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2025-04-23 - Commission for Residents with Disabilities - Minutes Page 1 of 4 1. Call to Order at 7:03pm 2. Roll Call a. Commissioners Present: Chair Judy Samuels, Vice Chair Marty Sussman, Commissioners Matthew Dragon, Mark Weiner, Allie Zalay, Dean Klassman, Jack Shapiro, Beth Shapiro, Leo Njongmeta, Gowri Magati, and Lexi Robinson, Kate Jauregui b. Not Present: Commissioners Avi Samuels, Amy Parker c. Trustee Liaison Not Present: Trustee Andy Stein d. Trustee Alternative Liaison Present: Trustee Dave Weidenfeld e. Staff Liaison Present: Tyler Ankney 3. Approval of Minutes – March 19, 2025 a. Motion: Commissioner Dean Klassman b. Second: Commissioner Beth Shapiro c. In Favor: All present d. Oppose: None e. Abstain: None f. Motion passes 4. Chair Report (Judy Samuels) a. There are two commissioner anniversaries this month. i. Commissioners Lexi Robison and Leo Njongmeta – are both celebrating their 8-year anniversary on the RK-CRD. b. The next meeting of the RK-CRD will be Wednesday May 28, 2025 at 7pm. 5. Trustee(s) Report (Trustee Stein) a. Trustee Stein shared his Trustee’s report with Chair Samuels & Vice Chair Sussman on Friday, April 18th. In his absence, Chair Samuels read Trustee Stein’s report, to the commission, at his request. Trustee Stein’s report reflected an update on handicapped parking at the Buffalo Grove Fitness Center. b. Trustee Liaison Weidenfeld was present at the start of the meeting and expanded on Trustee Stein’s report and the Village’s stance on this issue. Trustee Liaison Weidenfeld mentioned that the Village attorney, Pat Brankin, researched the specific laws about handicap parking – specifically in reference to the fitness center. The law requires that a main entrance be designated and that the handicap parking spots are closest to the main entrance – not just any entrance. Therefore, the fitness center complies with the law. Trustee Weidenfeld informed the Commission that the Village is no longer going to do additional research on AGENDA Rick Kahen Commission for Residents with Disabilities Regular Meeting: April 23, 2025 at 7:00 p.m. Lower Level EOC Conference Room, Village Hall 50 Raupp Blvd, Buffalo Grove, IL 60089 Page 2 of 4 the Fitness Center parking lot and the issue has been closed. Vice Chair Sussman inquired about the Sky Fitness parking lot. Trustee Weidenfeld informed Vice Chair Sussman that the matter was closed regarding any structure that was previously constructed and discussed. Trustee Weidenfeld then left the meeting upon the conclusion of the Trustee Report. 6. Staff Liaison Report (Tyler Ankney) a. Courtesy Shuttle for Buffalo Grove Days – Public Works is no longer able to cover timeslots that are unfilled. We can either cut back on the time slots or we can see if Rotary can help with that as well. Requested data and metrics from Molly Gillespie about key times that are busiest for BG Days. Start thinking about how we want to do this. 7. Working Groups Report a. Ensuring Opportunities for Hands-on Fun (Commissioners Amy Parker and Mark Weiner) i. Spring Fling (Lead: Commissioner Park / Vice-Lead: Commissioner Weiner) (May 17th – 3:00-5:00pm) 1. Commissioners should plan to arrive at 1pm to help set-up. 2. In2Grate is confirmed for the sensory room. 3. Commissioner Kate Jauregui is in the process of purchasing decorations and give aways. 4. Staff Liaison Ankney will ask Molly Gilespie to send out another email communication blast. Staff Liaison Ankney will also ask Molly about when the Commission should share information for 5. A RK-CRD volunteer opportunity signup sheet was circulated to sign-up for opportunities to volunteer for specific roles at the event. ii. Sponsorship Updates 1. There are no current updates regarding sponsorships. iii. Buddy Baseball Spring League (Lead: Commissioner Klassman; Vice-Lead: Commissioner Dragon) (April 27 – June 9; Sundays: 9:45am-11:30am) 1. There are 32 players signed up and 7 buddies currently. We are continuing to search for buddies. If you know anyone, please encourage them to come volunteer. 2. A local Deerfield baseball team donated very nice bats and balls for the season. They will also help to buddy towards the end of the season. 3. St. Mary’s Church to approach them for service hours. 4. There will be a Blue Team and Black Team and they will have shirts and T-shirts with the RK-CRD Logo. 5. All players will receive a hat and a shirt. Sponsors will be listed on the player shirts. 6. We will purchase pinnies for the buddies and then on the last game we will provide buddy t-shirts for buddies. 7. Staff Liaison Ankney will order the hats, jerseys, t-shirts and pinnies. 8. A RK-CRD volunteer opportunity signup sheet was circulated to sign-up for opportunities to volunteer for specific responsibilities during the season – including buddy opportunities. Page 3 of 4 iv. Future 2025 events 1. Buddy Baseball Exhibition Game (Lead: Commissioner Klassman; Vice-Lead ?) (Saturday, August 30th) 2. Fun & Food (Lead: Commissioner Beth Shapiro / Vice-Lead: Commissioner Kate Jauregui) (Monday, September 1st) 3. Buddy Baseball Fall League (Lead: Commissioner Klassman; Vice-Lead: ?) (Dates: TBD) 4. Bowling with Buddies (Lead : Commissioner Weiner; Vice-Lead: Commissioner Jack Shapiro) (Oct. TBD) b. Advocating for Inclusion and Access (Lead: Vice Chair Marty Sussman) 1. There are no current updates regarding Advocating for Inclusion and Access. c. Trusted Resource for Accommodations and Services (Sharing of Best Practices and Developing a Resource Guide (Education) (Lead: Commissioner Allie Zalay) 1. The working group crafted categories of what would like to be added to the website. Staff Liaison Ankney and Commissioner Zalay will schedule time to connect with Molly Gillespie. 8. Unfinished Business a. Volunteer / Internship (Commissioner Gowri Magati) i. Commissioner Magati shared a presentation with Commissioners focused on enhancing community support for residents with disabilities, providing valuable real-world experiences and service opportunities for students, and fostering an environment of inclusion and awareness among young community members. It will help connect us with student volunteers to help with our events and help build community and a sense of service amongst the students in the community. Commissioner Magati would coordinate getting additional volunteers. As long as the volunteering hours are being tracked, Staff Liaison Ankney can provide a letter with volunteer service hours. b. Parking lot protocol and Village review i. There is someone in the Village who monthly drives around and monitors parking lots. If there are large concerns, any resident or member of the RK-CRD should submit a concern on the digital system. Anyone can also reach out directly to Staff Liaison Ankney with any concerns that are noticed in the Village. The idea was floated to create a checklist for what should be looked for and what can be noted when looking and noticing what may need to be fixed/repaired/adjusted. 9. New Business i. There is no new business for discussion. 10. Good and Welfare 11. Public Comment 12. Adjournment at 8:34pm a. Motion: Vice Chair Marty Sussman b. Second: Commissioner Lexi Robinson Page 4 of 4 c. In Favor: All Present d. Oppose: None e. Abstain: None f. Motion passes Next Meeting: Wednesday May 28, 2025 The village of Buffalo Grove, in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, requests that persons with disabilities who require certain accommodations to allow them to observe and/or participate in this meeting or have questions about the accessibility of the meeting or facilities contact the ADA Coordinator at 847-459-2500 to allow the village to make reasonable accommodations for those persons.