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Home My WebLink About2024-05 Town NewletterMay 2024 Town of Danby, New York Danby Town News 1 Danby Volunteer Fire Company Doug's Fish Fry Friday May 10th, 11 am to 6 pm Danby Fire Station To call and place orders until 4:00 pm, please call (607)753-9184 ext 2 To benefit the Danby Volunteer Fire Comapny. Members will also be selling drinks and baked goods to raise funds for equipment. Taps Across America Taps Across America and Memorial service Monday May 27, 3 p.m. Danby Town Hall, 1830 Danby Road Memorial service Thursday May 30 7 p.m. Ithaca City Cemetery May 2024 Town of Danby, New York Taps Across America Danny Wheeler and Katharine Hunter Beginning at 3 p.m., with the sounding of Taps, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War Sydney Camp #41 will hold a memorial service in conjunction with Taps Across America, at the Danby monument in front of Danby Town Hall. The monument has always been a center point in Danby. The residents before us held picnics and dances and bid on picnic baskets to raise the money to build it. Some of those people could have been members of your family. Over the past 35 years, Sydney Camp #41 has redone six GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) monuments and installed one new one in Dewitt park. They have also redone the monument in Dewitt Park honoring those lost in World War I, World War II, the Korean war and the Viet Nam war. In addition to the service in Danby, there will be a service at Ithaca City Cemetery Thursday, May 30, 2024. at 7 p.m. Enter the cemetery from University Avenue, walk or drive up the hill and meet at the GAR monument. We hope to see many of you at the monuments for these important, solemn and inspiring services. Veterans should never be forgotten. Notes from the Town Board Recreation trail update The Town Board held a public hearing on the proposed purchase of a trail easement to extend the South Hill Recreation Trail all the way to the Tioga County line – a 7.8-mile addition. The comments were mostly in favor of the trail extension. Some additional information was requested by board members and the public. Information on costs has been obtained and a special meeting of the board to consider approval of the easement was held. The easement involves four towns: Ithaca, Caroline, Danby, and Dryden. After all four towns approve the proposed purchase, NYSEG (which currently owns the land for the easement) will apply for approval of the sale from the Public Service Commission. Revised zoning possibility for business . One zone is the Hamlet Center Zone The town zoning ordinance divides the town into several zones which includes some properties on state highways (96B, 96, and 34) in the central, more populated portions of the town. In this zone, most types of businesses are allowed (with some restrictions). A second zone is the Hamlet Neighborhood Zone which surrounds the Hamlet Center Zone. In this zone, there are more restrictions on allowed businesses. We are considering a revision to the zoning ordinance that would allow more businesses to be located in the portion of the Hamlet Neighborhood Zone on state highways. This could encourage more businesses to locate in Danby . 2 May 2024 Town of Danby, New York Notes from the Town Supervisor Joel Gagnon Weren’t the daffodils and forsythia spectacular this year? Neither are native to the western hemisphere but they sure add a lot to the enjoyment of spring. Besides a really nice show, the weather was cool enough for a good long run We held a public hearing on a proposal to modify our zoning law to enable free-standing commercial signs in the hamlets. The Board can only act after the County has a chance to review the proposal and comment on potential county-wide impacts. They have 90 days to do so and had not yet submitted their comments, so action was deferred to the May 6 meeting. The law will also require that sign lighting be “dark sky” compliant and not of the electronic kind. Existing signs are allowed to remain The law to enable special events by permit was sent to the town’s attorney for review. Unless he finds some fatal flaw with it, the Board agrees on the scope. We want to require permits for large and potentially disruptive events and not for other ones that have currently been allowed as either customary residential or commercial activity. Assuming the attorney doesn’t recommend wholesale revision, we should have something ready to review and potentially propose in May. If ready to go, we will schedule a public hearing and include a notification in the June issue of this newsletter. Notes from the Planner's Desk Greg Hutnik There will soon be boardwalks in Dotson Park, thanks to a 2023 Parks and Trails grant from Tompkins County and, most notably, the volunteers with the Danby Community Park Association! Another round of funding is available this year, which will be applied for to help offset the bulk of the cost to the Town of the easement being purchased from NYSEG for the South Hill Recreation Way Trail Extension. Grant-related, I will also be applying for another round of the Tompkins County Housing Affordability Program funds to help the Town explore larger funding programs for homeowner rehabilitation assistance. The $500K from the CDBG Homeowner Rehabilitation Program that was awarded to the Town in 2023 is now fully committed; however, there are still Danby residents on the waitlist. If you are a low to moderate-income single-family homeowner (earnings up to 80% of the Area Median Income) who needs code, health and safety, weatherization, and energy efficiency repairs to your home, please contact me so I can put you on the waitlist for if the Town gets awarded additional funding. Housing-related, we will be submitting a Letter of Intent to the NYS Office of Homes and Community Renewal to apply on behalf of the Town of Danby to become a Pro-Housing Community. If we receive this designation, Danby will be prioritized for certain State funding programs related to housing, community revitalization, and economic development initiatives. More information about the program is found online here: https://hcr.ny.gov/phc. The Planning Board issued approval for a single-family home at 956 Steam Mill Road at their April 16 meeting and also began review of a proposed minor subdivision (1 lot to 2 lots) at 18 E Miller Road. A hearing will be scheduled for the May 21 Planning Board meeting to act on the subdivision. This property is also going before the Board of Zoning Appeals on April 23 to allow construction of a single- 3 May 2024 Town of Danby, New York family home to be setback further from the road than the required 20-foot maximum setback in the Hamlet Neighborhood Zone District. If you have any zoning or planning related questions or comments, or would like to schedule a time to meet, please call 607-592-0417 or email planner@danby.ny.gov. Notes from the Town Clerk Mariah Dillon The Danby Town Clerk, together with the Danby Code Officer, is looking at software for the town clerk’s and the code officer’s required functionality. Important tasks of the clerk's office computer applications are going away with the upgrade to Office365, while code software currently lacks critical functionality. Another missing hinge in the system, is not having our building codes codified! What’s that? Codification means getting all of Danby's codes and local laws put into a searchable online digital format! The goal is to keep them up-to-date, organized logically, and to have them readily available and at the fingertips of Danby - and potential future Danby - residents. We have left no stone unturned in looking at the multitude of software applications, both municipal and small business centered. We even found systems that might serve both of our functions, from building permits to dog licenses (they exist). A system with GIS capabilities would allow the planner and code officer to track building and planning cases in an online map that could be reviewed by the public. Having building codes codified would benefit everyone. New software costs money. We're looking at all the possibilities, and hope to bring potential solutions to the board in May. Tompkins County Legislature News Dan Klein Rapid Medical Response Program Launches The Rapid Medical Response project launched on April 2. We now have 3 vehicles stationed around Tompkins County that can provide medical rescue services to the rural parts of our county. These are Emergency Medical Technicians, but they do not transport people. The very first call they received embodied what we envisioned for this program. A older woman who lives alone fell and injured her hip. The Rapid Medical Response vehicle was there in 7 minutes and helped stabilize her. The ambulance took 22 minutes to arrive. That is no criticism of the ambulance service. It’s just the reality of resources and geography that the average response time in some of our rural towns is greater than 20 minutes. The national average is 4 minutes. This whole scenario also felt personal to me. My 93-year-old mother, who lives in another part of the state, fell and broke her pelvis shortly before Christmas. She waited a long time alone in her house before help arrived. Tompkins County received a NYS grant for the cost of the first year of this program. Discussions are ongoing about how future years will be paid for. 4 May 2024 Town of Danby, New York Broadband Updates Another long-term project that directly affects life in Danby also took a big step forward recently. Tompkins County will be partnering with Point Broadband to reach unserved addresses with broadband internet. There are multiple state and federal grant programs opening up. A new one that may be particularly relevant to Tompkins County was announced just one week ago (as I write this in mid-April). There are many moving parts, so it’s difficult to predict at this moment when the project will be completed. The total project cost is estimated at $7.5 million, but it is possible that we will be able to reach all the unserved addresses in the county without using any local tax money. There is another broadband grant that has been submitted by the not-for-profit Southern Tier Network to reach some of the unserved addresses in Danby and Caroline. That grant award should be announced by the time you read this. The Towns of Caroline and Dryden are developing their own municipally-owned broadband service. Because of funding sources and timelines and more, those projects are being handled separately from the projects described above. We kept them separate at the request of the Towns of Caroline and Dryden. Airport Safety Funding The Federal Aviation Administration is requiring us to replace what is called the Crash, Fire, and Rescue Building at our airport. The County just received $1.5 million of congressionally-directed spending from Senator Chuck Schumer. Combined with some other grant money, we will now be able to complete this project. We are very grateful to Senator Schumer. 5 Plant Exchange Dan Klein The 32nd annual Plant Exchange will take place on Saturday May 18, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00, outside the Danby Fire Station on route 96B. This free event is an opportunity to swap, donate, and try new perennials, houseplants, seeds, annual seedlings, and anything else garden- related. It is not necessary to bring a plant in order to get a plant, nor is it necessary to stay the whole time. It's much better to divide plants in advance so they don't suffer in the heat on the day of the Plant Exchange. Label what you bring if you can. Also, make sure there are no earthworms in what you bring. There is an invasive non-beneficial earthworm in our area that we don’t want to spread. For more information contact Dan Klein at 272-7582, or danbydan@hotmail.com. May 2024 Town of Danby, New York 6 Danby Seniors Theresa Klinger Join us on Thursday, May 2nd for our monthly dish to share at the Danby Community Church, 1859 Danby Road. Bring your own table service and a utensil to serve your dish. Everyone over age 55 is invited. This month's entertainment will be the acoustic guitar duo Friday at Fred's from Endicott, NY. They have been making the "senior circuit" in Broome and surrounding counties for several years to great reviews. You can find more information about them on their Facebook page. The June meeting will be held on June 6th. We are working on a bagpipe player for entertainment. The first trip of the year is on June 7th to see the Broadway show, Jersey Boys, at the Rev Theatre in Auburn, NY. There are still a few seats left. If you are interested in attending, please get in touch with Pat Phelps at patriciaphelps2.0@gmail.com. SAVE THE DATE: The July BBQ will be held on July 11th at the Eagles Club in Ithaca, behind Wegmans. More information is coming soon! Jennings Pond Mary Ann Kozak Jennings Pond will open for swimming this summer! Our beautiful Jennings Pond Recreational Area offers fishing, canoeing, kayaking, hiking trails and scenic views. Jennings Pond is at the headwaters of the Buttermilk Falls watershed and is part of Buttermilk State Park. The Town of Danby funds the Jennings Pond Swim program every summer so town residents can enjoy free swimming! We have a lifeguard this summer! But we also are willing to hire more lifeguards! The Jennings Pond Swim Program will reimburse prospective lifeguards for any expenses incurred for lifeguard training. For more information, call or text Mary Ann Kozak at 607-342-7969. Whittling at the Danby Primitive Pursuits program, Dotson Park Pictures from youth programs Climbing on a very big fallen tree at Stewart Park May 2024 Town of Danby, New York Youth Programs Heidi Doggett hd289@cornell.edu) Beginning in May, Danby will have its last round of youth programs before summer. Summer registration will open the second week of May. A list of summer programs will be published in next month’s newsletter. Please contact program educator Heidi with any questions, hd289@cornell.edu or 925-240-3572. All the Above (grades 6-8), Mondays 5/6, 5/13, 5/20, *NO PROGRAM 5/27*, 6/13, 6/10, 6/17 Boynton Middle School 3:30pm-6:00pm (grades 4-5) Tuesdays 5/7, 5/14, 5/21, 5/28, 6/4, 6/11 Danby Town Hall/Dotson Park 2:30pm-5:30pm Cooking, crafts, games, or park? You can choose all the above! Now that the weather is warmer let's try some outdoor adventures and BBQ on clear days, then choose from crafts, indoor games, or cooking when it's raining. NOTE: For grades 4- 5, Dungeons & Dragons will be an option, especially on rainy days. We will have some days with no D&D to make sure youth who want it get lots of outside time and chances to play other games. When D&D is running there will be alternate game and craft options available. Dungeons & Dragons/Magic: the Gathering/Games (grades 6-8), Wednesdays 5/1, 5/8, 5/15, 5/22, 5/29, 6/5, 6/12 Boynton Middle School 3:30pm-6:00pm As the weather warms up we’ll have more chances for outdoor games in addition to our usual D&D/Magic options. We’ll end the school year with our traditional medieval-style feast. Sneaky Crafts and Surprises (grades 4-5) Thursday 5/2 2:00-5:30pm South Hill Elementary Youth voted to extend this program by a week so they could meet all their goals for making art and leaving it in public spaces to spread good vibes. Danby Primitive Pursuits (grades 4-5) Fridays 5/3, /10 2:30-5:30 Dotson Park Join us for our last two sessions of joint programming with Sean Cornell from Primitive Pursuits. Possibilities include building fires, whittling, tracking, playing outdoor games, and more. Parade Prep and Crafts (grades 4-5) Thursdays 5/9, *NO PROGRAM 5/16*, 5/23, *NO PROGRAM 5/30 (marching in parade instead, separate signup)*, 6/6, 6/13 South Hill Elementary School 2:00pm-5:30pm Whether you’d like to join us marching in this year’s Ithaca Festival Parade or you just want to kick back for some relaxing crafts, you can hang out with us at South Hill for these last few Thursdays of the school . March in the Ithaca Festival Parade (grades 4-8) Thursday 5/30 Downton Ithaca 5:30pm-7:00pm (actual end time depends on parade slot assignment) March with us in the Ithaca Festival Parade! This year’s theme is ‘Let the Sunshine in.’ We may be marching with puppets or various other props to represent what we do in our programs. Cardboard and duct tape boat? Giant “flaming” prop marshmallows on a stick? Enormous D20? Youth will be planning and making it in the Thursday programs leading up to the parade. 7 May 2024 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 Community Church Contact: Joan Barber Open: 3rd Thur 4-6 pm Danby Food Scraps Pickup every Sat 9am – noon behind Town Hall Danby Community Parks Association (DCPA) Website: dotsonpark.org dotsonpark@gmail.com Danby Rural Cemetery Contact: Sharon Boda Sharonboda@gmail.com Danby Seniors Contact: Pat Phelps patriciaphelps2.0@ gmail,com Luncheons: 1st Thur at noon Danby Community Council President: Pamela Goddard Website: danbycc.org Meeting: 1st Thur 7pm Danby Tosspots (Open Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting) Wed 7pm virtual West Danby Community Association (WDCA) Contact: Pat Curran pc21@cornell.edu Danby Library News Cindy Parlett In paying homage to our local authors there is an entire display case dedicated to them. DVD’s, children’s books,Young Adult, biographies and Adult Fiction can be found here. Come in and see for yourself the talented authors that are in our community. 8 Niki Alling Amy Dickinson Mary Ellen Gleason Linda Grace Sequoya Griffin Eleanor Henderson Lamar Herron Robert Lieberman Richie Moran Gail Mazourek The Payton Family Karl Pillemer PhD GN Price Bob Proel Beth Saulnier Steve Lawrence Dr. Bill Thomas May 2024 Town of Danby, New York Monthly Meeting Schedule At-A-Glance Group Day Date Time Call-in by Phone Meeting ID Town Board* Mon 5/6 6:00pm 1-929-205-6099 882 2697 6101 905098 WDWD Wed 5/1 5:00pm In person West Danby fire station FD Tue 5/14 7:00pm I n person at the Danby Fire Station CAC* Tue 5/14 7:00pm 1-929-205-6099 835 4940 5296 879507 DYC Thurs 5/9 7:00pm Online - contact jsorrentino@danby.ny.gov Town Board* Mon 5/20 6:00pm 1-929-205-6099 847 9505 5187 308958 PB*Tue 5/21 7:00pm 1-646-876-9923 893 3897 1114 956288 BZA (Tentative) Tue 5/28 7:00pm TBD 817 1432 4705 398041 FD Tue 5/28 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: Kelly Maher planningboard@danby.ny.gov Meets: 3rd Tuesday at 7pm Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) Chair: Earl Hicks bza@danby.ny.gov Meets: 4th Tuesday, as needed Conservation Advisory Council (CAC) Chair: Margaret Corbit cac@danby.ny.gov Meets: 2nd Tuesday at 7pm Danby Youth Commission (DYC) Chair: Jamie Sorrentino jsorrentino@danby.ny.gov Meets: 2nd Thursday at 7pm Fire District (FD) Secretary: Sharon Gaden, secretary@danbyfiredistrict.org danby.ny.gov/depts/danby-fire-district Meets: 2nd & 4th Tuesdays at 7pm Danby Volunteer Fire Company (DVFC) Chief: John Gaden, jgaden@danbyfiredistrict.org danbyfiredept.org West Danby Fire Department (WDFD) Chief: Robert McCray rmccray@danbyfiredistrict.org westdanbyfire.com West Danby Water DIstrict (WDWD) Contact: Scott Wendt, swendt@danby.ny.gov Meets: 1st Wednesday at 5pm 9 May 2024 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 Mon and 3rd Mon Leslie Connors Paul Hansen H Katharine Hunter Pat Woodworth townboard@danby.ny.gov Town Clerk Deputy Town Clerk Hours: Mon–Fri 11am–4pm Mariah Dillon 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-Wed 8am-11am Garry Huddle Theresa Klinger Diane Gair dgair@nycourts.gov Town Planner Hours: Mon–Fri by appointment Greg Hutnik, 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 Danby, New York From: 1830 Danby Road Ithaca, NY 14850 PRST STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No.428 Ithaca, NY 14850 Phone: +1-607-277-4788 https://danby.ny.gov Welcome to the Danby Town News! Questions? Email us at townnews@danby.ny.gov