KIROLA v. THE CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO

4. Grievance Procedure

20. MOD oversees a citywide grievance procedure for handling public complaints regarding disabled access to its facilities, programs and services. Instructions regarding this procedure are contained on a website operated by MOD which explains how to submit a complaint, inter alia, by using the "ADA Complaint and Assistance Form." RT 1579:23-1580:12-1581:22; DTX A35 [000105-109]. MOD chose this title, believing that it would encourage people to submit requests, including persons who did not characterize their requests as "complaints." RT 1581:11-22.

21. Upon receipt, MOD transmits a copy of the complaint to the appropriate ADA Coordinator. The assigned ADA Coordinator, in turn, conducts an investigation, and, in the course of investigating and responding to the complaint, may seek assistance from MOD or the City Attorney. DTX A35 [000105]; RT 1866:19-25.

22. Within thirty days of receiving a complaint, a written response, approved by MOD and signed by both the ADA Coordinator and the department head, is sent to the complainant. DTX A35 [000105]. The City responds to complaints received "fairly consistently" within thirty days and handles a significant number of complaints through its grievance procedure. RT 1711:18-20-1712:8. However, depending on the complexity of the issue, some complaints take longer to resolve. RT 2001:2-7. MOD monitors the grievances received to identify trends and develop programs to improve access. RT 1869:6-21.

23. During the three year period prior to trial, 40 percent of the grievances received by MOD were related to housing issues, 25 to 30 percent were related to public transportation and paratransit, and 20 percent were related to physical access (the majority of which were curb ramp requests). RT 1868:9-1869:5.

24. Fraguli oversees the City's grievance procedure. RT 1866:11-14. Between the time she joined MOD in 2006 and trial, Fraguli received only one complaint related to a library (pertaining to assistive technology) and a "few" complaints related to physical access in RecPark facilities, which were resolved "fairly quickly." RT 1869:22-1870:13. She has never received a complaint from Kirola or any testifying class member. RT 1870:14-1871:9.

25. Aside from Fraguli, ADA Coordinators at the City's various departments also receive and address access complaints and/or requests regarding their respective departments. See, e.g., RT 2253:22-2254:24 (complaints regarding access to libraries), 2306:3-2309:14, 2336:16-18 (complaints regarding access to RecPark activities, facilities, or programs), 1999:12-2001:1 (complaints regarding access to the City's public right-of-way). MOD receives a monthly report indicating the types of complaints received by the various City departments and whether any departments have been dilatory in issuing responses. RT 1869:6-17.

26. Curb ramp requests or complaints may be submitted through the complaint form on MOD's website, by telephone, written correspondence, or e-mail, either to MOD or DPW, or through the City's 3-1-1 system (which is used to request City services). RT 1619:15-23, 2416:23-2417:2, 2727:13-17.

27. Curb ramp requests submitted through the City's grievance procedure trigger an investigation by DPW. If appropriate, DPW coordinates with other City departments or offices as needed, assigns an engineer to design the individual curb ramp, and works with MOD to prioritize the inquiry list based on the date each request was received and the priorities set forth in the City's Curb Ramp and Sidewalk Transition Plan, i.e., the ADA transition plan specific to its public right-of-way system at issue in this action. RT 2000:7-18, 2385:14-2386:22; DTX A15.

28. The City also proactively solicits curb ramp requests. For instance, the City became concerned that it had received a disproportionally low number of curb ramp requests from certain low-income neighborhoods, despite the fact that those neighborhoods had fairly high rates of disability. The City thus instituted a public outreach program to solicit curb ramp requests from those neighborhoods. RT 1634:5-10, 2417:12-2419:1. The City funded a bus advertisement campaign and sent postcards to paratransit riders explaining the process for making curb ramp requests. RT 1634:11-14; DTX L4. The City also trained its staff to go door-to-door in the poorest neighborhoods to speak with community members about their disability access needs. RT 1634:15-17.

29. At the time of trial, the City's curb ramp request log contained outstanding curb ramp requests for 124 intersections across the City. RT 2440:3-4. Of those 124 intersections, 44 corresponded to requests from individuals with disabilities and were therefore categorized as "higher priority" requests. RT 2440:4-6. At the time of trial, the City was in either the design or construction phase on fully-funded curb ramp projects at 132 intersections. RT 2440:7-10.

30. William Hecker ("Hecker"), one of the City's program access experts, opined that the City's grievance procedure is consistent with the requirements and provisions of the ADA and its regulations. RT 2727:5-19.