Flagstaff inclusion commission workshop prioritizes ADA transition plan, access and outreach

At a facilitated workshop, the Flagstaff Commission on Inclusion and Adaptive Living spent the session ‘resetting’ priorities and agreed to make the city’s ADA transition plan its top near-term focus, members and staff said.

Facilitator Jeff Kennedy opened the session by urging participants to focus on strengthening alignment, communication and purpose. City employee and ADA coordinator Mr. Kaminsky told the group the city does have an ADA transition plan and encouraged the commission to review and advise on implementation as the plan is brought forward for the commission’s input.

Why it matters: Commissioners and residents described repeated examples of everyday barriers — heavy restroom and entry doors without automatic openers, cultural events with no sensory options, and sidewalk obstructions — and said the commission must move beyond discussion to deliverable results. “If we are vigilant, the silence will be heard,” one participant said, urging the body to press for concrete changes.

Key priorities that emerged were: ensuring the ADA transition plan is visible and actionable; improving code-compliance response to recurring sidewalk and construction obstructions; increasing education and outreach to the public and city staff about accessibility; and crafting a short list of achievable projects the commission can complete to rebuild momentum. Participants reported drafting sample outreach materials (a flyer with a QR code) and said involving Human Resources in disability hiring events could increase recruitment of disabled applicants.

On enforcement and follow-through, commissioners described a pattern of recommendations that have not always produced measured results. One participant characterized the primary causes of stalled momentum as lack of follow-through and “ego” among actors, and others urged the chair to adopt a standing practice of beginning each meeting with progress reports on agreed priorities. Several commissioners recommended more systematic engagement with department staff so proposals include implementation steps that departments can act on.

Commitments and next steps: Participants agreed to limit their immediate workload to a short list of items they can close out, with the ADA transition plan first. Several commissioners and liaisons volunteered specific commitments — for example, to produce comprehensive liaison reports, to collect and channel service requests, and to push departmental presentations at future meetings. The commission scheduled its next meeting for April 22 at 11:00 a.m. in council chambers and the facilitator said meeting notes and a session survey would be distributed.

The workshop did not include formal votes or motions; it was a planning and priority-setting session. The commission plans to invite department heads and staff to future meetings to turn several recommendations into implementable memos or code-change proposals. The facilitator said he would circulate notes and the group’s agreed priorities within a few days.