The Roving Activist’s Blog

Here is an Action Alert that I have responded to. Please do so, as well. 

SSAN Action Alert

November 27, 2007

Write Letter to The Daily Star in Support of HAVA

ISSUE:

An article published on November 27, 2007 in The Daily Star, reports on New York compliance with HAVA and the upcoming decision by Federal District Judge Gary Sharpe to mandate accessible voting machines in every polling site. Please scroll down to read “Poll Access for Disabled Heats Debate” or access the following link: http://www.thedailystar.com/local/local_story_331073146.html .
In the article, Otsego County Democratic Elections Commissioner, Hank Nicols, makes the following argument:

However, Nicols said he doesn’t believe the county needs to install a ballot-marking device in every polling station.

“I think that would be an enormous waste of money,'’ he said. Most disabled people prefer to vote by absentee ballot, not in polling places, he said.
Nicols noted that only one disabled person cast a ballot with the county’s current ballot marker during the last election.
“With so few people wanting to use ballot markers, we’d be better off driving them in limos to use the one we have,'’ he said.

ACTION:

We need to let Mr. Nichols know that people with disabilities do not want to vote using absentee ballots! People with disabilities have a civil right to vote on an accessible machine!

Mr. Nichols was in his current position when the Catskill Center and AG’s office sued his county for inaccessible polling places. Too bad he hasn’t learned anything!
Please send letters to the editor to: (Note: limit 300 words)
Letters can be e-mailed to letters@thedailystar.com, submitted through this form, faxed to 607-432-5707, mailed to The Daily Star, P.O. Box 250, Oneonta, NY 13820
You MUST provide contact information so they can confirm your letter with you.

RA’s Note — Here is the letter that I wrote:

No Absentee Ballot for me!

Hello,

My name is Anita Cameron, and I live in Rochester. I read about the comments made by Hank Nicols, Otsego County Democratic Elections Commissioner, regarding people with disabilities and absentee voting. Mr. Nicols stated, “Most disabled people prefer to vote by absentee ballot, not in polling places.” Let me tell you what I think of this:

I feel that some officials may be using the absentee ballot as a tool to convince people with disabilities to stay away from the polls. Actually, I have seen this happen on a number of occasions. They tell people with disabilities how convenient the absentee ballot is, and how they don’t have to go to the polls. Then they tell the community at large, or the media, or perhaps other officials that they have no access problems, or that there is no demand for access.

In my opinion, absentee ballots should be the last resort for people with disabilities, not the first. I can understand if a person is homebound, in a nursing home, or is out of the state or country. Absentee ballots shouldn’t be used as a means for getting out of providing access to polling places. That is what I feel that Mr. Nicols is doing. How dare he presume to speak for me! If he were truly interested in the opinions of people with disabilities, he could have conducted a poll. Through that, he could have found out why only one person with a disability showed up at his polling place.

Mr. Nicols, I am a person with a disability who prefers to go to the polls and vote.  I want people to see me, and know that I exist. More important, it is my civil right. Stop making excuses, and do what is required by HAVA!

Anita Cameron
Rochester, NY

Today marks the first anniversary of my job at CDR. Sunday marked my first year in Rochester. It has been an amazing year, and I hope for many more to come!

Would you belive it? The American Medical Association has come out in support of the Community Choice Act! Regulars will remember that back in September, ADAPT protested at the headquarters of the AMA, in Chicago. This can only be a direct result of that action. Here is the report and the link from ADAPT. FREE OUR PEOPLE!!!

AMA Supports Community Choice Act

The American Medical Association announced on November 13th that they support passage of the Community Choice Act!  They are joining the American Hospital Assocation, America’s Health Insurance Plans, and over 600 other national, state and local orgnaizations supporting real choice for people who need attendant services and supports!

Here is their press release, or you can go to:
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/18143.html.

Here is a very important Action Alert from Chris:

ACTION ALERT – NYS Budget Hearing in Rochester – Speak Out for Disability Rights!

We have just learned that NYS will hold one of its Budget Hearings in Rochester on November 17, 2007.  The hearing will be held at University of Rochester Kornberg Medical Research Building, 415 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, New York 14642 from 3:00 – 6:00 PM. 

It is critical that we have a good showing!

Governor Spitzer is talking about a multi-billion dollar deficit and the need to make cuts in vital programs like Medicaid.  We need him to know that community-based services, controlled by the individual getting services, are the way to go!  The state can save money by ending its dependence on nursing homes and institutions for seniors and people with disabilities!

Also, very important for the Greater Rochester Region, the State Education Department, for the first time ever, has requested state funding for the Center for Disability Rights!  Many of you have helped us in the past as we advocated for state funding to better serve people with disabilities in Monroe and the surrounding counties – we’re finally seeing progress.  WE NEED THE GOVERNOR TO HEAR THAT STATE FUNDING FOR CDR IS A PRIORITY!

And as we all know, there is not enough affordable, accessible, integrated housing for people with disabilities.  In 2007, Governor Spitzer’s budget created a rental subsidy for people leaving nursing facilities.  This needs to be continued and expanded to create more housing opportunities for all people with disabilities.

Please contact Anita Cameron at (585) 546-7510 or acameron@rochestercdr.org if you can attend and if you would like to speak.  We need as MANY PEOPLE as possible to attend and a good handful to speak!  For more information on the hearing, go here.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

3:00 PM – 6:00 PM

U of R, Kornberg Medical Research Building

415 Elmwood Avenue

I really hope to see many of you there!  Helping people with disabilities get the services and housing they need sounds like a great way to spend a Saturday!

FREE OUR PEOPLE!

Chris Hilderbrant

Director of Advocacy

Center for Disability Rights

RA’s note:

Of course, I will be at the hearing, and am slated to testify on behalf of ADAPT. I will post my testimony once it is written.

There will be a public hearing here in Rochester on November 14, 2007, called “Revitalizing Urban Communities”. It is being put on by state Senators, Liz Krueger and Antoine Thompson, and will explore ways of revitalizing urban communities. I will be attending and testifying at the hearing. Here is my testimony:

Revitalizing Communities

People with disabilities have much to offer to the communities in which we live. However, we face many challenges; the most striking of which is the lack of affordable, accessible, and integrated housing. People with disabilities are literally facing a housing crisis in this state!

The lack of affordable, accessible, and integrated housing forces people with disabilities into segregated and often institutionalized settings. Those who are already in an institution find it almost impossible to get out when the deposit and rent for an apartment are more than their Social Security checks. 

Priced Out in 2006 a report published by the Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC) found that the national average monthly income for a person who relied on SSI for their sole source of income was only $632. The average price of a one-bedroom apartment was $715 and a studio efficiency apartment was $633. These numbers obviously do not add up. 

Home ownership, for those who can afford it, is practically out of the question. This is because the vast majority of homes are inaccessible to people with mobility impairments.

This is unfortunate because people with disabilities can be a part of the revitalization of a community. We care about the neighborhoods in which we live. We shop, work, volunteer, and are an integral part of society, provided that the opportunities exist and no physical or attitudinal barriers stand in our way.

Here are some thoughts on how to address the housing crisis affecting people with disabilities while also revitalizing our communities:

· A Housing Trust Fund can be developed, which would create a revenue stream for developing housing, providing rental subsidies, and paying for home modifications. Medicaid waiver programs with a home modification component can be created, and federal funds leveraged for accessibility modifications for those who need them.

· The State and advocacy groups should vigorously lobby the federal government (HUD, Congress) to better fund voucher programs that are tied to tenant based, not project based vouchers. 

· Various housing authorities can work together, and support efforts to apply for these Section 8 vouchers as a “local preference” target for those who want to transition from an institutional setting to the community.

· The creation of inclusion zones of affordable and accessible housing in mixed-use (commercial and residential) buildings and projects can add to the revitalization and diversification of a community.

· The New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) should better enforce existing laws and should work to establish policies that would lead to the development of more accessible, affordable, and integrated housing.

· The state legislature can pass visitability legislation that requires all new single-family homes funded with state or federal funds be built with at least one no-step entrance, at least 32-inch wide doorways, and an accessible bathroom on the first floor.

· Finally, DHCR should take advantage of the HOME money that is currently available and use it for Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) that can act as a bridge subsidy until Section 8 vouchers become available.

These few solutions could go a long way towards addressing New York’s current housing crisis.

If more affordable, accessible, integrated housing were available, people with disabilities could live in their communities, and everyone would begin to see us as real human beings and valued members of our society. We deserve to have more opportunities to work, shop, go to school, volunteer, start businesses, and a host of other positive things. Not only would our inclusion in the community save the state money that would otherwise be spent on institutional care, but it would also generate tax revenues through our working and spending money.

When viewed in those terms, it is easy to see why addressing the lack of affordable, accessible, integrated housing is essential to revitalizing our communities.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Anita Cameron
Systems Advocate
Center for Disability Rights
497 State Street
Rochester, NY 14608
(585) 546-7510

WhooHoo! ADAPT has a new chapter in Oregon! My friends, Joe and Pam VanderVeer, from The Underrepresented has started a new ADAPT chapter. ADAPT of Oregon will be working on local issues, as well as national ADAPT issues. I’m so excited for them, and I hope to see them in Washington, DC in April. Way to go!!!

Remember the Brook’s Landing Project that I wrote about a few months ago? Well, here is some great news!

Access update on the Staybridge Suites Hotel

Rick Rynski, Economic Development Specialist with the City of Rochester, has some good news regarding the Staybridge Suites Hotel, currently under construction as part of the Brook’s Landing revitalization project. In April 2007, there was a presentation at CDR/RCIL regarding the Brook’s Landing Project. The Project includes a new retail and office building in part occupied by the University of Rochester, the Urban Brew Coffee Shop, additional retail space along Genesee Street, and the 80-room Staybridge Suites Hotel. One of the entrances to the hotel would connect directly to a boardwalk along the Genesee River, but unfortunately, the was no wheelchair accessible egress from the hotel to the boardwalk. Hotel patrons who use wheelchair would have to travel 2-3 bolcks around the hotel to get to the waterfront. This was pointed out toRynski and Mark Johns, Senior Landscape Architect with Bergmann Associates during a meeting later that month. At the time, they, as well as the developer, felt that direct access from the hotel to the waterfront by people who use wheelchairs was unattainable.

Recently, Mr. Rynski informed Chris Hilderbrant, Director of Advocacy for the Center for Disability Rights, that the developers had come up with a design plan that allows egress to the boardwalk by persons who use wheelchairs. In the interest of hotel security, this access is only for patrons of the hotel. However, the important thing is that there is now wheelchair access! The developers thought outside of the box and did what they thought was impossible.

I thought that would post the official write-up of how we got those electronic doors at my place…

We finally have it!

An electronic door has finally been installed at 1 Pleasant Street/87 North Clinton! After several months of talks with the building management, and a letter to the president of Buckingham Properties, which owns the building, the deed has been done.

1 Pleasant Street/87 North Clinton is a mixed-use building which includes the AIDS Community Health Center, the Catholic Family Services Center, the Pleasant Street Apothecary, Pleasant Bunz Deli, and Restaurant, and the Lofts at Michaels-Stern. People with disabilities and seniors often come in for services, as well as to get their prescriptions.

For those who use wheelchairs, getting into the 1 Pleasant Street entrance, which is the only wheelchair accessible entrance to the building, was very difficult, as the doors would slam on the person’s wheelchair before he or she got through. Holding the door while trying to get through was virtually impossible. Staff at the AIDS Community Health Center approached Buckingham Properties about installing electronic doors, but was told that it was their responsibility.

In June 2007, a tenant of the Michaels-Stern Lofts who uses a wheelchair spoke with Carol Pospula, the manager of Michaels-Stern, regarding the difficulty that she was having entering the building. Ms. Pospula, herself, suggested an electronic door, and stated that it would be an easy solution that could be done very soon. When by August, the electronic door had not been installed, the tenant once again contacted management, but received no answer. The tenant then wrote a letter to the president of Buckingham Properties, the company that owns the building. Over the next three months, the tenant had conversations with the management, and was assured that the electronic doors would be installed. This finally happened on Monday, November 5, 2007.

The electronic doors were installed with the security of the building in mind, so that after hours, if I am  coming in, I would first use my fob to unlock the door, then, press the electronic button. The door fob activator has been moved, and placed next to the access button. If I am inside, and am going out after hours, I first press the Exit access button, then press the blue access button, which is next to the Exit button. The system works quite wll for me, and I am very pleased!

Here is my official write-up of the call from the assistant to Kim Kendrick, Assistant Secretary of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

I got the Call – But it was the same old story
On October 31st, I received a message from Deandra Johnson, the assistant to Kim Kendrick, Assistant Secretary of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In the message, she stated that she wanted to touch bases with me regarding the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request that Kim spoke of. According to Ms. Johnson, the FOIA request has not been sent out yet. It is taking longer than they thought it would, but they have not forgotten about us.

I got the message less than ten minutes after it was sent, but as Ms. Johnson stated in her message, she will be out of the office until Wednesday, November 7th. She left her phone number and e-mail address.

My thoughts about the matter are these: Why is it taking so long to get this information? Why would it take a FOIA request to get information that, in my view, one would simply ask for? After all, these are Kim’s colleagues! More important, Secretary Jackson promised ADAPT the information and charged Kim Kendrick with getting the information to ADAPT. Both the Secretary, and Ms. Kendrick are well aware of what happens when they break promises to ADAPT. If they want us to back off, it would behoove them to keep their promise! Perhaps, Secretary Jackson needs to either get the information himself or get serious about leaning on Kim, so that she can get serious about leaning on whomever within HUD who has the information. I, personally, cannot help but think that HUD is stalling and has no intentions of getting the information to ADAPT.

Disheartening, eh? But the saga continues. HUD hasn’t seen or heard the last of ADAPT!

When I got home today, there was a really neat suprise waiting for me. The building where I live has finally installed an electronic door! Regular readers will remember that back in June, I’d spoken to my building manager about installing one. She agreed, and thought that it would’ve been easy to do, and soon, as well. When they weren’t put in by August, I sent a letter to the president of the company that owns my building. Yesterday, I decided to contact the owner for a meeting, but now I don’t have to!