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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTB Minutes 2014-09-22 Meeting of the Ithaca Town Board Monday, September 22,2014 at 4:30 p.m. Aurora Room,Town Hall * The second meetings of the month of the Town Board are called Study Sessions and generally focus on committee reports and informational presentations. Time sensitive action items may be scheduled when needed. Please contact the Town Clerk's office at 273-1721 or ptenvilliyer(a)towit.itltaca.ny.us with any questions. Agenda 1. Call to Order 2. Review Draft Agenda for Budget Meeting and Regular Meeting 3. Town Official's Reports 4. Report from Committees a. Budget Committee b. Codes and Ordinances Committee c. Planning Committee d. Personnel and Organization Committee e. Public Works Committee L Other 5. Discussion Items a. Conservation Board Memo re. Deer Control 6. Consider setting a Public Hearing regarding a proposed local law to clarify provisions in Town Code for clustering 7. Consider Consent Agenda Items a. Approval of Town Board Minutes of September 8,2014 b. Town of Ithaca Abstract c. Approval of JCAP Grant submission d. Approval of revised Mailbox Replacement Policy 8. Review of Correspondence 9. Consider Adjournment Meeting of the Ithaca Town Board Monday, September 22, 2014 at 4:30 p.m. Study Session Minutes Board Members Present: Herb Engman, Supervisor; Bill Goodman, Deputy Town Supervisor; Pat Leary, Tee-Ann Hunter, Eric Levine (5:40), Rich DePaolo, and Rod Howe Staff Present: Susan Ritter, Bruce Bates, Mike Solvig, Judy Drake, Paulette Terwilliger,Jim Weber, and Mike Smith 1. Call to Order Meeting called to order at 4:33 p.m. with two items added; Petition - Hanshaw Road Reduced Speed and executive session to discuss contract negotiations and the potential acquisition of real property. 2. Review Draft Agenda for Budget Meeting and Regular Meeting Ms. Hunter asked if any of the community entities have asked to appear before the board regarding the proposed cuts to our contributions. Mr. Engman responded that anyone can come and address the Board but he didn't see a need for special invitations and he thought we should set a time limit. Ms. Hunter stated that Mr. Green had asked to meet with her and Mr. Levine and she didn't know the status of that. Mr. Engman responded that he thought Mr. Levine responded to him and suggested a 10 minute presentation time followed by 5 for questions or clarifications if anyone called asking about talking to the Board. Mr. Goodman noted that a number of the entities have sent letters but none have asked for specific times to address the Board. Ms. Hunter asked that we send and an email to Al Green, Head of the Ithaca Youth Bureau, telling him of the date and time for the public hearing on the budget. 3. Town Official's Reports— Mr. Bates reported that the Governor has signed a bill mandating that we notify a list of people or departments when a building is built with trusses. The idea is that firefighters are being hurt when trusses are failing and although commercial buildings have always had to have this type of notification on the front of the buildings; residential buildings have not had to. This law changes that and the rating of the trusses will have to be posted on the electrical boxes and we will have to notify emergency response departments. Ms. Ritter reported that the City of Ithaca Planning Committee, at their meeting this week, will probably propose that they designate themselves as Lead Agency for Chain Works development problem so it should probably go onto the October 201h meeting for discussion. Mr. Engman asked for some points to think about and Ms. Ritter responded that the majority of the buildings are in the City with the majority of the land in the Town and the impacts will be larger in the City so it makes sense to have them be Lead Agency but we will be very involved in the whole process and we would want to participate in the scoping process and the EIS and she is hopeful that we will be very involved. Pg 1 Ms. Ritter also reported that we have sent out advertisements for RFP's regarding the Route 96B Pedestrian Corridor Study as required by DOT and we have received three back. 4. Report from Committees a. Budget Committee — Mr. Levine reported that they talked about the increased water rates and the recurring issue of cutting funding to non-core programs. Next meeting we will review the tentative budget as the final step to presenting it to the board. Mr. Engman added that the committee discussed whether to try and stay under the tax cap or not and the feeling has been that if we can stay under without super effort then we should and our residents will get a small rebate but the catch is that in the years after that, we will have to cut our taxes by 1% and look at shared services so that will be harder. The City and County are saying they are going to stay under but he didn't know if that was going to be possible. b. Codes and Ordinances Committee — Mr. Goodman reported that the Committee continued the intensive look at the sign law and the last piece under review is the definitions which are 3-4 pages long and both the Codes and the ZBA have asked that they be very clear so as to remove any question or need for interpretation. He added that one of the issues also being looked at are signs that are not visible from the public road; for example, the no smoking signs at CMC which all needed permits but which cannot be seen from neighbors property or the public road but yet needed a variance or permit as stated in our current law. Mr. DePaolo asked who would bear the burden of proof for who could or couldn't see these signs and Mr. Goodman responded that the thought is to put a buffer distance between the street or neighboring property line like we did for the Ithaca College banners last year and the bigger the sign, the bigger the buffer. Ms. Hunter asked what items will be reviewed next and Mr. Goodman responded that because they have spent so much time on the sign law, a number of smaller issues that have been on the list of things to do have been placed on the back burner and he would like to address a number of those and also affordable housing. c. Planning Committee — Mr. DePaolo reported that they have not met since the last meeting but there will be a joint meeting with our City counterparts next week to review some draft language as a starting point but really to basically learn what each other's processes are and to see if there is any room for unifying our approach. d. Personnel and Organization Committee — Mr. Goodman reported that the Committee discussed the possible changes to the Town Clerk and PEZ area with Deb, Debbie, Lori and Sandy attending and expressing their concerns about the proposed changes. Their concerns were about the process that had been followed, all the way back to the Smart Work 2 years ago, concerns about the wall between the Clerk's area and the PEZ area coming down and the increase in noise as well as concerns that the Town is trying to create a secretarial pool as well as a loss of privacy. They also thought the current phone system doesn't work up to what it could or should. Pg 2 The Committee also discussed increasing the fees for applications for variances to the ZBA, starting a search for an Engineering Tech I, and offering the Consortiums Platinum Plan for employees to consider in November during the open enrollment period. They also accepted the review of our procedures for Deferred Compensation as required by law. e. Public Works Committee — Mr. Engman reported they discussed the mailbox policy which is in the Boards packets and under consent as well as the Six Mile Creek drainage issue at the vineyard and it will be about $60K for materials alone so we need to think about what might happen on that project. Talked a little about complete streets legislation and got updates on the Sand Bank Road project which is very close to being done. Route 79 sewer repair is in the beginning stages. Christopher tank is up and moving on to site work, relocation of antennae and then the old one will come down. E Other Mr. Engman reported that union negotiations are underway with the UAW for PW and we are waiting for CSEA to contact us for BP. The SJC is recommending that we plan the search for the Assistant Production Manager and also preparing for Jack Ruckheim's position of General Manager which will be a big production. Mr. Goodman reported that he is working with the Bolton Point Agreement of Municipal Cooperation which is what created Bolton Point back in the 70's and has been amended and supplemented many times and the goal is to update and consolidate and simplify it into one document. Hopefully we will have a draft to go to the Commission soon. Ms. Drake reported that the Health Consortium is meeting next week where they will be setting their budget and projecting a 5% increase for the next 3 years. 5. Discussion Items a. Conservation Board Memo re. Deer Control (Attachment 1) Mr. Engman Herb gave the history stating that the Conservation Board submitted a Report on Deer Control and he hadn't brought it to the board because he is really cautious with this topic because there is so much going on around us; Cornell has a deer control program, the Village of Cayuga Heights and the Village of Lansing have one and he has been curious about what the results of those efforts will be because it is a pretty broad area and the DEC has stepped up its licensing in the town of Ithaca so hunters can take more deer. He wanted to wait and see if those additional pressures were effective. There is still some concern, outlined in the memo, the habitat challenge or deer destroying native species and allowing invasive's in that they don't eat, vehicle collisions and the deer tick threat. Mr. Engman thought the jury was still out on some of these things and the whole idea of deer control. He stated that Lyme disease is spread more by white-footed mice than deer but they are Pg 3 certainly a part of the transmission process as well as birds. There is a lot of information out there but he didn't feel that anything is conclusive. There are a lot of attacks on the environment front different fronts including worms which are not native and cause a lot of damage to the forests. So it is hard to separate them out and pick one. He went on to say that we did get this formal request so we should respond and he doesn't know how anyone else feels about it so he thought this was the time to discuss it as a board and its reactions to the report. Mr. DePaolo said that there are outstanding questions in his mind because there is a supposition that the deer population is continuing to increase but he didn't know if that was true because there is no research in the report to bear that out. Are they increasing or has it settled out due to the amount of food left and the predators and everything else? Mr. Engman responded that he did not know the answer to that but the VCH would argue that whatever the number, they still have too many. The outstanding question there is if you are able to reduce the number somewhat, what does that do? Hold the number down or do you have to have a constant killing of the deer to keep them from drifting into other areas because deer have a propensity to increase their birthrate if they sense a decline in their population. It's a good question. Mr. DePaolo also asked if in looking at the current ways to control such as hunting. Do we know if the DEC has issued more permits in this time of perceived higher population? Mr. Bates explained that DEC keeps track by district but he didn't know if they went by municipality. Different methods of hunting and trap and kill practices were discussed briefly. Mr. Engman also noted that we have had a number of recent sightings and attacks of domestic animals by coyotes and he forwarded an article from DEC for the newsletter. Mr. Howe asked if we would be asking the Conservation Board to answer these questions or look on our own and Mr. Engman suggested that the board do some research on their own because the Conservation Board did a lot of research but there are conflicting reports and research out there. He wasn't ready to make a recommendation on how to deal with this now because he didn't know enough about it now. b. Conservation Easement Report—Mike Smith Mr. Smith reported that the inspection of the conservation easement went very well and this is a required yearly inspection and report. Mr. Engman added that we have also closed on purchase of development right for the Indian Creek Farm and Mr. Smith worked very hard on that. There were a lot of details and the owner was incredibly patient with the process. Pg 4 Mr. Goodman asked about recouping costs of these inspections as far as staff time and Mr. Smith responded that when there is a state grant involved there is some money set aside for stewardship that can be accessed for inspection costs. 6. Consider setting a Public Hearing regarding a proposed local law to clarify provisions in Town Code for clustering This is an issue discovered by Susan Brock where when the law was changed in 2004 it neglected to clarify the zones where clustering was allowed so this is just to fix that omission. TB Resolution No. 2014-155: Setting a public hearing regard a proposed local law amending the Town of Ithaca Code, Chapter 234 entitled "Subdivision of Land", regarding zones in which cluster subdivisions are permitted Be It Resolved, that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca will hold a public hearing at the Town Hall, 215 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, New York on the 20`h day of September, 2014 beginning at 5:30 p.m. for the purpose of considering a proposed local law amending the Town of Ithaca Code, Chapter 234, entitled "Subdivision of Land," regarding zones in which cluster subdivisions are permitted, and be it further Resolved, that at such time and place all persons interested in the proposed local law may be heard concerning the same; and it is further Resolved, that the Town Clerk of the Town of Ithaca is hereby authorized and directed to publish a notice of such public hearing in the Ithaca Journal and to post a copy of same on the signboard of the Town of Ithaca. Moved: Rod Howe Seconded: Bill Goodman Vote: Ayes—Goodman, Leary,Howe, Engman, DePaolo and Hunter 7. Hanshaw Rd Speed Limit Reduction Petition We received a petition on Thursday to lower the speed limit. This has been a concern with the neighborhood since the construction plan was started because with smoother roads usually comes higher speeds. TB Resolution No. 2014—156 : Petition to Lower Speed Limit on Hanshaw Road from Warren Rd to Sapsucker Woods Road Whereas the Town of Ithaca has received a petition from the residents on Hanshaw Rd between the intersections of Warren Rd and Sapsucker Woods Road requesting a speed limit reduction from 40 mph to 30 mph to match the current speed limit on Hanshaw Rd from Community Corners to the intersection with Warren Rd, now therefore be it Pg 5 Resolved that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby request that Tompkins County forward to New York State Department of Transportation Traffic Safety Division the Town's request to reduce the speed limit to 30 mph on Hanshaw Rd between the intersections of Warren Rd and Sapsucker Woods Road. Moved: Rich DePaolo Seconded: Pat Leary Vote: Ayes—DePaolo, Engman, Goodman, Leary, Hunter and Howe Motion passed unanimously. 8. Consider Consent Agenda Items TB Resolution 2014 - 157 : Adopt Consent Agenda Resolved, that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves and/or adopts the following Consent Agenda items: a. Approval of Town Board Meeting Minutes of September 8, 2014 b. Approval of Town of Ithaca Abstract c. Approval of JCAP Grant Submission d. Approval of Revised Mailbox Replacement Policy—Pulled Moved: Bill Goodman Seconded: Eric Levine Vote: Ayes—Goodman, Levine, Leary Howe, Hunter, DePaolo and Engman TB Resolution 2014 - 157 a: Approval of Minutes of September 8,2014 Resolved, that the Town Board hereby approves the submitted minutes as the final minutes of the meeting September 8, 2014 of the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca. TB Resolution No. 2014 - 157b: Town of Ithaca Abstract Whereas the following numbered vouchers have been presented to the Ithaca Town Board for approval of payment; and Whereas the said vouchers have been audited for payment by the said Town Board; now therefore be it Resolved that the governing Town Board hereby authorizes the payment of the said vouchers in total for the amounts indicated. VOUCHER NOS. 5912-5992 General Fund Town wide 26,669.93 General Fund Part Town 8,478.59 Highway Fund Part Town 184,568.60 Pg 6 Water Fund 500,659.36 Sewer Fund 55,861.70 Fire Protection Fund 264,792.00 Forest Home Lighting District 138.24 Glenside Lighting District 56.48 Renwick Heights Lighting District 58.02 Eastwood Commons Lighting District 143.98 Clover Lane Lighting District 16.66 Winner's Circle Lighting District 56.60 Burlei h Drive Lighting District 56.52 West Haven Road Lighting District 169.46 Coddin ton Road Lighting District 101.13 TOTAL 1,041,827.27 TB Resolution No. 2014— 157c: Authorizing the Justice Court Assistance Program Grant Application Whereas: in 2014 the NYS State Legislature once again established the Justice Court Assistance Program to assist towns and villages in the operation of its Justice Courts, and Whereas: the Chief Administrative Judge of the State's Unified Court System is once again entertaining grant applications for the year 2014, and Whereas: the deadline date for application is October 15, 2014; Now therefore be it Resolved: that this governing board of the Town of Ithaca authorizes and directs the Town Justices to complete and file the 2014 Justice Court Assistance Program Grant Application with the State of New York's Unified Court System Pulled item—Approval of Mailbox Replacement Policy Ms. Hunter questioned the language "at its option" after laying out requirements in the sentence above for the replacement. Mr. Weber responded that the new policy tries to explain what good repair is and that that is the owner's responsibility. Ms. Hunter agreed but thought the language inferred that the town is retaining the right to refuse even if the mailbox was in good repair. Mr. Weber responded that first the town assesses whether or not a plow did it and make sure that the mailbox was installed properly. Mr. DePaolo stated that that is outlined in the sentence above and if all those requirements are met, it then says at our option which is confusing. It should say will replace it at that point. After inspection and verification that it was our fault. Mr. Weber also noted that we replace the boxes with standard mailboxes regardless of what type the resident has. The Board agreed to change the draft policy to say the town will replace it and remove the "at its option" as well as replacing the work"plow"with the word "vehicle" to include all town vehicles rather than just plows. Ms. Drake noted that if it were a vehicle it would be a reportable Pg 7 accident under our insurance rather than this policy and these types of things are always questionable whether it is our fault or not and that was the impetus for the policy. TB Resolution No. 2014-158 : Adoption of`Mailbox Installation Policy" Whereas, the Town of Ithaca has had a policy for the placement and repair/replacement of mailboxes due to damage from winter road maintenance operations; and Whereas, mailbox structures must conform to the US Postal Service requirements and are privately owned by the property owners and permitted adjacent to the paved roadways; and Whereas, over the last several years the Public Works department has replaced an average of 30 boxes per winter season with the majority of the replacements due to lack of owner maintenance and deteriorated support posts and arms; and Whereas, public works staff spends approximately 4 hours on each repair/replacement and provides materials; and Whereas, the existing policy was discussed at the January 21, 2014Public Works Committee meeting acknowledging public improvements being made to unmaintained private structures and requested policy modifications; and Whereas, the revised Mailbox Policy, along with clarifying details was discussed at the September 16, 2014 Public Works committee and the modifications were referred to the Town Board for acceptance; now, therefore, be it Resolved, that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby adopts said Mailbox installation Policy. Moved: Tee Ann Hunter Seconded: Rod Howe Vote: Ayes—Goodman, Levine, Leary Howe, Hunter, DePaolo and Engman 9. Review of Correspondence Ms. Hunter asked about the audit of the justice court and there were a fair number of issues noted and asked if we were going to do anything about some internal controls. Mr. Engman thought the expectation is that the Justices would follow through and address them and Mr. Solvig added that these findings were basically from procedures of former staff and as the audit was reviewed, the new clerks had recommendations that they have brought from other courts and those have been put into place and we will wait until next year's audit to see if anything further is needed. 10. Executive Session Motion made by Rich DePaolo to enter executive session to discuss contract negotiations and the possible acquisition of real property; seconded by Mr. Levine. 6:55 p.m. Motion made by Mr. Levine at 6:55 p.m. to return to open session, seconded by Ms. Hunter. Pg 8 Meeting was adjourned upon motion and a second at 6:55 p.m. Submit d y Paulett Terwilliger Town Clerk Pg 9 � OF1T� , TOWN OF ITHACA CONSERVATION BOARD 215 N. Tioga Street Ithaca, N.Y. 14850 �L To: Supervisor Engman and Town Board Members From: Ellie Stewart, Conservation Board Chairperson Re: Report on Deer Overpopulation Date: August 7, 2014 In order to address the critical issue of deer over population in our Town,the Conservation Board has produced a report, enclosed within, enumerating salient concerns and measures for your immediate consideration. It is the will of this Board that steps be taken on this matter swiftly as residents within our Town are suffering the consequences of our inaction. A report addressing the same issue was drafted by this Board in 2004 without any perceptible change in policy. In this latest report we review new, relevant literature and studies, and enumerate practical steps of action. The Conservation Board will make itself available to answer questions and address concerns for the Town Board or individual members throughout a productive dialogue on this matter. Thank you for your time and attention. A Report for the Town Board Prepared by Town of Ithaca Conservation Board August 7, 2014 DEER IN ITHACA:An updated review of science and a call for action .:Nve Photo by loan Ehrenfeld Overabundant deer grazed the undergrowth of this forest until nothing was left.The browse line,the upper height they can reach, is on clear display. Our Concern Since the November 4, 2004 Conservation Board (CB) report for the Town Board on"Deer in the Town of Ithaca," it has become increasingly clear that the actions then proposed by the CB have been ineffective. Ten years ago,the CB imagined deer might be managed by fencing in gardens and landscape plants, thereby offering deer less to eat. But even if this had been effective in protecting personal property, it would only redirect foraging deer to open spaces not protected by fencing.We acknowledge that such actions are impractical. While whitetail deer are a native species,two main factors have resulted in their overpopulation (1)the absence of once native predators,and (2) a decline in hunting activity. The Department of Environmental Conservation has noted in their current Management Plan for White-tail Deer that since the 1980s there has been a 40% reduction in the number of people participating in deer hunting(NYS DEC 2011). Since most hunters hail from rural areas (Lauber B 2000, Enck et al. 2011),the urbanization of New York's population has resulted in a general attrition from the sport. These factors have increased the deer population to a point that the regional ecosystem is being degraded with compounding rapidity(DiTomasso A 2014, NYS DEC 2011).What this results in are a decline in floral diversity, a decline in forest ecological health and an increase in the abundance of invasive plants.The persistently high deer population also translates into more vehicle/deer collisions,greater losses of crop yields and a more robust tick population capable of spreading disease. Aldo Leopold's concept of a "Land Ethic"advocates for a clear, objective observation of nature.We see clearly that nothing truly natural remains in natural areas where an overpopulation of deer exist. A clear and careful observation of our natural areas will show that an animal without predators,especially one as voracious as the Eastern White-tail Deer, requires humans to step up to their responsibility as stewards of nature. Now that wolves and big cats can no longer keep deer in balance with the land,it is our ethical duty to do so. Ecological Concerns This region is surrounded by the "Emerald Necklace" of preserves, parks,and natural area sanctuaries, but if it remains fair deer-browsing territory, it will eventually harbor an increasingly unsustainable herd of malnourished and diseased whitetails degrading the landscape. Further,once native plant species have disappeared,they will have no seed source for their return. Restoration efforts to reintroduce species are labor-intensive and expensive. McShea and Rappole(2000), researchers with the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, have observed how deer overbrowsing destroys habitat availability for multiple species of birds.The insects and birds that depend on plant hosts are already disappearing,and they will continue to be "edged out" as their food source becomes further depleted. In short:deer over-browsing has far-reaching effects throughout the whole regional ecosystem. The loss of biodiversity in natural areas has been associated with an increase in the emergence and transmission of infectious diseases, a costly result of deer-degraded habitats. While opossums have been proven to buffer the deer-tick vector of Lyme disease, as they are poor hosts for the tick and kill the vast majority of ticks attempting to feed on them,these animals are absent from many degraded low-diversity forests, leaving more space for the white-footed mouse,which is able to survive the loss of biodiversity and tends to make disease transmission worse.As Keesing et al (2010) note: "current evidence indicates that preserving intact ecosystems and their endemic biodiversity should generally reduce the prevalence of infectious diseases." Economic Considerations Car-Deer Collision In 2013 one of the nation's largest automobile insurance companies,State Farm, reported that New York State drivers struck over 71,368 deer over the previous 12 month period ("U.S. Deer-Vehicle Collisions Decline"). Notwithstanding the deflating issues of unreported deer/automobile vehicle accidents,this number provides scope for the extent of what is ultimately a regional issue. The same report indicates that drivers in the state have a 1 in 157 chance of hitting a deer. But,as data is aggregated for the state as a whole, it is very likely that odds are much higher for drivers in upstate, rural New York. For local perspective; in the same year Tompkins County Highway Department removed 155 dead deer from their roads. While these figures have implications for public safety and the inhumane suffering of animals, it is the economic element to which we would draw your attention. A thorough study of collisions with wildlife (deer, elk and moose) in 2009 found that the average cost of car repairs resulting from striking a white- tailed deer was$2,622(Huijser M 2009). The average medical costs associated with such accidents were$2,700,adjusting for the type and likelihood of injury. Assuming normal distribution for the severity of the accidents cited above, it can be reasonably estimated that collisions with deer on Tompkins County roads resulted in a cost of$825,000. Lyme Disease Another issue blurring the bounds of public health and economic loss is that of Lyme disease.The cost of treating the illness can be reduced by skipping the expensive blood test, but not all victims of infected tick bites show the typical bulls-eye rash symptom.Therefore, people found with a tick fully engorged may be advised by doctors to take antibiotics on simple presumption of infection. It is alarming to note that there are reports of Post Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome, indicating that antibiotic therapy may not always provide adequate remedy. In 2002, it was estimated that$203 million was spent on the treatment of Lyme disease in the United States(Zhang et al 2006). Costs for individual cases can run into the thousands or tens-of-thousands of dollars, depending on how protracted the illness becomes (Zhang X 2006). Recent research has also shown that ticks are likely to spread not only Lyme disease, but babesiosis, a potentially lethal microscopic parasite, as well (Hersh M et al 2014). Tourism That tick bites can cause such disabling conditions could make out-door recreation and tourism much less appealing. Natural areas may also become less appealing as deer over-browsing and its subsequent trophic cascade cause the extinction of native plants and animals in degraded open spaces. If Ithaca loses the native species characteristic of this locality and becomes just another tick-infested,over- browsed landscape,tourists interested in outdoor recreation may find fewer reasons to come here to enjoy its local beauty. Agriculture Figures on the economic burden deer cause in agriculture,timber and horticulture industries are harder to verify in our region. Nationally estimates of losses caused by white-tailed deer in these industries were reported by Drs. Paul Curtis and Kristi Sullivan of Cornell University at 1.1 billion dollars (Curtis P 2011). Hunting On the other side of the ledger there are economic benefits to bringing sportsmen and women to our region to help manage deer populations. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's Deer Management Plan cites economic data on such benefits:$410.9 million spent annually on retail sales, $221.4 million supporting salaries and wages and $61.3 million dollars gathered in state and local taxes (NYS DEC 2011). Recommended Actions: In light of recent research,the risks in human health,financial costs and the increased urgency of the problem posed by a persistently growing deer population,the Town of Ithaca Conservation Board strongly recommends that the Town Board move swiftly to adopt and implement the following actions: Ad Hoc Committee Al Form an ad hoc committee tasked to draft a deer management plan that complements initiatives of adjacent municipalities. Key points within the plan would specify a target density of deer,or reduction in the number of deer/car accidents. Further, it should delineate areas of active management taking into consideration the new setback distance for archery hunting (150 ft.) A2 Coordinate efforts with city officials,the Natural Areas Commission and Cornell Plantations Natural Areas program to enhance program effectiveness.Among the points discussed with the City should be the establishment of a hunting site(s)within the Six Mile Creek Natural Area. A3 Establish an unbiased online resource center for residents who want to learn more about the why and how of deer management efforts. Capacity Building C1 Develop a website that provides a forum for landowners and hunters to connect. Similar sites exist under the management of municipalities, private businesses as well as state agencies. C2 Apply to the DEC for nuisance hunting permits for town property, and engage local hunters to facilitate taking. This action would be coupled well with an outreach program to landowners with more than 15 acres on how they can successfully apply for nuisance permits. Importantly,this would entail clarifying the legal distinction between Deer Nuisance and Deer Damage Permits from DEC. C4 For smaller potential hunting sites consider the use of permitted trap and kill methods. Recommended Policies/Practices P1 Set regular meetings with town stakeholders to maintain collaborative progress and facilitate information sharing. P2 Informing, and/or incentivizing, how landowners within the town can allow hunting on their lands. P3 Educate town residents about the extent of whitetail deer damage in the trophic cascade: "sanctity of life"should include plants, insects, birds in ecosystems ruined by over-browsing. The Conservation Board is committed to being an active and engaged partner with the Town Board. We would like to offer our help gathering information, data and other resources in support of the Town's efforts on this issue. Works Cited DiTommaso A,Morris SH,Parker JD,Cone CL,Agrawal AA.2014.Deer Browsing Delays Succession by Altering Aboveground Vegetation and Belowground Seed Banks. PLoS ONE 9(3):e91155. doi:10.1371/journa 1.pone.0091155 New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.2011.Management Plan for White-tailed Deer in New York State.Albany: Bureau of Wildlife. Lauber,T. B.and T.L.Brown.2000. Deer hunting and deer hunting trends in New York State. HDRU Publ.00-1. Dept.of Nat. Resources, N.Y.S.Coll.of Ag.and Life Sci.,Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY. Enck,J.W.,R.C.Stedman,and D.J. Decker.2011.Statewide deer hunter survey—2010.HDRU Publ. 11-01.Dept. of Nat.Resources, N.Y.S.Coll.of Ag.and Life Sci.,Cornell Univ.,Ithaca,NY. Curtis,P,Sullivan,K.2001."Wildlife Management Factsheet Series:White-tailed Deer."Cornell Cooperative Extension, 1-6. The Aldo Leopold Foundation.Aldo Leopold:His Life, His Work, His Legacy.www.aldoleopold.org Al Cambronne. March 11,2014"Can't See the Forest for the Deer:To cull or not to cull?That is the question towns increasingly face."The Wall Street Journal,available online at: http://on I i n e.ws i.com/news/articles/SB 10001424052702304704504579429583302400534 Devine,J.E,Manhart,H.E,Guinther, M, March 19,2014"Forget Cute Bambi;Too Many Deer Function as Locusts, "Wall Street Journal" Letters to Editor, p.A16 available online at: http://on Ii ne.wsi.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304914904579437620615851370?KEYWORDS=Forget+Cu to+Bam bi+too+Many+d eer+Fu n ction+as+Locusts&mg=re no64-wsi McShea,W.J.,Rappole,J.H.2000."Managing the abundance and diversity of breeding bird populations through manipulation of deer populations."Conservation Biology:1161-1170. U.S. Dept.of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Health's National Institue of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, "Chronic Lyme Disease," http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/lymedisease/understanding/pages/chronic.aspx updated 9/27/13 Zhang,X., Meltzer,M.I., Pena,C.A., Hopkins,A. B.,Wroth, L.,&Fix,A. D.2006. Economic impact of Lyme disease. Emerging Infectious Diseases,12(4),653. Hersh,M,Ostfeld,R, McHenry,D,Tibbets, M, Brunner,et al. 2014.Co-Infection of Blacklegged Ticks with Babesia microti and Borrelia burgdorferils Higher than Expected and Acquired from Small Mammal Hosts. PLoS ONE 9(6):e99348.doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0099348 Keesing, F, Belden, L, Daszak,P,et al.2 December 2010."Impacts of biodiversity on the emergence and transmission of infectious diseases."Nature,vol.468,pp 647-652. Published online 1 Dec 2010 at: http://www.nature.com/nature/iou rnaI/v468/n7324/fuI I/nature09575.htmI Town of Ithaca Conservation Board.2004. "Deer in the Town of Ithaca: Benefits, Negative Effects,Amelioration". VIVIZU14 Town of Ithaca 215 North Tioga Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Complaints Report From: 811/2014 To: 8/31/2014 Totals by Complaint Type & Status ComplaintType Complaint Status Count BUILDING WITHOUT A PERMIT 6 FIRE SAFETY VIOLATIONS g LOCAL LAW 1 NYS BUILDING CODE 2 OCCUPANCY 2 PROPERTY MAINTENANCE 2 UNREGISTERED VEHICLE 2 UNSAFE OCCUPANCY 1 UNSANITARY LIVING CONDITIONS 4 Total: 26 CLOSED 11 OPEN 13 UNFOUNDED 2 Page 4 of 4 Town of Ithaca yly/'LU14 215 North Tioga Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Certificates Issued From: 8/1/2014 To: 8/31/2014 Cert. # Date Type Temp SBL Legal Address Inspector Status 2014-0014 8/27/2014 CC 36.-1-4.5 1150-1154 Danby Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 2014-0022 8/27/2014 CO 36.-1-4.5 1150-1154 Danby Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 2014-0013 8/27/2014 CC 36.-1-4.5 1150-1154 Danby Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 2014-0024 8/27/2014 CO 36.-1-4.5 1150-1154 Danby Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 2014-0025 8/27/2014 CO 36.-1-4.5 1150-1154 Danby Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 2014-0018 8/27/2014 CC 36.-1-4.5 1150-1154 Danby Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 9875 8/27/2014 CC 33.-2-3.1 180 Calkins Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED 2014-0184 8/28/2014 CC 19.-2-2 1134 EAST SHORE DR-GARAG MKELLY ISSUED 2014-0151 8/2812014 CC 19.-2-2 1134 EAST SHORE DR MKELLY ISSUED 9867 8/29/2014 CO 28.-1-34.14 201 Sheffield Rd SWILLIAMS ISSUED Page 4 of 5 9191ZU'14 Town of Ithaca 215 North Tioga Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Certificate Report Totals by Type and Status From: 8/1/2014 To: 8/31/2014 Certificate Type Certificate Status Count CC 44 CO 50 Total: 94 ISSUED 94 Page 5 of 5 -I cn cn to cn � -o = G1 M m m v n D O O GZi Gzi 00 oO z Z m m n n y O x m m m Z r z -ni �z m � D D D O D O D D n ; -� -C D P mm � -< � � n � ? � z v CD m m m OO = r{ z c fn cn z r OD O o n z m m O z D -° D c m m n n - c � o m m -q m m O z z p c m o y r -Di c m m T 0 z m z - O o z .. z ono N 0 3 U � y d o N = C _! °, 00 -► CA N N -4 0 - -+ W 0 -4 -� W N = 00 ca rt No O d p to 0 c� N O m p cn z 0 m m vm vm p n z z O O c m G) Or _� m n n n g n -mr� -mn z � 2? 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