Speakers

CHRISTOPHER DOWNEY-AIA | Visually impaired Architect, Planner and Consultant

Chris lost all sight in 2008. Today, he is dedicated to creating more helpful and enriching environments for the blind and visually impaired.He consults on design for the blind and visually impaired, encompassing specialized centers as well as facilities serving the broader public. His work ranges from a new Department of Veterans Affairs blind rehabilitation center, to renovations of housing for the blind in New York City, and to the new Transbay Transit Center in San Francisco.

As one of the few practicing blind architects in the world, Chris has been featured in local, national and international media stories and speaks regularly about architecture and visual impairment. He also teaches accessibility and universal design at UC Berkeley and serves on the Board of Directors for the Lighthouse for the Blind in San Francisco.

He starts each day rowing with the East Bay Rowing Club on the Oakland Estuary before commuting on public transit to his office in San Francisco.

JAMES TERRY-CASp | Evan Terry Associates

As a specialist in the ADA and accessible design, James has presented hundreds of training programs to building owners, managers, and designers and has worked with federal agencies, public entities, and private corporations nationwide including half of the twenty largest companies in the US. He coordinates a two-day ADA seminar for design professionals with the Harvard University Office of Executive Education, which he has been teaching since 1993. He has written over a dozen books on ADA Facilities Compliance with Evan Terry Associates that have sold over 150,000 copies altogether. James also led the effort in 1992 to revise the ninth edition of Architectural Graphic Standards for the American Institute of Architects to bring it up to ADA Standards. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of ADA Coordinators.

DOUG ANDERSON-CASp, R.A.S. | Partner LCM Architects

Doug lives in Illinois and is the principal in charge of the Fair Housing Accessibility FIRST Training Program, funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and is one of the technical trainers on the FHA design and construction requirements.

Since 1992, Doug Anderson has been assisting clients to understand and comply with the ADA, FHA and other state and federal accessibility codes and standards. He has developed and led nationwide ADA survey projects, been instrumental in shaping local, state, and federal accessibility design standards, and served as an expert in ADA and FHA cases. Doug’s experience and in-depth knowledge have firmly established LCM as a leader in strategic accessibility planning for large corporations throughout the country.

BILL HECKER | Architect

Bill is an architect (registered in Colorado, Alabama, Louisiana and Georgia) who practices nationwide in the field of accessible design and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) Consulting. His interest in accessible design began in college when he was on the winning design team for the 1983 Int’l. Special Olympics Village Competition at Louisiana State University, and he continued his involvement as a volunteer sports instructor serving those with Spina Bifida. While an architect at the Birmingham, Alabama firm of Evan Terry Associates, Bill spearheaded the ADA Consulting/Training efforts and was primary author of two books on ADA facility compliance (published by John Wiley & Sons - NY). He has conducted more than 100 public and private seminars on ADA/Accessibility compliance and surveyed more than 100 million square feet for access barriers. While with Evan Terry Associates, Bill consulted with or trained staff from IBM, Duke University, Rockwell International, MARTA (Metro Atlanta Regional Transit Authority), Georgia Tech University, Shoney’s Restaurants, United Way and the American Banker’s Association - just to name a few. Bill left Evan Terry in 1992 to start his own practice and has since split his energies among three broad areas - consulting on facility compliance requirements of federal laws (ADA, Fair Housing Act, ABA and Section 504 requirements of the Rehabilitation Act); training governmental and private organizations on those laws; and, acting as an expert witness/consultant to the US Department of Justice, private plaintiffs and defense attorneys on ADA and Fair Housing facility compliance cases.

SCOTT J. WINDLEY | Accessibility Specialist | Office of Technical and Information Services

Scott Windley has been staff at the Board since 1997. He previously worked at The Center for Universal Design as well as the University of Idaho’s Facilities Planning and Design Department as an intern Architect. Mr. Windley received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Idaho. Currently at the Board Mr. Windley is lead staff on the Board’s public rights-of-way rulemaking, provides technical assistance and training on the ADAAG, PROWAG, and other standards, and works with a team of staff on all the board’s graphics production. He has given many presentations to students, advocates, and professionals on accessibility issues and guidelines, across the country for over 20 years. He has served on many NCHRP and TCRP panels for the Transportation Research Board. Mr. Windley currently serves on the railroad and light rail transit technical committee of the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

KAYLAN DUNLAP-CASp, LPTA | Healthcare Accessibility Specialist | Evan Terry Associates

Kaylan Dunlap has served as Evan Terry Associates’ primary Healthcare Accessibility Specialist for fourteen years. She is a Licensed Physical Therapist Assistant with over nine years of healthcare experience in the outpatient rehabilitation, acute care, and long term care settings where she was involved with patient care and the development and implementation of programs for breast cancer patients and student athletes. Kaylan has served on the U.S. Access Board’s Advisory Committee on Standards for Medical Diagnostic Equipment. She is a Special Programs Chair and member of the Board of Directors of the Certified Access Specialist Institute and a Subject Matter Expert for the California Department of State Architect.

BILL ZELLMER-AIA, CASp | Program Manager Physical Access Compliance | Sutter Health

Bill is the Program Manager for Physical Access Compliance and Regulatory Affairs at Sutter Health. He currently serves as the in-house accessibility expert managing the accessibility upgrades throughout Sutter’s 24 hospitals and 400+ medical office buildings and clinics. He has over 22 years of experience working in the Sacramento area at various architectural firms.

CRIS VAUGHAN-CASp | ADAC Attorney at Law

Cris Vaughan is admitted to practice law in California and Nevada, as well as various federal district courts, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. He is a certified accessibility specialist who assists businesses in complying with state and federal accessibility laws, thus avoiding or limiting the expense of litigation or damage claims. He has lectured and taught seminars to business and professional groups throughout California on a wide range of ADA issues and access compliance. He has also represented a number of public entities and served as a deputy county counsel where he litigated civil rights, employment and personnel matters.

IDA CLAIR-AIA LEED AP, CASp | Principal Architect | CA Division of the State Architect

GLENN GALL-AIA | OSHPD Supervisor Health Facilities–Building Standards Unit

Glenn is an established professional in code-compliance of healthcare facilities working as a leader in the codewriting arena, both within OSHPD and nationally as part of the Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI) standards writing committee. His OSHPD experience includes Regulations Coordinator, Senior Architect, Representative to California Building Standards Commission and the Hospital Building Safety Board.

GARY LAYMAN-CASp | ICC Certified Building Official

Mr. Layman is an ICC certified building official who has performed accessibility surveys and inspections California and Nevada since 1987. He has been in construction for over thirty-five (35) years, building inspections/plan review since 1987 and a California licensed contractor since 1995. He holds a BA in Construction Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Con Administration. He has represented numerous clients in ADA accessibility litigation as an expert in both state and federal complaints. Mr. Layman is a Certified Accessibility Specialist (CASp) who has performed more than 400 accessibility evaluations of both public accommodations and government facilities. He currently serves as the Past President and the Professional Standards and Practice Chair of CASI (Certified Accessibility Specialist Institute).

RICK HALLORAN-CASp | Senior Building Inspector for the City of San Francisco

PAUL KLEIN-CBO, CASP | Principal CalCasp Inc. & Co-Founder, BlueDAG, LLC

MARK WOOD-CBO, CASP | Principal CalCasp Inc. & Co-Founder, BlueDAG, LLC