HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-NAC-2008-12-08MEETING MINUTES
City of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission
Dec. 8, 2008
5:30 -7:00 pm
City Hall, 108 E. Green St.
In attendance:
Members Wendy Wallitt (Vice Chair), Gerard Cox, Joe McMahon, Todd Miner,
Anna Stalter (CAC Liaison), F. Robert Wesley (CU Natural Areas), Jon Meigs
(Town of Ithaca), Nancy Schuler (CC Liaison).
Ex- Officio Andy Hillman (City Forester), Roxy Johnston (Watershed Coordinator
in lieu of Chief Operator of Water Filtration Plant);
Not present: Ron Herring, Wade Wykstra (BPW Liaison)
Minutes for November approved.
Added to Agenda: End of Year Report from Andy
End of Year Report:
Andy provided a handout with budget numbers for the year. The
department overspent by $3000, mostly for needed ranger coverage.
Money could be transferred from other budgets to cover the rangers.
Nancy mentioned rangers are handling water safety issues and the city
has unused Homeland Security money.
No construction money was spent this year. Contracts accounted for 20%
of the allotted money. To replace the kiosk, Andy could use this unspent
money, the kiosk could possibly be rebuilt by Explorer Scouts and
materials would be the only cost.
Contracts usually covered wildflower walks led by Robert Wesley; those
funds could be used other ways as well.
Stewart Park Report:
Not available.
Gorge Safety Report
Todd Miner attended an on- campus meeting addressing gorge safety at Cornell.
Coordination between campus and NAC was encouraged. They plan to take a
three -front approach:
Education, Alternatives, Enforcement
Education: More information at freshman orientation. Education concerning areas
off campus are not likely included with orientation.
Alternatives: an outdoor pool on campus was proposed; re- establishing swimming
upstream of Beebe Lake (not met enthusiastically); buses to state parks in August
and September; legal swimming at Flat Rock or Ithaca Falls.
Enforcement: Fencing and increased signage were both held to be not viable or
desirable. Students are active in the process of spreading the word.
Invasives Report
Robert is looking to start the survey work next year. He didn't start last year
because of city insurance issues. Robert can give information to the NAC as it
comes so that issues can be addressed immediately if volunteers are available.
The DEC is holding proposals for work until June /July and stilt grass can show
earlier than that. Anna will check with the controller about extending Robert's
contract.
New Chair /New Member
No one is stepping up to take the position as the new chair, so discussion
centered on how to deal with that. Recruiting a new member as chair or with some
of the chair's responsibilities is an option. Rotating the chair or dividing the chair's
responsibilities were other options discussed. The tasks of the chair were
identified: to be a spokesperson, to set the meeting agenda, to chair the meeting,
to make sure corrected minutes go to City Clerk, and ultimately to decide NAC
priorities.
We reviewed the charter; there was some confusion. At the time, it was felt that a
chair is not specifically mentioned and questions arose about who is an Ex- officio
and who is a member. No one from Planning and Development attends but
should.
A rotating chair would give everyone a chance to be more involved and to see
what is involved. Wendy as vice -chair mentioned that she can coordinate with the
chair to cut the workload but doesn't want to take on new tasks. Gerry mentioned
sharing duties could be worked out.
Zev will chair the January meeting; subsequent meetings will be chaired in a
rotation: Todd, February; Anna, March; Gerry, April and Wendy, May. We will
check back in March or April to reconsider the issue: do we need a single chair or
will it work to continue rotating? In the rotating chair model, the chair from the
previous meeting will set the agenda for the following one. The note taker will
send the notes to everyone prior to the meeting.
Ithaca Falls /Gun Hill
The DEC decided to accept the less stringent of the two possible EPA standards
(400 ppm) for lead clean up. The community advisory group is not meeting
because they feel they have been left out of the loop and are only getting brief
updates that are not specific concerning any issues. The group has asked for
more information. They are confident things will be done by the book, but not to
standards hoped for.
The island will be cored and tested, but not to bedrock, to see what's under the
concrete. Gerry suggests NAC should talk about the area in the future as time
allows.
DEIS Letter on water source:
The NAC expressed gratitude to Zev for his efforts. The comment period is over;
the decision should be made by March. The BPW accepts the plan with
comments.
Submitted by Joe McMahon