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Home My WebLink AboutTB Minutes 1991-02-11 TOWN OF ITHACA TOWN BOARD MEETING February 11 , 1991 At a Regular Meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca , Tompkins County , New York , held at the Town Hall , 126 East Seneca Street , Ithaca , New York , there were : PRESENT : Shirley Raffensperger , Supervisor John Whitcomb , Councilman Patricia Leary , Councilwoman David Klein , Councilman Frank Liguori , Councilman Catherine Valentino , Councilwoman Karl Niklas , Councilman ALSO PRESENT : John Barney , Town Attorney Dan Walker , Town Engineer Scott McConnell , Highway Superintendent Andrew Frost , Building Inspector/ Zoning Officer George Frantz , Acting Town Planner Linda Nobles , Assistant Budget Officer Gloria Howell , Board of Fire Commissioners Kurt Jirka , Tompkins County Environmental Management Council Dooley Kiefer , 629 Highland Road PLEDGE OF' ALLEGIANCE The Supervisor led the assemblage in the Pledge of Allegiance . REPORT OF' TOWN OFFICIALS Town Supe:rvisor ' s Report Town Supervisor Shirley Raffensperger stated that she had received a call from a Town of Ithaca resident protesting the inaccessibility of the Town Court space . Additionally , the caller considers the accessibility of the Town Hall to be inadequate , unlawful in that it requires prior notice to receive services via the ramp . The Supervisor stated that she had discussed this with Jean Swartwood our Handicapped Accessibility Officer and she had in the past suggested the installation of a buzzer at the Board room door . She will look into the entire matter , especially in light of the American Disability Act of 1990 , federal legislation which increased the rights of the handicapped . Jean has provided me with copies of her reports and recommendations made in 1984 and after , perhaps , some updating she will provide them to the Town Board , The Supervisor went on to say that she had set up a Planning Coordinating Committee composed of Councilman Klein , Councilman Whitcomb , Carolyn Grigorov and herself to work with the Town Planning staff and our planning consultant . The committee will coordinate the flow to various committees of materials for the comprehensive master plan and attempt to keep that flow on schedule . Town Board Minutes 2 February 11 , 1991 Supervisor Raffensperger stated that the Governor ' s proposed budget includes a 100 % cut in per capita aid to Towns and Villages . Such a cut would have a substantial effect on the Town of Ithaca ' s budget . In a letter received today , Assemblyman Martin Luster has asked me to develop an assessment of that impact . When that ' s completed ,, she stated that she would copy the Town Board on the response . The Supervisor went on to say that that ' s the bad news . The good news is that sales tax revenues from the fourth quarter of last year and received in February increased over last years ' comparable quarter and if maintained throughout the remainder of the year would meet our budget figures . The Supervisor noted that the Town has received , from Tompkins County , a request to nominate a Town of Ithaca representative to the Economic Opportunity Corporation . She stated that as far as she knew the Town has never had such a representative . She asked if any Town Board member would like to serve and if not , to please make suggestions for a representative . Town Engineer ' s Report Town Engineer Dan Walker stated that most of the engineering time this month has been spent on the capital improvement projects . We have the West Hill water and sewer plans revised , the Inlet Valley Project is being put together to go out to bid the middle of next month . Troy Road has been buttoned up for the winter time . We are starting an inventory of existing water mains and sewer lines . We have collected maps from the City and from Bolton Point showing all the as-built locations and are going to start compiling those into a more accurate record program to help us with the planned maintenance program for the sewer , especially . He stated that he has spent a fair amount of time working with Cornell planning on different aspects of the GEIS and he felt this was now off dead center and they should be making some progress on it . The Park Lane issue is still a little up in the air , however , we have received (Done information from the developer and will be talking with the Town Attorney and the Town Supervisor to work out the details . The drainage work has been done and done well by the Highway Department and he stated that we will get that road done . Town Highway Superintendent ' s Report Town Highway Superintendent Scott McConnell reported that January was a quiet month for the Highway Department has they didn ' t have much snow .. He went on to say that they had replaced a culvert on the Northview Road sewer and that they had had an inspection from the PESH which is New York State ' s equivalent to OSHA . They had some minor deficiencies which they are in the process of changing . He stated that they had taken advantage of the weather to do a lot of vehicle: maintenance , non-routine maintenance . He noted that the Parks Department had spent 165 1 / 2 hours in January on snow removal which included the parks , bikeways and also supporting the Highway Department . The lumber for the Grandview Parks playstructure was ordered and delivered and they have started to preassemble the structure . They also built nine new picnic tables . Building Inspector/ Zoning Officer ' s Report Building Inspector/ Zoning Officer Andrew Frost reported that he had met with ]Ithaca Fire Chief Ed Olmstead and Francis Miller , Cayuga Heights Fire Chief , individually . They discussed how to improve reporting . The Ithaca Fire Department does not report false alarms nor do they report , to the Town , any EMT calls they make . Cayuga Town Board Minutes 3 February 11 , 1991 Heights Fire Department , which traditionally has not notified us , will now begin notifying us of incidents . He went on to note that they had issued seven building permits for the month , 22 certificates of occupancy , investigated five new complaints for the month of January and made 88 field visits . Acting Town Planner ' s Report Acting Town Planner George Frantz reported that they were continuing work on the Comprehensive Plan and are able to devote more time than ever on the Comprehensive Plan given the fact that development review has dropped greatly from prior levels . He noted that at the end of January they received the official census count for the Town of Ithaca . The official population in the Town of Ithaca per the 1990 census is 17 , 797 , up 62 from their preliminary estimates . We were given an opportunity to respond to those preliminary figures and noted to the Census Bureau a number of discrepancies in terms of the number of housing units in the Town of Ithaca where they had under counted . We had about a 11 % increase since 1980 . Councilman Klein noted that the Planning Board had recommended the variance for the sign at Judd Falls Plaza be denied and the ZBA approved it . He asked why the Planning Board had recommended its denial and the ZBA approved it ? Building Inspector Frost replied that the ZBA questioned why the Planning Board had denied it and there was no specific reason given , other than they didn ' t like the size . The ZBA was looking for sane findings and there were none . Town Attorney Barney remarked , the size of the sign was cut down also between the Planning Board and the ZBA . The problem with the sign was that it was a series of panels on two posts and then the post had a. roof over the entire sign . If you read your sign law, technically that roof is part of the square footage of the sign even though it was separated from the sign . He felt the Planning Board was not much concerned with the overage in the footage but there were six or seven panels and one or two of the panels disappeared between the time the Planning Board saw it and the ZBA saw it . REPORT OF 'TOWN COMMITTEES Conservation Advisory Committee Councilman Whitcomb reported that CAC had appointed a special committee -to draft the Open Space Inventory Index document and also they had prepared the Comprehensive Plan Goal and Objectives for the agricultural section of the Comprehensive Plan . Youth Bureau Councilwoman Valentino reported that the committee had been working on the feasibility of forming a Town youth bureau and have had several meetings and are not at the point of finalizing their study and report . It was clear that they would be recommending to the Town the formation of a Town youth bureau . She stated they would be furnishing the Town Board members with the information and why it was important to go ahead with it . Codes and Ordinance Committee Town Board Minutes 4 February 11 , 1991 Councilman Niklas stated that Codes and Ordinance had items on the agenda tonight so he would defer until the items come up for discussion . Comprehensive Planning Committee Councilman Klein reported that they had a new time line on the Comprehensive Plan . It keeps sliding but they were making some steady progress . Hopefully at tomorrow night ' s meeting they will have Chapter III , the goals and objectives pretty well complete . The blue sheet of the survey , the 2 , 400 sheets , each person of the twelve person cc mittee received about 200 sheets to tally and hopefully they would be completed soon so that they will have more data . FIRE COMMISSIONER ' S REPORT Fire Commissioner Gloria Howell reported that they have had questions from various members of the Town Board wondering what was happening and she felt it would be good for her to cane and talk with the Board and give them the information that she had . She went on to say that there are five fire departments and each department has their own district which they answer to when an emergency arises but they do cover for each other . We now have 37 spaces for bunkers in the five fire departments . The four spaces at Central are for the people who are active for that evening , the volunteers that are on duty for that evening . But we do have only nine bunker spaces being used right at the moment . We expect 35 to be filled by fall . The construction , because it was delayed , did cause a problem and , therefore , we did not get the total bunker spaces filled . We really are hoping that these bunkers , when they do cane in , will help us fill the additional need that we do have for people to answer our emergency alarms . Each bunker does have duties assigned to them . The duties vary as it depends on what station you are assigned to . The bunkers are also given $ 1 , 100 worth of gear and we also allow them to go to courses for emergency training , which the City of Ithaca pays for . Staffing of the apparatus is accomplished by paid firemen . We have nine paid firemen on duty and they are assigned to each primary apparatus that we have , for each shift . Although , we do assign twelve fire fighters for each shift , the extra three are there in case somebody calls in sick or on vacation , etc . We were asked why some stations sometimes don ' t have trucks in them , usually if the trucks are not in the station or answering fires they are on a training program or out for maintenance . When the trucks are out out , whoever is responsible , whoever is the driver , they are in constant contact with the dispatcher , and if they are needed they will take the truck directly to the alarm . She went on to say that she was on the Fire Board because she wanted to make sure we are not pushed into a situation where we are going to have a fully paid fire company . She did not think the people could afford it and also to make sure that every volunteer has the gear necessary to answer calls . Supervisor Raffensperger asked , when you have 35 bunkers in the fall , will that fill all the bunker spots ? Mrs . Howell replied , except for two . CONTINUED DISCUSSION OF PRIORITIES , TURK PLAN , 1991 Supervisor Raffensperger noted that the revisions to the priorities and work plan , which the Town Board approved at the last meeting , Town Board Minutes 5 February 11 , 1991 are in bold face type . You will see sane additions that came primarily from the staff and are primarily an expansion of some pretty non-specific items that were on the priorities and work plan . RESOLUTION NO , 19 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approve the revisions to the Priorities , Work Plan for 1991 . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . PERMITS FOR NOISY EVENTS Supervisor Raffensperger stated that the Town had received a communication from a landlord near Ithaca College who has had a request from the residents of that facility to hold a spring party and to get a permit for a noisy event . She went on to say that it looked like one had to justify a noisy event on some rather specific criteria but on the other hand it occurred to her that unfortunately noisy events do occur and that the issuing of a permit and the cooperation of the residents of the facility and the owner of the facility might give us a control that we never had in the past . She stated that she was not asking the Board to say they would approve the application as it canes in , but just to give her some sense as to whether or not she should encourage the owner of this facility to make this application . Councilman Niklas felt this was very encouraging and he thought this indicated that people were aware of the Noise Ordinance and this provides us an opportunity to allow people to vent some of their energy in the spring in presumably a supervised way . He went on to say that he would like to make a general comment though and he thought. there were four things that should be looked into whenever an application canes before the Board . The first one is accountability . Who is who is responsible for the party , who could be contacted if things got out of hand? Second is supervision of the party . There is a lot more to do with a party than just noise and he thought large parties like this require some supervision . He thought the third issue would be a cut off time . The permit should be granted with an understanding that they are terminated at a certain time and the fourth issue is enforcement and that is after the termination time is exceeded if the noise level is not within the standards then there should be tickets for whatever was needed to control it . The fifth issue should be notification of adjacent homeowners and he did not know if the Town should do that or the people throwing the party should but he did not think it was reasonable to grant such a dispensation without letting adjacent landowners know this event is planned and they can do their planning accordingly . Town Atton:iey Barney remarked that Councilman Niklas ' point are well taken , but it was at the discretion of the Board to grant the permit . He stated that he was not clear in his own mind whether the application for a permit for a party was what was intended in the permit process , it was more like parades , fourth of July celebrations , etc . , but he did not see any reason if the Board chose to do so , that they could not grant such permits . Councilman Leary asked , is one of the assumptions about getting a permit , is that this party will exceed our normal noise limits ? Town Board Minutes 6 February 11 , 1991 Supervisor Raffensperger responded , yes . Councilwoman Leary asked if the Board could control how much it exceeds by? Town Attorney Barney replied that he thought you could ask , as part of the application , exactly where was the noise going to eminent from , how :many amplifiers , how many bands , what was the nature . He was not sure you could put it down in decibels but you could get an idea of the proposal itself and what the noise making sources would be and the limit . If it ' s for one band , then only one band not two or three bands . Councilwoman Leary asked about the notification of the neighbors . Could anything be allowed for say , not only notifying them enough in advance but if there was a very very strong protest from the neighbors that we have some way to deny the permit , based on that ? Town Attorney Barney replied that the way he thought the Board would want to handle that is to notify the neighbors of the public hearing application for a permit and get the sense then . He felt it would be troublesome to grant the permit and then notify the neighbors , then try and retract the permit . The Board could take any objection into consideration before granting the permit . APPOINTMENT OF TOWN OF ITHACA REPRESENTATIVE TO THE TC MpKINS COUN'T'Y SOLID WASTE MANA�T COUNCIL Supervisor Raffensperger stated that Tompkins County had asked the Town to give them three names , one will be chosen by the Tompkins County Public Works and Construction Management Committee . The Town has received four applications . Councilman Liguori asked why the Board didn ' t send all four names to the County . RESOLUTION NO . 20 Motion by Councilman Whitcomb ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby recommends the names of Daryl Ditz , Dooley Kiefer , Ann Limley and William Gibson to the Tompkins County Public Works and Construction Management Committee as applicants for appointment as the Town of Ithaca representative to the Tompkins County Solid Waste Management Committee . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) , SET DATE FOR PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER THE VILLAGE OF CA YUGA HEIGHTS FIRE CONTRACT RESOLUTION N0 , 21 Motion by Councilman Klein , seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca will meet and conduct a public hearing at 7 : 30 P . M . , on March 11 , 1991 to consider t7ie Village of Cayuga Heights fire contract . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . Town Board Minutes 7 February 11 , 1991 APPOINTMENT TO HOSPITAL CORPORATION Supervisor Raffensperger stated that she had received a telephone call today from a representative of the Hospital Board who had been in consultation with the Senior Citizens Council and some other groups , to say that the Town of Ithaca has not had a representation on the Hospital Corporation for sometime . The Hospital Corporation is composed of about a hundred members from all kinds of organizations and municipalities , it is not the Hospital Board . This is a very large community based group . They asked whether or not the Town of Ithaca would consider appointing as our representative , Seth Burchard who lives at 510 Hanshaw Road and who has been involved with the Hospital Corporation since pretty much the beginning of the Hospital Corporation and is on a number of its committees He has a great deal of experience on the committee and she thought represents senior citizens in this whole area quite well . Councilman Niklas asked if Mr . Burchard would be an official spokesperson of the Town ? Supervisor Raffensperger replied that her impression is that he would represent a certain component of the people who use the services of the hospital who live in the Town of Ithaca , primarily senior citizens and this is why the Office of the Aging was interested in his being reappointed . He has been a representative from another group . They would like to have him continue on the Board and since the Town had never gotten around to having a representative , they thought perhaps we might consider that . Councilman Niklas wondered if it wouldn ' t be best viewed as a representative of that clientele rather than an endorsement by the Town Board as a representative of the Town Board , Supervisor Raffensperger replied that that was possible but there didn ' t seem to be an opening . Councilman Klein asked if this open slot for the Town of Ithaca was something that should be advertised townwide that there is an appointment: available? Supervisor Raffensperger replied , the Corporation meets only once a year and will be meeting at the end of this month . Councilman Klein remarked meets only once a year , what does it do? Councilman Niklas suggested that Mr . Burchard be appointed for one year and then to consider during the year whether or not he would be a spokesperson for the Town Board . Councilwonm Leary remarked that early on when the Hospital Corporation was first formed she was involved in a little bit of it and that annual meeting usually serves to elect the Hospital Board . They only nominated enough people to the Board to fill the slots , it wasn ' t even a real election . We are getting a recommendation from the Hospital Board to put this guy on . She felt the suggestion for a one year appoint was good since the meeting was coning up . RESOLUTION NO , 22 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves the appointment of Seth Burchard , 510 Hanshaw Road to a one year term on the Hospital Corporation Board . Town Board Minutes 8 February 11 , 1991 (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . PRESENTATION BY TOMPKINS COUNTY ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COUNCIL Kurt Jirka stated that he was a member of the Tompkins County Environmental Management Council and the reason he was here tonight was to present the Town with a copy of the Unique Natural Areas Inventory that the EMC has been working on for the last three years . Back in 1976 , a graduate student at Cornell started a research project that involved identifying unique natural areas throughout the County . Back then he identified 84 sites and the EMC thought it would be important for us to expand on those sites so we took the original inventory and added to that the sites that we thought might have unique features , environmentally speaking and bring them, to the attention of the County through this inventory . What we came up with was a list of 184 sites including 107 that have special environmental qualities . These may relate to animal species , geology , plants and other natural features . We were assisted by two local botanists who were hired by the County to plant surveys of the sites and local assistants . He went on to say that the Town would receive a copy of the whole County report , not just the Ithaca section . The purpose of doing this report was that we hoped by identifying these unique natural areas we could help alert landowners to their valuable environmental land and also hoped to b1c-ing these areas to the attention of potential developers so that they might not site destructive developments on some of these properties and also we wanted to bring these properties to the attention of cammmities such as towns and villages . The sites were identified from the former inventory , state parks and designated wetlands , knowledge from local experts and topographic maps . We tried to identify what areas might hold rare or scarce plants and animals or animal colonies . He went on to say that the inventory was an ongoing process as we have worked on this for three years and still don ' t feel we have identified all the sites in the County and hopefully every few years or so we will be able to add more sites . Mr . Jirka went on to say that 35 sites had been identified in the Town of Ithaca . Councilman Whitcomb asked if the City and Town had been combined in the list of sites ? Mr . Jirka replied , yes they have . The City was not split out? Councilman Liguori asked if they could be separated so that the Town would have their own list? Mr . Jirka replied that they would have to go back to the map to see where the sites were located and they have not done that . He then went on to explain the forms that were used to evaluate the different areas . Councilman Niklas asked if the 35 sites were ranked in any particular order or was it random? Mr . Jirka replied no , it was random . Councilman Niklas noted that in the " SumTary of Special Features " there were six categories . He asked if this implied an attempt to rank the importance by how many of these are checked off? Town Board Minutes 9 February 11 , 1991 Mr . Jirka replied no , we were going to at first try and do that but there were just so many sites and it was so hard to rank that we tried to get away from ranking and just list the special features . Councilman Niklas asked if there was any plan to look at common features amongst all of these sites to develop an environmental overlay for the City/Town? Mr . Jirka replied that ' s being done on a County wide area basis but he did not know to what extent that was being done . Councilman Niklas asked what the timetable would be for the completion of that project ? Mr . Jirka replied , as far as he knew it was ongoing? Councilman Niklas asked how long had it been in the works ? Mr . Jirka _responded that he did not know . He stated that he became aware of it a year and a half ago . Councilman Whitcomb stated that as chair of the CAC , the report was very much appreciated as they will be using it in their effort to produce an Open Space Inventory Index for the Town . Dooley Kiefer stated that she heard Mr . Jirka mention in your summary vegetation but she did not hear him mention animals . Mr . Jirka replied that it was included . Mrs . Kiefer asked if there had been an attempt to identify the boundaries of the habitat of the animals ? Mr . Jirka replied , basically what we attempted to do was to identify area , like a forest up to the boundaries of an agriculture field . SPCA CONTRACT Supervisor Raffensperger noted that the SPCA contract was a duplicate of the contract that we have had before except the amount of money to be paid is what was in our approved 1991 Town budget . Town Attorney Barney noted a couple of changes , on page 3 , subparagraph (d ) it should be "otherwise contact " not "otherwise contract " and on page 4 , Article II , the Supervisor had mentioned it would be easier if the payment date was the 15th instead of the 10th and he wondered if this shouldn ' t be changed also . i Supervisor Raffensperger agreed the 15th would be better because Town Board meetings don ' t always occur before the 10th . Councilman Whitcomb remarked that at the time the SPCA made their presentation to the Town Board , they made some recommendations to us about having an enumeration which would increase the revenues . He asked if any action had been taken on this ? Supervisor Raffensperger replied that we have attempted to find someone but it has not been accomplished at this point and if the Board members had any recommendation they would certainly be be appreciated . She felt the Town might advertise for the position but that you have to be careful about who is representing the Town of Ithaca and going door to door . She felt it could also be put in the Team ' s next Newsletter Town Board Minutes 10 February 11 , 1991 RESOLUTIO14 N0 , 23 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Klein , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorizes the Supervisor to execute the 1991 contract with the SPCA subject to the above corrections . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . SET DATE FOR PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER A LOCAL LAW AMENDING THE TOWN OF ITHACA ZONING ORDINANCE RELATING TO PROCEDURES FOR SITE PLANS Supervisor Raffensperger stated that she would like the staff to refer any of the three items , that they have not already commented on , to the Zoning Board of Appeals for their comments RESOLUTION NO . 24 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca will meet and conduct a public hearing at 7 : 00 P . M . , on March 11 , 1991 to consider a. local law amending the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance relating to procedures for site plans . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . SET DATE 17UR PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER A LOCAL LAW AMENDING THE TOWN OF I'I'HACA ZONING ORDINANCE PROVIDING THAT THE BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS MAY NOT ACT IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES WITHOUT AN AFFIRMATIVE RECOMMENDATION OF THE PLANNING BOARD RESOLUTION NO . 25 J Motion by Supervisor Raffensperger ; seconded by Councilman Niklas , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca will meet and conduct a public hearing at 7 : 15 P . M . , on March 11 , 1991 to consider a local law amending the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance providing that the Board of Zoning Appeals may not act in certain circumstances without an affirmative recommendation of the Planning Board . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . SET DATE FOR PUBLIC BEARING TO CONSIDER AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE :REQUIRING SITE PLAN APPROVAL FOR CERTAIN CONSTRUCTION IN VARIOUS RESIDENTIAL DISTRICTS OF THE TOWN RESOLUTION N0 . 26 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca will meet and conduct a public hearing at 7 : 45 P . M . , on March 11 , 1991 to consider amending the Zoning Ordinance requiring site plan approval for certain construction in various residential districts of the Town . Town Board Minutes 11 February 11 , 1991 (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) , PERSONS TO BE HEARD No one present wished to be heard at this time . APPROVAL OF TOWN BOARD MINUTES RESOLUTION NO . 27 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approve the minutes of the December 10 and December 31 , 1990 Town Board minutes , as presented by the Town Clerk . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . SET DATE FOR SPRING BRUSH AND LEAVES CLEAN-UP RESOLUTION NO . 28 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , WHEREAS , the Town residents have a need to dispose of yard debris in the spring , and WHEREAS , picking up brush and leaves in the spring would lessen the work load of the fall brush and leaf pick up , and WHEREAS , ttie amount of leaves involved in Spring pick up should be relatively small , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Highway and Parks Departments will perform Spring brush and leaf pick up during the week of April 19 , and BE IT FURZE RESOLVED , that the Highway and Parks Deapartments will pick up leaves that are in the paper biodegradable bags only . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER THE ADOPTION OF A LOCAL LAW ESTABLISHING COMPENSATION FOR TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD AND ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS ME1v1BERS Proof of posting and publication of a notice of public hearing to consider a local law establishing compensation for Town of Ithaca Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals members having been presented by the Town Clerk , the Supervisor opened the public hearing . As no member of the public wished to comment on the proposed local law, the Supervisor closed the public hearing . LOCAL LAW 2 - 1991 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , Town Board Minutes 12 February 11 , 1991 LOCAL LAW # 2 - 1991 A LOCAL LAW PERMITTING COMPENSATION OF PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS AND BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS MEMBERS ON A PER MEETING BASIS Section 1 . This local law is adopted pursuant to the authority granted by Municipal Hone Rule Law, Section 10 ( 1 ) ( ii ) (d) ( 3 ) . Section 20 This Local Law supersedes Section 27 , Subdivision 1 of the Town Law insofar as the same may prohibit compensation of Planning Board and Zoning Board members on a per meeting or per meeting attended basis . Section 3 . Notwithstanding any provision of the Town Law ( including Section 27 , Subdivision 1 ) or any provision of any other general law or local law , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca is authorized to compensate the Town of Ithaca Planning Board members and the Tcwn of Ithaca Zoning Board of Appeals members on the basis of a stipEmd per scheduled meeting or per meeting attended by such members . Section 4 . Nothing in this Local Law is intended to prohibit the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca from compensating said members on any other basis permitted by law . Section 5 . This Local Law shall take effect immediately . Supervisor Raffensperger called for a roll call vote . Councilman Klein Voting Aye Councilwoman Leary Voting Aye Councilman Liguori Voting Aye Counci ]man Niklas Voting Aye Councilwoman Valentino Voting Aye Councilman Whitcomb Voting Aye Supervisor Raffensperger Voting Aye Local Law No . 2 - 1991 was thereupon declared duly adopted . ASSOCIATIOIJ OF TOWNS RESOLUTIONS G The Town :Board members discussed the proposed 1991 resolutions reported by the Resolutions Committee of the Association of Towns of the State of New York . It was -the Town Board members feelings that Supervisor Raffensperger should vote "yes " on the following Resolutions : RESOLUTION N0 . 1 : SOLID WASTE This cris1s in solid waste management remains a primary concern of town government throughout New York State . The voters ' rejection of the 21st Century Environmental Bond Act only served to magnify the immediate need to identify and commit a dedicated , reoccurring stream of State revenue to support local efforts to address this problem . As a first step , the packaging tax enacted in the 1990 Legislative Session and intended to help retire the debt from the Environmental Bond Act -1- should be dedicated to funding solid waste efforts at the local level . Also , it is imperative that $ 162 million in State matching funds be appropriated to leverage the $ 874 million Federal wastewater treatment funding which will otherwise be forfeited . Town Board Minutes 13 February 11 , 1991 In view of the absence of any meaningful fiscal support from the State to date , the Association calls for the suspension of enforcement of landfill closure orders wherever grant monies from DEC are not available , and for the rollback of any other related solid waste mandates until such time as State funding is in place . RESOLUTION NO . 2 : RECYCLING MARKETS New and expanding markets for recycled goods must continue to be developed if the mandatory recycling programs of town government are to be successful and cost effective . Expansion of those markets and dissemination of information about their availability must be given the highest priority by State agencies such as DID and DEC . RESOLUTION NO . 3 : REVENUE SHARING The shift of tax burden from the progressive State income tax to regressive local real property taxes is not a fair or responsible policy for New York State . While we recognize that the Federal Government has , in recent years , increased the burden on States and local governments , our State ' s response should not be in similar transfer down to the local level . The Revenue Sharing Program must be protected , its funding preserved . Having received no increase since 1986 , it has not contributed to the State ' s current deficit problem . Thus , it should not be subject to reduction . Similarly , the integrity of the CHIPS program must be maintained , especially if the State ' s goals represented by the 1988 Transportation Bond Act initiative are to be realized . RESOLUTION NO . 4 : WICKS AND CHIPS BIDDING MANDATES Especially in this time of fiscal crises , cost cutting and State Aid reductions , the Legislature and Governor must act to repeal the 60-year old burden of Wicks and the arbitrary outside bidding mandate of the CHIPS program . These mandates waste millions annually , more now than ever before with the continued growth in town populations necessitating ever increasing capital building and highway project outlays . RESOLUTION NO . 6 : IMPACT FEES In order to equitably spread the burden of cost now borne almost exclusively by the regressive real property tax , the Association of Towns calks upon the Legislature and Governor to approve enabling legislation which would give local governments the option to impose and collect an impact fee on new development which adversely impacts the capital infrastructure and service provision capacity of local government . RESOLUTION NO . 7 : GOVERN= FINANCE INITIATIVES With the erosion of fiscal support from the Federal and State levels , and in consideration of the current State budget deficit , local governments need added flexibility in financing essential local projects . The Association supports amendments to General Municipal Law Section 109-b provisions to permit the option of the financing of real property capital projects through the use of the installment purchase mechanisms . Also , the Association supports repeal of the Constitutional mandate referred to as the " 50 % Rule " which requires equal payments of principal throughout the entire term of any debt issue , and again requests the same enabling authority now enjoyed by cities and villages for the option to impose a gross receipts tax on utilities . RESOLUTION NO . 8 : PRIMARY POLLING PLACES Town Board Minutes 14 February 11 , 1991 The Association of Town supports Election Law legislative amendments which would allow for the consolidation of polling places in a primary election . This would result in an easing of the financial burden on many town governments which have to conduct primary elections . The November 1990 elections again highlighted the many , many examples of wasted resources which could have easily been saved without any loss of access to the voting booth by the public . RESOLUTION NO . 9 : SALES TAX The Association of Towns supports legislation which would require counties to share at least 50 % of the proceeds of a county sales tax with the general purpose local governments within the county . Town government is a primary provider of services to the business community that generates the sales tax . As preliminary results from the 1990 Census indicate , population in towns throughout our State continues to grow . The amount of sales tax revenue generated in towns continues to increase , in many if not most instances , the great majority of sales tax generated in a county canes from businesses located in town areas . Town government deserves equitable treatment in the distribution of this important source of revenue . RESOLUTION NO 10 : CONDOMINIUM ASSESSMENT The State Division of Equalization and Assessment has reported a tax shift of more than $ 38 million annually as a consequence of Section 339-y of the Real Property Law . That section calls for assessing condcminiums artificially as if they were rental property rather tr►an individually based on their market value . The Association of Towns again calls for legislation which would amend the Real Property Law to eliminate the preferential aspects of condominium assessment . RESOLUTION NO . 11 : ASSESSMENT REVALUATION The Association requests consideration of legislative or rule making changes which would assure that use of equalization rates in determining special franchise assessments will not cause an inequitable shift in tax burden onto residential properties when municipalities under take a revaluation program . It was the consensus of the Board that the Supervisor should vote "No " on the following resolution . RESOLUTION N0 . 5 : MUNICIPAL ETHICS Our Association supports a code of ethics which prohibits conflicts of interest and protects our taxpayers . We support amendments to current standards which will result in a code of conduct which is clear , una -rbiguous and reasonable and which will continue to permit the adoption of even more restrictive local standards by each town board , The Association of Towns remains opposed to revisions to the municipal ethics standards of the General Municipal Law which would mandate an intrusive annual financial disclosure filing by all town officers o:r employees . PRIORITIES - CODES AND ORDINANCE COMMITTEE Supervisor Raffensperger noted that Councilman Niklas had provided the Board with a list of priorities . She went on to say that because Codes and Ordinances agenda has become so lengthy that Councilman Niklas is asking the Town Board for a sense of priorities . Town Board Minutes 15 February 11 , 1991 Councilman Niklas presented the following list and asked the Board that if they had given a numerical ranking to them he would collate them and if there were any additional items , let him know . Also , if there were additional items that the Board would like to see Codes and Ordinance deal with or if he had inadvertently neglected to put an agenda item on the list , let him know . Also he would like some direction concerning the review and consideration of the proposed conservation district legislation . The following list of items are currently on the COC ' s agenda , which I expect will continue to grow . It is clearly necessary to determine priorities for COC work and I would appreciate your input . Please review this list and be prepared to comment and act at our next meeting . (You may wish to numerically rank each item using the :Lines which precede each item) . Thank you . Continue review and consideration of draft legislation , re , site plan application procedures . Continue review and consideration of proposed Conservation District legislation vs . other possible mechanisms for achieving desired environmental and open space protection . Continue reviewing the interpretation and possible redefinition of term " Gasoline sales station " . Consider possible institution of sunset periods for permits/ approvals . Review special approval requirements for professional offices , home occupations , and other uses in residential districts . Examine methods of lakefront regulation . Consider and implement annual updating of zoning ordinance to reflect prior year ' s amendments . Consider and implement non-substantive organizational changes to the zoning ordinance , including alphabetization of zoning definitions . Consider proposals for posting signs at sites of proposed developments and subdivisions . Consider procedures for notification of landowners adjacent to lands which are the subject of proposed development , zoning variances , and related actions . Others ? Acting Toum Planner George Frantz stated that the Planning Board at their last meeting discussed the conservation district for about an hour and a half and the end result of that discussion was ,. that he was directed to go back and address the many issues that have been raised by the report . Issues such as the question of lot size , what property owners could do as far as subdivision under the proposal and addressing the many questions raised during the Town Board Minutes 16 February 11 , 1991 January public hearing . He stated that this would take him several weeks given the fact that we are now concentrating on the comprehensive plan . The Planning Board probably won ' t be taking the matter up again until April . Councilman Niklas remarked that his understanding was also that an important issue that was raised at that meting was the need to have the Town inventory done so that we could understand what percentage of Town property would be affected by the legislation that would deal with a conservation district in general not Six Mile Creek in particular . He went on to say that this raises a related issue which was of particular concern to him and that was , he sees a lot of committees duplicating effort . For example , some committees drafting , essentially , legislation and then submitting it to COC and then COC looking at those drafts , sometimes with a brand new eye , and thought the one thing that might be delaying the timetables would be because committees were trying to duplicate or inadvertently duplicate effort , we are not streamlining the process as well as we might . Councilman Whitcomb asked Councilman Niklas what would he suggest ? Councilman Niklas replied that he would suggest a meeting of the committee chairs to hack out just exactly where our responsibilities lie in certain issues . He went on to say that he really did not see CAC drafting legislation and CPC refining legislation and then senting it to Codes and Ordinances whos task it is to draft the legislation . CONTRACT FOR LEGAL SERVICES RESOLUTION NO . 29 Motion by Councilwoman Valentino ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca authorize the Town Supervisor to sign a Letter of Understanding with the firm of Barney , Grossman , Roth & DuBow to provide legal services for the Town . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER A LOCAL LAW INCREASING THE PERMISSIBLE INCOME LEVEL FOR SENIOR CITIZENS QUALIFYING FOR THE 50 % PROPER'T'Y TAX EXEMPTION Proof of posting and publication of a notice of public hearing to consider a local law increasing the permissible income level for senior citizens qualifying for the 50 % property tax exemption having been presented by the Town Clerk , the Supervisor opened the public hearing . As no one wished to comment on the proposal local law , the Supervisor closed the public hearing . The Supervisor noteed that it would be necessary for her to sign a certificate of necessity because the legislation must be passed by the end of February in order to be applicable for the next tax year . LOCAL LAW )k 3 - 1990 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , Town Board Minutes 17 February 11 , 1991 LOCAL LAW # 3 - 1990 A LOCAL LAW INCREASING THE PARTIAL TAX EXEMPTION FOR REAL PROPERTY OWNED BY PERSONS WITH LIMITED INCOMES WHO ARE 65 YEARS OF AGE OR OVER SECTION 1 . The provisions of Local Law No . 1 of the year 1971 of the Town of Ithaca as amended by Local Law No . 2 of the year 1977 , Local Law No . 5 of the year 1980 , Local Law No . 2 of the year 1982 , Local Law No . 4 of the year 1983 , Local Law No . 2 of the year 1987 and Local Law No . 4 of the year 1990 , are hereby further amended to read as follows : Section 1 . This law is enacted pursuant to Section 467 of the Real Property Tax Law of the State of New York as amended through Chapter 198 of the Laws of 1980 . Section 2 . Pursuant to the provisions of Section 467 of the Real Property Tax Law of the State of New York , real property located in the Town of Ithaca , owned by one or more persons , each of whom is 65 years of age or over , or real property owned by husband and wife , one of whom is 65 years of age or over , shall be partially exempt from taxation by said Town for the applicable taxes specified in said Section 467 based upon the income of the owner or combined incomes of the owners . A person otherwise qualifying for such exemption shall not be denied such exemption if such person becomes sixty-five ( 65 ) years of age after the appropriate taxable status date and before December 31 of the same year . Such partial exemption shall be to the extent set forth in the schedule following : ANNUAL INCOME OF OWNER PERCENTAGE ASSESSED OR COMBINEI) ANNUAL INCOME VALUATION FAT OF OWNERS FROM TAXATION Up to and including $ 15 , 000 . 00 50 % More than $ 15 , 000 . 00 but less than $ 15 , 600 . 00 45 % $ 15 , 600 . 00 or more but less than ; 16 , 200 . 00 40 % $ 16 , 200 . 00 or more but less than $ 16 , 800 . 00 35 % $ 16 , 800 . 00 or more but less than $ 17 , 400 . 00 30 % $ 17 , 400 . 00 or more but less than $ 18 , 000 . 00 25% $ 18 , 000 . 00 or more but less than 4; 18 , 600 . 00 20 % This partial exemption provided by this law shall , however , be limited to such property and persons as meet the conditions , qualification , exclusions and limitations set forth in Section 467 of the Real. Property Tax Law of the State of New York . This local law shall be administered in accordance with said section of the Real Property Tax Law as now adopted and as it may be amended from time to time , and the provisions of said section shall be applicable to the effectuation of the exemption provided for in this local law . Town Board Minutes 18 February 11 , 1991 Section 3 . Application for such exemption must be made by the owner , or all of the owners of the property on forms prescribed by the State! Board of Equalization and Assessment of the State of New York (or any successor agency) to be furnished by the appropriate assessing authority and shall furnish the information and be executed in the manner required or prescribed in such forms , and shall be filed in such assessor ' s office on or before the appropriate taxable status date . Section 4 . Any conviction of having made any willful false statement. of the application for such exemption shall be punishable by a fine of not more than One Hundred Dollars ( $ 100 . 00 ) and shall disqualify the applicant or applicants from further exemption for a period of: five ( 5 ) years , Section 5 . This local law shall become effective as set forth below and shall apply to assessment rolls prepared on the basis of taxable ,status dates occurring on or after March 1 , 19910 With respect to assessment rolls prepared on the bases of taxable status dates prior to March 1 , 1991 , the partial exemption allowed hereunder- shall be limited to qualified properties , to those persons otherwise qualified under , and to the amounts permitted by , Local Law No . 1 of the year 1971 and its amendments as in effect from time to time prior to the effective date of this local law . SECTION 2 . This local law shall take effect ten days after its enactment: . Supervisor Raffensperger called for a roll call vote . Councilman Klein Voting Aye Councilwoman Leary Voting Aye Councilman Liguori Voting Aye Councilman Niklas Voting Aye Councilwoman Valentino Voting Aye Councilman Whitcomb Voting Aye Supervisor Raffensperger Voting Aye Local Law No . 3 - 1991 was thereupon declared duly adopted . Councilmam Whitcomb noted that the Town had received a letter from the Cornell Law School offering services of a legislative intern for the suer . He asked what had been decided about the offer? Supervisor Raffensperger replied that it had been discussed at a Staff meeting and there was no Staff member who wished to take advantage of the offer . CORRECTION OF EXPIRATION DATE OF TERM ON ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS , JOAN REL)NING Motion bad Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED ,, by the Town of Ithaca Zoning Board of Appeals , that its Resolution of November 14 , 1990 recommending to the Town Board the reappoinisnent of Mrs . Joan G . Reuning to said Board of Appeals for a five-year term commencing January 1 , 1991 , be and hereby is corrected only to the extent that the date of the expiration of said five-year term read December 31 , 1995 . Town Board Minutes 19 February 11 , 1991 ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . ATTENDANCE AT NEW YORK STATE LAND INSTITUTE WORKSHOP RESOLUTION NO , 31 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorizes attendance by the Acting Town Planner and Planning Technician at the New York Land Institute , Inc . , seminars entitled "Subdivision Review and Approval " and " State Environmental Quality Review Act" , to be held in Rochester , New York on February 21 and 22 , 1991 , at a cost not to exceed $ 510 . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . RATIFY EMPLOYMENT OF TAX ASSISTANT RESOLUTION N0 , 32 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca has traditionally hired temporary help for tax collection purposes , and monies were budgeted in account A1330 . 400 for this purpose , and WHEREAS , the Town has experienced a change this year to a split-tax payment schedule and a new tax collection computer system , requiring additional concentration and scrutiny by regular staff , and assistance was needed in the overall tax collection process by a knowledgeable temporary , and WHEREAS , former Deputy Town Clerk Gen Blye is skilled in the tax collection process and was available to assist the Town during the peak tax collection period , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board hereby ratifies the appointment of Genevieve Blye as Tax Collection Assistant at $ 7 . 00 /hour , 7 hours/day , for the period January 2 - February 22 , 1991 , and FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED , that $ 2 , 000 be transferred from A1330 . 400 to A1330 . 100 to cover this cost . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER A LOCAL LAW ON BACKFLOW PREVENTION Proof of .posting and publication of a notice of public hearing to consider a local law on backflow prevention having been presented by the Tom Clerk , the Supervisor opened the public hearing . Supervisor Raffensperger noted that the Board did not have a draft local law and that it would be necessary to close the public hearing and not schedule another one until the Bolton Point Commission has something to give the Town . The Supervisor then closed the public hearing . Town Board Minutes 20 February 11 , 1991 RESPONSE TO REPORT OF EXAMINATION , AUDIT AND CONTROL WATER FUND DEFICIT , APPROPRIATION CONTROL In 1989 , the water surcharge for 1990 was increased . The water fund balance , as of December 31 , 1990 , is $ 114 , 965 . With the implementation of a new Budget/Accounting system in 1991 , more immediate and detailed information will be available to the Town Board , with improved tracking of Capital Projects expenditures throughout an entire project , permitting the timely adjustment of expenditures and appropriations . Budget adjustments , necessitated by capital borrowing , will be made at the time a major borrowing occurs . ACCUMULATED FUND BALANCES At the end of 1990 , the Townwide general fund balance was reduced to approximately 10 % of budget , an amount considered by the Town Board to be minimal , considering the possibility of additional state aid cuts in 1991 . The sewer fund balance is largely committed to debt repayment for the local share of the construction costs of the jointly owned Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Plant , benefit charge stabilization , and repair , replacement , and maintenance of the sewer system . The Town Board has requested assistance from the Town ' s auditors to establish sewer reserve funds to reflect these commitments . CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS , COMPETITIVE BIDDING The Town :Board has established a system of controls to approve all change orders for capital projects and to monitor their variation from the original contract . Any work performed over and above the original contract amount will be bid , as appropriate . The referenced expenditures for water and sewer repairs were the result of emergencies which did not allow for a competitive bidding process . The ongoing development of a planned maintenance program will minimize the number of emergency events . The use of Town forces for repair and maintenance work is being evaluated in order to better control costs . The Town currently is designing and will implement an improved competitive bidding process for all planned repairs and capital construction projects . PURCHASE DOCUMENTATION Records will be maintained for purchases made under state or county competitively let contracts . PAYMENTS FOR LEGAL SERVICES An agreement for the purchase of legal services , including the scope of services and the basis for fees , was approved by the Town Board on February 11 , 1990 . RENTAL OF MACHINERY AND EQUIPMENT The Town Board has approved a 1991 schedule of rental rates for each class of equipment or machinery to be rented by the Town Highway Superintendent for use by the Town Highway Department . Town Board Minutes 21 February 11 , 1991 REAL PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION The 1991. approved budget of the Town of Ithaca meets all requirements of these comments as to the manner in which real property taxes are levied for townwide purposes and in sales tax allocation . FIRE PROTECTION CONTRACTS The Town of Ithaca will enter into a fire contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights , after public hearing on March 11 , 1991 , which meets the requirements as outlined . A public hearing was held on February 12 , 1990 to approve the contract with the City of Ithaca . That contract expires December 31 , 1994 . The City of Ithaca contract amount for 1991 was included in the 1991 Preliminary Budget hearing held November 8 , 1990 . ZONING DEPARTMENT FEES Transmittal of Zoning Department fees , as of August 1990 , is documented by numbered cash receipts , which include sufficient documentation for audit purposes . COMPENSATION OF ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS AND PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS Compensation for members of the Zoning Board of Appeals and Planning Board was established on a per-meeting basis in a 1976 Town Board resolution . On December 31 , 1990 the Town Board passed a resolution affirming that basis and noting that such compensation is subject to Federal and State withholdings and reporting requirements . After public hearing on February 11 , 1991 , a local law was passed with identical provisions . LACK OF CIVIL SERVICE CERTIFICATION In August. 1990 , the Town of Ithaca requested that the Tompkins County Personnel Office proceed with certification of Town payrolls . Supervisor Raffensperger asked if the Board had any questions or wished to discuss the response . RESOLUTION N0 , 33 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize the response to Audit and Control , as the Towns response to their examination , after the Town Attorney has had the opportunity to review the document , (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . APPROVAL OF SCHEDULE FOR RENTAL OF HIGHWAY EQUIPMENT Supervisor Raffensperger remarked that she and the Highway Superintendent and the Town Attorney were going to look and see if their was another part that needed to be added to this and that is Town Board Minutes 22 February 11 , 1991 the schedule of rental rates for larger pieces of equipment which are used in emergency situations and authorize them up to that amount . RESOLUTION N0 , 34 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Klein , WHEREAS , Audit and Control requires Town Board approval of all equipment: rentals , and WHEREAS , some rentals are very small and occur without much advance warning but can be anticipated in general to be that of air compressor and air hammier , water pumps , generator and arc welder , sewer jet. cleaner , NOW THERIMRE BE IT RESOLVED , by the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca that the Highway Superintendent be allowed to rent small equipment up to $ 100 /day and $ 500 /week with only the Town Supervisor ' s approval , the aggregate amount of such rentals not to exceed $ 5 , 000 for the fiscal year . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . BENEFIT UNIT REFUNDS RESOLUTION NO . 35 Motion by Supervisor Raffensperger , seconded by Councilwcmai Valentino , WHEREAS , Robert Flumerfelt , 1020 East Shore Drive , Parcel No . 19-2-18 was charged 2 units of water and 2 units of sewer on his 1991 Town and County taxes , and WHEREAS , after an inspection by the Building Inspector it was determined that the building does not contain an apartment , and WHEREAS , Mr . Flumerfelt has paid his 1991 taxes in full , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 64 . 00 for water and $ 62 . 00 for sewer , total refund of $ 126 . 00 be paid to Robert Flumerfelt , 115 Campbell Avenue , Ithaca , New York . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none) . Supervisor Raffensperger noted that the refund for Harry Missirian was for two years , 1990 and 1991 , this was because it has been clearly indicated that he did ask the Town to review this situation in 1989 and it was just one of those things that did not get done . RESOLUTION N0 , 36 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Leary , WHEREAS , Harry Missirian , 139 Simsbury Drive , Parcel No . 72-1- 1 . 159 was charged 2 units of water and 2 units of sewer on his 1990 and 1991 Town and County Taxes , and Town Board Minutes 23 February 11 , 1991 WHEREAS , after an inspection by the Building Inspector it was determined that the basement apartment was not being rented but was used by Ntr . Missirian ' s father , and WHEREAS , Mr . Missirian has paid his 1990 and 1991 taxes in full , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 64 . 00 for water and $ 62 . 00 for sewer for the year 1990 and $ 64 . 00 for water and $ 62 . 00 for sewer for the year 1991 , total refund of $ 252 . 00 be paid to Harry Missirian. , 139 Simsbury Drive , Ithaca , New York . (Raffensrerger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . RESOLUTICN NO . 37 Motion by Supervisor Raffensperger ; seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , WHEREAS , Jon L . & Christina C . Hilton , 128 West Haven Road , Parcel No . 29-5-•6 was charged 2 units of water and 2 units of sewer on their 1991 Town and County taxes , and WHEREAS , after inspection of the property by the Building Inspector it was determined that the basement apartment was now being used as additional living space for the owners , and WHEREAS , :Mr . and Mrs . Hilton have paid their 1991 taxes in full , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 64 . 00 for water and $ 62 . 00 for sewer , total refund of $ 126 . 00 be paid to Jon L . and Christina C . Hilton , 128 West Haven Road , Ithaca , New York . (Raffensparger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and -" Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . RESOLUTION N0 , 38 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , WHEREAS , the Board of Cooperative Education , 555 Warren Road , Tax Parcel No . 73- 1-1 . 131 were charged for 161 . 8 units of water and 161 . 8 units of sewer on their 1991 Town and County Taxes because the Town of Ithaca was given misinformation as to the student and employee population at the BOCES facility on Warren Road , and WHEREAS , the number of benefit assessment units to be charged is based on :student and employee population , and WHEREAS , BOCES have paid the 1991 taxes in full , NOW TfF.REFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca . hereby authorize a refund of $ 3 , 923 . 20 for water and $3 , 800 . 60 for sewer , total refund of $ 7 , 723 . 80 be paid to the Board of Cooperative Education , 555 Warren Road , Ithaca , New York . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . DATER ACCOUNT REFUNDS Town Board Minutes 24 February 11 , 1991 RESOLUTION NO . 39 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwcman Valentino , WHEREAS , the owner of the property at 1412 Hanshaw Road paid their final bill twice , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 51 . 15 for water , $ 4 . 48 water surcharge , $ 15 . 96 sewer , $ 2 . 10 sewer surcharge , total refund of $80 . 89 be paid to the Estate of Catherine Hyers , c/o Tcaipkins County Trust Company , P . O . Box 460 , Ithaca , New York 14851 . Account Number T- 1447 . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . RESOLUTION NO . 40 Motion by Supervisor Raffensperger ; seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , WHEREAS , the owner of the property at 141 West Haven Road paid the incorrect estimated bill before a corrected bill was mailed , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 20 . 52 for water and $3 . 08 water surcharge , total refund of $ 23 . 60 be paid to Donald Henry , 141 West Haven Road , Ithaca , New York 14850 . Account Number B-3727 . RESOLUTION NO . 41 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , WHEREAS , the owner of the property at 205 Eastern Heights Drive had been paying estimated bill , and WHEREAS , when a final reading was actually taken the reading was lower than the estimated bill , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize a refund of $ 13 . 60 for water , $2 . 03 water surcharge , $ 29 . 75 sewer , $ . 95 sewer surcharge and $ 4 . 64 penalty , total refund of $ 50 . 97 be made to Chase Farm Assoc . , 108 Ridgecrest Road , Ithaca , New York 14850 . Account Number S-1134 . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . ROUTE 366 'WATER MAIN AGREEMENT WITH CORNELL UNIVERSITY Town Engineer Dan Walker stated that Cornell had provided the Town with a suggested agreement and then the Town Attorney went through it and made it right for the Town . The only area of suggestion he had was on page 3 , the second half of paragraph 4 , we would aggregate the meter reading for five years as if it were a master meter for .several of the buildings that are currently being metered individually but would eventually be put on a master meter . Supervisor Raffensperger suggested that if you start with the paragraph "' on or after five years from the date of conveyance " that it makes a great deal more sense to take that to the end of number Town Board Minutes 25 February 11 , 1991 5 . Because it says the Town will provide a master meter , Cornell will provide a master meter , etc . , and then if at the end of number 5 you say on or after five years from the date each building shall be separately metered unless Cornell has made provisions for water to be supplied through master meters as required above , in which event a bill shall be issued . It is just kind of reversed in order . And that would go after "agreement " in number 5 and then we would delete " and in no event no later than seven years from date of execution of this agreement " . Town Attorney Barney remarked , the first paragraph is really relating to the buildings themselves , we are waiving our normal requirements , in paragraph 4 , we are saying you can be billed as if you put all these buildings on a separate schedule . In a certain point in time , that right to separately meter ceases . Paragraph 5 is more about how we are going to account for the water between the Town of Ithaca , Cornell and Dryden because this line will serve some people in the Town of Ithaca , Cornell in the Town of Ithaca and when. it hits the Dryden Town line then the billing responsibility becomes the Town of Dryden ' s . We were , as he understood it , setting up a series of master meters so that we can determine how much water entered the line and how much water exited the line going into the Town of Dryden . Paragraph 5 was more designed with that problem in mind . The reason we are putting a master meter in really doesn ' t have that much to do with Cornell but to reclulate the flow of water going into the Town of Dryden . Supervisor Raffensperger replied , on the other hand there is kind of a logical progression if you change this and we discussed some reasons why this seems wise . She felt that for the Town Board it wasn ' t quite as important as to how they worked out the order of the paragraphs but that they understood the concept of it so that they could get authorization to proceed to sign this with their understanding of the concept . There may have to be some small changes made in the order of the paragraphs . She went on to say that both she and the Town Engineer felt five years was enough no matter if: it was the date of transfer or execution of the agreement . The basic concepts are in here and as far as she could figure out: , meet the basic requirements of our discussion with the Town Board , RESOLUTION 42 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize the Supervisor to sign a joint water agreement with Cornell University , the elements of which are described in the proposed Joint Water Service Agreement dated January 11 , 1991 with such changes as the Town Attorney advises being made . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . RATIFY SUB14ISSION OF SARA GRANT APPLICATION RESOLUTION N0 , 43 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Liguori , WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca had the opportunity to apply for State funding of a records inventory and needs assessment program through the New York State Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund , and Town Board Minutes 26 February 11 , 1991 WHEREAS , there is a great need within the Town facilities for a records .inventory and plan of action for records retention and management , and WHEREAS , the deadline for consideration of application for this SARA Grant was February 1 , 1991 , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca supports the application for LGRMIF funding for a records inventory and needs assessment program for the Town and does hereby ratify the submission of the application for such funding in the amount of $ 5 , 670 . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . COURT HOUSE LEASE Town Attorney Barney remarked that this was basically a lease which we have been operating under since mid- 1989 for the operation of our Justice Courts in the old Court House Building . We had quite a bit of discussion over the period of time as to exactly what insurance protection we were going to provide and what idemnification the County was going to require of us and this is what has held up the lease . We finally got together with their risk manager and it now satisfies all parties . The rental is $ 100 a year . RESOLUTION N0 . 44 Motion by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize the Supervisor to sign the lease agreement with Tompkins County for the use of the court space at the sum of $ 100 per year . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . EASEMENT TO NEW YORK TELEPHONE COMPANY (WINNER ' S CIRCLE) Town Engineer Dan Walker stated that New York Telephone Company had approached the Town about a month ago wanting to locate a new control cabinet to serve the East Hill and want an easement to locate it on a portion of the Town owned land on the easement at Winner ' s Circle . It would be to the north side of Winner ' s Circle at Slaterv.ille Road . That parcel was given to the Town for general municipal purposes and the principal intent was to be part of the East Walkway . In looking at the site , in the field , and in looking at the typical construction that they have in a couple of other locations on East Hill we did not feel there would be any hindering of the purpose of that parcel as a walkway with the installation of this , and it will be to the public benefit . The cables would be underground and the metal control cabinets that would be five to six feet high . The control cabinets would be toward the back of the walkway on a concrete slab . Assistant Town Planner George Frantz remarked , that there was also enough roan for any walkway by going between the fire hydrant and the street itself , if there wasn ' t enough room between the fire hydrant and the concrete pad . As part of the Winner ' s Circle subdivision approval we did get a right-of-way passing through the subdivision to serve as a link within the Circle Greenway . At this point we don ' t have any plans for any walkway along Route 79 Town Board Minutes 27 February 11 , 1991 itself . There is room for a sidewalk even with this easement being granted as there are a number of options . Town Attorney Barney remarked , that if we give them an easement ten feet by thirty-five feet even though they have indicated where they will place it , once you sign the easement they can place it any where they chose . Town Engineer Walker replied , the walkway would be five or six feet wide and there is about eight feet between the hydrant and the edge of the easement . The walkway would only be six feet wide . George Frantz remarked that Circle Greenway only wants a walkway that is three or four feet wide , in that area . Councilwoman Valentino has what kind of protection do they have for the boxes to keep them from vandals ? Town Engineer Walker replied , the biggest protection is visibility and that is why they like to keep then out in the open next to the road . They want to tuck them into the pine trees that are there so that they are not real obvious but the area in front of them is open so people can see what is happening . They are willing to plant shrubbery if we so desired . Supervisor Raffensperger asked , the person who gave us the easement is the owner of the adjoining property? Mr . Frantz replied no , this was part of the Winner ' s Circle subdivision and is land that was actually deeded to the Town . Supervisor Raffensperger continued , and was actually deeded for a walkway . She wondered to what extent this effects the view or whatever of the adjoining landowners ? Mr . Fran tdr. replied , very little because right now there are a row of norway spruce which would screen then . He felt the new house would be the one most impacted , if at all , by these panels . Town Engineer Walker remarked that New York Telephone would be willing to plant shrubbery , if the Town so desired . Councilman. Niklas felt the surrounding landowners should be allowed to have input on the screening . RESOLUTION N0 , 45 Motion by Councilman Liguori ; seconded by Councilman Niklas., WHEREAS , New York Telephone Company has requested that the Town of Ithaca grant an easement on Town lands at the northwest corner of Winner ' s Circle and NYS Route 79 for the purpose of installing a telephone control cabinet to improve telephone service to properties in the Town of Ithaca , and WHEREAS , the Town Engineer and the Acting Town Planner have reviewed the location and typical type of installation proposed and have determined that the installation will not adversely affect the use of the area by the Town , and WHEREAS , the New York Telephone Company has provided a survey map of the easement prepared by George Schlect , P . E . , L . S . , a licensed surveyor iii the State of New York , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca authorizes granting of said easement to New York Telephone Town Board Minutes 28 February 11 , 1991 Company , subject to review and approval of the easement by the Town Attorney , and FURTHER authorizes the Town Supervisor to execute same on behalf of the Town . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . PRESENTATION OF WEST HILL SEWER PLANS Town Engineer Walker stated that on the water project , we have a water main starting in front of the Professional Building , going up Trumansbwcg Road to DuBois Road , down DuBois Road and tying into Indian Creek Road which will reinforce the loop going through the hospital area . The sewer , we have the easement going through the Wheeler property , he then asked the Town Attorney if he had received an easement from the Schafrik ' s yet ? Supervisor Raffensperger replied , it ' s caning in the morning . Town Engineer Walker went on to say that they would be extending the sewer along the side of the Schafrik ' s house and boring across the road to service the houses on the other side of the road . We have an engineering cost estimate and is within the original cost estimate . Councilman Klein asked if there were any special provisions made for the Schafrik ' s ? Supervisor Raffensperger replied no , the Schafrik ' s preferred we bring the sewer down along their side property line at the same time we did the work in the back , so that their property would be disrupted only once and some replacement of trees if they were destroyed . No money changed hands . AUTHORIZE THE ADVERTISING AND BIDDING FOR THE WEST HILL WATER AND SEWER PROJECT RESOLUTION N0 . 46 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize -the Town Engineer to advertise for bid the West Hill 1989 Water and Sewer Improvements . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . TOWN OF ITHACA WARRANTS RESOLUTION NO . 47 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves the Town of Ithaca Warrants dated February 11 , 1991 , in the following mmunts General Fund - Town Wide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $94 , 194 . 76 General Fund - Outside Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $52 , 170 . 99 Water and Sewer Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 16 , 796 . 78 Town Board Minutes 29 February 11 , 1991 Highway Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $57 , 079 . 06 Capital Projects Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 35 , 274 . 03 Lighting District Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 470966 (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . BOLTON POINT WARRANTS RESOLUTION NO . 48 Motion by Supervisor Raffensperger ; seconded by Councilman Niklas , RESOLVED , that the Bolton Point Warrants dated February 11 , 1991 , in the Operating Account are hereby approved in the amount of $ 144 , 239 . 79 after review and upon the recommendation of the Southern Cayuga Lake Intermunicipal Water Commission , they are in order for payment . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . EXECUTIVE SESSION RESOLUTION N09 49 Motion by Supervisor Raffensperger ; seconded by Councilman Niklas , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby move into Executive Session to discuss possible litigation . (Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . OPEN SESSION RESOLUTION N0 . 50 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilwoman Valentino , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby move back into Open Session . ( Raffensperrger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . RESOLUTION N0 . 51 Motion by Councilman Niklas ; seconded by Councilman Whitcomb , RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorize legal proceeding in conjunction with the Bell ' s Warehouse . ( Raffensperger , Whitcomb , Leary , Klein , Liguori , Valentino and Niklas voting Aye . Nays - none ) . ADJOURND'I I The meeting was duly adjourned . Town Board Minutes 30 February 11 , 1991 ;C AFFIDAVIT OF PUBLICATION THE ITHACA JOURNAL State of New York , Tompkins County , ss . : Gail Sullins being. duly sworn , deposes and says , that she/he resides in Ithaca , county and state aforesaid and that she/he is Clerk of The Ithaca Journal a public newspaper printed and published in 'Ithaca aforesaid , and that a notice , of which the annexed is a true TOWN of ITHACA • NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING: copy , was published in said paper Town PLF,ASE TAKE NOTICE, that the Board of the Town 'of Ithaca will meet and conduct a. public hearing on 16 ebruary 1•l , 1991 at 2 P. M.P. M , t Town _ Moll , 126 East' Sea he neca' Street, Ithaca, New York, to' consider the adoption of a lomt cab low establishing compen=; sotion for Town of Ithaca Plan- . ning Board and Zoning Board. of Appeals members and wiW at .Ihis time hear all persons in ! d that the first publication of said notice was on the favor of or opposed to said to- ( cal law. q Jeon H. Swartwood, ay of c- 19 February 1 , 1991 Town Clerk+ Subscribpcl and sworn to before me , this 7 day of, _ _ 19 Notary Public . JEAN FORD Notary Public, State of �,e \.v No 454 ; 0 Qualified in Tcm k' ins County Commission expires May Y AFFIDAVIT OFPUBLIC'ATION JOURNAL HE ITHACA State of New York , Tompkins County , ss . : Gail Sullins being duly sworn , deposes and says , that she/he resides in Ithaca , county and state aforesaid and that she/he is Clerk 'TOWN OF ITHACA ' ' of The Ithaca Journal a public newspaper printed and published in PLEASE TAKE NOTCE, E RING' Ithaca aforesaid , and that a notice , of which the annexed is a true Town Board of the Town of Ith6ca will:.meet and conduct aVoublic hearing 'on: February copy , was published in said paper I, ; 1991 at 7:30 P4M:I ' 6t the Town Hall, 126 ' East Seneca Street, Ithaca, New York,.: to v 1 C { " � ✓ �I \ 1 Q C� consider a local law increas- � ,.--` t t 1 ing the permissible income.. level for senior citizens qual- , ifying for the 50% property' ta)' exemption and will at this time hear all persons in favor of: or opposed to said local law. Jean H. Swartwood nd that the first publication of said notice was on the Town clerk ) Say of qz sai _1%. 1) cz N( 19 February 1 , 1991 , Subscribed and sworn to before me , this 7 day 19L C i Notary Public . JEAN FORD Notary public, Sate of New York No. 465 Qualified in Tcmr �a Count:: Cemtnission expires iti^.ay 31� 19,_ AFFIDAVIT OF' PUBLICATION C I HE ITHACA JOURNAL State of New York , Tompkins County , ss . : Gail Sullins being. duly sworn , deposes and says , that she/he resides in .Ithaca , county and state aforesaid and that she/he is Clerk of The Ithaca Journal a public newspaper printed and published in Ithaca aforesaid , and that a notice , of which the annexed is a true copy , was published in said paper + 0. Y NOTICES OF PUBLIC HEARING C Y �-, PLEASE TAKE NOTICE, that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca will meet and conduct a public hearing on February' 1l ; 1991 at 7:45 P. M. , at the Town Hall, 126 East Seneca Street, Ithaca, New York, to consider a local low on bockf jnd that the first ubl ication of said notice was on the loev prevention and will at this ) p time hear all persons in 'fovor of or opposed to said local ay of Y � � 19 �.— law. Jean H. Swartwood February 1 , jg91 Town Clerk ,i Subscribed and sworn to before me , this day Notary Public . JEAN FORD Notary Public, Stage C' New York No. - ; QUcliiiC� in I Ci;; p ; ; ; 5 County��, Commission expires inlay 31, 19 .,/ i