HomeMy WebLinkAboutTB Minutes 1987-04-13 TOWN OF ITHACA
REGULAR BOARD MEETING
April 13 , 1987
At a Regular Meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca ,
Tompkins County , New York , held at the Town Offices at 126 East
Seneca Street , Ithaca , New York , at 5 : 30 P .M . , on the 13th day of
April , 1987 , there were :
PRESENT : Noel Desch , Supervisor
Shirley Raffensperger , Councilwoman
Gloria Howell , Councilwoman
Patricia Leary , Councilwuanan
ABSENT : Henry McPeak , Councilman
Marc Cramer , Councilman
Robert Bartholf , Councilman
ALSO PRESENT . Robert Flumerfelt , Town Engineer
Robert Parkin , Highway Superintendent
Andrew Frost , Building Inspector/ Zoning
Officer
Susan Beeners , Town Planner
John Barney , Town Attorney
Norbert Schickel , Eastwood Commons
Ed Cobb , 1005 Danby Road
J . Peck , 1021 Danby Road
Karl Niklas , 1005 Danby Road
Mary Wessel , 1013 Danby Road
Representatives of the Media .
Fred Yahn , Ithaca Journal
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
The Supervisor led the assemblage in the Pledge of Allegiance .
I
REPORT OF TOWN OFFICIALS
Supervisor ' s Report
Water and Sewer Project
Supervisor Desch reported that the referendum period has expired an
no petitions were filed . The design phase is moving along and we
will soon be contacting Albany to find out where our application
for approval by Audit and Control stands . We have an item on the
agenda for additional technical support perhaps to design the water
pump station and/ or the sewer pump station , what ever . He went on
to say the problem being with all the other projects that are on
the board , some kind of a balance will be needed to keep all the
things moving . He went on to say that they had received a proposal
from Stearns & Wheler but it ' s not in the realm of doing .
Miscellaneous
At some point we should consider an executive session as we have
three zoning cases that may involve litigation that the Town
Town Board 2 April 13 , 1987
Attorney will have legal information on . He went on to say another
item kind of relating to zoning , future legislation , we have had a
number of cases in the past few years where property owners are
filling in holes on their property or low areas or whatever without
the benefit of any Town involvement or any Town plan . There isn ' t
any control at the moment . There are a lot of reasons why this can
be detrimental even in those cases that don ' t fall into wetland or
flood zone . He went on to say the thing that he is increasingly
concerned about are the discussions about new County landfills and
the cost to dispose of materials in those landfills will put
pressure on those contractors to dispose of construction material
in other fill areas . We have seen this in a couple of places in
the Town and what I ' m thinking of potentially is a local law that
will legislate the kind of material that can be deposited and
require a plan to be submitted when fill is over a certain volume
and/or depth . The other question is , some of these cases go on for
quite a number of years where a little filling is done at a time so
that the earth lay bare with no vegetation for a long period of
time . Obviously where we are involved with subdivisions we have
the necessary control because we have the site plan which is
carefully designed and monitored .
East Ithaca Circulation
Supervisor Desch stated that the East Ithaca Circulation Committee ,
there is some wording the the draft Newsletter which is perhaps
worth reading - it ' s under the title of Judd Falls Road One-Way
Experiment - "The one-way experiment will end during the day on May
15 , 1987 . Evaluation of the experiment and development of
recommendation for permanent improvements will be prepared in
conjuction with work of the Tompkins County East Hill Circulation
Study Committee chaired by County Representative Stuart Stein .
That Committee consists of City and Town representatiaves and is
currently considering a study of the entire East Ithaca roadway
networks and the influence that various alternatives , such as the
one-way system in Forest Home , will have on the Ithaca Community .
The study if funded could be completed by December 1987 . Permanent
improvements could then take place in 1988 and beyond . It is quite
probable that the first step should be the upgrade of the portion
of Caldwell Road from the College of Veterinary Medicine to Forest
Home Drive . "
The Supervisor went on to say that the problem with the study is
that if it is funded , it means that no permanent improvements can
be done in the Forest Home area until 1988 or beyond so he stated
that he was suggesting that it would be worthwhile to move forward
if we can devote the staff time to get the design of the upgraded
Caldwell Road ready so that perhaps it could be a project to be
done over the fall and winter as there is a fair amount of
excavation involved , grading and that sort of thing . He stated
that it seemed to him that that is one of the first steps ,
regardless of whether we build a by-pass or make Judd Falls Road
one-way or whatever .
Southern Cayuga Lake Internmnici_pal Water Commission
Supervisor Desch stated that he has not , in the past , reported on
the Water Commission activities and he also felt the Board members
should have a copy of the minutes . Most of it is pretty routine ,
however , we are entering a substantially different phase of
activity partially as a result of the Trust Company getting out of
the utility billing on July 1st of this year . At the current time
we are running our own billing program in parallel with the Trust
Company so that we will be ready to go on line with the July
billing . Having gone through the agony of getting our own system
set up it has become quite clear we are understaffed in the
administrative area and the Commission today approved this new
Town Board 3 April 13 , 1987
position , you have a job description in your packet of information .
They will be advertising for this position over the coming weeks .
The relative rapid growth in the five member municipalities will
place an additional burden on our technical staff and
administratively there are a lot of details that just need to be
handled on a more effective basis .
Town Engineer ' s Report
Town Engineer Robert Flumerfelt noted that in the Board members
folders was a single page report beside the items on the agenda .
The staff is currently working on the hospital access road ,
primarily now on the road alignment and drainage plans .
Negotiations are still in progress for obtaining the land that we
• need for that road . The Highway Department heating system , we have
now received the contractors bond and insurance certificate but
they needed to be modified slightly , so they have been returned to
the contractor . Hopefully we will be able to get the contract
signed within a week .
He went on to say that Highway Superintendent Robert Parkin ' s crews
have been working on Forest Home Drive and working on the gabion
baskets at the walkway , this is ahnost complete . Some top soiling
and bank grading still needs to be done . We are making
preparations for guardrails along the reconstructed sections . The
final paving of that portion of the road will be coordinated with
Cornell as they reconstruct their section to the west .
The Engineer went on to say that there are several subdivision site
plans reviews in progress . We are now taking traffic counts on
Judd Falls Road now that the traffic has more or less stabilized
since the beginning of the one-way experiment . We hope to have
some good counts to compare .
He went on to say that there was one other item , that Tompkins
County this year again has a matching funds program for stream
preventative maintenance program to reduce the impact of floods .
We have applied in previous years for portions of amounts to make
improvements on drainage ways . This year we will again apply . He
stated that he was thinking of the Park Lane drainage way down
toward where it runs to Slaterville Road ,
Councilwoman Howell stated that she did not understrand the road
counts too well but is there any way to tell how many cars go the
wrong way on Judd Falls Road , through the one-way .
Town Engineer Flumerfelt responded no , not the way they are set up .
Councilwoman Howell stated that she had been faced with this
problem many times .
Town Engineer Flumerfelt stated that there have been a lot of
complaints about this . He went on to say that he had asked the
Cornell Safety Patrol to step up their patrolling of this area .
Highway Superintendent ' s Report
Highway Superintendent Robert Parkin stated that he had nothing to
add to his written report , which Board members have . He noted that
the new dump truck had arrived at Spencer Ford and Blackwell ' s have
installed the dump body and hoist and snow equipment . We should
receive it this week .
Building Inspector/ Zoning Officers Report
Town Board 4 April 13 , 1987
Andrew Frost , Building Inspector/ Zoning Officer noted that the
Board members had his written report which is self explanatory .
Five complaints were investigated . One sign permit issued .
Sixteen buildings were inspected . These inspections were at
multiple dwellings . When we have a fire in the Town of Ithaca we
receive notification from the fire department and in most cases we
are required to inspect those fires .
Town Planner ' s Report
Town Planner Susan Beeners stated that she had presented a
quarterly report to the Board to show the Board what has been
happening over the last few months . It also describes some of the
• committees she participated in .
Report of County Board of Representatives
County Board of Representative Beverly Livesay stated that she
would like to make a continent on the Park Lane drainage . She stated
that it seemed to her that a few years ago that project was
submitted and was deemed not to be eligible because it was a
interior , or subdivision drainage problem rather than a stream
problem . She stated that she thought she would report this now
incase the Town wanted to work on another project that might be
considered more eligible .
She went on to say that she noticed in the County B&A Committee
meeting today that some budget transfers for the CHIPS program were
approved for Warren Road and Dubois Road projects . These are
County road within the Town and she asked if. there were any
problems or if the Town and County had good working relations ?
Supervisor Desch remarked that the Town looked forward to the
Dubois Road was the intersection relocation , but questioned what
was happening on Warren Road?
Mrs . Livesay stated that she thought it was primarily drainage on
the hill . The people in the area would like scene improvements made
for pedestrians and bicyles , at the same time . I have mentioned
that to the committee .
Mrs . Livesay went on to say that another big issue was the landfill
siting issue . The issue of whether we should develop a benefits
package or a hold harmless package for the municipality that wins
the landfill . And whether this should be developed ahead of time
or negotiated with the municipality . She stated that she felt it
should be developed ahead of time and then it would be what the
County would offer regardless of the municipality .
Supervisor Desch stated that the Town is very concerned about the
site in Enfield fronting on Sheffield Road as there are 45
residents there and Enfield has a mobile home park also adjacent to
it .
• Mrs . Livesay responded that there are several situations where the
community that gets the landfill will not bear the major impact ,
the impact will be borne by the adjoining communities .
Supervisor Desch responded that it points to the desirability of
having the plan in place ahead of time . However , it should not
stop at the municipal boundary in terms of its affect on land uses
and property values , road problems , other environmental aspects .
Town Board 5 April 13 , 1987
Mrs . Livesay reported that the Summer Youth Employment Program will
be starting up again soon .
Supervisor Desch responded that the Town probably would not be
taking on as many as we have in the past .
Town Attorney John Barney remarked that there seems to be some
confusion over the workmans compensation responsibility .
Mrs . Livesay responded that they are employees of the
municipalities , the County pays one-half of the salary up to a
certain point but all of the responsibility of the employees has
been with the municipality that does the hiring . The municipality
bears the responsibility for the hiring , for the supervision , etc .
• Mrs . Livesay went on to say that she had been asked by Councilman
Cramer why the County was letting the Fire Investigation Committee
go . The answer that we got at the Board meeting was that
apparently there are some organizational problems . We started it
under a grant and for the County to continue , we need to make some
changes into it . It was referred to the Fire Advisory Board or
committee of theirs . It came back out and was tossed back to the
County ' s Public Safety Committee . It got down to the wire but it
was thought we couldn ' t go on without knowing what we were doing
and we weren ' t ready to know what we were doing so I think it was
not the intention that the program be ended , although it has , it
will need to get the answers to these questions then a plan can be
submitted to the County .
Mrs . Livesay noted that the County was looking for a new attorney ,
6 / 10 time starting about July 1st , she believed .
TOWN SPRING CLEAN-UP DAY
RESOLUTION NO . 79
Motion by Councilwoman Howell , seconded by Councilwoman
Raffensperger ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby
establishes Monday , April 27 , 1987 , as Spring Clean Up Day in the
Town of Ithaca .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Cramer , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays
none ) ,
CORNELL TRADITION PROGRAM
RESOLUTION NO . 80
Motion by Councilwoman Raffenpserger ; seconded by Councilwoman
Howell ,
WHEREAS , there is a need for additional skilled employees during
the summer months in the engineering , planning and parks
departments , and
WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca has an opportunity to participate in
the Cornell Tradition program whereby Cornell students can work for
the Town , in jobs relevant to their course of study , and the Town
would be reimbursed for 50 % of the salaries ,
Town Board 6 April 13 , 1987
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that approval is hereby given by the
Town Board of the Town of Ithaca for the Town to employ four
Cornell Tradition students in the following areas :
One Planning Aide - Planning Department - salary $ 5 . 00 - $ 6 . 00 /hour
to be charged to appropriation account B8020 . 100 Planning Personal
Services , included in 1987 budget .
Two Engineering Aides - Engineering Department - salary $5 . 00 -
$6 . 00/hour to be charged to appropriation account A1440 . 100
Engineering Personal Services , included in 1987 budget .
One Landscape Architect/Park Management Aide - salary $ 5 . 00 -
$ 6 . 00 /hour to be charged to appropriation account B7140 . 100 Parks
Personal Services , included in 1987 budget .
Employment period would be for twelve weeks between May 21 , 1987
and August 26 , 1987 , 37- 1 / 2 hours per week .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell , and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
WATER ACCOUNT REFUNDS
RESOLUTION N0 , 81
Motion by Supervisor Desch , seconded by Councilwoman Howell ,
WHEREAS , in March 1987 , the Town of Ithaca took over , from the
Village of Cayuga Heights , the sewer billing for Town of Ithaca
residents , and
WHEREAS , Gary Duffy , 340 Warren Road was billed for sewer , and
WHEREAS , Mr . Duffy has never connected to the public sewer ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board fo the Town of
Ithaca hereby authorizes a refund of $3 . 40 for sewer to be made to
Gary Duffy , 340 Warren Road , Ithaca , New York , Account Number
188-0226372 .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none)
RESOLUTION NO . 82
Motion by Supervisor Desch ; seconded by Councilwoman Raffensperger ,
WHEREAS , in March 1987 , the Town of Ithaca took over , fran the
Village of Cayuga Heights , the sewe billing for Town of Ithaca
residents , and
WHEREAS , R . Page Dinsmore , 313 Warren Road was billed for sewer ,
and
WHEREAS , Mr . Dinsmore has never connected to the public sewer ,
NOW 'THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of
Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 11 . 55 for sewer be made to R .
Page Dinsmore , 313 Warren Road , Ithaca , New York , Account Number
188-0222703 .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell , and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
RESOLUTION NO . 83
Town Board 7 April 13 , 1987
Motion by Councilwoman Raffensperger , seconded by Councilwoman
Howell ,
WHEREAS , in March 1987 , the Town of Ithaca took over , from the
Village of Cayuga Heights , the sewer billing for Town of Ithaca
residents , and
WHEREAS , E . Kimball Milling , 206 Muriel Street was billed for
sewer , and
WHEREAS , Mr . Milling has never connected to the public sewer ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board fo the Town of
lithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 22 . 33 for sewer be made to E .
Kimball Milling , 206 Muriel Street , Ithaca , New York , Account
Number 184-0205826 .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell , and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
RESOLUTION NO , 84
Motion by Supervisor Desch ; seconded by Councilwoman Howell ,
WHEREAS , Albert George , 119 Pine Tree Road paid a corrected reading
water bill on February 1 , 1987 ,
WHEREAS , the payment and the March bill occurred so close together
that the arrears plus the penalty were posted to the March water
bill , and
WHEREAS , on March 8 , 1987 , Mr . George paid his March water bill
which included arrears plus penalty ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of
Ithaca hereby authorize a refund in the amount of $ 83 . 28 for water ,
$ 14 . 08 for water surcharge , $ 66 . 64 for sewer and $ 16 . 36 for
penalty , total refund of $ 180 . 36 be paid to Albert George , 119 Pine
Tree Road , Ithaca , New York , Account Number 170-0154446 .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell , and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none ) .
Councilwoman Raffensperger asked why there were so many people not
hooked to the sewer?
Supervisor Desch responded that is was a good question and was
revealed only because this is the first quarter we have billed for
sewer on consumption . The Board needs to make a decision as to
whether or not we enforce the requirements that people be
connected . The grace period has long been over .
Councilwoman Raffensperger remarked that as she recalled , we
requested that people connect .
• EASTWOOD COMWNS RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS AND BY-LAWS
Supervisor Desch asked the Town Attorney where he was in his
review?
Town Attorney Barney responded , page 10 of the Covenants .
The Supervisor asked the Town Attorney what cents he had in
general , prior to page 10 .
Town Board 8 April 13 , 1987
Town Attorney Barney responded that he had no real comments or any
major problems . He went on to say that he did have a question to
ask Mr . Schickel , how mechanically will they be applied to the lots
in the course of development . The parcel that is covered by these
covenants is not described in the draft that we have here .
Mr . Norbert Schickel responded , all of the Phase III property will
ultimately be eligible to be annexed but initially it will just be
the area of the two buildings that we are building but eventually
the pavilion area will become a part of the common area .
Town Attorney Barney questioned , then when this declaration is
filed , it will be filed only in respect to two lots .
• Mr . Schickel responded , two buildings , a four unit building and a
six unit building , ten units and then subsequently as additional
buildings are built they will be annexed . Eventually the balance
of the property can come under the covenants .
Town Attorney Barney asked if at the moment that area is not
subject to any other declaration ?
Mr . Schickel responded , that is correct .
Supervisor Desch questioned how the Town of Ithaca should be
included . He stated that in the case of Commonland , we were
included , giving the Town certain rights . This is mainly to insure
enforcement of ordinances and codes .
Town Attorney Barney responded that Commonland had some provisions
which he stated he was not sure had been included in Eastwood
Commons covenants nor was he sure they had been imposed on Eastwood
Commons , relating to occupancy which he thought was the principal
reason the Town was part of the covenants . He stated that it would
be a very simple to put in the same language .
Supervisor Desch responded that he would like to go back and look
at Commonlands Covenants to see what the Board had done . The
Supervisor then asked Mr . Schickel what his timeframe was ?
Mr . Schickel responded , two months ago . We are very anxious to get
this submitted to the Attorney General . We are late , real late .
He stated that he would outline the basic differences between this
declaration and the one presently in force . Basically there are
slight differences in the way the maintenance fee is exculated .
The present declaration says it may go up with cost of living , by
action of the Board , but anything in excess of that requires a 2 / 3
vote of the members . In this declaration , it does automatically go
up if the cost of living goes up and it may go up less or more with
a 2/ 3 ' s vote of the members . The other provision that is new to
this declaration is the provision for the pavilion , that is we will
be making a provision for the pavilion and for the fact that the
pavilion will initially not be owned by the association . The
financing of the pavilion requires that it not be a part of the
association property until a certain number of units have been
• built . It will be leased in the beginning with each unit owner
bearing 1 / 65th certain operating costs until such time as it
becomes part of the common area . Those are the principal
differences , others are just technical .
Supervisor Desch remarked , once the association takes over the
pavilion it will be responsible for such things as liability
insurance , accident insurance , etc .
Mr . Schickel responded yes and while it is being leased it will be
the owners responsibility .
07
Town Board 9 April 13 , 1987
Councilwoman Raffensperger remarked , these Covenants and By-Laws in
no way restrict the rights of the residents in Eastwood Commons
Phase I ?
Mr . Schickel responded , not at all . In fact it provides that they
might become a member , eventhough they are not paying for it , they
will be a way that individual , who choose to be users of the
pavilion , will have the ability to become members .
Supervisor Desch asked Mr . Schickel if he had final site plan
approval for Phase III , so you are ready to go except for building
permits on Phase III ?
• Mr . Schickel responded no , we are still working with the Health
Department . The problem is it ' s a chicken and egg kind of thing ,
you have to have this before you can get the financing , the
offering plan , etc . , one thing follows on the tail of the other . .
Town Attorney Barney stated that he noticed it had the same
breakdown between Class I and Class II lots . Since this is only
going to be applying to lots as you sell them , will you have any
Class II lots ?
Mr . Schickel responded , yes you may . As an example , if you annexed
ten units and you sold four , you would have Class II lots left .
Depending on the way it is annexed , that provision is the same as
it was in the other one .
DECLARATION OF COVENANT'S AND DEED RESTRICTIONS FOR DEER RUN
SUBDIVISION
Supervisor Desch noted that the Board had also just received copies
Of the covenants and deed restrictions for the Deer Run
Subdivision . He then asked Mr . Niederkorn to present to the Board
a brief overview of the project .
Thomas Niederkorn representative for the developer of the Deer Run
Subdivision showed the Board members the plans that were presented
to the Planning Board . He stated that the developer owns 120 acres
of land . The topography is 10 % or greater slope . Initially we
laid out a conventional subdivision so that we could show the
Planning Board how many units we would be able to get on this 120
acre site . Then we got approval to do a cluster subdivision which
involves a Planning Board site plan review . You can see the lake
from certain portions but primarly it overlooks East Hill and the
Cornell Campus . The cluster consists basically of consolidating ,
which allowed us to get 180 units on this site . We consolidated
150 of them into cluster and the remainder on conventional lots on
small cul-de-sacs . The clusters are for sale houses and there are
39 clusters . They are in groups of four except for Phase I , there
are five phases . There will be clusters of three , cluster of four
and cluster of five . There will be two types of units , those on
the up hill side of the road and those on the down hill side of the
road . The reason for the difference is related to the view , since
• all of the view is out to the East they had to have a different
arrangement of the roans and garages so that each unit would be
able to take maximum opportunity with the view . That is the reason
these units are laid out the way they are . Each unit would have
it ' s own driveway . He went on to say that the units were basically
two bedrooms , there are a few three bedroom units . The down hill
ones have the option of a basement because of the slope of the
land ,
Mr . Niederkorn , on a plan , pointed out the open spaces . He stated
that basically there is a three acre park that will be given to the
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Town Board 10 April 13 , 1987
Town , if the Town wants it . He stated that the park is located so
that it will tie into the Town pumping station and the NYSEG
right-of-way which gives you an extension of the recreation
opportunities . He stated that the NYSEG right-of-way on the other
end ties into an approximately 40 acre lot which is to be
undeveloped and the reason it is undeveloped is because we are
quite sensitive to Cornell ' s environmental needs with the South
Hill swamp . Cornell is very concerned about bees and about certain
kinds of birds , etc . If we can stay , almost entirely from that
area , it would be much better to do so . The area is heavily
wooded . He stated that the developer is in the process of deeding
the 40 acres to Cornell . It is the intent that the whole 40 acres
will remain forever undeveloped . There are other open areas but
• they are just ccxmmon lands all around the clusters . There is roam
for a community garden if the association desire this .
Councilwoman Raffensperger remarked , you said there were 150
cluster units , are there units that are not clustered?
Mr . Niederkorn responded yes , there are 28 conventional single
family homes .
Councilwoman Raffensperger asked what stage was this project in at
the Planning Board?
Town Planner Beeners responded , the applicants have described to
the Planning Board the concept that they will be putting into the
covenants and deed restrictions , so the Planning Board is aware of
those but they have not seen them . She stated that she understood
this was not a necessary practice if the concept of the project has
been approved .
Councilwoman Raffensperger stated that what she was really asking
is have they gotten site plan approval or preliminary or final
approval ?
Town Planner Beeners responded they have received preliminary
subdivision approval for the entire project with final subdivision
approval for sixteen units in Phase I with certain conditions
applied to any final subdivision approval .
Supervisor Desch suggested that the 23rd of April at noon was a
possibility to consider the covenants and deed restictions , if
agreeable with the other Board members not present .
PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER AN ORDINANCE AMENDING AND RESTATING THE
ORDINANCE REGULATING TRAFFIC AND PARKING IN THE TOWN OF ITHACA
Proof of posting and publication of notice of a public hearing to
consider an ordinance amending and restating the ordinance
regulating traffic and parking in the Town of Ithaca having been
Presented by the Town Clerk , the Supervisor opened the public
hearing .
• Supervisor Desch asked the Town Attorney if the ordinance was ready
for adoption ?
Town Attorney Barney responded no , the Town Engineer and the
Highway Superintendent gave us a list of the stop signs and these
need to be incorporated into the ordinance .
Supervisor Desch remarked that the Board has had a long list of
stop signs for quite sometime , are you saying this needs to be
referred to in the ordinance ?
203
Town Board 11 April 13 , 1987
Town Attorney Barney responded that the list needs to be
incoporated into the language of the ordinance . The long list
includes County and State roads also , and we cannot govern County
and State roads , so incorporating a list is not accurate .
RESOLUTION N0 , 85
Motion by Supervisor Desch , seconded by Councilwoman Raffensperger ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby adjourns
the public hearing to consider an ordinance amending and restating
ordinance regulating traffic and parking in the Town of Ithaca
until May 11 , 1987 at 7 : 00 P .M .
• (Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
CALL-IN POLICY FOR HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT
RESOLUTION NO . 86
Motion by Councilwoman Raffensperger ; seconded by Councilwoman
Howell ,
WHEREAS , the Highway Department employees have requested a policy
dealing with reimbursement when called in to work outside their
regular hours , and
WHEREAS , the Personnel Committee has net with the Highway
Department employees and Highway Superintendent to discuss a
policy ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , by the Town Board of the Town of
Ithaca that the following policy recommended by the Personnel
Committee and the Highway employees be approved :
Employees in the Highway Department who are called
in to work outside their regular working hours will
be guaranteed a minimum of four hours pay .
For example :
Highway employee called Paid
in and works : for :
2 hours 4 hours
4 hours 4 hours
8 hours 8 hours
AND FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED , that Highway Department employees
called in on an emergency will be ccnpensated , to a maximum of
one-half hour , for travel to work .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
• SALARY INCREASES
Councilwoman Leary stated that she felt the position of Secretary
was higher than the position of Clerk/Typist?
Supervisor Desch responded no , this particular position also
includes payroll duties plus time of service involved .
RESOLUTION NO . 87
199
Town Board 12 April 13 , 1987
Motion by Supervisor Desch , seconded by Councilwoman Raffensperger ,
WHEREAS , Mary S . Bryant has canpleted three months satisfactory
employment as Department Secretary in the engineering , planning ,
zoning and highway departments , and
WHEREAS , as a condition of her employment it was agreed that a
salary increase be considered at the end of three months
satisfactory employment ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , by the Town Board of the Town of
Ithaca that the salary for Mary S . Bryant be hereby increased from
$ 6 . 50 /hour to $ 7 . 00 /hour effective March 29 , 1987 and
• WHEREAS , the Personnel Committee agreed to consider a salary
increase for Patricia Punger to bring her salary more in line with
her job responsibilities ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of
Ithaca hereby authorize that the salary for Patricia M . Punger ,
Payroll Clerk/Typist , be increased from $ 7 . 00 /hour to $7 . 50 / hour
effective March 29 , 1987 .
(Desch , Raffensperger and Howell voting Aye . Nays - Leary)
TOWN OF ITHACA VUU�RANTS
RESOLUTION N0 . 88
Motion by Councilwanan Howell , seconded by Councilwcanan
Raffensperger ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves
the Town of Ithaca Warrants dated April 13 , 1987 , in the following
accounts :
General Fund - Town Wide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 88 , 933 . 81
General Fund - Outside Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 16 , 211 . 63
Highway Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 79 , 544 . 88
Water & Sewer Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 35 , 759 . 74
Revenue Sharing Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1 , 056 . 60
Capital Projects Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1 , 250 . 00
Lighting Districts Fund . . . . . . : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 455957
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none ) .
BOLTON POINT WARRANTS
RESOLUTION NO . 89
Motion by Supervisor Desch ; seconded by Councilwanan Howell ,
RESOLVED , that the Bolton Point Warrants dated April 13 , 1987 , in
the Operating Account are hereby approved , in the amount of
• $ 77 , 982 . 84 after review and upon the reconmendation of the Southern
Cayuga Lake Intermunicipal Water Commission , they are in order for
Payment •
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR WATER/SEWER PROJECT
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Town Board 14 April 13 , 1987
below base flood level if they are going into an existing
manufactured home park . The regulations have changed so that that
is no longer permissible . The placement of any new manufactured
home or substantial improvement has to be done above base flood
level . He went on to say that there is also what they call a
clarification as far the requirement for mechanical and utility
equipment , that has to be above base flood level or secured such
that it prevents water from entering and accumulating inside the
equipment . There was a change made in the definition of start of
construction , you have to get a development permit by the start of
construction . Previous to this point , in the current ordinance ,
there was different starts of construction for different types of
buildings . One special type of building was a building built on
• piles or columns , the start of construction did not occur until you
started putting the frame up . FEMA has now eliminated that special
type of classification and the start of construction for those
types of buildings is the same as other buildings . They also made
some minor clarifications as to the information that communities
gather for these regulations . After these FEMA regulations came
out , NYSDEC drafted a model local ordinance to conform with these
changes and we reviewed that and we took some of the procedural
steps in that model ordinance and incorporated them into our
existing ordinance . Basically what those things were were a more
clear enumeration of the things that have to be in a application
for a development permit that is submitted to the Building
Inspector . It also requires that the owner of the property certify
that the building has been completed in conformance with this local
law . It also clarifies that work or development is being done and
there is not a development permit , that the Building Inspector can
issue a stop work order at any day . Any work accomplished after
the issuance of the stop work order is subject to the penalty
provisions . Finally it adds the requirement that before the
occupancy of any building or the completion of any development it
isn ' t a building , the owner must get a certificate of compliance
from the Building Inspector that the work has been done according
to the local law . We also added a number of definitions , which are
federal definitions , to our local ordinance which basically just
clarifies the terms that are already existing in our local
ordinance .
Supervisor Desch questioned , those things that were in our local
law that were stricter than the original requirements we pretty
much kept in here , right?
Mr . Ruswick responded correct . The federal regulations , as they
existed , permitted have a space below a structure that was not
developed that could be built over the base flood level , our
existing local law did not permit this . This ordinance continues
that , so that eventhough federal regulations permit you to have a
garage underneath the building that was below the base flood level ,
under our ordinance as it exists and under the proposed ordinance
you would not be permitted to have that . There are some new
changes under the federal regulations that are more liberal than
what we have such as the federal regulations now allow you to place
mobile hones in a flood way , our existing ordinance says you cannot
• place mobile homes in a flood way . This ordinance continues that
saying that mobile homes cannot be placed in a flood way . A flood
way is basically the path but can be any area inundated in a 100
year flood .
Supervisor Desch noted that we also keep the frame tie requirement
which is no longer mandated , over the top ties and frame ties .
Mr . Ruswick responded yes . The old regulations required specific
tie down requirements for mobile homes , the new regulations are
1. 91
Town Board 15 April 13 , 1987
less specific on that . We have kept the original tie down
requirements in this ordiance .
RESOLUTION NO . 90
Motion by Supervisor Desch , seconded by Councilwoman Raffensperger ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby adjourn
the public hearing to amend Local Law # 5 - 1985 , relating to Flood
Damage Protection to May 11 , 1987 , at 7 : 15 P .M .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none ) .
• KAY STREET DRAINAGE PLAN
RESOLUTION NO . 91
Motion by Councilwoman Howell , seconded by Councilwoman
Raffensperger ,
WHEREAS , drainage and paving improvements for Kay Street have been
planned for construction in 1987 by Town forces , and
1 ) meetings with area residents have been held to discuss
alternative drainage plans and identify particular concerns of
neighborhood residents , and
2 ) it has been determined that a minimum impact solution to
drainage deficiencies involving deepening of roadside swales
where necessary and replacement of driveway and road crossing
culverts to require grade is desired by residents and is
feasible from and engineering standpoint , and
3 ) it is proposed that sod be cut and removed from roadside
swales prior to their reshaping , and that it then be replaced
preserving the presently well-established lawns to the maximum
extent possible , and also , controlling erosion , and
4 ) it is proposed to resurfacr the roadway with a two course hot
mix asphalt concrete overlay , and
5 ) the estimated total cost of the above improvements is $ 24 , 000 ,
and is included in the Budget for 1987 Highway Fund Permanent
Improvements Accpimt DB5112 . 453 ,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the above drainage and paving
improvements be scheduled for accomplishment by Town forces in late
April and May , 1987 .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none ) .
PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER A LOCAL LAW AMENDING THE ZONING
ORDINANCE BY REZONING FOUR PARCELS OF LAND ON DANBY ROAD , TOWN OF
• ITHACA TAX PARCEL NO . 6-43-1-7 , 6- 43-1-8 , 6-43-1-9 AND 6-43- 1-10
FROM MULTIPLE RESIDENCE DISTRICT TO RESIDENCE DISTRICT R-9
Proof of posting and publication of notice of a public hearing to
consider a local law amending the Zoning Ordianance by rezoning
four parcels of land on Danby Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No .
6-43-1-7 , 6-43-1-8 , 6-43-1-9 and 6-43-1-10 from Multiple Residence
District to Residence District R-9 having been presented by the
Town Clerk , the Supervisor opened the public hearing .
189
Town Board 16 April 13 , 1987
Supervisor Desch noted that the Board had already considered the
rezoning but because of a technicality we wanted to make sure the
proper notification and posting was done . He asked , if since the
last public hearing , there were any comments that anyone would like
to make .
Mary Wurzel , 1013 Danby Road stated that the neighbors , the four
houses , have written a petition and had it signed asking that the
area be returned to a R-9 zone . She stated that all the
information pertaining to this had already been discussed .
Supervisor Desch responded yes , and we know you are on record
pertaining the rezoning of the other area , 1010 and 1011 Danby
• Road , also .
Supervisor Desch asked the Town Planner if she had any convents as
to what was happening to the Hermann property?
Town Planner Susan Beeners , responded the site plan review problems
that we would have would make it possible to , if a future proposal
does come in for that one property , to examine it and to hopefully
come up with a resonable density that would be equivalent to the
R-9 zoning which is being requested now for the four lots . As far
as updates on that whole Lambrou project , the project was denied by
the Planning Board several months ago and she stated that she had
not had a further inquiry from Mr . Lambrou . She stated that she
advised Jack Hermann and his co-owners of the 28 or so acres to
cone in with a sketch plan for the entire district which could put
any possible future development into some kind of perspective . She
stated that she basically described to Mr . Hermann her concerns as
far as the drainage which is a key element in any kind of a
development of that parcel and the needs of achieving some
conpatable densities . She stated that she also suggested the
possibility of them using cluster , so we may see something .
Karl Niklas , 1005 Danby Road stated , just to put in a different
perspective , there are two essential reasons for this request . One
is that we feel that the four lots in question which will
presumably be rezoned if the Town Board approves it this evening ,
have to be tied into the neighborhood which is already firmly
established along Danby Road and we feel that this rezoning would
accomplish that . Also , it provides a context in which it is
reasonable to point out that the current vacant lot to the north of
these four homes has to be dealt with appropriately , not only from
the perspective of the Town Planner sensitivity about drainage and
wild life but also that it is frontage property and there is a
neighborhood community structure that is already established . So
those are the two principal reasons .
As no one else present wished to speak , the Supervisor closed the
public hearing .
Councilwoman Howell remarked that she would just like to review the
proposal . She went on to question , these four lots that we are
considering tonight , they already have hares built on them , they
• are not vacant lots ?
Supervisor Desch responded that is correct .
LOCAL LAW NO . 7 - 1987
Motion by Councilwoman Howell ; seconded by Councilwoman
Raffensperger ,
LOCAL LAW NO . 7 - 1987
185
Town Board 17 April 13 , 1987
A FOCAL LAW AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE BY REZONING FOUR PARCELS
OF LAND ON DANBY ROAD , TOWN OF ITHACA TAX PARCEL NO . S 6-43-1-74v
6-43-1-8 , 6-43-1-9 AND 6-43-1- 10 FROM MULTIPLE RESIDENCE DISTRICT
TO RESIDENCE DISTRICT R-9
The Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Ithaca as readopted , amended
and revised effective February 26 , 1968 and subsequently amended ,
be further amended as follows .
1 . The zoning map dated July 1 , 1954 , as amended to date , is
hereby further amended by rezoning the lands described on Schedule
A incorporated into this local law fran Multiple Residence District
to Residence District R-9 .
• 2 . This law shall take effect 20 days after its adoption or upon
the date it is filed in the Office of the Secretary of State of the
State of New York , whichever is later .
SCHEDULE A
DESCRIPTION OF LANDS BEING REZONED FROM MULTIPLE RESIDENCE
DISTRICT TO R-9 ON DANBY ROAD
ALL THAT TRACT OR PARCEL OF LAND situate in the Town of Ithaca ,
Tompkins County , State of New York , more particularly described as
follows : BEING tax parcel No . s 6-43-1-7 , 6-43 -1-8 , 6-43 -1-9 , and
6-43-1-10 as shown on the Town of Ithaca tax map No . 43 as in
effect on January 1 , 1987 , it being the intention to describe a
strip of four adjacent parcels on the east side of Danby Road with
an approximate depth of 150 feet fran the highway right-of way line
and a length of approximately 589 feet alon the highway
right-ofway line .
Supervisor Desch called for a roll call vote .
Councilwoman Howell Voting Aye
Councilwoman Leary Voting Aye
Councilwoman Raffensperger Voting Aye
Supervisor Desch Voting Aye
Local Law No . 7 - 1987 , was thereupon declared duly adopted .
REPORT ON FIRE STATION SITES
Supervisor Desch stated that this would be a brief report to the
Town Board , the official action will be before the Town Zoning
Board of Appeals on April 29th . They will be holding a public
hearing to consider the use . There are three specific sites , one
on South Hill and two on West Hill . The one on South Hill is a one
acre site that is being donated by Ithaca College to the north of
the present service entrance road to the rear of the football
• field .
Town Planner Susan Beeners continued , say that a number of sites
were looked at on Coddington Road and in areas where road just
cannot handle things . The Danby Road site will not have too much
I
mpact on existing residents , it will effect one or two existing
homes but it is one of the few sites on South Hill that will not be
smack in the middle of residences . This site is adjacent to a lot
of non-residential lands and would have good coverage .
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Town Board 18 April 13 , 1987
She went on to say that at the same time , April 29th , will be
brought two alternative sites on West Hill . Again , based on a
pretty exhaustive searches for something that would serve current
City and Town needs as well as potential ones .
Supervisor Desch continued , the two sites on West Hill , one is near
the intersection of Bundy Road and Trumansburg Road , on the Perry
Farm. The other one is a portion of Cornell ' s Odd Fellow Farm
basically at the southeast corner fronting on Trumansburg Road .
The Joint City/Town Site Planning Committee prefers the Odd Fellows
site for a lot of reasons which will come out at the public
hearing . He went on to say that it might be worthwhile to take a
minutes to show what the footprint of the building might look like .
• As the Town Planner did not have the material with her , the
Supervisor asked Ms . Beeners to give the Board a mental picture .
Ms . Beeners responded that the size of the building would be some
where around 7 , 000 or 8 , 000 square feet with a double room so that
you can get four vehicles in there , it would be a drive-in facility
so that the fire trucks can drive in one-way and drive out through
the front directly on the highway . There are approximately eight
double rooms for the bunkers , that will be about sixteen people
present at one time . Ithaca College wants to see a architectual
design that is compatable with the remainder of the campus . There
has been some discussion about the loss of small practice fields
areas and the hammer throw field . We are trying to work with the
concerns of the Athletic Department . After the Zoning Board of
Appeals , if approval is given , then the committee will proceed with
selecting architects to design either one or both of the facilities
with a return to the Planning Board , at some time , for final site
plan approval .
Supervisor Desch remarked that they are looking at completing both
of these stations by the end of 1988 .
Councilwoman Raffensperger asked Supevisor Desch to explain the
rational of the system that takes it to the Zoning Board of
Appeals .
Supervisor Desch responded , the Zoning Ordinance , it ' s a public
building use , talks about fire stations , etc .
A man in attendance stated that he would like to make one comment
on having a fire station on Ithaca College Campus , it will be very
handy for all of those false alarms .
NEWSLE'iTER
Councilwoman Raffensperger stated that she only had one conment , we
know exactly whats in the water and sewer improvement project , but
they don ' t .
Councilwoman Howell noted that the section on Dog Control does not
say that dogs should be tied up .
• Supervisor Desch responded , they don ' t have to be , that is why it
says complaint procedure for dogs not under voice control of the
owner . Our local law does not go so far as to require dogs to be
physically tied . If the dog is not creating a nuisance and is in
your front yard you are okay .
Councilwoman Leary remarked , where the Newsletter heading indicates
it ' s the 27th , wouldn ' t it be more helpful to have it say how many
this year .
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Town Board 19 April 13 , 1987
The Board concurred that this change was desirable .
PERSONS TO BE HEARD
No one present wished to speak .
MODIFICATIONS TO VAULT DOORS
Supervisor Desch stated that the Town Engineer did some work on
trying to solve a few problems with the Board Room . One idea was
to build a fire door inside of the large vault door by taking the
• vault door off and having it swing in the other direction so that
we would pick up more space . However , in looking up and down both
sides of that question , that ' s not a simple inexpensive proposition
as you see by the $ 1 , 900 estimate . Ironically , when we put this
table in here the other day , we didn ' t loose very much because of
the door . The problem we face is whether the gain , that we would
achieve , is worth the expense . The other vault door just involves
changing the lock to a key . He asked the Board to give it some
thought .
SALES TAX RESOLUTION
Supervisor Desch remarked that this has been an item in the back of
his mind every since our tax bills came out in January and I began
to get quite a bit of heat after we told people we were having a
9 . 9 % tax increase and how cane their tax bills showed a 21 %
increase . When I went down through the explanation of how the
County property tax worked they weren ' t quite sure that they
believed me , for which I don ' t blame them . He went on to say that
it comes about by shifting from a fairly substantial credit against
the Town tax to a small charge . Some of the other Town Supervisors
ran into a larger buzz saw than I did . He stated that in the case
of the Town of Lansing the rate went up more severly than the Town
of Ithaca . Newfield was the only Town that ended up with a credit
this year . The procedure is very simple . He asked the Board
members present if they had any negative comments . Supervisor
Desch stated that perhaps we can consider this resolution on April
23rd , when we have a full Board .
FINANCIAL REPORTS
RESOLUTION N0 , 92
Motion by Supervisor Desch , seconded by Councilwoman Raffensperger ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approve
the Financial Reports for the months of February and March 1987 .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell , and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
• EXECUTIVE SESSION
RESOLUTION NO , 93
Motion by Supervisor Desch ; seconded by Councilwoman Howell ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby moves
into Executive Session to discuss pending litigation .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none ) .
1 7.9
Town Board 20 April 13 , 1987
RESOLUTION NO , 94
Motion by Supervisor Desch , seconded by Councilwoman Howell ,
RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby moves
back into open session .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none ) .
RESOLUTION N0 , 95
Motion by Supervisor Desch ; seconded by Councilwoman Raffensperger ,
• RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby
authorize the Town Attorney to initiate appropriate legal
proceedings on the three zoning cases .
(Desch , Raffensperger , Howell , and Leary voting Aye . Nays - none) .
ADJOUR Z=
The meeting was duly adjourned at 7 : 55 P .M .
O
Town Clerk
•