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Home My WebLink About2022-11November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Danby Town News Public Hearing November 9 at 7pm 2023 budget Current Open Positions The application deadline for current open positions is November 14. Town Board (1 position) Planning Board (1 position) Conservation Advisory Council (1 position) Open positions in January The application deadline for an open position that begins in January is December 2. West Danby Water District Advisory Committee (1 position) Planning Board (2 positions ) Board of Zoning Appeals (1 position) Conservation Advisory Council (3 positions) Danby Recreation Partnership Representative (1 position) Danby Youth Commission (at least 1 position) Applications for open positions Looking for a way to get more involved and give back to the town? Please consider applying for one of the open positions. Applications are available on the town web site (danby.ny.gov) or from the town clerk at the town hall. Thank you for considering these positions. Trick or Treat - Danby Fire Station Monday, October 31, from 4 - 6 pm 1780 Danby Road Brought to you by your friends and neighbors, in collaboration with the Danby Volunteer Fire Department and the Danby Youth Commission. Trick-or-treat around the fire station! Social distancing and masks supported. Please park in the parking lot not in front of the fire station! Want to get involved? Contact host, Elana Maragni, at elanamaragni@gmail.com 1 November 2022 Town of Danby, New York From the Town Supervisor, Joel Gagnon Budget Prospects The Town Board is being very deliberate in reviewing the tentative budget, closely scrutinizing much of it. I am much appreciating the careful review, which has resulted in several changes that make the budget easier to understand. We are somewhat limited in how much we can deviate from the form prescribed by the State, but new Town Board members asking for clarification regarding confusing sections and the resulting discussion has produced some meaningful changes. Changing how the budget is presented is helpful, but addressing town needs responsibly will likely lead to some increases in spending. The Board tried to postpone increases in the last couple of years because of the impacts of the COVID pandemic. We did that by not saving up for known future expenditures and by using savings to fund part of the budget. That is not something we can keep doing. The cost of fuel, propane and replacement parts have increased dramatically. Last December, we ordered 3 new trucks to replace very old trucks. They will be delivered next year and will need to be paid for over the next four years. (By ordering last year, we locked in last year’s price even though the new trucks weren’t available until early next year.) Of course, the increased cost will be somewhat offset by a reduction in repairs. We have the solar array at the Highway Facility to fund and the due date is rapidly approaching. We will have to include funding in the budget to pay for it. To keep our highway workers, whose pay is on the low end of highway departments in the area, we need to increase their compensation. Those are some of the main drivers of increased spending. More spending, more taxes to pay for it. Something like 8% more. If your property’s assessed value increased about average (around 13%), you will see that 8% or so. If your assessed value went up less, the increase will be less. If your assessed value went up more, the increase will be more. Board and Committee Openings This is the time of the year when we look to identify candidates for positions where terms are ending. In addition, this year, there are some unanticipated vacancies. Because of resignations, there is a vacancy on the Town Board and a vacancy on the Planning Board. A vacancy has developed on the Conservation Advisory Council with the recent death of Chair Clare Fewtrell. That was a huge loss for the for the Town! These vacancies can and may well be filled before the end of the year. In addition, there are many terms that end in December. If you are willing to volunteer, there is almost certainly something that would use your talents for the good of the community. Please consider applying Parting Thoughts We had 28 degrees here in West Danby last night, October 17, and it is likely to be colder yet tonight, bringing the growing season to a definitive end for tender plants. It was a good growing season if you had access to water during the long dry summer. The fall foliage sported the reds and oranges that were almost absent last year and were gorgeous to view. Winter approaches, a time of reflection and connection. I hope we can cultivate the connections that are so important both for bodily health and for the health of the community. 2 November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Notes From The Planning Office David West Staffing Change – The Planning Department is losing a wonderful employee, after years writing what many have called the world’s best meeting minutes and expanding her role to help with meeting organization and records, Alyssa de Villiers will no longer be the Secretary for the Planning Board and Board of Zoning Appeals starting in 2023 as she is enrolled full time in a PhD program at Cornell. We will be shifting around responsibilities within Town Hall and possibly hiring to fill the big hole her departure will leave, but I am so happy for her moving on with education and life and doing great things in the world. Grants - In late October, Tompkins County reviewed the Town of Danby’s request for $10,000 to fund a community outreach process and grant writing to implement community goals related to housing. While I don’t know the outcome as of this writing, Danby is the only Town to apply so I am hopeful. If this program is funded the Planning Department will host fun community events in 2023 where we can learn about funding available and the priorities of the community. Planning Board – In October the Planning Board heard 3 applications for changes to 2 parcels. One on Coddington Rd where the board approved the creation of a new 10- acre lot and a site plan for a new home on that lot. The second application was for subdivision of a lot on Valley View Rd. and 34/96 in West Danby. That application would split an existing lot, creating the possibility for a new house on 34/96. The Town’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning prioritizes the hamlets as the right place for new residential development and requires that new development be in the format that has been traditional in the hamlet – homes close to the road. This second subdivision application will return to the Planning Board in November for further review. Board of Zoning Appeals – The BZA will hear an application for variance to sideyard setbacks for an attached garage expansion on Coddington Rd. before this is published, and we expect to have at least 2 more applications before the board in November (always on the 4th Tuesday at 7pm) Conservation Advisory Council (CAC)Margaret Corbit The Danby Conservation Advisory Council met on Tuesday, October 11. We dedicated the beginning of the meeting to celebrating the life of Clare Fewtrell and marveling at her many contributions to Danby, but also to the greater Ithaca community. Clare was not only the chair of our Council, but also a choral singer, a serious walker and trails advocate, and an avid sailor. She will be sorely missed. In the regular agenda, we discussed progress with pending easements, including one in development on Comfort Rd. and planned follow-up with property owners who have expressed interest in donating an easement on their property. After a new preamble has been added to the final draft of the Timber Harvest Ordinance, it will be sent to the Town Board for next steps. Look for Betsy Keokosky’s article in the Newsletter to find out about the forward- thinking effort to plan for food production in Danby and Tompkins County. If you have an interest in joining CAC, please come to our next meeting on November 14 at 7 pm. 3 November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Tompkins County’s Plan for Food for the Future What is it, and what does it mean to Farmers in Danby? A Zoom sponsored by the Danby Conservation Advisory Council. Come join the CAC on November 10th in a 7pm Zoom as Don Barber, former Caroline Town Supervisor, now Chair of Food Policy Council, speaks about a new Tompkins County food policy initiative, one of whose goals is to double local food production to sustainably meet community food needs and support the viability of local farms. The policy discussed is based on a report presented to and accepted by the Tompkins County legislature this year called “Production: Food System Baseline Assessment” (available at: https://www.tompkinsfoodfuture.org/_files/ugd/bfff24_399acb2c091c4e97b00edafbcbf7acba.pdf) prepared by a team coordinated by the Food Policy Council of Tompkins County. It is a response to climate change and to the drought and forest fires in the West. It is worth reading. Some new Opportunities explored: ∙Opportunities to help with and incentivize local production ∙Opportunities to collaborate and increase local market availability ∙Opportunities to include low income households in local food market ∙Opportunities to avoid wasting food Some problems addressed: Scale of farming, access to and cost of land, money for infrastructure: fences, high tunnels, irrigation, etc., the balance of growing animal feed and food for humans Some new ideas: The possibility of a community greenhouse, available value added commercial kitchen, payment for ecosystem services Erin Kurtz, District Conservationist, USDA NRCS will also speak about incentives through the EQIP program for increasing soil health, water quantity and quality, and plant productivity. One of these is the popular high tunnel program. All are welcome to this Zoom. Registration is requested but the Zoom will be the regular, open format to facilitate discussion. See Danby NY website Calendar for above November 10th date to register. Please direct any questions to town clerk. Support for Farmers EQIP programs The deadline for most of these programs (see above) for next year is Nov 4th . If you are interested, contact Erin Kurtz for more information at 607- 216- 6760 or 607- 257- 2737 before the Zoom session. She might even be able to fill out the application over the phone. Tompkins County Community Recovery Grant Program As small business owners, farmers are eligible to apply through the Community Recovery Fund Tompkins County NY, and the deadline to apply is October 31. 4 November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Tompkins County Legislature News Dan Klein We have wrapped up most of the work on the County’s 2023 budget. I would say that the budget represents both good financial health for the County, and also an attempt to address multiple issues that threaten our quality of life. I don’t have space to give details, but here is a list of just some of the new items that were added to County services this year. Feel free to contact me if you want more information. ∙Created a new position of Emergency Management Services Coordinator ∙Funded a one-year project to gather information about addressing issues facing youth in Tompkins County ∙Created a Homeless Outreach Coordinator position ∙Funded a field nurse to work with behavioral health issues with homeless people ∙Set aside money to hire professional grant writers to help harvest some of the large amounts of federal and state funds currently available ∙Funded 2 more Sheriff’s Deputy positions ∙Funded a mental health worker for the Mental Health Association ∙Funded a strategic recovery business plan for the airport ∙Re-established a small grants program for parks and trails ∙Funded a grant program for local arts programming ∙Funded numerous initiatives related to Reimagining Public Safety In addition to funding so many new items, we were also able to use our fund balance to establish a zero percent change in the tax levy for the second year in a row. This is quite an accomplishment for any government. I’m sure it has happened before, but I can’t recall anyone in our area accomplishing this. There are many factors that affect your tax bill, but keeping the tax levy (the total amount of property taxes the County takes in) flat is something that puts money back into the pockets of property owners. Youth Commission The newly formed Danby Youth Commission (DYC) is looking for a resident of West Danby to join them. The DYC, which formed in spring 2022, is responsible for coordinating programming that meets the recreational and developmental needs of youth in the Town of Danby. Perhaps your child has enjoyed one of the many Rural Youth Services programs over the years? In any case, it is important that the DYC is representative of our local community. We would like a resident of West Danby to round out our team. You can find out more information about the purpose and goals of the DYC on the Town of Danby website. Chair: Jamie Sorrentino VIce Chair: Maddie Ulinski Secretary: Nina Arnold 5 Fondant - What fun !! November 2022 Town of Danby, New York West Danby Water District Tod Sukontarak The West Danby Water District Advisory Committee met three times in addition to their regular monthly meeting in order to agree on a budget to recommend to the Town Board for approval at the October TB meeting. Liquid Engineering, the company contracted to inspect and clean our water tank, completed their work in early October. This was a scheduled 5-year inspection and cleaning. The tank is in good shape with minimal sediment. That information will be used to schedule the next cleaning, which normally occurs at a recommended 3 to 5- year interval. Most of the curb stop connections as well as main valves and hydrants have now been geo- located and will be mapped by RCAP Solutions. We scheduled two days to collect the GPS data for the entire water system but were rained out on the second day. The remaining data will have been collected by the end of October. RCAP is also nearing completion in assisting the District write and update standard operating procedures, a job description for operators, and an emergency contact list. Danby Seniors Trip to Penn's Peak Wednesday, November 30, 2022 An Elvis Christmas Show with Ryan Pelton The bus will pick up at the Danby Church at 9:00 am so plan to arrive by 8:45 am. There are no stops along the way, so bring your own snack. The destination is approximately 150 miles away. Lunch is at 12:00 noon. It is served family-style and includes a plated salad, rolls, pot roast, an additional meat, potatoes, vegetables, salad, dessert and beverage. Concert begins at 1:00 p.m. The bus will return to Danby Church at approximately 5:30 p.m. Cost for members is $60 per person, inclusive (bus, luncheon, concert, driver tip). Non-members cost is $65. (If you wish to join the Danby Seniors, membership is $5 per year.) Make your check payable to: Danby Seniors. Final Payment is due FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2022. Send Check to: Pat Phelps, 17 Woodlane Road, Ithaca, NY If you have any questions, please contact Pat Phelps: Patriciaphelps2.0@gmail.com Cell: 607-227-6478 6 November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Youth Programs Heidi Doggett (hd289@cornell.edu) Danby Youth Programs are getting ready to bundle up for winter! Heading into November we have two programs continuing from earlier in the year, plus a condensed Hot Cocoa Science program for 4-5 graders. Hot Cocoa Science will also be visiting schools during lunch hour and may return at different locations throughout the winter. We have also been funded to provide a dance class from a professional studio. Our schedule has been left partly open for now to ensure we have room for the dance class as we finalize details. There will be a few gift-making and cooking programs through November and December, along with outdoor programming as weather allows. Keep an eye on the Danby CCE site for a complete schedule. https://ccetompkins.org/4- h-youth/rural-youth-services/rys-program- sites/town-of-danby You can also contact the program educator to be added to the email list: hd289@cornell.edu or 925-240-3572. Dungeons and Dragons, Magic: the Gathering, and Board Games Wednesdays at Boynton Middle School, 3:30- 5:30 Continuing from October-December 14; no program November 23 Join our ongoing D&D campaign, bring your Magic cards, or enjoy a new rotation of board games and outdoor games each week. Hot Cocoa Science Thursdays at South Hill Elementary School, 2:00-5:30 11/10 and 11/17 Returning for a second year, this time as a short 2-week program packed with hot cocoa-themed science experiments! Build a marshmallow catapult, rattle a dried cacao pod, do some weird things with cocoa powder, and see what happens when you stuff a marshmallow in a syringe. Make edible hot cocoa slime! Gaia Circle Fridays at Ithaca Children’s Garden, 4-6 Continuing from September-11/4 and 11/18 BUS FROM BOYNTON MIDDLE SCHOOL AVAILABLE! We’ve had so much fun at Gaia Circle so far, and it’s not over yet! Gaia Circle is run in conjunction with several organizations “for middle school aged grrrls of all kinds: those who love their girl selves, those who are uncomfortable with girlness, or those for whom girlness has never felt right; those who haven’t thought much about what it means to be a girl, and those who feel no gender limits at all.” So far we’ve had a scavenger hunt for tea ingredients, made spooky Halloween snacks, done rock painting, made a scarecrow, picked our own salad, and more. There are two more sessions in November. Youth are still welcome to register. See full program description at https://www.ithacachildrensgarden.org/portfo lio/gaia-circle/ 7 Remember Trick or Treating at the Danby Fire Hall on Halloween, Oct 31 from 4-6pm. Volunteers to pass out treats still welcomed. November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Danby Community Groups Danby Community Library Contact: Cindy Parlett library@danby.ny.gov Open Tue 1-3pm, Thur & Sat 10am-12pm Danby Food Pantry Danby Federated Church Contact: Joan Barber Open: 3rd Thur 4-6 pm Danby Community Parks Association (DCPA) Website: dotsonpark.org dotsonpark@gmail.com Danby Seniors Contact: Judy Cuyle gnatcat87@ yahoo,com Luncheons: 1st Thur at noon Danby Community Council President: Pamela Goddard Website: danbycc.org Meeting: 1st Thur 7pm West Danby Community Association (WDCA) Contact: Pat Curran pc21@cornell.edu Danby Food Scraps Pickup: Sat 9am - noon, behind Town Hall Danby Library News Our new Thanksgiving books are on display! Bring the kids to see them. Large Type Books from TCPL have been exchanged so there are 20 different titles. Friends of the Library Book Sale brought us even more books and DVD’s: Books-William and Kate by Christopher Anderson, Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict, The Woman Who Smashed Codes by Jason Fagone, How To Be An Antiracist, and Stamped by Ibram X Kendi, The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson. Large Type Books-The Bear and the Dragon by Tom Clancy, The Dark Hours by Michael Connelly, Foreign Influence by Brad Thor. DVD’s-Madmen (seasons 1,2,3,5 and Final Season part 2), Little Women, Spiderman 3 8 Spider Cookies So cool!! Scarecrow- How scary!! November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Monthly Meeting Schedule At-A-Glance Group Day Date Time Call-in by Phone Meeting ID Passcode Town Board* Mon 11/1 6:00pm 1-929-205-6099 980 8515 9868 754633 WDWD Wed 11/2 5:00pm In person - West Danby Fire Station CAC* Tue 11/8 7:00pm 1-929-205-6099 972 1566 0090 423584 FD Tue 11/8 7:00pm In person at the Danby Fire Station YC Thurs 11/10 7:00pm In person at the Town Hall PB* Tue 11/15 7:00pm 1-646-876-9923 958 0817 5336 245871 Town Board* Wed 11/16 6:00pm 1-929-205-6099 971 0723 2988 535713 BZA* Tue 11/22 7:00pm TBD FD Tue 11/22 7:00pm In person at the Danby Fire Station See the Danby calendar for the final, most up-to-date details. (Acronyms in the above schedule are identified below.) *These meetings are hybrid (i.e. both online and in-person at the Town Hall) Boards & Committees Planning Board (PB) Chair: Jody Scriber planningboard@danby.ny.gov Meets: 3rd Tuesday at 7pm Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) Chair: Earl Hicks bza@danby.ny.gov Meets: 4th Thursday, as needed Conservation Advisory Council (CAC) Chair: Clare Fewtrell cac@danby.ny.gov Meets: 2nd Tuesday at 7pm Youth Commission (YC) Contact: Katharine Hunter, hkhunter@danby.ny.gov Meets: 2nd Thursday at 7pm Fire District (FD) Secretary: Sharon Gaden, secretary@danbyfiredistrict.org danby.ny.gov/depts/danby-fire-district Danby Volunteer Fire Company (DVFC) Chief: John Gaden, jgaden@danbyfiredistrict.org danbyfiredept.com West Danby Fire Department (WDFD) Chief: Scott Wendt, swendt@danbyfiredistrict.org westdanbyfire.com West Danby Water DIstrict (WDWD) Contact: Scott Wendt, swendt@danby.ny.gov Meets: 1st Wednesday at 5pm 9 November 2022 Town of Danby, New York Town Officials Main Phone: +1-607-277-4788 Town Supervisor Joel Gagnon, x1010 supervisor@danby.ny.gov Town Board Meets 1st Tue and 3rd Wed Leslie Connors H Katharine Hunter Pat Woodworth townboard@danby.ny.gov Town Clerk Deputy Town Clerk Hours: Mon–Fri 11am–6pm Janice Adelman Cindy Katz clerkoffice@danby.ny.gov x8001 Highway Superintendent Deputy Highway Superintendent Hours: Mon–Thu 6am–4:30pm Keith Shipman, x8009 highway@danby.ny.gov Jack Shawley, x1012 jshawley@danby.ny.gov Town Justices Court Clerk Hours: Mon-Tue 8am-11am Garry Huddle Theresa Klinger Diane Gair dgair@nycourts.gov Town Planner Hours: Mon–Fri by appointment David West, x1007 planner@danby.ny.gov Code Enforcement Hours: Mon-Fri by appointment Steve Cortright, x1006 code@danby.ny.gov Documents / Historian Mary Ann Barr, x1008 mbarr@danby.ny.gov Bookkeeper Laura Shawley, x1011 lshawley@danby.ny.gov 10 From: 1830 Danby Road Ithaca, NY 14850 PRST STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No.428 Ithaca, NY 14850 Danby, New York Phone: +1-607-277-4788 https://danby.ny.gov Welcome to the Danby Town News! 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