Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutTB 2026-04-28 attTB 4-28-2026 Page 1 of 5 TOWN OF DRYDEN TOWN BOARD SPECIAL MEETING April 28, 2026 Zoom Hybrid Present: Supervisor Jason Leifer, Cl Daniel Lamb, Cl Leonardo Vargas- Mendez, Cl Christina Dravis, Cl Spring Buck Other Town Staff: David Makar, Executive Director of Dryden Fiber Loren Sparling, Deputy Town Clerk Supv Leifer opened the meeting at 6:11 p.m. DISCUSSION/ACTION ITEMS Resolution to Approve Funds to Encase the Dryden Fiber Backbone Prior to Construction of the Dryden Rail Trail Bridge Abutments D Makar informed the Board that the upcoming construction of the abutments for the Rail Trail bridge over Route 13 could present a high risk to the existing fiber backbone. Initial project assumptions regarding the depth of the fiber were found to be inaccurate, requiring an immediate engineering solution. While it was believed the fiber backbone was directionally drilled 10 feet below ground, recent discovery revealed the fiber to actually be between five and nine feet deep. Construction of the massive bridge abutments on either side of Route 13 directly over the fiber line threatens to crush the 144-count glass fiber and its PVC pipe encasement. Instructions to ensure the fiber was at least 10 feet below grade were never formally transmitted in writing to Hunt by the original bridge engineers or Town representatives. D Makar offered the Board two primary options to resolve the depth issue, recommending option 2. Option 1 is to move the network northwest or southeast to completely avoid the Rail Trail bridge. This would require a new 4-inch conduit to be bored under Route 13, installing new fiber, and splicing all 144 pieces of glass fiber at both ends. The cost for this option is estimated at $90,000-$110,000. Option 2 is to dig down to the existing network, compact the soil, install two 24-foot split pipes under and over the fiber, and cover these with gravel, soil, and concrete. The abutments would then go in over the concrete. The cost for this option is estimated at $40,000 for labor and $1,500 for materials. The bridge construction is slated to begin on June 1, so the fiber encasement will have to be completed by May 15. The work will be performed by Hurd Development and Syracuse Utilities will supply the materials. If the encasement were to fail and the fiber severed, the network’s ring configuration would ensure that traffic would automatically reroute in the opposite direction. While customers would remain online, a failure would necessitate an extremely expensive new bore under the bridge to restore the backbone. TB 4-28-2026 Page 2 of 5 RESOLUTION #113 (2026) – AUTHORIZE THE DRYDEN FIBER EXECUTIVE TO SIGN AN AGREEMENT WITH HURD DEVELOPMENT TO ENCASE DRYDEN FIBER BACKBONE Supv Leifer offered the following resolution and asked for its adoption: Whereas, Dryden Fiber has existing 144 count backbone fiberoptic broadband network under New York State Route 13, and Whereas, Dryden Fiber’s existing network under State Route 13 is only underground at the depth of 60 to 90 inches and enclosed in a pair of plastic 1.25 inch conduit innerducts, and Whereas, the Dryden Rail Trail Route 13 bridge project calls for footers to be built on either side of Route 13, directly over the existing fiberoptic network, and Whereas, the existing fiberoptic network cannot withstand the weight of the bridge footers, Therefore, be it resolved that the Town Board authorizes the Dryden Fiber Executive Director to sign an agreement with HURD Development to encapsulate the network with hard plastic pipe, followed by enclosing the hardened pipe with concrete at a labor cost not to exceed $40,000. 2nd Cl Lamb Roll Call Vote Cl Vargas-Mendez Yes Cl Buck Yes Cl Dravis Yes Cl Lamb Yes Supv Leifer Yes Resolution to Approve Purchase of Dryden Fiber Materials D Makar explained that Board approval is required for the purchase of equipment from Ciena Communications for the Caroline hut because the cost exceeds the $10,000 minimum threshold for independent spending. This purchase is a critical component for extending service into the Town of Caroline and parts of Dryden and will be funded by the ConnectALL grant. Areas to be serviced by the Caroline hut include Route 79 West (Slaterville Rd), German Cross Rd, Brooktondale Rd, Snyder Hill, and Bessemer Hill Rd (up to the Town line). The project aims to meet Municipal Infrastructure Program (MIP) goals by the end of the year. Estimated service windows for various regions were provided: McLean: June-July Wood Rd: July-August Ellis Hollow: potentially fall 2026 Snyder Hill: potentially delayed until early 2027 as it is not an MIP area and priority must be given to unserved MIP areas RESOLUTION #114 (2026) – APPROVE PURCHASE OF MATERIALS FOR DRYDEN FIBER Cl Lamb offered the following resolution and asked for its adoption: Whereas, materials are needed for the construction materials for the Dryden Fiber network, Whereas, specific quotes are funded by the ConnectALL grant and the remaining is funded with Town BAN Funds, TB 4-28-2026 Page 3 of 5 Whereas, there is one quote for the materials: Therefore, be it resolved that the Board approves the purchase of a variety of materials from Graybar for a total of $41,763.15 as listed in quotes above. 2nd Supv Leifer Roll Call Vote Cl Vargas-Mendez Yes Cl Buck Yes Cl Dravis Yes Cl Lamb Yes Supv Leifer Yes Vantage Point Solutions has seen a transition in leadership. Brad Penney, the previous project manager, has left the broadband industry. He has been replaced by Cole Donahue, who has prior experience with Vantage and was described by project leadership as highly capable and efficient in managing the complex requirements of the fiber buildout. Subcontractor(s) for Easement Acquisition D Makar identified a significant legal obstacle regarding the underground placement of fiber on highway-by-use roads, which comprise roughly half of the roads in the Town. On these roads, property owners own the land to the center line. While the Town has the right to maintain these roads (e.g., plowing, paving, culverts), this does not grant the right to install utilities. On March 3, D Makar learned that Hunt, the previous engineering firm, failed to account for these legal distinctions and installed underground infrastructure on 177 parcels without the necessary easements. Efforts to piggyback on existing NYSEG underground easements were rejected by the utility. Furthermore, New York State Highway Code does not grant towns the automatic right to install new utilities on highway-by-use roads simply because they maintain the road surface. Cl Lamb wondered if there was a way to convert highway-by-use roads to Town-owned roads, those for which the Town holds title and has the authority to install utilities in the right- of-way. D Makar responded in the affirmative, but it would require every individual homeowner to give up their land. This is not much different than acquiring easements from each property owner. Generally speaking, the old roads of Dryden that date to the 18th and 19th centuries (e.g., Yellow Barn, Mt Pleasant, Pleasant Hollow, Ringwood, Bone Plain, and W Dryden Rds) are highway-by-use roads. The roads of new developments (1960s onwards) (e.g, Spring Run Rd, Thresher Pl, and Top Forty Rd), where all the utilities are underground, are Town-owned. The Town must now retroactively and proactively secure easements for a total of 429 parcels for legal underground fiber construction on highway-by-use roads. 177 parcels have already been crossed without an easement during Hunt’s 2022-2025 construction, for which remediation is needed. Easements for 234 parcels are required for planned 2026 construction in Dryden and Caroline. Easements for 18 parcels are also required to replace the Point Broadband backbone on Mt Pleasant. To address this, the Town plans to engage subcontractors to act as “landmen” to secure these easements. Acquiring each easement requires approximately two hours of work, TB 4-28-2026 Page 4 of 5 including drafting documents with tax parcel IDs, phone outreach, and obtaining notarized signatures. Cynthia Brock, a former Ithaca City Council member with 12 years of experience, was identified as the primary candidate; she is prepared to become a notary and work at a rate of $52/hr. Board members also suggested David Cutter, a retired university landscape architect and former Lansing planner with strong interpersonal skills. For a single subcontractor, the effort is expected to take 6-8 months; this timeline would be reduced with multiple subcontractors. D Makar stated that once this gets moving, they can reassess where additional help might be needed. Funding will be tracked separately, with MIP-eligible areas (like 100% of the Caroline parcels) being reimbursed by the State. If property owners are reluctant or refuse to sign the standard perpetual easement (offered for a nominal $1 consideration), the Town has identified several fallback strategies: Service incentives: Offering free broadband installation or free service for a fixed period (e.g., five or ten years), limited to the current owner. Rerouting: Directionally boring under the road to use the opposite neighbor’s land. Aerial installation: Informing residents that the alternative to an underground easement is the installation of new utility poles and overhead wires, which may impact property aesthetics. This would be expensive and subject to make-ready delays. Other options were also considered but were deemed a last resort due to their lengthy timeline of up to 3 years. D Makar noted that Dryden Fiber appears to be the only one of 17 projects in the state’s funding round to have formally identified this highway-by-use easement issue, suggesting a potential statewide oversight in broadband rollout planning. He also mentioned that a review of New York State DOT permits revealed that, while the State grants the Town access to use state highways to build the fiber infrastructure on poles and underground, the permits explicitly state they do not include parcel easements for individual properties that own to the center line of those State roads. So even the State roads are now in question with regard to easements. Underground construction on highway-by-use roads has been halted until easements are secured. Work continues, however, on Town-owned roads, such as Hanshaw, Royal, Barr, and Knollwood Rds. RESOLUTION #115 (2026) – AUTHORIZE THE DRYDEN FIBER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO SIGN AN AGREEMENT WITH A SUB-CONTRACTOR TO ACQUIRE EASEMENTS FOR UNDERGROUND CONSTRUCTION IN THE DRYDEN FIBER OPERATING AREA Cl Lamb offered the following resolution and asked for its adoption: Whereas, Dryden Fiber has identified 429 parcels where easements are needed to legally allow for underground construction in the project area, and Whereas, Dryden Fiber has identified a candidate to carry out the work required to acquire easements, Therefore, be it resolved that the Town Board authorizes the Dryden Fiber Executive Director to sign an agreement with the candidate for the purpose of acquiring easements, not to exceed $65,000 in 2026 without additional authorization. 2nd Cl Vargas-Mendez Roll Call Vote Cl Vargas-Mendez Yes Cl Buck Yes Cl Dravis Yes TB 4-28-2026 Page 5 of 5 Cl Lamb Yes Supv Leifer Yes There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Loren Sparling Deputy Town Clerk DRYDEN FIBER Easements and Highway -by-Use April 2026 DRAFT REPORT Executive Summary –April 27, 2026 ▪Highway-by-use roads require easements per parcel for underground fiberoptic construction. The property owners on highway-by-use roads (also known as highway -by-user roads) own to the center line of the road. ▪On March 3, 2026 Dryden Fiber learned that "highway -by-use" roads were not being taken into consideration by Vantage for underground construction. Soon after, we discovered that Hunt Engineering also did not take "highway-by-use" into consideration when construction Dryden Fiber's underground network between 2022 and 2025. ▪Throughout the month of March, Dryden Fiber took a multiprong approach to dealing with this issue. ▪The first was to see if Dryden Fiber could "piggyback" off existing underground NYSEG easements. ▪The second was to see if due to town of Dryden maintaining highway-by-use roads for 10 or more years converted the definition of the road to be aligned with "town owned" roads. ▪The third was to begin the process of acquiring easements both going forward for the remainder of the project and going back for the parcels we passed between 2022 and Q1 2026. ▪On Monday, March 30, I requested a full stop on all underground construction on any and all highway-by-use roads, both in the town of Dryden and Caroline, as well as on County Roads. We do not have a definitive answer on ownership from Tompkins County Highway. ▪We have been assessing the size of the project, and we have been identifying and working on the resources needed to acquire the needed easements for the project to continue. ▪We would like to begin implementation on May 1, 2026, and estimate this to take six months to complete. NOTE: This is only for underground construction, not for any aerial work, which is conducted in partnership with NYSEG on utility poles. Two Types of NY State Highways (Roads) There are two road designations in New York State. Town Owned Roads –Roads deeded to the town. The town "owns" 25 feet on either side of the center line. In this space, the town manages the paving, plowing, water management: Including ditches and culverts; AND has the right to permit other users in the right-of-way / shoulder of the road, including directional drilling (underground boring), plowing of conduit/fiber underground, placement of conduit, fiber, and handhole utility boxes. Highway-By-Use / Highway-By-User –The property owner owns to the center line and allows travelers to use the road. The property owner also allows the municipality to pave, plow, and deal with water runoff (ditches, culverts). Any other intrusion on the road or shoulder of the road or in the right -of-way (within 25 feet of the center line) requires an individual and specific easement per property. Two Types of Construction Requests There are two types of requests for easements. Construction in the Shoulder / Right-of-Way –Plowing or direction drilling alongside roads on the inside or outside of the ditch. This is approximately 98% of the easements needed. Construction to reach utility poles in yards –From time to time, the NYSEG poles we need to reach via underground innerduct (conduit) are beyond the 25 -foot right-of-way of both town owned roads and highway-by-use roads. In these cases, we need an easement to go beyond the 25 feet from the centerline. To date, we've requested five of these, and four have signed. This is approximately 2% of the easements needed. Total Assessment of Easements (April 2026) Construction Status Location Easements Needed Built by Hunt (2022-2025)Town of Dryden 177 Planned Build 2026 Town of Dryden –Town Roads 105 Town of Dryden –County Roads 21 Town of Caroline –Town Roads 87 Town of Caroline –County Roads 21 Town of Dryden –Replacing Point Broadband Backbone 18 TOTAL:429 Individual Easement Time Estimatee Step Note / Description Time (minutes) -Low Time (minutes) - High Outreach Phone Call Find a phone number and call, "Hi! We need an easement to build our network on your property." 10 30 Drafting Documents 5-7 page document with location specific information (tax parcel ID; parcel map with location of easement area; property owner names) 20 30 Send Copy Email or USPS Mail Copy (print, package, mail)5 10 Follow-up Q&A Second conversation about easement 15 30 Signing and Notarizing In-person, drive, discuss, sign, notarize 45 60 Co-signing Dryden Fiber Exec. Dir. signing 2 2 Scanning, mailing, filing Scan to PDF, mail hard copy to property owner, file PDF on server, provide print version to town clerks for sending to county for deed updates 20 30 TOTAL (minutes):117 192 Easement Subcontractor Estimate Note / Description Time (minutes) - Low Time (minutes) -High TOTAL (minutes):117 192 Number of Easements:429 429 Total minutes:52,338 73,788 Total Hours:872 1230 Total weeks (35 hours per week):24.92 35.14 Months (4.34 weeks per month):5.74 8.10 Starting May 1, 2026:October 31, 2026 December 31, 2026 Estimated Labor ($52 per hour): $45,360 $63,950 Priority Easements for 2026 Construction (234):3.13 to 4.42 months July 31 to Sept 15, 2026 *This could go faster with multiple people / additional internal support (Conor, Dave, etc.) Resolution Resolution #______ (2026) Authorize the Dryden Fiber Executive Director to Sign an agreement with a sub-contractor to acquire easements for underground construction in the Dryden Fiber operating area Whereas, Dryden Fiber has identified 429 parcels where easements are needed to legally allow for underground construction in the project area, and Whereas, Dryden Fiber has identified a candidate to carryout the work required to acquire easements, Therefore, be it resolved that the Town Board authorizes the Dryden Fiber Executive Director to sign an agreement with XXXX for the purpose of acquiring easements, not to exceed $65,000 in 2026 without additional authorization. APPENDIX A NYSEG's new "No Outage" Policy From Danella, one of Dryden Fiber's two electrical make ready partners: An outage to a customer is typically anything 5 minutes or more.When completing make ready, we often have to replace or transfer transformers, raise/lower/transfer primary and/or secondary aerial services or risers for underground services.All of these require an outage for more than 5 minutes.Prior to Feb/Mar 2026, we would be granted outages to complete this work as long as the custome r count affected was less than 5.Additional layers of approval for 5 or more was needed, and the outages in those cases may have required a workaround to avoid the more significant outage. To comply with the new “no outages” policy now, we have to do one or more of the following: 1) Install or “parallel” a second transformer to feed customers while we de -energize the existing transformer and transfer it (or replace with new) to the new pole.In some cases, we may have to install the additional transformer 1 span away from the transformer we are transferring/replacing which also required the installation of 1 span of triplex.This usually takes about 3-5 hours in our experience. 2) Jumper or “Mack out” a secondary service while the circuit is energized to avoid disconnecting a service to a customer.A single secondary service to a house has 3 wires that need to be jumpered.Many poles have between 1 and 5 services feeding customers, and 3 jumpers have to be installed for each one separately (we have completed a location recently that required 12 jumpers total).This can add 1-5 additional hours depending on the number of services on a given pole. 3) Use a generator to temporarily supply power to a customer by disconnecting the smart meter at their house and attaching ou r own meter plate with quick connect for the generator.If there are multiple customers, we have to do them one at a time or use multiple g enerators at once.The generator and meter plate quick connect have to be purchased by Danella.This will take at least 4 hours per instance. We have experienced a few cases so far that have taken more than 4 hours where multiple outage avoidance techniques were requ ired (one so far took us over 6 additional hours).That being said, we do not intend to bill for more than 4 hours per instance.There may be cases where we take less than 4 hours and as we said to both you and NYSEG, we will only bill/invoice for the hours used at that lo cation, not the full amount requested.We are all partners in this process and want to be as fair as possible.This is a new process and as we proceed under the new rule, the hope is that we achieve some efficiencies in the process for those that take over 4 hours.