
a
celebration
day
on
City
Hall,
plaza
every
year,
where
we
invite
all
the
community
organizations
to
come
and
participate.
We
have
two
to
three
hundred
constituents
who
come
and
it's
a
chance
for
us
to
just
walk
around
and
talk
to
organizations
and
residents
about
their
issues
of
importance.
F
We
also
do
a
disability
mentoring
program
which
celebrates
employment
for
people
with
disabilities
and
then
two
other
things.
We
do
that
really
help
us
hear
from
the
residents
and
constituents
is
we
host
a
community
forum
every
year,
which
is
basically
a
listening
session.
Ours
is
coming
up
on
June
29th
and
this
is
basically
I
do
June,
28th
sorry.
This
is
basically
a
day
for
myself,
my
staff
and
my
advisory
board
members
to
come
and
sit
at
a
table
like
this
and
have
residents
constituents.
F
People
from
outside
of
Boston
come
and
tell
us
what's
working
in
the
city
and
what's
not
working
so
from
from
that
forum,
we
develop
our
accessibility
agenda
for
the
year
and
we
really
want
people
to
be
honest
with
us.
If
something's
working
great,
let
us
know
because
oftentimes
there
are
pilot
programs,
an
example
of
planning
pilot
that
we
were
involved
in
my
architects
and
myself
was
the
Adu
pilot
program
which
is
accessible
accessory
dwelling
units
through
inspectional
services.
F
These
are
small
apartments
that
people
can
build
within
the
footprint
of
their
home
to
make
it
a
separate
unit,
they're
good
for
maybe
elderly
parents
or
people
with
disabilities.
If
they're
not
accessible,
it
may
be
good
for
a
caretaker
to
live
with
a
person.
So
we
hear
from
residents
that
these
things
are
important
and
then
we
get
involved
with
the
planning.
The
other
event
that
we
do
is
civic
engagement
day
where
we
bring
residents
into
the
fifth
floor
they
get
to
meet
with
the
council's
or
the
staff.
F
The
mayor
says
a
few
words
they
can
register
to
vote.
They
can
learn
to
testify
a
hearing,
I'm
so
glad
that
so
many
people
came
out
today
to
testify
because
it
can
be
a
real
barrier
just
getting
into
City
Hall
and
then
voicing
your
concerns.
Many
people
are
intimidated
by
so
we
offer
the
chances
for
them
to
do
it
just
to
me
to
do
it
informally,
to
call
our
office
and
to
do
it
directly
to
the
counselors.
So
other
heads
of
departments
that
I
work
with
certainly
inspectional
Services
Public,
Works
transportation.
F
We've
also
been
involved
with
Parks
Department
planning
master
plans
from
many
other
departments.
So
I
would
say
the
departments
are
very
willing
to
work
with
us
I
they
get
it
for
the
most
part.
They
know
how
important
it
is.
Certainly
age,
strong,
Health
and
Human
Services
cabinet
veterans.
We
all
work
very
closely
together
and
I.
Think
it's
a
really
good
relationship
that
we
have.
A
Another
woman
that
spoke
Chinese
and
Mandarin,
and
another
woman
that
spoke
Spanish
I've
represented
a
diverse
district
in
district
2,
which
includes
South
Boston,
the
South
End
Chinatown
in
downtown
Boston,
but
I
I
noticed
that
if
I
didn't
have
people
on
my
staff
that
didn't
speak
certain
languages,
that
my
constituents
that
didn't
speak
English
would
not
have
access
to
me,
and
so
it
it
went
over
very
well
with
what
the
constituents.
But
what
do
you?
What
are
you
hearing
about
in
terms
of
residents
across
Boston
that
don't
speak
English?
G
So
I
want
to
preface
my
answer
by
talking
about
how
that
there
are
a
lot
of
internal
staff
members
who
are
multilingual,
which
is
great
and
we've
found
that
it's
been
a
tremendous
resource.
You
know
as
much
as
we're
talking
about
accessibility.
We
know.
There's
there
is
a
funding
component
to
it.
There
is
a
matter
of
you
know.
G
There
are
certain
things
whether
it's
you
know
legal
anything
that
has
any
sort
of
legal
oversight
where
we
have
to
go
to
a
professional,
but
a
lot
of
it
when
we're
talking
about
what
does
it
mean
to
be
a
welcoming
city?
A
lot
of
it
has
to
do
with
that
first
interaction
when
someone's
first
walking
into
City,
Hall
or
any
of
the
other
municipal
buildings.
So
I
do
really.
You
know:
we've
really
value
the
volunteers
that
are
a
part
of
their
part
of
this.
That
are
a
part
of
this
work.
G
Similarly,
you
know
the
staff
that
we
have
on
board
were
able
to
leverage
their.
You
know
their
multilingual
skills
as
well.
There
is
a
part
of
that
that
really
does
have
to
do
with
making
sure
that
they're
also
trained,
because
we
know
interpretation
and
translation
are
specific
skills
that
are
paid
for.
So
we
know
there
are
services
that
require
some
sort
of
training
in
skill
set.
So
we
want
to
be
able
that
won't.
G
G
You
know
out
in
the
fields
or
even
you
know
your
neighborhoods
neighborhood
services
coordinator,
and
so
we
really
value
the
the
feedback
that
we're
getting
from
direct
from
constituents
themselves,
but
also
staff
members
to
talk
about
when
we're
when
we're
thinking
about
these
processes,
what
is
going
well,
what
is
not
going
on?
How
can
we
you
know?
How
can
we
might
amend
that,
based
on
each
person's
role,
in
that.
A
C
The
chair
1
obviously
take
the
opportunity
to
recognize
David
Vieira
who's.
The
former
election
commissioner
for
the
city
of
Boston
I,
know
David
back
in
the
day,
did
a
lot
of
work
around
the
elections,
with
respect
to
making
sure
that
there
was
accessibility
for
everybody.
So
it's
good
to
see
David
and
look
forward
to
hearing
from
him
today
as
well.
C
Commissioner
could
just
I
guess
for
I
ratification
off
for
the
edification
of
the
public.
Can
you
just
describe
what,
with
the
role
of
the
disabilities
Commission
is,
with
respect
to
say
the
BPD,
a
permitting
process
with
respect
to
public
works
when
they're
doing
the
sidewalk
repair
and
handicap
ramp
alignment
and
repair,
and
also
like
BTD,
when
they're
doing
crosswalks,
striping
and
street
signage
and
signalling
just
a
sort
of
a
snapshot
and
I
would
envision
that
before
a
logical
development
project
gets
approved,
they
call
and
say
commission
of
akaash.
C
Can
you
come
out
and
check
this
out
or
we're
looking
to
do
this
and
really
could
to
avoid
the
one
that's
been
in.
The
news
is
to
3200
colony
Ave,
but,
and
you
scratch
your
head
and
say
like
how
did
something
like
that
happen,
but
clearly
it
was
like
I'm,
assuming
that
they
didn't
connect
with
you,
but
so
again
for
those
that
are
here
and
those
that
are
viewing
at
home,
whether
it's
through
the
development
process,
whether
it's
through
Public
Works,
whether
it's
through
BTD,
can
you
kind
of
maybe
that
enter
office.
F
So
the
previous
disability,
commissioner,
who
served
before
I,
was
appointed
almost
10
years
ago,
was
an
architect
but
I
don't
have
an
architect
background.
I
come
from
a
public
health
and
advocacy
background.
So
when
I
was
hired
by
a
previous
mayor,
I
asked
for
a
position
for
an
architect
on
my
staff,
so
I
was
also
able
to
gain
another
position.
F
So
I
have
two
architects
on
my
staff
currently
and
they
have
very
explicit
roles
when
it
comes
to
these
three
department:
Public
Works,
BT,
D
and
B
PDA,
the
B
PDA
has
a
number
of
steps
that
developers
go
through
to
have
a
building
built.
It
begins
with
just
an
idea
and
they
come
to
a
scoping
session
where
all
the
city
departments
come
together
and
they
dress
things
like
water
or
traffic.
Things
like
that
there
was
no
mention
of
accessibility
other
than
a
footnote.
At
the
end.
That
says,
we'll
be
a
DA
compliant.
F
So
when
I
came
board,
I
said
how
can
they
have
all
these
details
about
plants
and
light
fixtures
when
there's
nothing
about
access,
so
I
was
able
to
work
with
Brian
golden
and
get
a
checklist
instituted.
It's
called
the
article
80
process
for
the
B
PDA.
It's
called
the
accessibility
checklist,
it's
no
new
requirements.
It
just
basically
lists
out
all
the
state
requirements
for
access
and
building
things
like
path,
travel,
housing
units
where
they're
located
is
there
an
elevator
where's,
the
closest
MBTA,
stop
other
automatic
doors,
or
is
the
door
accessible?
F
It's
it's
a
seven
page
checklist
and
it's
very
explicit
so
Patricia
Mendez
who's,
my
senior
staff
architect.
She
reviews
all
these
four
for
every
development
over
50,000
square
feet.
I
believe
I'm,
not
terrified
of
that
right
technically,
but
she
reviews
all
those
plans.
My
other
staff,
I
architect
works
with
the
public
Improvement
Commission
on
Public
Works,
to
review
all
the
work
going
on
the
sidewalks
public
rights
of
way
when
buildings
will
impact
a
sidewalk.
F
The
specific
case
that
you're
mentioning
in
South
Boston
had
gone
through
the
PSE
process
and
they
had
made
promises
that
they
didn't
keep.
So
it
wasn't
so
much
that
they
didn't
reach
out
to
us.
It
was
that
they
didn't
and
I
don't
know
what
the
issue
was,
whether
it
was
an
oversight
or
staff
left
the
project.
But
whatever
happened
was
they
did
not
stick
to
the
plan
that
they
made
both
of
my
staff
work
with
BTD
Patricia
sits
on
the
vision,
zero
program
and
I
know.
F
I
also
like
to
thank
David
Viera
he's
been
instrumental
to
pushing
us
to
increase
access
in
the
city,
he's
the
one
who
pushed
us
to
get
the
ramp
installed
in
the
copy
library
a
permanent
ramp.
So
now
people
with
disabilities
have
access
to
the
front
door,
which
is
critical,
so
my
staff
is
very
involved
with
those
three
departments
and
sometimes
things
do
fall
through
the
cracks
you
know,
inspectional
Services
is
also
involved.
F
We
work
less
closely
with
them,
mainly
because
they're
in
a
different
building
and
they
inspect
you
know
they're
so
busy
they
inspect
for
our
fire
and
safety,
health
and
life
and
access
isn't
always
the
first
thing
that
they
get
to
look
for.
So
we
do
prompt
them
to
you
know.
When
we
get
accessibility
concerns,
we
ask
them
to
look
at
them.
So
I
would
say
we
have
very
strong
relationships
with
those
departments.
C
And
thank
you
Commission
and
I'd
be
remiss
to
know
you
and
I
have
worked
on
this,
as
have
others
with
respect
to
the
the
abuse
of
the
disability
parking
plaque,
as
it
all
falls
under
sort
of
the
direct
service.
Category
and
I
firmly
believe
that
reforming
the
handicap
parking
system
ensures
that
we're
providing
vital
relief
for
persons
with
disabilities
that
truly
need
those
spots
versus
creating
financial
relief.
For
you
know
out-of-town
commuters
in
suburban
heights,
so
either
any
any
suggestions
or
ideas.
Or
is
there
any
movement
from
where
we
last
left
off?
C
I
know
that
a
number
of
states
have
adopted
sort
of
this
two-tier
system.
That
would
you
know,
plaque
out
holders
that
cannot
pay
the
meter
or
have
difficulty
either
reaching
leader
or
have
dexterity
issues.
I'm
not
subject
to
pay
the
meter,
but
everyone
else's
and
I
know
recently
in
believe
it
was
in
Michigan.
2%
of
the
previous
placard
hold
is
that
they
qualified
for
the
meet
of
free
exemption,
which
is
which
is
tremendous
in
terms
of
just
differentiating
between
those
that
truly
need
the
plaque
out
in
the
space
and
those
that
don't.
F
F
Educate,
you
know
the
members
of
the
council,
we
do
oversee
the
accessible
parking
program
in
the
city
and
it's
basically
two
pieces
to
the
program.
There
are
the
public,
X
suppose
spaces
which
are
in
the
commercial
areas.
Those
are
accessible
signs
that
you'll
see
downtown
the
financial
district
Kenmore
Copley,
so
these
are
put
in
by
BTD.
We
owe
we
coordinate
with
them
on
the
best
places
and
that's
usually
like
a
block,
feels
like
a
block
of
accessible
parking
spaces.
You'll
see
meant
for
people
to
do
business
in
these
areas.
F
Also
in
the
downtown
and
commercial
areas.
There
are
meters,
people
with
disabilities
can
pocket
meters
with
paying
out
paying
no
fee
and
also
having
no
time
limit.
So
they
are
subject
to
abuse
because
people
come
in
from
out
of
town,
they
hang
up
a
placard
and
they
go
to
work
all
day.
So
I
agree
with
you
that
that
is
definitely
an
issue,
and
just
you
probably
all
know
this,
but
it
is
a
state
law.
It
allows
that
exemption.
F
I
know,
we've
talked
about
doing
something
on
a
city
level
and
we
did
have
a
working
group
at
one
point.
So
I
would
be
happy
to
address
that
with
you
after
this
hearing.
The
other
part
of
the
program
is
the
accessible
parking
spaces
that
we
oversee
in
the
neighborhoods,
and
these
are
spaces
that
residents
apply
for
and
they
go
in
front
of
the
house.
They're
not
designated
specifically
for
that
resident,
but
usually
neighbors,
know
that
it's
tied
to
the
resident
and
and
it
gives
them
a
better
shot
of
being
able
to
park
in
their
house.
F
So
one
thing
that
we've
seen
we've
heard
complaints
about
is
people
coming
in
from
out
of
town
and
parking
there
and
then
getting
on
the
bus
or
parking
in
East
Boston
and
in
a
resident
spot
and
getting
on
a
plane.
So
one
thing
my
office
implemented
last
year
and
it's
it's
still
in
sort
of
a
pilot
phase-
is
putting
resident
only
language
on
the
accessible
signs
right
now
any
accessible
space
in
the
city.
F
Anybody
can
park
there
with
any
license
plate
from
any
state
and
in
the
neighborhoods
they
don't
have
to
have
a
resident
sticker,
but
in
places
of
high-traffic
or
potential
abuse
we
have
been
instituting
that.
So
somebody
can't
come
up
from
Connecticut
for
the
weekend
to
stay
at
the
Copley
Marriott
in
Park
in
South
Boston
and
get
on
a
bus,
because
that's
not
the
intent
of
the
spaces,
so
we've
instituted
that
we're
also
looking
at
know
if
you've
noticed
in
parking
lots.
F
Sometimes
there
are
signs
that
say
accessible
van
only
for
someone
who
has
a
left
and
those
spots
are
definitely
needed,
because
if
you
have
a
lift,
you
can't
just
park
anywhere,
they
may
be
a
tree.
There
may
be
a
snowbank.
So
if
you
park
close
to
your
house,
you've
added
better
accessibility.
So
we've
talked
about
instituting
that
for
people
in
the
city
who
have
lifts
so
I
would
just
urge
you
to
differentiate
between
the
two
programs,
because
certainly
there's
room
for
discussion
around
meters
and
business
districts.
We
can
always
work
on
that.
F
The
resident
issues
are
slightly
different
and
more
nuanced
and
one
other
difference
that
we
make
between
them.
Is
people
often
ask
us
for
a
map
of
where
accessible
spaces
are
located.
We
do
have
a
map
of
the
public
spaces
which
is
available
to
give
out,
but
I
I've
kind
of
held
back
on
giving
out
a
map
of
the
neighborhood
spaces,
because
we
don't
really
want
to
advertise
them
for
the
general
public
or
give
out
volatile
people's
addresses.
C
C
D
You
I
wanted
to
that
was
actually
give
me
a
my
part
of
my
cotton
discussion
with
you
is
about.
We
got
a
list
of
parking
spots
to
audit
and
a
sponson,
and
we
wanted
to
make
sure
that
we
weren't
making
more
folks
who
are
already
vulnerable,
more
vulnerable
or
feeling
that
we
should
be
some
sort
of
top
cop
on
how
to
say
whether
someone's
deserving
to
have
this
but
I
do
think
you're.
The
proposal
that
you're
doing
or
implementing
now
putting
resident
only
on
those
signs
will
help
a
great
deal.
D
F
That's
an
excellent
question
and
I
think
this
gets
to
the
heart
of
inclusion
versus
accessibility,
because
people
may
have
access
to
a
park,
but
other
children
able
to
play
with
their
siblings
with
other
children
and
I
really
included
in
the
community
and
really
we
know
we
want
families
to
thrive
in
Boston,
so
children
are
the
focus
of
the
family.
So,
yes,
we
do
work
on
that
issue
all
the
time
we
work
at
the
parks
department.
F
They
have
a
an
architect
who
actually
works
specifically
specifically
on
access
in
the
parks
and
one
thing
that
I
thought
was
great
was
three
or
four
years
ago
in
the
I.
Think
it's
the
inclusive
budgeting
that
the
city
works
on
with
youth.
They
get
to
I'm,
not
sure,
if
that's
the
name
of
it,
but
the
youth
get
to
designate
a
million
dollars
where
they
want
it
spent
in
the
city.
So
one
of
the
projects
that
they
came
up
with
on
their
own
was
to
increase
accessible
in
the
inclusion
in
Franklin
Park
for
persons
with
disabilities.
F
So
they
took
a
whole
section
of
the
park.
They
put
inaccessible,
picnic
tables
and
benches.
They
made
the
area
flat
with
some
hard
scape
instead
of
grass,
and
they
did
this
for
the
past
time.
It
was
a
beautiful
project
and
it
was
really
like
kudos
to
the
kids
because
they
just
came
up
with
it
on
their
own.
We've
also
worked
closely
on
the
playground
at
Spaulding.
If
you're
not
familiar
with
it,
it's
a
fully
inclusive
program
with
accessible
equipment.
F
You
can
ride
the
merry-go-round
in
a
wheelchair,
it's
all
hardscape,
it's
just
a
beautiful
waterfront
playground,
and
then
we
have
Martin's
Park
opening
on
June
30th,
which
is
a
fully
inclusive
play
space
and
park
for
persons
of
all
the
abilities
in
honor
of
Martin
Richards.
So
we've
been
involved
with
that
and
the
parks
department
is
also
looking
at
making
a
vertical
connection
from
the
Boston
Common
up
to
state
up
to
Beacon
Street
right
now.
If
you
want
to
go
in
the
Freedom
Trail,
they
have
to
divert
the
route.
F
So
we've
asked
them
to
look
at
creating
a
ramp
or
an
elevator
so
that
persons
with
disabilities
don't
have
to
go
back
to
the
beginning
of
the
Freedom
Trail
on
Trotman
Street
and
up
the
steep
hill
on
Park
Street
over
to
Beacon
Street,
which
is
the
route
they
have
to
take
now,
so
the
parks
department's
been
very
accommodating
and
looking
at
that
connection,
so
we
we
absolutely
work
with
parks
and
playgrounds
all
the
time
and
we
they
have
a
master
plan
coming
up.
We
always
think
it's
every
five
years.
They
do
it.
F
We
give
feedback
on
the
last
one
and
we
certainly
will
give
feedback
on
this
one.
Even
more
than
that,
we
look
at
the
harbor
walk
which
isn't
run
by
the
city,
but
it's
a
part
of
the
city
and
one
of
my
architects
just
last
month
was
successful
in
creating
a
connection
on
the
harbor
walk,
which
was
previously
inaccessible
by
the
old
northern,
a
bridge
connecting
to
the
courthouse.
F
There
was
a
flight
of
steps
and
these
steps
of
being
demolished
and
rebuilt
with
the
new
bridge,
but
instead
of
making
steps
now
my
architect
picked
up
on
that
and
they're
going
to
create
a
ramp
walkway
and
the
federal
government
is
actually
exempt
from
the
ADA
a
it
just
doesn't
cover
federal
offices,
it's
only
city
and
state,
so
they
didn't
have
to
do
it,
but
through
the
advocacy
of
my
department,
my
lead
architect.
They
were
very
willing
to
do
this
and
I
thought
it
was
a
huge
accomplishment.
So.
D
D
You
know
one
of
the
things
I've
learned
when
I
give
shout
out
to
my
former
board
members
from
the
Boston
Center
for
Independent
Living,
and
also
my
former
activist
colleagues
from
adapt.
Yeah.
That's
right,
Olivia,
so
I've
been
blessed
to
be
able
to
work
in
advocacy
of
marching
for
rights,
but
also
for
voice
and
I.
Think
one
of
the
things
I've
learned
and
I
keep
with
me
is
know
nothing
about
us
without
us
when
it
comes
to
planning
when
it
comes
to
who's
at
the
table.
F
The
intersectionality
of
disability
and
other
cultures
and
ethnicities
and
abilities
has
become
a
really
mean
topic
the
last
few
years,
the
city,
not
the
city,
but
there
is
a
conference
held
every
year
in
the
city
on
intersectionality
of
disability
with
other
cultures.
My
staff
usually
attends
that
conference,
but
more
than
that,
we
we
want
to
ensure
that
we
hear
everybody's
voice
because
everybody
doesn't
have
my
lived
experience.
Everybody
doesn't
have
the
lived
experience
of
a
former
staff
member
of
mine
with
visual
disabilities.
Everybody
has
their
own
experience
and
this
has
to
do
with
their
culture.
F
The
neighborhood
they're
from
you
know
everything
from
the
type
of
family
they
grow
up
in
to
the
type
of
education
they
receive,
don't
want
for
their
children.
So
one
thing
that
we
undertook
two
years
ago
was:
we
had
a
fellow
from
Harvard
and
she
created
an
accessibility
priority
survey.
It
was
like
it
listed
three
main
areas:
areas
that
we
have
direct
impact
on
things
like
sidewalks
parks,
where
people
could
list
their
priorities
and
then
things
that
were
tangentially
related
to
like
the
MBTA
and
then
things
that
were
not
really
over
citing
but
overseeing.
F
But
we
work
with
certainly
like
uber
and
the
TNCs,
so
we
got
over
700
surveys.
Our
goal
was
500.
We
had,
we
have
an
outreach
specialist
in
our
office
who
went
out
and
got
all
these
700
surveys.
They
were
available
online
or
in
person,
but
when
we
tally
the
results
of
the
surveys,
we
ask
people
to
voluntarily
identify
cultures,
ethnicity,
things
like
that,
and
we
didn't
see
a
big,
diverse
response.
So
we
decided
to
not
analyze
that
data
or
any
further
until
we
got
this
response
from
different
cultures.
D
Finding
too
is
that
disability
having
a
child
with
disabilities
doesn't
mean
the
same
thing
in
every
culture.
So
your
willingness
to
go
reach
out
just
because
Spanish
is
available
for
me
to
talk
in
doesn't
mean
that
I
have
or
my
where
I
come
from
respects.
The
fact
that
my
child
has
disabilities
and
therefore
has
certain
rights
or
should
be
certain
places
or
there
ways
to
advocate
for
that.
So
I'm
curious
how
you
bridge
that
beyond.
Yes,
we
have
a
Chinese
speaker.
D
G
A
great
question,
thank
you
for
that.
So
you
know
I
really
want
to
echo
the
way
that
you
sort
of
described
this
when
we're
thinking
about
and
with
our
charge
of
thinking
about
language
and
disability.
A
lot
of
what
we
found
is
that
the
ways
that
people
are
asking
questions
it's
only
looking
at
language
and
it's
only
looking
at
disability,
but
from
the
very
beginning,
our
our
team
was
really
interested
in.
What
does
that
intersection?
G
Look
like
how
like
who,
who
are
people
where,
where
are
they,
and
so
we
one
of
the
first
things
that
our
team
aim
to
do
is
to
basically
ask
the
question:
we
worked
with
the
folks
in
BPD,
a
their
research
division
and
we
were
able
to
create
a
dummy
demographic
report
which
is
now
up
on
our
website
and
ten
languages
just
to
plug
that,
but
it
still
didn't
answer
this
question
around
like
what
does
language
and
disability?
How
do
those
things
overlap?
So
a
lot
of
the
information
that
we
know
right
now
is
just
anecdotal.
G
A
lot
of
it
is
just
based
on
experiences
of
people
in
the
city,
people
that
you
know
of
the
community
who
were
connected
to
and
so
to
answer
that
question
one
of
the
very
small
ways
and
initial
ways
that
we
tried
to
answer
that
question.
In
February,
we
were
able
to
work
with
the
Elections
department
to
create
this
language,
disability
and
childcare
survey
that
went
out
and
over
300,000
households
and
that
went
out
in
English
and
Spanish,
but
online
it
was
an
additional
three
or
three
to
five
additional
languages
as
well.
G
Really
that
was
meant
to
just
be
a
preliminary
way
to
understand
across
all
of
our
neighborhoods
in
the
city
of
Boston.
What
how
do
people
identify
with
regard
to
language
and
disability?
But
again
we
know
in
terms
of
the
way
that
it
was
formatted,
it's
not
nationally
accessible
to
everybody,
and
so
we're
hoping
to
do
a
second
part.
You
know
over
the
next
couple
of
months-
and
you
know
over
the
next
six
months
or
so
to
get
a
more
in-depth
understanding
around
like
what
does
this
look
like
and
our
team?
G
We
found
that
when
we're
talking
to
community
groups,
we
ask
the
questions,
because,
even
when
we're
thinking
about
translating
our
name
language
and
communications
access
in
any
other
language,
there
are
questions
around.
So
are
you
only
talking
about
language?
Are
you
only
talking
about
disability,
even
in
English?
Some
people
are
just
like
you
know
we
want.
You
know.
D
F
Had
one
thing
I
forgot
to
mention,
also
women
are
mentioned
elections
and
those
things
we
also.
We
saw
my
officers
on
the
elections,
task
force
that
meets
monthly
and
one
thing
that
they
are
instituting
this
year
with
the
city
census,
questions
on
disability,
so
we're
really
excited
about
that.
They
mirror
the
questions
that
are
in
the
census.
It's
not
actually
the
census
is
the
American
Community
Survey
and
they
have
a
very
robust
section
on
disability
identification.
So
the
Elections
Commission
isn't
doing
the
whole
thing,
because
it's
very
long
but
they're
instituting
five
questions
on
disability.
F
The
first
time.
That's
ever
been
done,
so
we
can
actually
get
data
on
people
with
disabilities
where
they
live
and
what
types
of
disabilities
they
have.
But
Menard
did
do
a
great
job
working
with
the
BPD
and
research
to
find
out.
You
know
who's
in
our
neighborhoods
and
what
types
of
disabilities
they
have.
A
Thank
You
counselor
Edwards
and
that's
it
for
the
first
round
of
questioning
at
this
time.
I'm
gonna
take
public
testimony
and
then
maybe
we
could
go
back
to
further
questioning,
but
there
were
several
people
that
did
sign
up
for
public
testimony.
So
if
I
call
your
name
out,
you
could
go
towards
the
left
or
the
right
and
you
could
you
can
ask
your
question
if
you
could
take
two
or
three
minutes,
give
your
name,
the
neighborhood
or
affiliation
and
I'll
start
with
Jerry
Boyd
Frank
Taverna.
H
Thank
You
counselor,
Flynn,
counselor,
flirty
and
counselor
Edwards
for
convening
this
hearing
today,
I
think
it's
very,
very
important
to
hear
from
your
constituents
with
with
disabilities
and
and
to
and
to
see
what
the
council
can
do
and
what
the
city
can
do
to
improve
access
and
and
in
the
lives
of
folks
with
disabilities.
So
I
really
appreciate
you
having
this
hearing
today
and
beginning
that
dialogue,
I
have
the
honor
of
being
a
chair
of
the
of
the
Commission's
advisory
board.
It's
a
it's
chip.
H
So
they
come
to
us
with
with
issues
that
they
have
in
their
neighborhoods
and
we
we
bring
them
to
the
Commissioner
and
we
would
help
work
and
solve
those
issues
and,
and
so
I'm
very
honored
to
be
part
of
that
and
when
we
just
came
up
with
several
issues
that
we'd
like
to
focus
on
and
maybe
can
work
with
the
council
on
to
to
improve
again
the
lives
of
folks.
With
with
disabilities
and
and
and
your
constituents
with
disabilities,
so
the
first
issue
is
transportation.
H
How
the
disability
community
gets
around
Boston
is
important,
is
important
to
how
we
we
are
able
to
live,
learn,
work
and
play
in
Boston
the
MBTA
strolling,
the
sidewalks
paratransit,
such
as
the
ride
and
the
new
transportation.
Networking
company
options
like
uber
and
lyft
have
seen
changes
in
accessibility
and
inclusiveness.
Now,
with
micro
mobility,
like
electric
scooters
on
the
horizon,
it
makes
the
role
of
monitoring
how
these
impacts,
how
these
effect
people
with
disabilities
as
important
as
ever.
H
So
we
as
the
advisory
board
s
at
the
City
Council
work
with
us
to
help
ensure
that
the
TNCs
are
held
accountable
and
provide
ever-increasing
amounts,
a
wheelchair,
accessible
vehicle
options
for
passengers
with
disabilities,
and
we
ask
that
you
also
work
with
the
disability,
Commission
Commission,
to
help
ensure
that
the
pilot
program
have
designated
pick-up
and
drop-off
spots
for
uber
and
lyft
vehicles
in
the
Fenway
provides
accessible
and
efficient
pick-up
and
drop-off
spots
for
us
as
well.
The
second
issue
we'd
like
to
emphasize,
is
housing.
Housing
is
the
most
important
social
determinants
of
health.
H
Creating
more
affordable
and
accessible
integrated
housing
in
Boston
continues
to
be
a
key
focus
for
both
the
administration
and
the
disability.
Community.
Having
inclusive
housing
for
our
community
can
mean
the
difference
between
independence
and
freedom
or
being
locked
away
in
a
skilled
nursing
facility.
H
Snow
removal
impacts
more
than
just
mobility,
the
ability
to
access
employment,
health
care,
social
events,
infrastructure
like
crosswalks,
curb
curb,
cutouts
and
accessible
pedestrian
signal,
buttons
means
independence
and
safety
for
all.
We
ask
that
the
city
hold
itself
and
its
residents
accountable
and
make
sure
that
the
snow
is
removed
from
our
sidewalks
and
curb
cuts
in
a
timely
manner
to
help
ensure
that
people
with
disabilities
have
free
and
easy
access
to
our
streets
and
sidewalks
etc,
and
this
is
another
very
important
issue
that
we
like
you
to
consider.
H
We'd
like
you
to
consider
advocating
on
our
behalf
and
with
your
with
your
colleagues
up
on
Beacon
Hill
in
regards
to
the
actual
architectural
access
bill.
That's
that's
in
the
house
and
the
Senate
currently
too,
this
bill
is
important
in
in
terms
of
it
would
help
us
gain
employment,
find
accessible,
integrated
housing
and
live
in
our
communities,
especially
with
the
with
the
loss
of
the
Massachusetts
architectural
access
board,
chairman
Tom
Hopkins
and
the
architectural
community
communities
wanting
to
use
the
International
Building
Code.
H
Instead
of
the
mass
architectural
access
board
regulations,
this
bill
can
do
nothing
but
improve
life
for
Bostonians
with
disabilities.
Only
37%
of
Massachusetts,
resident
and
s'what
disabilities
are
employed.
This
bill
would
go
a
long
way
to
helping
ensure
that
more
and
more
workplaces
are
open
their
doors
to
your
constituents
with
disabilities.
H
The
advisory
board
and
the
Commissioner's
Office
did
a
tremendous
amount
of
work,
for
example,
in
making
this
very
chamber
accessible
to
people
with
disabilities.
But
until
we
see
people
with
disabilities
filling
up
this
room,
both
us
spectators,
testifiers
and
city
councilors,
then
our
work
continues.
H
We
ask
that
you
think
of
people
with
disabilities
whenever
the
City
Council
considers
the
city
ordinance
or
public
hearing
regarding
any
issue
and
that
you
reach
out
to
the
commissioner's
office
and
your
constituents
with
disabilities
to
hear
our
voices
regarding
your
important
work
or
on
any
proposed
changes
in
the
city
which
would
impact
our
community
again.
I
just
want
to
thank
thank
you
for
convening
the
hearing
today
and
we
look
forward
to
continuing
this
very
important
dialogue.
Thank.
I
My
my
problem
is
bus,
stops
and
curb
cuts,
and
some
crosswalks
one
example
is
last
weekend:
I
had
gone
over
to
the
North
End,
because
now,
as
of
June,
they
start
having
the
processions
from
all
the
societies
I'm
a
member
of
the
st.
Joseph's
Society,
but
I'm.
Also
a
member
and
a
board
member
of
be
CIO
for
Independent
Living.
The
problem
I'm
having
with
bus
stops,
is
that
vehicles
continue
to
park
one
after
the
other
and
it's
not
just
regular
vehicles.
I
There
Boston
vehicles,
meaning
like
Boston
police
officers,
State
Police,
any
others,
Boston
City
of
Boston
vehicle
and
they're,
also
every
now,
and
then
blocking
the
curb
cuts
to
get
up
onto
the
sidewalk,
and
that
would
be
at
the
intersection
of
L
Street
and
East.
8Th,
Street
I
know.
Council
of
Flynn
knows
that
area,
because
that
South
Boston
and
also
I'll,
give
you
one
example:
Sunday.
When
I
had
left
the
north
end,
I
usually
take
public
transportation.
I
Home
I
was
going
up
and
over
street,
going
in
the
direction
towards
Haymarket,
because
I
would
get
the
Green
Line
and
when
I
was
on
the
sidewalk
on
Hanover
Street
I
got
all
the
way
to
the
point
where
you
have
the
satellites
that
when
you
cross
you
cross
and
over
and
I
believe
it's
considered,
Atlantic
Ave
I.
There
was
construction
in
the
area
and
I
didn't
know
they
did
some
work
on
the
sidewalk
and
when
I
went
forward,
I
kind
of
went
like
like
I
went
like
a
little
bit
like
I
hit
like
a
bump.
I
It
was
a
little
whip
like
that
which
I
didn't
notice,
because
I
am
also
visually
impaired.
So
I
said:
okay
I'm
this
far
I'll
go
forward
to
go
towards
the
curb
cut,
so
I
could
wait
for
the
light
to
change,
but
I
couldn't
because
there
was
another
lip
and
I
tried
getting
up
it
and
I
couldn't
so
I
had
to
turn
around
and
a
complete
stranger
showed
me
where
they
had
made
a
ramp
on
us
on
the
side
that
was
made
out
of
time
and
I
had
to
slow
the
speed
down
on
my
chair.
I
I
My
problem
is
the
curb
cuts,
because
we
do
shovel
in
front
of
my
home.
I
have
a
couple
of
snow
angels
through
the
Catholic
Charities
that
they're
very
nice
people
I
all
I
do
was
call
them
they're
nice
enough
to
come
out.
They
make
sure
I
have
rock
salt,
they
know
the
size
of
my
wheelchair
and
they
make
sure
I
have
no
problem
getting
out
and
a
lot
of
times
I
ask
if
they
can
shovel
the
ramp.
I
That
goes
out
onto
the
street
because,
as
you
know,
Eddy
I
have
I'm
wheelchair-bound
and
a
lot
of
times
with
my
little
touch
of
lupus
I
have
very
important.
Doctor's
appointments
and
I
cannot
get
you
know
to
the
ride
or
to
even
uber
or
transportation
through
my
insurance,
because
I
can't
get
out
onto
the
street
to
catch.
I
You
know
to
get
on
the
left,
so
I
just
like
to
know
what
can
be
done
with
the
bust
I'm,
not
doing
it
just
for
myself.
I
know
a
lot
of
elderly
people
in
my
area
and
also
I
am
trying
to
help
the
bus
drivers
because
it
it
makes
it
easier
for
them
to
communicate
with
me
and
they
they
get
real
nice.
When
I,
you
know
it's
open
and
it's
not
always
open.
It's.
It's
like
a
potluck.
A
J
I
can't
speak
highly
enough
about
the
responsiveness
and
and
the
the
drive
of
this,
this
commission,
in
all
fairness,
I
am
a
member
of
the
Commission
for
disabilities,
Advisory
Board,
so
I'm
a
little
partial
but
I
have
to
say
the
help
that
I've
received
as
a
citizen
of
the
city
has
been
top-notch.
Thank
you.
A
K
A
K
Help
me
miss.
Do
you
want
me
to
testify
I've,
never
done
this
before
I
mean
I
wrote
something
up,
but
I
don't
want
to
be
too
kind
of
time-consuming,
I'm
a
person
who
was
diagnosed
with
Asperger's
syndrome
before
Mart
system,
autism,
mom
back
in
2002
and
for
many
years
I've
been
living
to
make
a
plain
until
recently
and
I
had
to
move
to
Roslindale,
and
it
was
cause
of
money
problems
because
I
the
mortgage
company
back
America,
was
gonna
auction
off
my
condo
in
2017,
but
I
filed
a
chapter
13,
but
the
problem
was
I.
K
K
My
name
is
Yvonne
Christian
and
I
am
a
54
year-old
autistic
black
one
I
wish
there
were
services
to
help
autistic
adults
who
are
homeowners
for
many
years.
I
have
I've,
have
had
a
difficult
time,
paying
my
cost
of
living
expenses
and
finding
employment
that
paid
enough
money.
My
boy
since
2004
could
not
pay
me
aside.
That
could
cover
all
my
expenses.
He
even
tried
self-employment
as
a
writing.
An
artist
but
I
was
still
unable
to
make
sufficient
income
from
2008
to
2018
have
made
in
many
chance
with
my
mortgage.
K
The
judge
Frank
Miller,
declared
that
a
guardian
even
had
to
be
in
signed
to
me
and
contacted
attorney
John
Union
of
Union
soldiers
in
Braintree,
I
electively
agreed
to
the
arrangement,
otherwise
the
bankruptcy
would
have
been
dismissed
and
the
motion
would
try
to
auction
off
my
condo
again
in
May
2080
attorney
Julian
told
me
that
the
condo
had
to
be
sawed
and
I
have
to
move
to
a
rental
apartment.
He
told
me
to
work
with
a
realtor
name,
calling
Fitzpatrick
of
our
few
Realty,
because
my
condo
was
located
in
Jamaica
Plain
in
September.
K
2018
I
was
in
a
car
accident
in
softer
a
neck
injury
calling
still
went
ahead
with
getting
might
and
putting
my
home
on
sale
in
October
like
carnival
so
sold
in
less
than
less
than
a
week.
But
working
with
Colleen
was
this
nightmare
to
me.
She
would
not
cooperate
with
me
whenever
I
asked
for
ask
her
help
with
problems
I
had
with
packing
up
my
things.
She
complained
over
the
fact
that
I
was
in
a
chapter
13
bankruptcy,
because
my
rental
application
to
the
luxury
part
of
conference
in
Quincy
called
knick
knacks.
K
These
four
second-floor
apartment
in
a
third
third
spree
family
free
floor
house
in
rossington,
there's
only
three
miles
away
from
my
own
two-level
penthouse,
condo
and
I'm
Jamaica
Plain,
see
I
sent
her
a
text
and
text
message
mean
that
any
help
with
tanking,
because
I
have
a
herniated
disc,
authorizing
my
knees
and
neck
pain
from
the
car
accident
and
I
told
her
several
times
in
September
I
needed
help
with
packing.
My
belongings
I
have
a
home
business
as
a
writer
and
artist
she
said
been
detected.
K
She
would
call
me
the
next
day
to
let
me
make
animations
for
well.
You
can
make
a
matrix
with
moving,
but
she
never
called
me
and
then
in
the
meantime,
I
got
bad
news
from
my
family
that
my
uncle
lawyer
died.
All
of
a
sudden
in
Texas
I
was
very
upset
when
I
told
Colleen
about
this
in
a
technic
text
message.
But
she
still
wouldn't
discuss
with
me
moving
arrangements
and
she
wouldn't
give
me
the
key
of
the
new
apartment.
K
What
happened
was
Colleen
got
this
moving
company
I'll
find
a
big
contract,
it
our
cleanup
crew,
they
stole
some
of
my
stuff,
you
know
and
and
I
told
them.
You
know,
please
move
my
belongings
and
for
all
this
stuff,
but
she
refused
to
follow
my
instructions
and
that
at
that
time,
I
I
was
out
of
vacation
time
and
working
I
had
to
be
at
work
and
they
wouldn't
do
the
move
on
a
Saturday
or
Sunday.
K
And
since
since
I
moved
in
December
I
been
arguing
back
puppet
I
review
Realty
and
the
owner
of
the
can
approve
the
to
tell
me
where
my
stuff
is
but
they're
not
telling
me
the
truth.
They
say
that
my
stuff
was
destroyed,
but
I
don't
believe
them
cause.
It'll
keep
lying
to
me
every
time.
I
make
contact.
A
K
My
friend
Eva
Braun,
told
me
you
were
having
this
hearing,
so
maybe
I
should
tell
you
that
being
an
artistic
person
living
independently
I
mean
I,
didn't
know
his
artistic
styles
37
years
old
I
was
living
at
my
condo
at
the
time
and
I
was
unemployed
and
when
I
got
in
employment
again
it
was
tough
to
make
ends.
Maybe
oh,
it's
been
difficult
for
so
many
years
and.
A
K
K
I
mean
I
only
found
out
about
this
about
two
weeks
ago.
I
mean
it's
not
well
written,
but
I'm
liking.
Give
you
information,
I
mean
we
got
to
write
down
my
information,
but
I
made
lots
of
copies
of
what
I
wrote.
I
mean
for
everybody
to
read.
Let
me
give
you
this
one.
Has
my
contact
information,
I
wrote
in
I
forgot
to
type
and
yeah.
D
L
Afternoon,
thank
you.
My
name
is
Andrea
cook
I'm
here
representing
work
Inc
in
Dorchester
I'm
here
to
ask
for
the
council's
support
on
a
bill
that
has
been
put
forth
by
Senator
Collins.
It
is
an
act
relative
to
employment,
for
individuals
with
disabilities
on
state
contracts,
so
currently
in
the
state
of
Massachusetts.
There
is
no
nothing
that
says
they
that
employers,
including
the
state,
has
to
hire
individuals
with
disabilities
and
the
legislation
that
Nick
Collins
has
put
forth
on
the
Senate
side,
as
well
as
representative
hunt
and
Beall
on
the
house.
L
Side
will
give
opportunity
for
individuals
with
disabilities
to
have
access
to
jobs
on
various
state
contracts
and
the
way
that
it's
written
is
it
will,
over
the
next
five
years,
get
to
10%.
So
in
the
first
year
it
would
be
2%
of
individuals
with
disabilities
and
then
work
its
way
up
to
10.
So
we're
asking
for
the
City
Council's
support
to
support
your
friends
on
Beacon
Hill,
with
this
legislation.
A
Excellent.
Thank
you
very
much
and
I
am
familiar
with
the
proposed
legislation
and
I
do
do
know
about
the
great
work
of
Senator,
Collins,
rep,
Beal
and
repin,
and
that
is
something
we
will
weigh
in
on.
So
thank
you
for
letting
us
know
about
that.
But
we
do
know
that
we
have
excellent
leaders
up
at
the
Statehouse
that
are
committed
to
supporting
persons
with
disabilities.
Great.
M
Mayor
Walsh
has
recognized
the
problems
in
the
past
five
years
and
provided
a
lot
of
solutions
and
help
for
us.
He
has
helped
families
overcome
stigma
associated
with
mental
illness
at
a
young
age.
With
advocate,
see
programs
at
education,
employment,
housing
and,
most
importantly,
hospital
assistants
in
the
intake
programs.
There's
still
a
lot
of
learning
to
do,
but
in
the
past
five
years
we've
really
overcome
a
lot.
M
N
Okay,
I'm
gonna
thank
the
councilors
Commissioner
Micajah
and
the
community
members
for
being
here.
I've
testified
here
before
my
injury
on
a
number
of
other
issues,
but
my
accident
two
years
ago,
thrust
me
into
the
challenges
facing
people
with
disabilities,
challenges,
I'm,
ashamed
to
say,
I
had
ignored,
I
think
it's
just
important
that
we
remember-
and
some
I
have
to
remind
myself
that
I'm,
a
person
with
the
disability
people
with
disability
are
people
and
deserve
all
of
the
same
rights,
treatments
and
respect
of
all
people.
N
I
am
the
advocacy
representative
for
the
Greater
Boston
chapter
of
United
spinal,
which
is
an
organization
of
the
community
people
with
spinal
cord
injuries.
I
do
also
want
to
acknowledge
all
of
the
work
of
activists
and
lawmakers
who
came
before
me
that
allow
me
to
have
an
accessible
apartment,
improved
mass
transit
support
from
Commissioner,
Christopher
and
ISD
helped
me
with
a
renovation
process.
N
Without
those
things,
I
wouldn't
be
here,
and
so
I
really
do
appreciate.
All
of
those
who
have
come
before
me
and
the
importance
of
those
laws-
and
there
is
clearly
much
more
work
to
do
even
though
I'm
in
an
accessible
apartment
I
own
after
two
years,
I
just
found
out
that
the
variance
that
was
received
for
this
huge,
this
big
200
plus
project
and
Jamaica
Plain,
required
that
they
have
accessible
sinks,
six
of
them
on
hand
to
be
able
to
replace
within
a
week
well,
two
years
later,
I.
N
Mobility
devices
and
the
adaptable
piece
of
this
is
that
whenever
we're
building
new
buildings
and
they're
all
over
the
city
or
renovating
and
doing
these
massive
renovations,
they,
those
apartments
should
be
adaptable.
So
that
later,
if
you
need
that
can
live
in
your
community
without
having
to
find
the
5%
of
accessible
housing
without
having
to
have
someone
going
into
a
gut
renovation-
and
this
is
so
important
to
us-
and
we
have
focused
our
chapters
focused
working
with
other
advocacy
groups,
as
other
members
of
other
speakers
have
discussed.
N
The
an
act,
an
act
to
I'm,
sorry,
it's
an
act
to
an
act
relative
to
the
architectural
access
board
and
you
know
of
that
organization,
which
is
there
to
ensure
that
housing
and
workplaces
meet
accessible
standards.
But
it's
way
out
of
date
and
there
are
huge
lobe
loopholes
that
that
we
need
closed,
and
so
we
are
acting
that
you
speak
with
your
friends,
actively
endorsed
and
actively
support
this
legislation.
N
It
has
been
filed
in
the
Senate
and
the
house
and
it
needs
to
be
voted
out
of
committee
and
then
we
all
need
your
help
to
get
it
out
of
the
House
Ways
and
Means
Committee.
So
I
think
we'll
be
following
up
with
councillors
to
ask
for
your
active
support
and
if
you
have
any
questions
about
that
legislation,
there
are
many
people
in
this
room
and
who
can
answer
those
questions.
So
thank
you
so
much
for
your
time.
Thank.
B
This
was
back
in
2005-2006
and
told
me
about
the
fact
that,
in
order
to
get
into
the
library
in
his
chair,
he
had
to
go
to
the
Boylston
Street
entrance,
push
a
bell
and
wait
for
somebody
to
come
and
open
the
door
for
him
in
the
rain
and
the
cold,
and
the
sleet
and
I
brought
John
to
a
meeting
of
the
board
of
trustees
and
explains
the
necessity
of
putting
in
a
self-activating
door,
and
it
took
them
until
2010
to
do
that
and
I
brought
up.
At
the
same
time.
B
So
in
2014
the
Johnson
building
entrance
closed
because
of
the
renovation
that
you're
all
aware
of
and
a
ramp
magically
appeared
on
the
McKim
side.
The
the
Copley
Square
side
of
the
building,
along
with
an
automatic
door
and
I,
was
thrilled
and
I
was
told
at
the
time
that
this
was
a
temporary
variance
and
as
soon
as
the
renovation
was
completed,
the
ramp
was
going
to
go
away
and
I
didn't
believe
them,
and
a
week
after
the
Johnson
building
opens
the
ramp
went
away.
B
B
The
election
department
was
having
was
using
one
of
the
rooms
on
the
McKim
side
of
the
building
for
voting
and
the
ramp
magically
reappeared
for
48
hours
to
accommodate
the
election,
and
they
had
to
post
an
election
officer
at
the
previously
automatic
door
to
let
people
in
so
an
election
officers
spent
12
hours
sitting
in
that
foyer
waiting
for
somebody
with
the
wheelchair
to
come
in.
So
I
got
sort
of
tired
of
talking
to
the
Boston
Public
Library
about
this
and
I
came
to
the
Commission
here
and
I
spoke
to
Commissioner.
B
Micajah
and
I
spoke
to
the
Advisory
Committee
and
they
took
a
vote.
They
wrote
a
letter
to
the
president
of
the
Boston
Public
Library,
Commission
and
Mukesh.
Had
personal
meetings
with
the
president
of
the
Boston
Public
Library
and
the
ramp
is
back
and
the
automatic
door
is
back.
My
point
here
is
this
folks:
the
people
of
the
city
of
Boston
shouldn't
have
to
play
five
rounds
of
rock-paper-scissors
in
order
to
get
a
basic
access
to
the
most
important
and
most
heavily
used
building
in
the
city
of
Boston.
You
have
tourists
coming
in
there.
B
You
have
people
on
walkers
with
crutches,
as
well
as
folks
who
are
in
chairs
and
folks
who
have
a
problem
negotiating
the
steps
in
certain
light
conditions
on
the
square.
These
things
should
be
basic.
It's
not
just
the
Boston
Public
Library,
that's
at
fault
here.
We
all
know
about
the
court
suit
that
was
recently
settled
up
on
Beacon
Hill,
that
dragged
on
for
several
years.
The
Landmarks
Commission
and
the
folks
who
have
equity
in
these
historic
neighborhoods
have
to
understand
that
we
are
not
living
in
the
1800s
anymore
and
it's
nice
to
be
pretty.
B
People
need
to
understand
those
those
of
you
who
have
no
impairments.
You
are
you
take
you.
You
don't
really
see
the
obstacles
that
are
around
us
every
day
we
have
hydrants,
we
have
poles,
we
have
newspaper
boxes,
we
have
bricks
that
have
popped
up
and
have
not
been
replaced.
There's
all
kinds
of
obstacles
that
people
who
do
not
have
impairments,
don't
really
focus
on,
because
they
can
see
them.
They
can
maneuver
around
them.
They
don't
think
of
them
as
direct
obstacles
to
mobility.
B
B
O
O
O
Look
for
wind
years
ago,
the
sidewalk
hadn't
been
cleared
off
and
because
of
my
balance,
disorder
I
moved
to
the
street
where
traffic
isn't
supposed
to
enter
so
I
was
in
the
road,
because
I
couldn't
walk
on
the
snow
is
when
a
pickup
truck
been
feeling
in
Reverse,
and
this
was
like
a
miracle
that
I
even
caught
them
coming
up
me
like
I.
It
was
a
miracle
like
I
was
just
like
another
time.
O
That
was
an
extremely
close
call.
I
was
on
Broadway
in
V
Street
and
at
this
time
in
2014,
I
experienced
flying
this
for
a
year
or
as
a
side-effect
of
rays
surgery.
So
I'm
not
really
seeing
it's
like
when
you
get
out
of
the
shower
in
your
bathroom
mirror.
It's
all
fogged
up
like
you,
can
see
light
and,
like
the
general
shape
of
things,
for
you,
can't
believe.
Cece
and
I
had
a
lock
signal
in
the
middle
of
a
crosswalk.
O
Like
broken
me,
a
half
so
I'd
like
to
ask
to
someone
take
a
real
hard
look
at
hello.
The
lights
are
synced
up
how
how
delays
for
motorists
are
synced
up
with
the
lace
for
pedestrians
cuz
it
it's
like.
It
feels
like.
Yes,
just
waiting
to
happen
and
I
have.
Those
are
just
like
the
terrifyingly
close
calls.
I
have
regular
physicals
all
the
time.
O
The
bonus,
the
traffic
last
of
our
signals
have
just
forgotten
completely
meaningless,
Cloudant,
regularly
and
I
want
to
mention.
My
dear
friend,
Olivia
was
hit
by
a
car
last
fall
in
Brighton
in
the
crosswalk
middle
of
the
day,
the
driver
is
on
their
cell
phone
and
they
took
off
and
was
never
caught.
Last
I
heard
she
was
hit
by
a
vehicle
and
they
just
took
off
I
want
to
mention.
Adrienne
has
a
marathon
survivor
and
a
fut.
O
O
If
there's
two
lanes
of
traffic
for
cars
in
both
ways
and
the
sidewalks
are
completely
neglected
and
they
are
every
year,
I've
been
in
South
Boston
for
almost
five
years
and
summer
Street
between
the
Convention
Center
until
the
posa
or
until
the
bridge
before
the
post
office
on
Summer
Street.
It's
completely
neglected,
so
I
walk
in
the
road,
but
so
my
feeling
is
instead
of
murderous,
getting
two
lanes
in
each
direction
designate
one
name
if
we're
forced
to
walk
in
the
road,
make
it
official
and
give
us
a
real
safe
face
to
walk.
O
Okay,
I
mean
I,
had
two
small
favors
to
ask
one
I.
Think
I
mentioned
this
too
fact
to
Patrick
Murphy
on
Twitter
a
couple
years
ago
and
I
guess
for
my
complaint,
got
lost,
I,
didn't
direct
it
to
the
right
person.
I
would
love
it
and
appreciate.
If
someone
could
please
put
yellow
tape
on
the
stairs
out
there
cuz,
it's
very
dark.
O
Misstep,
you
know
two
steps
forward
to
one
step
and
I'd
lose
my
footing
and
another
tiny
favor
I
would
love
it.
If
someone
could
move
the
directory
and
elevator
to
eye
level.
I'm
five
foot,
four
and
even
unlike
a
great
visual
day,
I
still
keep
lead
so
directory
and
I.
Don't
know
how
wheelchair
users
feel
about
it,
but
just
there
would
be
great.
You
know
the
hospital's
MGH
and
the
through
your
both
feature,
or
maybe
it's
just
necessary
off
the
earth
or
directory
above
on
the
other
directory.
A
P
Could
you
think
I
apologize
in
advance,
I
I
was
rushing
here
from
class,
so
I
Hawaii
speak
coherently.
My
name
is
dushala
boxcar
to
see
alpha
short
I'm
on
possibly
Commission
and
I
was
speaking
as
a
private
citizen.
I
was
trying
to
speak
about
and
the
MBT
and
about
housing,
but
I'm,
assuming
that
my
colleagues
and
others
have
probably
already
spoken
earful
about
the
MBT,
so
I
want
to
share
my
concerns
about
housing
there.
My
my
concern
is
I
was
because
I'll
be
have
acquaintances,
who
weren't
able
to
make
it
yeah
I'm,
aware
of.
P
But
there
are
many
people
who
are
burdened
disappoints
with
actually
when
the
good
benefit
from
living
alone,
although
despite
that
could
have,
if
they
didn't
need
Japan,
they
could
just
have
a
PCA
services
and
whatnot
secretaries
are
live
by
themselves.
I
do
know
that
I
many
disabled
people
with
hidden
disabilities
who
do
live
by
themselves,
but
there,
unfortunately,
as
a
huge
list.
P
It's
like
a
waiting
list
for
anybody
to
gain
national
apartment
and
that's
why
it's
one
of
my
concerns,
especially
for
disabled
people
they
mentioned
there
are
many
people,
have
visual
Hawaiian,
wheelchairs
or
work
walk
with
canes
and
whatnot,
but
also
people
with
disabilities
who,
as
a
measure
PTSD
or
man
under
mental
health,
and
they,
although
you
cannot
see
it,
but
they
have
it.
They
have
the
lack
of
ever
inabilities
to
to
you.
P
Although
I
look
like
I
can
run
around
and
and
do
anything
I
probably
look
like
I'm,
energetic
and
whatnot,
but
like
a
few
days
ago,
I
was
so
exhausted.
I
could
barely
move
literally
I
could
barely
move
and
and
I
just
want
to
say
that
that
many,
if
he
was
it
to
support
these
summer
issues
and
I
just
want
to
address
it
and
just
make
sure
we
are.
P
Q
Okay,
I'm
Rachel,
Tanenhaus
I
came
to
this
meeting
originally
in
my
professional
capacity.
I
represent
the
Cambridge
Commission
for
persons
with
disabilities,
I'm
their
executive
director
and
the
ad
a
coordinator
for
the
city
of
Cambridge,
and
in
that
capacity,
I
would
like
to
say
that
this
is
an
amazing
meeting
and
I
feel
very
privileged
to
be
here
and
I
am
trying
to
soak
up
as
much
of
it
as
possible
like
a
sponge,
because
just
doing
this
is
great
and
I
think
Cambridge
has
a
lot
to
learn
from
this
process.
Q
So,
thanks
for
this
opportunity,
most
of
what
I
would
like
to
say
is
in
my
capacity
as
a
private
citizen.
I
am
NOT
a
Boston
resident,
but
I
worked
around
the
corner
from
here
for
12
years,
and
so
I
worked
to
downtown
and
the
thing
I'm
about
to
talk
about
happened
in
Boston
twice
once
outside
this
building
actually,
and
so
what
I
would
like
to
respectfully
request?
Is
that
perhaps
there'd
be
some
efforts
to
train
the
Boston
Police
around
probably
disability
issues
in
general,
but
certainly
around
issues
of
service
dogs
and
guide
dogs?
Q
Just
based
on
the
experiences
that
I
have
had
and
other
people
that
I
know
and
love
have
had
friends
of
mine
have
talked
to
me
about
walking
down
the
streets
in
Boston
with
their
guide
dogs
and
having
a
Boston
police
officer,
come
up
and
grab
the
harness
or
grab
them
at
no
point
in
time,
were
these
friends
committing
a
crime
of
any
sort
or
in
any
real
danger?
The
dog
is
a
professional.
Q
It
takes
care
of
these
things
and
definitely,
if
someone
can't
well,
you
don't
go
up
and
grab
someone
without
their
permission
anyway
generally,
but
you
certainly
could
don't.
If
they
don't
see
you
coming
and
you
absolutely
like.
Don't
interfere
with
a
guide
dog
harness
I,
don't
care
if
you're,
a
police
officer
I,
don't
care
if
you're
the
child
of
Big
Papi
and
the
Pope
I.
Q
You
know
I,
you
just
don't
do
that,
but
in
my
particular
case
my
previous
dog,
who
is
actually
the
older
brother
of
my
current
dog,
my
previous
guide
and
I
were
attacked
twice
by
off-leash
dogs
in
the
city
of
Boston,
which
is
not
necessarily
something
that
you
know.
The
Boston
Police
are
responsible
for
every
dog
in
town,
but
when
I
tried
to
get
help,
they
were
very
unhelpful
and
I
feel,
and
these
were
extremely
I
mean
these
were
traumatic
situations.
I
literally
put
my
life
in
my
dog's
paws
every
single
day.
Q
My
guide
dog
is
responsible
in
a
large
part
for
my
safety
and
my
independence,
and
my
confidence
and
my
ability
to
get
around
I
have
been
a
guide
dog
user
for
14
years,
just
about
and
I
don't
ever
and
the
times
when
I've
been
between,
Guide
Dogs
have
been
the
longest
times
of
my
life,
no
matter
what
they
were
chronologically
and
you
may
or
may
not
be
aware.
Also
that
the
cost
of
putting
a
guide
dog
team
or
a
service
dog
team
on
on
the
street
out
there
is
approximately
$50,000
per
team.
Q
Q
Q
I
was
reporting
an
attack
on
my
dog
and
I
mean
not
that
I
I
don't
mean
that,
but
you
know
I
mean,
can
you
imagine
if
God
forbid
I
were
reporting
attack
an
attack
on
my
person
and
I
had
to
yell
all
the
details
through
the
plexiglass
and
then
the
woman
behind
the
counter,
the
the
the
the
I
presume
she
was
an
officer
she
was
in
uniform
I
can't
tell
if
details
said
you
know,
okay.
Well,
what
do
you
want
me
to
do
and
I
said
I
vaguely
recall
and
it
turns
out.
Q
This
is
true
that
there
is
a
state
law
prohibiting
interfering
with
a
working
dog
and
I'd
like
to
know
you
know.
I
would
like
to
file
a
report.
I
would
like
I
have
the
contact
info
for
the
person
who
whose
dog
attacked
me
I
would
like
some
sort
of
thing
done
here
and
I.
Don't
I
would
like
some
help
and
she
said
well,
I,
don't
know
about
any
law
like
that
and
I
said
well,
could
you
ask
your
superior
and
she
wasn't?
You
know
your
supervisor
and
I
said,
and
she
was
not
happy
with
me.
Q
You
know,
and
so
she
went
back
and
she
asked
she's
like
well,
he
doesn't
know
either
and
that
was
it.
I
never
heard
back
anything
about
that
and
then
about
a
year
later
we
were
attacked
again
I
swear.
We
were
just
walking
down
the
street
trying
to
enter
a
tea
station,
and
in
that
case
my
dog
was
injured.
I
have
never
heard
myself
scream
like
that.
Q
The
officer
did
wind
up
giving
me
a
ride
to
Angel
memorial
afterwards,
because
I
said
well.
If
you're
not
going
to
do
anything,
the
least
you
can,
he
was
give
me
a
ride
and
as
a
result
of
those
attacks,
my
dog
had
to
be
retired.
He
had
worked
for
three
years.
He
was
five
years
old,
he's
still
he's
still
he's.
Okay
I
mean
he's
he's
living
with
friends
of
mine
and
I
waited.
You
know,
I
I
had
to
wait
for
for
another
dog.
Fortunately,
Ecco
was
available,
but
I
was
much
less
safe.
Q
When
I
was
using
my
cane
and
to
this
day,
I
still
have
anxiety
around.
You
know
being
attacked
again
that
I,
unfortunately
I'm
working
on
not
passing
on
to
my
dog,
but
dogs
are
smart
and
sometimes
I'm
not,
and
you
know
it
it's
it's
affected
my
life
a
lot.
What
would
have
been
really
helpful
is
if
I
had
known
that
I
could
go
to
law
enforcement
and
feel
like
the
law
would
be
enforced.
Q
For
me
and
I
say
this
is
someone
who
I
mean,
let's
be
honest
here:
I'm
white,
a
middle
class
I'm,
well-educated
and
I
speak
the
language
I
can't
even
imagine
what
my
experience
would
have
been
like
if
any
of
those
things
had
not
been
the
case
and
I
still
was
treated
like
what
happened
to
me
didn't
matter
and
I.
Think
one
of
the
issues
is
that
the
police
really
just
have
no
concept
of
what
of
what
guidance
service
dogs.
Do
they
don't
know
what
the
laws
are
regarding
them,
and
maybe
there's
some.
Q
You
know
institutional
ableism
going
on
there
just
in
terms
of
from
what
I've
heard
from
friends
who
have
how
they
have
been
treated
and
how
their
dogs
have
been.
You
know
grabbed
and
such
I
know
that
the
general
public
sometimes
is
ignorant
about
about
service
dogs,
and
maybe
it's
a
little
naive
of
me
to
expect
a
better
of
the
of
the
police,
but
I
know
Boston
can
I
know.
Boston
can
do
better
and
in
many
in
most
situations
has
and
so
I
feel
like.
Q
If
I,
if
I
ask
y'all
hey,
can
we
work
on
this
together?
Can
we
get
the
police
to
know
about
these
things,
I
believe
that
something
will
happen.
I
have
offered
to
help
and
I
can't
offer
to
help
in
any
way
that
I
can
and
when
I
reported
the
incident
to
my
guide
dog
school
both
times
they
actually
said.
Q
If
the
city
of
Boston
would
like
our
help
in
providing
training,
we
will
happily
do
do
so
and
there
on
Long
Island
in
New
York,
but
they're
willing
to
help
so
I
just
I
recognize
that
this
is
sort
of
a
niche
issue,
but
for
me
it
can
be
a
life
and
death
issue
and
for
a
lot
of
us
it
can
and
I
would
just
like
you
to
consider
it.
Thank
you
so
much
for
this
opportunity.
Thank.
A
You
for
a
chill
and
thank
you
for
your
comments
and
following
this
meeting
or
tomorrow,
I
will
call
the
police
commissioner
and
try
to
get
some
guidance
from
the
commissioner,
but
also
talked
to
Commissioner
mccoshen,
maybe
the
three
of
us
with
the
police.
Commissioner,
we
could
sit
down
sometime
and
at
least
maybe
figure
out
a
public
service
announcement
or
what
their
training
is
for
guide
dogs
and
see
what
their
policy
would
be,
or
maybe
we
need
to
improve
it
or
implement
it.
But
I'll
take
your
suggestions
as
well,
commissioner,
as
well.
Thank.
A
F
Dear
Rachel
and
Thank
You,
councillor
Flynn
and
councillor
Edwards,
we
had
just
we
one
of
our
new
positions
that
we're
hiring
is
for
an
outreach
and
engagement
specialist
and
one
of
the
tasks
that
they
will
be
working
on
is
public
service
campaigns.
The
first
one
we
have
slated
to
begin
is
on
service
animals.
This
is
everything
from
businesses,
because
we
get
a
fairly
strong
number
of
complaints
about
people
being
refused
a
taxi
ride
being
refused
an
uber
ride,
being
questioned
at
a
restaurant,
even
in
Municipal
Building.
F
So
we
definitely
have
a
couple
public
service
campaign
underway
I'm,
also
in
touch
with
animal
control,
because
we
had
another
complaint,
not
an
attack
but
of
a
resident
being
asked
to
leave
a
city
park
with
the
dog
because
it
was
our
leash.
So
we
do
we
are
in
touch
with
the
animal
control.
They
know
the
laws
so
I
think
if
we
can
link
the
police
with
the
animal
control
officer.
That
would
be
a
first
step
in
the
right
direction.
So
thank
you,
Rachel
for
bringing
that
up.
Thank.
A
F
Just
just
briefly,
I
was
making
notes
on
all
the
testimony
and
it's
amazing
the
wide
range
of
issues
that
were
brought
up,
and
this
really
is
like
a
microcosm
of
the
city.
We
had
everything
from
just
briefly.
We
had
12
people
testify.
We
had
housing,
snow
removal,
bus
stops,
curb
ramps,
a
fire
services
for
people
with
Asperger's
and
autism,
employment
bill
mental
health,
the
AAB
bill,
historical
buildings
being
prioritized
over
accessibility,
traffic
issues,
MBTA
housing
and
service
dogs.
F
G
Thank
you
again,
Turman
and
councillor
Edwards
I.
Think.
The
only
thing
that
I
want
to
add
to
this
is
that
the
way
that
when
we
were
talking
about
accessibility-
and
this
is
the
part
of
the
conversations
we've
been
having
and
the
way
that
we
look
at
you
know,
training
and
talking
to
staff
about
this-
is
thinking
about
inclusion.
Thinking
about
these
things,
like
adaptability,
you
know
intersectionality.
All
these
things
are
things
that
we
take
care
of
and
a
lot
of
the
conversations.
G
A
lot
of
these
conversations
are
happening
and
have
happened
and
have
been
happening
before
I've
been
here
before
the
ordinance
came
about.
I
just
want
to
say
that
you
know
I'm
really
I'm,
just
like
really
proud
to
be
part
of
an
administration
who
cares
about
this
work
and
is
and
is
putting
you
know,
investments
towards
this.
Our
team
is
always
looking
for
feedback
and
so
similar
to
you
know
a
lot
of
the
testimony
that
we
heard
today.
G
D
Thank
you.
Both
I
thought
this
was
incredibly
informative.
I
do
appreciate,
like
I
said,
I
came
here,
to
learn
and
to
listen
and
I
feel
like
I
learned.
A
great
deal
welcome
to
Boston
all
the
way
from
Cambridge.
We
do
appreciate,
I,
think
it's
a
you
know.
I
would
say
to
our
colleagues
to
our
brothers
and
sisters
across
the
river.
You
know
this
is
a
regional
good
conversation
and
there
is
no.
We
can
learn
from
anyone
and
I.
Think.
D
That's
wonderful
that
you
came
here
today
to
express
your
personal
story,
but
also
to
just
really
demonstrate
solidarity
with
us
over
here.
So
thank
you.
So
much
and
again,
I
look
forward
to
following
up
on
folks
literally
trying
to
figure
out
how
we
can
continue
this
conversation
and
and
thank
you
so
much
for
coming
well.
A
Thank
you
again
to
the
panelists
to
Kristen
and
Minar
for
being
here.
Thank
you
for
your
compassionate
and
dedicated
service
for
the
people
of
Boston.
I
want
to
thank
the
public
for
being
here
and
I
also
want
to
let
the
public
know
that
myself
and
councillor
Edwards,
if
you,
if
you
were
interested,
we're
hosting
a
small
reception
right
at
the
Curley
room
for
for
anyone
that
would
like
to
join
us
to
continue
the
conversation.
A
I
know
you
do
have
a
formal
meeting,
probably
in
another
hour
or
so,
but
it's
an
honor
for
me
to
work
with
councilor
Edwards
on
this
in
council
fiery
on
this
important
issue.
It
you
know,
language
access
in
persons
with
disabilities
deserve
the
same
respect
and
dignity
as
any
other
person
and
I'm,
proud
that
the
city
government
is
working
hard
and
working
closely
on
that
issue.
It's
it's.
A
My
top
priority
is
language
access,
making
sure
that
my
constituents,
but
more
importantly,
every
resident
of
Boston,
has
the
same
access
to
basic
city
services
as
as
anyone
else
does,
and
as
it
relates
to
a
persons
with
disabilities.
I
highlighted
my
my
parents
that
are
elderly
but
have
custody
of
a
special-needs
boy
that
can't
walk
or
or
speak
so
when
I'm
with
them.
I.
Also
look
at
the
pitfalls
of
the
street
or
the
sidewalk,
because
I
know
the
navigating
the
sidewalk
and
the
streets
as
well.
A
So
I
just
want
to
thank
all
the
activists
for
for
being
here
for
working
hard
for
dedicating
your
life
to
ensuring
everybody
in
our
city
is
treated
with
the
respect
and
dignity
that
they
have
that
they've
earned
I'd
like
to
say
thank
you
to
one
Lopes
on
the
city
council
staff
for
helping
us
coordinate
this
meeting
and
again.
If
anyone
like
to
join
us
for
coffee
and
pastry
you're.
More
than
welcome.