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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025 03 March Newsletter March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 1 Danby Town News Danby Volunteer Fire Company Pancake Breakfast The cold weather is upon us and Danby Volunteer Fire Company will be selling warm pancake breakfast! Drive-thru or stop in for a plate of pancakes, french toast, sausage, scrambled eggs, and homefries, all for $12. The next breakfast is Sunday March 16, 2025 8-11 AM at the Danby Fire Station, 1780 Danby Road. Please join us for our last breakfast Sunday, March 16! Cash, Card, Check, Venmo, and Apple Pay are accepted. Proceeds will be used to upgrade our EMS equipment. Mowing Proposals Sought The Danby Fire District is soliciting proposals for lawn mowing at the Danby and West Danby Fire Stations for the 2025 season. Anyone interested in submitting a proposal should contact the Danby Fire District, at the address below or call 607- 319-4721, or go to the District Website, danbyfiredistrict.org, for a list of requirements. Proposals need to be submitted by 5:00 p.m. on March 7, 2025, by mailing proposal to Danby Fire District, Attn: Secretary, 1780 Danby Road, Ithaca, New York 14850, or email to secretary@danbyfiredistrict.org. Proposals will be considered at the March 11, 2025 Danby Fire District meeting at 6:30 pm. West Danby Fire Department Pancake Breakfast Saturday, March 15, 2025 See p.6 for details March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 2 Notes from the Town Supervisor Joel Gagnon Speed Limit Reductions Approved We received a response from the NYS Department of Transportation informing us that our request for speed limit reductions on several town roads has been approved. East and West Miller and West King roads were all reduced to 45 mph. West Jersey Hill was reduced to 40 mph. The signs can’t be erected until we receive the official orders, but that will be along shortly. This batch of requests was handled much more quickly than previous requests, which is much appreciated. There are many more roads where a speed limit reduction might be warranted, so I expect the Town Board to revisit the queue and send another batch along for evaluation. West Danby Polling Place Meeting Draws a Crowd West Danby residents responded to an invitation to meet with the Board of Elections Commissioners on Saturday February 15. It was a cordial exchange, but one that saw everyone in attendance arguing for why being able to vote in West Danby is important to them. No one disputed the facts of the situation. This is the smallest election district in the county and conducting elections is a substantial expense. The Commissioners suggested that Newfield could be made a “super site” so West Danby voters could vote there as well as at the Danby Fire Hall. That suggestion prompted a contrary suggestion from attendees. Could not West Danby be made a super site for Newfield residents instead? The Newfield polling site at the fire hall is not centrally located. The West Danby Fire Hall is closer for much of the southern part of Newfield. It was reported that the Newfield site has long lines at the busiest times of the day. Adding an option to vote in West Danby would ameliorate that, whereas adding West Danby voters to those already voting in Newfield would only make it worse. The Commissioners seemed willing to consider this suggestion. Housing Rehabilitation Administrator Chosen The Town Board awarded Thoma Development Consultants the contract to manage the second round of Community Development Block Grant funded housing rehabilitation. The Town of Danby was awarded $695,000 from the New York State Housing Trust Fund by the Office of Community Renewal, which administers New York State’s U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Small Cities Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. Thoma managed the first round of rehab money for the town and was the only firm to respond to the request for proposals. The town’s Planner (Greg Hutnik), Town Clerk (Mariah Dillon), and I all found Thoma to be professional, reliable, and responsive in our interactions with them so we were happy to recommend their proposal to the Town Board. The vote was unanimous. If you are among those in need of help and are not yet on the list of applicants for assistance, contact Greg for guidance on how to do that: planner@danby.ny.gov or 607 592-0417. March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 3 Notes from the Town Clerk Mariah Dillon Greeting Danby Residents! Town and County Property Tax Update As of this writing, the Danby Tax Collector has received and distributed approximately $4.347 million dollars of the $4.653 million we have been charged to collect. The distribution break-down of these funds is as follows: Town of Danby Supervisor: $3.074 million (This amount raised by taxes represents about 83% of the town & fire districts' total 2025 budget.) Tompkins County Director of Finance: $1.3 million That leaves only about $306,000 in unpaid property taxes to be collected in the next month. That’s not bad! I do expect to see the majority of these unpaid property taxes arriving at my office in the next 30 days, because Tompkins County does not tend to find favor with tax delinquent properties. After March 31st, any outstanding unpaid taxes will be turned over to Tompkins County. Excellent job! Danby residents rock at paying their property taxes!! Thank you! NYAOT Annual Conference and Training Town Board Member Connors and Town Clerk Dillon attended the New York Association of Towns Annual Conference and Training. It was a jam-packed two days of educational seminars and training classes for municipal employees. There were also exhibitors and State agencies offering their products and support. Everything from software to recoup taxes from short term rentals, to clerking, financial and permitting software. (We’re all set there.) There were companies that assist with design and installation of playgrounds, landscaping, and water treatment systems; companies that assist with legal issues and banking; and over twenty New York State agencies from NYS Assessors to NYS Workers’ Compensation Board – including, of course, my favorite: the NYS Town Clerks Association! I attended not only Town Clerk sessions but also sessions on grant funding, incentive zoning, fiscal oversight responsibilities, Hot Topics in Property Tax Collection and Tax Collection Potpourri ~ and that was just Monday! (Silly titles aside, it was all very important subject matter!) On Tuesday, I attended seminars on special use permitting, skills that make great board members, financial reporting, a Town Clerk roundtable, best practices to enhance safety across public sector operations, and how to effectively read financial reports for Town Boards. I have loads of documents collected from these classes and can’t wait to dive into it all! Thank you to the Danby Town Board and its residents for encouraging and supporting the continuing education of those who serve the Town. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you A big thank you to the many residents who help create the Danby Town News including those who tireless work to tape the edges and stick on labels. March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 4 Notes from the Planner's Desk Greg Hutnik Monthly Planner Chat Do you ever drive down Route 96B and wonder what is happening with the “Dobson property” – the old junkyard with the fire trucks and buses scattered about (and the hard-to- miss hill with the American flag on it)? A group of Cornell students are working on a plan for just that property. The team, which is part of the university’s “Design Connect” program, is working on putting together a master plan for the site as a potential venue for new development. The students will be attending the monthly planner chat on March 5 at Danby Food and Drink from 4:30–6:00 p.m., so come with your most pressing questions and best ideas for what you envision on the site. If you cannot make it to the event, please email me with your thoughts at planner@danby.ny.gov. There will be other ways to provide input on the design throughout the spring so please stay tuned and/or email me to receive updates. Planning Board The Planning Board approved a minor subdivision of the Ithaca Waldorf School’s property at 20 Nelson Road. The subdivision divides the 82-acre lot into two lots, one being 10 acres to sell off and the 72-acre piece to be retained by the school. The Planning Board also continued its review of the cluster subdivision and cluster of development rights proposal for the 60-acre property at 60 Jersey Hill Road. The proposal is to cluster the property’s development rights into a 10-acre “developable area” and create a 50-acre “open space area” to be protected from future development. Included in the 10-acre developable area is a proposal to create a new 5-acre lot, while keeping the remaining 5 acres for potential future development. The review will continue at the March 18 Planning Board meeting. Regulatory Review Committee The Town Board recently created a committee made up of three Town Board members, three Planning Board members, and myself, to review the subdivision and zoning laws to provide recommendations to the Town Board for potential amendments to each. With the major zoning re-write complete a few years ago, the Planning Board and myself have found that some of the updates might be a bit too broad in their scope and could stand to be fine-tuned. One example is that the new regulations for the Hamlet Neighborhood Zone District (see online zoning map here: https://tinyurl.com/26bayax5) require that all new primary buildings to be built between 10 and 20 feet from the edge of the road. This might work well for some types of uses, and in furthering the Town’s goal of creating a pedestrian-scale, walkable hamlet, but for someone intending to build a single-family or two-family dwelling, it might create a hardship (e.g. would you want to live 10 feet from Route 96B?). So, the committee is exploring minor amendments that could stand to be made to allow greater flexibility for development while continuing to meet the goals of the Comprehensive Plan. Fair Housing The Town of Danby is committed to providing Fair Housing within constitutional limitations to all Town residents. The Federal Fair Housing Law prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, or financing of housing based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, handicap, or familial status. If any individual or family feels that they have been discriminated against in obtaining suitable housing of their choice or if anyone requires additional information regarding Fair Housing, they can contact Greg Hutnik, Fair Housing Officer, at 607-592-0417 or planner@danby.ny.gov. March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 5 Tompkins County Legislature News Dan Klein The Federal Government and the County Government It’s hard not to feel like we are being attacked locally by the federal government. This is not a political statement. You may agree or disagree with the reasons the federal government is threatening us. But hopefully you do agree that the amount of money Tompkins County stands to lose because of federal actions would be bad for all of us. As anyone following the news knows, the federal government has announced various initiatives and then pulled them back right away. Also, the courts have stopped a lot of the proposed actions – at least temporarily. Things are moving and changing so quickly that some of the information I write now in mid- February will likely be outdated by the time you read it. The federal government has threatened to put a freeze on much of the funding local governments receive. Tompkins County government is in the process of inventorying how much federal funding we receive, and to which programs. This is a necessary first step in planning for how we would deal with a funding freeze. Tompkins County has also been threatened with a loss of funding due to our “sanctuary” status. We have been threatened with a federal investigation of our elected Sheriff. And the Ithaca City School District has been threatened with a federal lawsuit and a cut in funding due to one of their diversity activities. The “sanctuary” policy that has put a target on our backs is based on a resolution passed by the Tompkins County Legislature in 2017 titled "Resolution to Maintain a Safe, Inclusive, Government and Ensure the Protection, Order, Conduct, Safety, Health, and Well-Being of All Persons in Tompkins County.” This 5-page long resolution basically says that we will not use local resources to enforce federal immigration law. I’m no lawyer, but that idea seems to be consistent with settled law and also with the constitution. Again, you may agree or disagree with the idea behind it. Ultimately, the courts will likely decide if these kinds of laws are constitutional or not. Our “sanctuary” policy does not in any way change the fact that anyone who commits a crime locally will be subject to the normal application of our criminal justice system. Worried About Bird Flu Near You? Here are some quick facts from the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine’s Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) Resource Center: H5N1 bird flu can be passed from some species of infected animals, such as wild fowl, poultry, and cattle, to humans. The majority of cases come from exposure to dairy herds and poultry farm operations. H5N1 is able to transmit from infected birds to cats and owners are asked to watch out for symptoms in their feline companions. As of Feb. 21, there are no known cases of human-to- human transmission of the H5N1 bird flu. Additionally, there are currently no known cases of H5N1 in humans in New York state. For more information, please see: https://www.vet.cornell.edu/highly-pathogenic-avian-influenza-bird-flu-resource-center March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 6 Conservation Advisory Council Anne Klingensmith The CAC continues to work on monitoring existing easements and working on several new ones. We also continue to make improvements to the processes for monitoring existing easements and expect some improvements to be ready this spring. This month we also looked at the plans for spring planting on the Norbut Solar Farm and the guidelines for timber harvesting are almost ready. We are making plans for a presentation by the Community Science Institute in April (details to come soon.) West Danby Fire Department Pancake Breakfast Before COVID disrupted and set our lives askew, there were some really great community events. One of those events was the West Danby Fire Department's All You Can Eat Pancake Breakfast. The fire house was a place where you could come and share a meal with your neighbors or get to know your neighbors. It was also a chance for the residents of the community to meet the fire fighters who serve and protect you. It is believed by many, that knowing who your neighbors are, knowing who lives in your community and what resources are in your community, lets you live in your community with a better piece of mind. The fire fighters in this community believe that and want to help you have that piece of mind. We want to meet you, you to meet us, let us put faces with addresses so that you aren't just a number on a map. We would like for you to be able to see the equipment we have that will respond to you if a situation might arise. If you live in our community and already know us, we would love for you to come out and say Hi! Let us catch up with how things are going with you. Let all of us catch up on some of the changes that have been happening in our community. On Saturday, March 15th, at the West Danby Fire Station at 47 Sylvan Lane in West Danby, we will be hosting a breakfast once again. This is an all you can eat breakfast of Green Pancakes, eggs made to order, bacon, sausage patties, home fries, bottomless coffee or tea, juice and hot chocolate. We will be serving from 8am until 11am that morning. The cost is $12 for Adults, $8 for Seniors, $8 for kids between 5 and 12 yrs of age, Kids 4 and under are free. Please join us in March! Hope to see you there! Let some Firefighters cook you breakfast- we won't even ask you to stay and do dishes! REMINDER If you would like to access the Danby Town News ONLY on the town website or if you know someone who is not getting the Danby Town News (particularly new residents) but would like to, please send that information to: townnews@danby.ny.gov March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 7 For Young People – A History Challenge Mary Ann Barr If you like finding a new piece of history and telling people about it check out the New York State Archive’s Student Research project. The way you present your research is up to you. It can be a power point presentation, a skit with several participants, maybe a puppet show or even a graphic novelette . You can do the project by yourself or include others. Pick a history subject you are interested in and fill out the application you will find at the website - nysarchivestrust.org then click on Education and go down to “Student Research Awards.” The state Archives publish a magazine with lots of interesting stories and pictures of New York’s history. If you would like to see the magazine, go to the above website or check with me – Danby’s Town Historian at Town Hall. I am the Town Historian’s office every Tuesday and Friday afternoon. Just make sure of the hours by calling Town Hall at 607- 277-4788 before you come in. History is being made every day so there are endless topics to choose. And young people bring a fresh viewpoint to our everyday history and also are vital to the what our history will be in the future. You can make your mark by taking up the challenge of the Student Research project. Email me if you have any questions. mbarr@danby.ny.gov Civil Service Job Fair Join us in the BorgWarner Room at the Tompkins County Public Library for the Civil Service Job Fair and Info Session! Learn about the job opportunities available in local and state government, public education, and other public services. Careers in civil service are known for being stable and fulfilling, with diverse job options and opportunities for advancement. Stop by and ask us questions about how you can apply to serve your community today. The link to register can be found on the Tompkins County Public Library Events page: https://www.tcpl.org/event/civil-service-job-fair-and- info-session-51078 Jobseekers can register at the door as well! March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 8 Danby Community Groups Danby Community Library Contact: Cindy Parlett library@danby.ny.gov Open Tue 1-3pm, Thu & 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 And Park (DCAP) Website: dotsonpark.org dotsonpark@gmail.com Thu 12/7 at 7pm Danby Rural Cemetery Contact: Sharon Boda Sharonboda@gmail.com West Danby Community Association (WDCA) Contact: Pat Curran pc21@cornell.edu Danby Seniors Contact: Pat Phelps patriciaphelps2.0@ gmail.com Luncheons: 1st Thur at noon Danby Tosspot (Open Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting) Wed 7pm - virtual Danby Library News Cindy Parlett If you or someone you know would benefit from having items from the Library delivered to your home, kindly inform us. Our volunteers would be pleased to provide these for you. Contact us at library@danby.ny.gov. Do you have a love for puzzles? We have puzzles of different sizes available and we’re willing to share! When you’re finished you can keep it, return it or donate another one to us. Remember the Library is open anytime the Town Hall is open. Danby Seniors Pat Phelps The next, and first, meeting of the Danby seniors for 2025 will be Thursday, March 6 at noon at the Danby Community Church. Please bring a generous size dish to pass, serving utensil, and your own place setting. Volunteers are very much appreciated to help set up and also clean up following the luncheon. Entertainment will be Danby‘s own dynamic Ted Merritt, and his associate calling the bingo numbers! Sign-ups for this year’s trips will be available at this time. Officers will also be selected at this meeting for the 2025 year. If you would like to nominate someone, please contact me. Patriciaphelps2.0@gmail.com March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 9 Monthly Meeting Schedule At-A-Glance Group Day Date Time Call-in by Phone Meeting ID Town Board* Mon 3/3 6:00pm 1-929-205-6099 882 2697 6101 905098 WDWD Wed 3/5 5:00pm In person West Danby Fire station CAC* Tue 3/11 7:00pm 1-929-205-6099 835 4940 5296 879507 FD Tue 3/11 6:30pm In person Danby Fire Station DYC Thur 3/13 7:00pm Online- contact youth@danby.ny.gov Town Board* Thurs 3/17 6:00pm 1-929-205-6099 847 9505 5187 308958 PB* Tue 3/18 7:00pm 1-646-876-9923 893 3897 1114 956288 BZA* Tue 3/25 7:00pm TBD 817 1432 4705 398041 FD Tue 3/25 6:30pm 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) CoChairs: Anne Klingensmith, Jonathan Zisk cac@danby.ny.gov Meets: 2nd Tuesday at 7pm Danby Youth Commission (DYC) Contact: Kate Shanks-Booth kshanks@tompkins-co.org 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 March 2025 Town of Danby, New York 10 Town Officials Town Supervisor Joel Gagnon supervisor@danby.ny.gov Town Board Meets 1st Mon and 3rd Mon Leslie Connors 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 Highway Superintendent Deputy Highway Superintendent Hours: Mon–Thu 6am–4:30pm Keith Shipman highway@danby.ny.gov Jack Shawley 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 planner@danby.ny.gov Code Enforcement Hours: Mon-Fri by appointment Steve Cortright code@danby.ny.gov Documents/ Historian Mary Ann Barr mbarr@danby.ny.gov Bookkeeper Laura Shawley lshawley@danby.ny.gov Danby, New York From: 1830 Danby Road Ithaca, NY 14850 PRST STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No.428 Ithaca, NY 14850 Phone: 607-277-4788 https://danby.ny.gov Welcome to the Danby Town News! Questions? Email us at townnews@danby.ny.gov