Disabled Sports and Recreation Expo to be held on Jan. 26

Disabled Sports and Recreation Expo to be held on Jan. 26

Mesa Parks and Recreation Adaptive Sports and Recreation Program in

conjunction with the Barrow Institute Recreation Therapy Department and

Mesa Association of Sports for the Disabled will present the 7th Annual

Disabled Sports and Recreation Expo and Wheelchair Collection. The event

will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 26 at the Arizona

State Fairgrounds in Phoenix.

This free expo will provide instruction and demonstrations for several

sports/recreation opportunities in Arizona including power soccer,

wheelchair tennis, wheelchair softball, wheelchair basketball, road racing,

sled hockey, kayaking, traveling and the arts. Staff and athletes from the

Mesa Association of Sports for the Disabled (MASD) and the City of Mesa's

Adaptive Recreation Program will be on site to answer questions on program

opportunities and sports-related adaptations.

Wheelchair/mobility aides currently are being collected and may be

dropped off at the MASD tent. For more information, call Susan Byrne at

(480) 644-5702 or visit www.azdx.com.



RIDEChoice provides transportation options for seniors and the disabled

Seniors and disabled individuals looking for non-emergency

transportation services in Mesa now have four options, thanks to the

RIDEChoice program, which is administered by the City of Mesa and Valley

Metro.

The Bus Fare Discount allows eligible participants to receive bus

passes at a reduced fee, while the Mileage Reimbursement program provides a

reimbursement credit to qualifying Mesa residents when a non-residing

friend or family member elects to drive for them. The Coupons for Cabs

service provides eligible participants with coupon booklets in exchange for

a nominal co-pay, and East Valley Dial-A-Ride operates daily in Mesa, with

extended service hours for those who qualify under the Americans with

Disabilities Act (ADA). For more information on the Bus Fare Discount,

call (602) 253-5000. For details on Mileage Reimbursement or Coupons for

Cabs, call (480) 218-2221, and for information on East Valley Dial-A-Ride,

call (480) 633-7221.



City Council approves reduction in fire sprinkler requirements

The Mesa City Council recently approved a reduction in the

requirements to provide fire sprinklers for certain type of buildings. The

change now allows Group B occupancies that are less than 5,000 square feet

in size to be constructed without fire sprinklers. Group B occupancies are

offices, banks, radio and TV stations, post offices and adult educational

facilities. The change does not apply to outpatient medical clinics. For

more information concerning this change, call Heather Gray at (480)

644-4917 or Terry Williams at (480) 644-4919.



City Council to discuss development impact fees

On Dec. 20 the City Council adopted a Notice of Intention to adjust

Mesa's current Fire, Public Safety and Cultural development impact fees and

will hold a public hearing on this issue on Feb. 22. This proposal also

recommends ordinance amendments intended to establish criteria to guide

City staff and the public with determining applicability of development

impact fees (i.e. stormwater drainage). The Notice of Intention, City

Council Report, Impact Fee Study, draft Impact Fee Ordinance Amendments and

draft Stormwater Drainage Impact Fee Map can be viewed at

www.cityofmesa.org/building_safety. Questions regarding these pro