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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-CA-2013-04-01CITY ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Regular Meeting 6:00 p.m. April 24, 2013 PRESENT: Alderperson Proulx — Chair Alderpersons (3): Brock, Clairborne, Kerslick OTHERS PRESENT: GIAC Director — Fort GIAC Program Administrator — Brooks Chief Water Plant Operator — Baker City Chamberlain — Parsons Fire Chief — Parsons Director of Engineering — West Acting Youth Bureau Director — Vance Temp Deputy Youth Bureau Director - Green Human Resources Director — Michell -Nunn Controller - Thayer Deputy Controller — Andrew EXCUSED: Alderperson Fleming Mayor Myrick 1. Call to Order 1.1 Agenda Review: None. 1.2 Review /Approval of Minutes: Alderperson Kerslick made a motion to approve the minutes, with corrections, from the February 27, 2013 and March 27, 2013 meetings of the City Administration Committee. Seconded by Alderperson Brock. Motion carried 3 -1. ( Alderperson Clairborne was absent from the vote.) 1.3 Statements from the Public Dan Hoffman, of Ithaca and a Natural Areas Commission (NAC) Board Member, talked about NAC's concern for the safety and treatment of the 6 mile creek natural area and about the City acquiring land adjacent to 6 mile creek to protect the environment and the watershed. Mr. Hoffman asked the City to consider, during the budget deliberations, making more enforcement resources available and setting aside money to secure adjacent parcels to the gorge that would provide the needed protection. 1.4 Statements from Employees. None. City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 2 1.5 Council Response Chairperson Proulx stated that he has had interactions with Acting Police Chief John Barber, who will attend or send a representative to attend the next NAC meeting to give an update on the Police Department providing enforcement for the gorge this summer. Alderperson Brock asked that the NAC identify what lands they would like the City to look at so that Common Council could get an idea what kind of budget needs to be considered and, then, evaluate what could be done. 2. Standing Sub - Committee and Staff Reports 2.1 Workforce Diversity Advisory Committee (WDAC) Alderperson Brock reported that at the WDAC meeting, they discussed the department heads' presentation to Common Council, which is scheduled for July 31, 2013. The WDAC will work together to forward an agenda and structure for that meeting. 2.2. Others As Needed. None. 3. City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy 3.1 DPW — Safe Routes to School Moved by Alderperson Kerslick. Seconded by Alderperson Brock. WHEREAS, the federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program was created in 2005 on passage of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA -LU), now in its second round of funding in New York, and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca (the "City ") partnered with the Ithaca City School District to develop a SRTS application and, with the authorization of Common Council, submitted said application to the New York State Department of Transportation (administrators of federal SRTS Program funding in NY) and was subsequently awarded the requested amount of $297,950, and WHEREAS, a project for "Traffic Calming Improvements near Beverly J. Martin Elementary, Fall Creek Elementary and Boynton Middle Schools" (locally referred to as the "Ithaca Safe Routes to School Project "), P.I.N. 375564 (the "Project "), is eligible for funding under Title 23 U.S. Code, as amended, that calls for the apportionment of the costs of such program to be borne at the ratio of 100% federal funds and 0% non - federal funds, and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca desires to advance the Project by making a commitment for 100% of the non - federal share of the costs for Preliminary Engineering /Design, Construction Construction Inspection, and Non - Infrastructure Activities, and City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 3 WHEREAS, the Project consists of Type II Actions, which are not subject to further environmental review, and Unlisted Actions which were reviewed by the Board of Public Works on June 25, 2012 and determined to have no significant negative environmental impacts under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act and the City of Ithaca Environmental Quality Review Ordinance; now therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the Common Council hereby approves the above - subject Project, and be it further RESOLVED, That the Common Council hereby authorizes the City of Ithaca to pay in the first instance 100% of the federal share of the cost of Preliminary Engineering /Design, Construction, Construction Inspections and Non - Infrastructure Activities work for the Project or portions thereof, and be it further RESOLVED, That the sum of $297,950 is hereby appropriated from the issuance of serial bonds and made available to cover the cost of participation in this phase of the Project, and be it further RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby creates Capital Project # 786, Ithaca Safe Routes to School Project, to include the Project costs of $297,950, and be it further RESOLVED, That in the event the full costs of the Project exceeds the amount appropriated above, the Common Council of the City of Ithaca shall convene as soon as possible to appropriate said excess amount immediately upon the notification by the NYSDOT thereof, and be it further RESOLVED, That the Mayor of the City of Ithaca be and is hereby authorized to execute all necessary Agreements, certifications or reimbursement requests for Federal Aid on behalf of the City of Ithaca with the New York State Department of Transportation in connection with the advancement or approval of the Project and providing for the administration of the Project and the municipality's first instance funding of Project costs and permanent funding of the local share of federal -aid and state -aid eligible Project costs and all Project costs within appropriations therefore that are not so eligible, and be it further RESOLVED, That this Project be undertaken with the understanding that the final cost of the Project to the City of Ithaca will be roughly 0% of said portion, currently estimated at $0 of the $297,950 authorized for this phase of the Project, in monies and in -kind services as managed by the Superintendent of Public Works and monitored by the City Controller, and be it further RESOLVED, That a certified copy of this resolution be filed with the New York State Commissioner of Transportation by attaching it to any necessary Agreement in connection with the Project, and be it further RESOLVED, That this Resolution shall take effect immediately. City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 4 A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Motion passed 3 -0. (Alderperson Clairborne was absent from the vote.) 3.2 DPW — Request to Standardize Main Coagulant Until a Year After the Completion of the New Water Treatment Plant Moved by Alderperson Kerslick. Seconded by Alderperson Brock. WHEREAS, this Common Council has been requested by the DPW Water and Sewer Division Water Treatment Plant to standardize the main coagulant used at the WTP in the water treatment process until the new Water Treatment Plant is constructed and online for a period of one year, and WHEREAS, the new WTP will be constructed in the same footprint as the old WTP, thus the new plant will be simultaneously constructed as the old plant is deconstructed, and Staff will have substantial additional workload in the coordination and continued operation of the remaining old processes, the set up of temporary bridging processes, and the startup of new processes, and \WHEREAS, WTP Staff is familiar with the coagulant we currently use at the plant and know how it performs, what feed rates and concentrations to use as conditions change under seasonal and daily variations in weather and water quality, and WHEREAS, changing the primary coagulant will result in substantial additional Staff workload in the learning, testing, and optimization of a new coagulants performance characteristics under many different seasonal and daily conditions, and WHEREAS, it is deemed to be in the best interest of the City for reasons of efficiency, compatibility and economics to approve standardization of the primary coagulant used at the WTP to Polyaluminum Chloride as manufactured by Holland Company (PCH180) and authorize the City to purchase approved coagulant from the manufacturer, or a representative thereof until the new WTP is constructed and operational for a one year period, now, therefore be it RESOLVED, That pursuant to Section 103, subdivision 5 of General Municipal Law of the State of New York, this Common Council hereby authorizes the standardization to, and purchase and use of Polyaluminum Chloride as manufactured by Holland Company (PCH180) for the City of Ithaca Department of Public Works Water & Sewer Division Water Treatment Plant until the new Water Treatment Plant is commissioned and has been operational for a one year period. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Motion passed 3 -0. (Alderperson Clairborne was absent from the vote.) Alderperson Clairborne arrived at 6:15 p.m. City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 5 3.3 DPW — Request to Amend CP #737 Repairs to the Central Fire Station Moved by Alderperson Brock. Seconded by Alderperson Clairborne. WHEREAS, Common Council established Capital Project 737 for repairs to the Central Fire Station in the amount of $275,000, and WHEREAS, at this time, CP 737 has a balance of $96,338, and WHEREAS, bids were received on April 8, 2013 for the Central Fire Station HVAC System Upgrades, and WHEREAS, Climate Control Technologies is the apparent low bidder with a bid of $108,890 for construction only, and WHEREAS, award of the contract to Climate Control Technologies will require a total project budget, including all project costs, of $160,000, and WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works approved the project at a recent meeting; now, therefore be it RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby recommends that Capital Project #737 be amended by an amount not to exceed $63,662 for a total project authorization of $338,662, and be it further RESOLVED, That the funds necessary for said amendment be advanced from General Fund with later repayment by the issuance of serial bonds. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 4. Finance, Budget and Appropriations 4.1 GIAC — Request to Amend 2013 Budget Moved by Alderperson Brock. Seconded by Alderperson Kerslick. WHEREAS, GIAC staff has been working to align program needs with their expenses in order to maintain the participant numbers in the youth after school program and summer camp, and WHEREAS, as a New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) licensed school -aged child care facility it is essential that GIAC maintains the correct staff to participant ratio as dictated by the OCFS regulations, and WHEREAS, the Tompkins County Department of Social Services (DSS) pays for many of the attendants to attend GIAC's program, and City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 6 WHEREAS, DSS has changed its payment systems resulting in a dramatic increase in the amount of payments GIAC received for after school program fees from September 2012 through February 2013, totaling $40,903, and WHEREAS, GIAC needs to hire part- time /seasonal staff for the afterschool program and summer camp in the amount of $35,253, and WHEREAS, GIAC also needs to increase the Youth Program supplies budget to cover other related costs, by $8250, with the funds for this increase coming from fees that will be collected for the 2013 summer camp; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby amends the 2013 GIAC Youth Program budget as follows: Increase Revenue Account: A7311- 2001 -01101 Youth Program — Parks and Recreation $43,485 Increase Expenses: A7311- 5120 -01101 Hourly Part -Time $35,235 A7311- 5460 -01101 Program Supplies 8,250 A7311 -9030 FICA /Medicare 2,695 A7311 -9040 Workers' Compensation 1,762 Total $43,485 A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 4.2 Chamberlain's Office — Request to Extend Period to Redeem Property from Tax Foreclosure Moved by Alderperson Brock. Seconded by Alderperson Clairborne. WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca enforces taxes by foreclosure of its liens, pursuant to New York State Real Property tax law, and WHEREAS, there may be a period of time between the final redemption date according to the foreclosure petition and the final judgment awarding the property to the city, during which the property is owned by the taxpayer; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That at the expiration of the redemption period, the City Chamberlain shall add $500 or 10% of the taxes, whichever is greater, to the amount of the delinquent tax liens, as a fee to cover the costs associated with proceeding with the foreclosure process, and be it further RESOLVED, That the City Chamberlain is authorized to allow redemption of the property between the final redemption date and the filing of the judgment papers either upon payment of the full amount of the taxes, penalties, fees, and interest as required by law, or by payment City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 7 of the appropriate down payment and execution of an installment agreement for the amount of the taxes, penalties, fees and interest as required by law, and be it further RESOLVED, That the City Chamberlain shall not allow redemption of the property nor enter into an installment agreement for the payment of affected delinquent tax liens after the final judgment papers awarding title of the property to the City have been filed with the Court. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 5. 2014 Budget Process 5.1 Public Safety Alderperson Clairborne met with the department heads of the Police Department and the Fire Department with respect to the various needs of the departments for 2014. Fire Chief Parsons attended the meeting to report on the priorities for the Fire Department. 5.2 Youth and Communitv Services Alderperson Brock met with the department /division heads of the Youth Bureau and the Greater Ithaca Activities Center, the Interim Executive Director of South Side Community Center and the Executive Director of the Human Services Coalition to talk about the 2014 budget priorities for the respective departments and agencies. Alderperson Brock, Acting Youth Bureau Director Vance, Temporary Deputy Youth Bureau Director Green, GIAC Director Fort and Human Services Coalition Executive Director Kathy Schlather reported on the 2014 priorities for their department or agency. 5.3 Government Services Chairperson Proulx met with the department heads of the Controller's Office, Human Resources, Attorney's Office, Information Technology and the City Clerk's Office to discuss their insights into the 2014 budget. Chairperson Proulx reported on the priorities for these departments. 6. Additional Budget Discussions 6.1 Review Council Survev Results: Committee members reviewed and discussed the results of an informal Council survey regarding the 2014 budget priorities. 6.2 Discuss Themes & Highlights from Department Head Meeting: Committee members reviewed and discussed the input from the department heads. 6.3 Draft Outline for Council Priorities Document for Mayor: Committee members agreed to provide via email their summary of priorities for each department that align with highest priority themes as identified by Council in the survey by Monday. City Administration Committee Meeting April 24, 2013 Page 8 7. Meeting Wrap -up 7.1 Announcements Diversity Consortium Roundtable: This event will take place on Wednesday — May 22, 2013 at Emerson Suites - Ithaca College from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and will have many great workshops. Open House: Finger Lakes Independence Center (FLIC) will celebrate its 25th anniversary by having an Open House on Thursday — May 16, 2013 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at its office on 215 Fifth Street. Race — The Power of Illusion Video Viewing: This video will be viewed in the community at various dates, times and location. 7.2 Review, Agenda Items for Next Meeting 7.3 Adjourn: With no further business and on a motion by Alderperson Kerslick, the meeting was adjourned at 10:30 p.m.