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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTB Minutes 2015-06-22 Meeting of the Ithaca Town Board Monday, June 22, 2015 at 4:30 p.m. 215 North Tioga Street, Ithaca,NY 14850 * Study Sessions are meetings of the Town Board which 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 pterwilliker @town.itltaca.ay.us with any questions. Agenda 1. Call to Order 2. Review Draft Agenda for Regular Meeting 3. CDRC Training Discussion 4. Discussion Items a. Reserve Funds, Long Term Debt and 5 Year Projection 5. Committee Reports a. Budget b. Planning c. Public Works d. Personnel and Organization e. Codes and Ordinances f. Economic Development Committee 6. Consider Approval of Town Share of Funding for Engineering Services Agreement, Amendment No. 2 for construction services during the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewatering Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Project to the Influent Building Construction 7. Consider Authorization for award of bids for parts of the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewatering Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Project to the Influent Building Construction 8. Consider Consent Agenda Items a. Approval of Town Board Minutes of June 8, 2015 b. Town of Ithaca Abstract 9. Board Comments, Official's Reports and review of Correspondence Time Warner Cable/Charter Communications Merger Meeting of the Ithaca Town Board Monday,June 22,2015 at 4:30 p.m. 215 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 Minutes Present: Herb Engman, Rich DePaolo,Tee Ann Hunter, Eric Levine and Rod Howe Absent: Pat Leary and Bill Goodman Staff Present: Paulette Terwilliger, Mike Solvig,Judy Drake, Sue Ritter and Bruce Bates 1. Call to Order—Meeting called to order at 4:32 p.m. 2. Review Draft Agenda for Regular Meeting 3. CDRC Training Discussion—Jeff Shepardson Mr. Shepardson gave a brief overview of the training stating that he worked with Don Barber and TCCOG for over two years fine tuning it and they are very happy with the end result. The curriculum focusses on efficiencies and communication skills necessary for conducting and participating in the types of meetings town board, zoning and planning board members are consistently in and the problems faced when interaction with the public go offline or get contentious. The goal is to market this training to all elected or appointed officials from all local municipalities and he is asking that the Town, City and TCCOG sponsor the training. By sponsor, he means lending our name to the marketing of the training and setting a date for it. The board asked about costs and Mr. Shepardson responded that those would be dependent on the number of people who signed up. Mr. Engman noted that he took a similar course last year through TCCOG prepared by CDR and found it very helpful and Mr. Howe noted that they have been asked by NYS to present this to other counties. The majority of the board was in favor of lending their support and the name of the town in a sponsorship role. Mr. Shepardson thanked the board and will work with the city and town on setting a date. 4. Discussion Items a. Reserve Funds, Long Term Debt and 5 Year Projection Mr. Engman stated that a couple of years ago we started doing five-year projection on our budget which helped us in our reserve fund and long term debt projections and we are at a turning point in our projections and Mr. Solvig is going to walk us through some of our options. Pg. 1 Mr.Solvig started by reviewing his handouts. He asked if anyone had any questions regarding our Reserve Funds that we had looked at earlier in the year. There were none so he reminded the board that we had looked at taking a good part of the fund balance from the sewer fund and putting that into the reserve fund as a hedge against the debt for the sewer plant; the fund balance is larger than what is needed and being a partner in the plant, we are responsible for a portion of those debts. We are looking at moving$1.3 million leaving a 31%balance in the fund balance. He wanted to make sure the board was comfortable with that before moving the money. The Board was and he moved on to long term debt. There were 3 schedules handed out prior to the meeting; the long term debt which is the amount of the outstanding bonds,the debt service payments which are principal and interest due each year and then a 5-year projection on where the constitutional debt limit would be at 2020. Right now the schedule for outstanding debt and debt service payments are based on the current capital improvement program and the projects that are currently on the list based on the estimates provided and projecting the debt out on current interest rates and he has done detailed calculations going into the future although there is wiggle room in there because you never know what the actual rates or bids will be. Our outstanding debt will increase each year and so will our debt service payment. The projections only go out to 2020 because you just can't go out farther into the unknown with interest rates and prices. Ms. Hunter asked about when we were talking about doing an asset inventory and it seems we are not able to do that more than 5 years and Mr. Solvig said that we could, but it would take staff time we don't have or paying someone else to do it and you can crunch numbers all you like, but we just don't know the variables that far out. Ms. Hunter responded that her concern is not to have to reliably affix a dollar amount as it is to know what improvements we may be needing to undertake in the next years because looking at these numbers and knowing we can't know if they are accurate is less the point than knowing what we expect to need to do. Mr. Engman thought the five year projection reflects back on this because part of the question comes up from how we have been replacing water tanks like crazy the past few years and they won't come up again for another 50 years, but we did that to take advantage of the rates and low bid prices. We can manage the maintenance on a 5-year basis. We can't predict some things, like the streets we thought would last for 10 more years but need to be replaced now. So you never know. Having a 5-year plan is enough and he thought we should move ahead to discussing that and then come back to this if it still is a question. Ms. Hunter responded that she is interested in saving toward an asset needing to be replaced and that comes down to whether you charge the people now or later and Mr. Solvig said he has no problem putting money away, but it is a question of where you get the money from. If the board wants to raise taxes to be able to put away for the future, he is fine with that, but it will be beyond the 2%tax increase. Mr. DePaolo stated that he pulled up the Highway Departments list of projects but the numbers get fuzzy the further out you go and Mr.Solvig responded that we know we need to spend about$1M a year and the budget hasn't been structured in the past to get that extra money to Pg. 2 put aside and then we got hit with the tax cap and we weren't able to. It is all a question about where we get the money from. Mr. Engman added that if we take the money in and save it, you don't earn anything on it and we are essentially losing money in inflation costs. He asked Mr.Solvig to turn to the 5-year plan and then come back for questions as they relate. Mr. Solvig reviewed the spreadsheets, noting that he wants to focus on the trends, not the figures because anything can happen and it is the trend that can tell you something. The various sheets show that the Highway Fund which is not supported by fees will be depleted in 5 years if the tax rate remains the same. Other spreadsheets show the fund balances with different scenarios of raising taxes; one scenario raises the tax rate by 6%which would be over the tax cap for one year and establish a new base and then stay under the tax cap for the remainder of the years. The question for the board is how we pay for highway repairs and projects if we don't want to bond for them and incur that interest and fees. The board discussed the scenarios and Mr. Engman noted that this is the start of the discussion and it will continue in the Budget Committee and Board meetings but the bottom line is although we are in decent shape,we need to make a choice and the Budget Committee wanted to introduce an involve the Board early. 5. Committee Reports Budget Mr. Levine reported that they discussed the projections presented tonight and the tax cap override resolution coming at the July meeting. The next meeting is the 24th and they will be discussing the 5 year capital plan and 2016 budget process. Planning Mr. DePaolo reported that they met last Thursday and saw a presentation on the County's Wayfinding project to unify our signs for destinations in the county. He stated that there is a cost and the assumption is that each municipality and higher education center will pay through a cost sharing formula based on a combination of things and where the destination is located. The estimate for the town is $35K over 2 years. The timeline is July and they need a commitment from the town in the form of a resolution and letter of support from the town for the submission of the grant. Ms. Ritter added that there is a plan that members could look at. They are going to present to the Town at the next meeting. Ms. Hunter asked why we are paying for it and not the county and thinking of it from a cost benefit analysis because that is a third of what we pay for community services and this isn't benefitting the town. Some discussion followed and it was suggested that members read the report and bring questions for them to the meeting. Mr. DePaolo also reported that Warren from the Museum of the Earth was there to talk about his vision about keeping pedestrians off of Route 96; sidewalks and trail connections to the Gateway Trail and he has wanted this for a long time. The Committee agreed to walk the area and see what was feasible. Pg. 3 Mr. DePaolo reported that the mini golf project in the Inlet Valley Corridor has been pulled of the table and the Committee has decided to not continue discussion on rental property oversight but move towards addressing the issue incremental by looking at things such as the basement exemption for square footage which builders are taking advantage of and similar regulations. Public Works Mr. Howe reported that the meeting is tomorrow and the biggest item last month was the parking issue around Towerview which has already gone to the board. The other item discussed was the bus tour and Mr. Weber is trying to schedule that for July 241H Ms. Ritter reported on the rights-or-way funds for the Gateway Trail which will be coming to the full board meeting for permission to shift funds away from the ROW and into general funds which would mean the town would be asked to cover up to $5,000 in those ROW acquisition costs. Personnel and Organization — Ms. Drake reported that the committee met in June and continued reviewing the PDZ fee structure and discussed the possibility of having external defubulators; a suggestion that came out of Safety Committee. There are ongoing cost associated with the machine and a policy and training would be implemented. Other topics included an update on positions at BP, contract negotiations, Finger Lakes Technology services and staffing for the Code department; all will continue to be discussed and brought back to the Board. Codes and Ordinances Ms. Ritter reported that the committee continues to review and revise the sign law and they are waiting for a report from Ms. Brock on a Supreme Court ruling regarding content in which they basically upheld that you cannot regulate content. This will determine whether we have to revisit some pieces or not. Economic Development Committee Mr. Howe reported that the committee is meeting next month and will be deciding whether to request authorization for a grant for strategic planning. 6. Consider Approval of Town Share of Funding for Engineering Services Agreement, Amendment No. 2 for construction services during the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewatering Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Project to the Influent Building Construction TB Resolution 2015-066: Approval of Town Share of Funding for Engineering Services Agreement,Amendment No. 2 for construction services during the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewatering Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Proiect to the Influent Building Construction Whereas,the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Plant is in need of certain Capital Improvements, and Pg. 4 Whereas,the Town Board approved a professional services contract with GHD at its meeting of April 8, 2013 and approved Amendment No. 1 on July 14, 2014, and Whereas GHD has submitted a proposal to the Sewer Joint Committee (SJC) entitled Amendment No. 2 for services to complete the construction, and Whereas the SJC has recommended an additional amount not to exceed $108,000 to fund the proposed agreement with GHD Engineers authorizing additional funds from the authorization for CP 419J contingent upon action by all wastewater partners committing their percentage of reimbursement shares to the Joint Activity Fund allocated per the Joint Sewer Agreement as follows: Municipality Percentage Project Cost City of Ithaca 57.14 $61,711.20 Town of Ithaca 40.88 44,150.40 Town of Dryden 1.98 2,138.40 $ 108,000.00 therefore be it Resolved,that the Town Board hereby approves the Amendment No. 2 for construction services during the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewatering Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Project for the amount detailed above. Moved: Tee Ann Hunter Seconded: Rich DePaolo Vote: Ayes—Hunter, DePaolo, Levine, Howe, Engman and Goodman 7. Consider Authorization for award of bids for parts of the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewatering Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Project to the Influent Building Construction TB Resolution 2015-067: Authorization for award of bids for parts of the Bar Screen and Biosolids Dewaterina Equipment and Miscellaneous Improvements Project to the Influent Building Construction Whereas,the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Plant's Special Joint Committee at its June 10, 2015 regular meeting selected the three lowest qualified bids for General Construction, Electrical and Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning, for the renovation of the Influent Building, including bar screen replacement, and the installation of new dewatering equipment to complement the existing belt filter press, and Whereas,the lowest qualified bid for Contract#15-001 for General Construction submitted by M.A. Bongiovanni, Inc. in the amount of$2,640,000, and Pg. 5 Whereas,the lowest qualified bid for Contract#15-002 for Electrical Construction submitted by Matco Electrical in the amount of$181,530, and Whereas,the lowest qualified bid for Contract#15-003 for Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning Construction by JW Danforth Co. in the amount of$398,800, and Whereas,the cost for these contracts shall be borne by the Town of Dryden,Town of Ithaca and the City of Ithaca based on the percentage of ownership assigned to each municipality, now,therefore be it Resolved,that the Town of Ithaca hereby authorizes the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility Influent Building and Dewatering Equipment upgrades in the amount not to exceed $ 1,448,117.99 which includes the contract values plus a 10%contingency, and be it further Resolved,that the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility is hereby authorized to negotiate a final contract based on this resolution,and be it further Resolved, that the City of Ithaca Mayor,the Town of Ithaca Supervisor and the Town of Dryden Supervisor be authorized to sign the contracts, and be it further Resolved,that in accordance with the final contracts to be negotiated between the partners and the three qualified lowest bidders,funding for said project shall be acquired thru the issuance of Serial Bonds based on the following schedule which are to include interest rates as stipulated by the City of Ithaca Controller, and be it Municipality Percentage Proiect Cost City of Ithaca 57.14 $ 2,024,106.22 Town of Ithaca 40.88 $ 1,448,117.99 Town of Dryden 1.98 $ 70,138.79 $ 3,542,363.00 Moved: Rich DePaolo Seconded: Tee Ann Hunter Vote: Ayes—Hunter, DePaolo, Levine, Howe, Engman and Goodman 8. Town of Ithaca Abstract TB Resolution 2015 -068: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 Pg. 6 Resolved that the governing Town Board hereby authorizes the payment of the said vouchers in total for the amounts indicated. VOUCHER NOS. 686-774 General Fund Town wide 59,132.70 General Fund Part Town 10,761.87 Highway Fund Part Town 34,466.45 Water Fund 593,192.70 Sewer Fund 60,824.92 Coddington Road Water Main Replace 19.07 Risk Retention Fund 490.00 Fire Protection Fund 264,792.00 Forest Home Lighting District 48.62 Glenside Lighting District 14.51 Renwick Heights Lighting District 25.29 Eastwood Commons Lighting District 33.97 Clover Lane Lighting District 4.54 Winner's Circle Lighting District 6.78 Burleigh Drive Lighting District 15.80 West Haven Road Lighting District 62.79 Coddington Road Lighting District 36.55 Trust and Agency 71000.00 TOTAL 1,0301928.56 Moved: Rod Howe Seconded: Rich DePaolo Vote: Ayes—Hunter, DePaolo, Levine, Howe, Engman and Goodman 9. Board Comments,Official's Reports and review of Correspondence Time Warner Cable/Charter Communications Merger — Mr. Engman reported that there is a new merger being proposed and he would like to send the same type of letter we sent to Comcast to Charter Communications regarding the need for a new franchise agreement and settling the old law suit over monies owed to the town before approving any merger. The Board agreed. Mr. Engman reported that we did receive the grant to do a tree inventory in preparation for the Emerald Ash Borer thanks to Mike Smith and Rich Schoch for their work on this. Ms. Ritter reported that the Amabel project is expected to go back to the Planning Board this month and the Sterling House modifications are on track. The Greenways project is submitting a modification to make it a cooperative and that may cause problems with zoning options and require legislative action. The issue is assessments because of the land and building ownership Pg. 7 and how that is assessed as well as sewer system ownership, but she is waiting to discuss this with Ms. Brock. Ms. Hunter reported that the 10 Technical Committee will be meeting and then they will be moving forward with public outreach. Meeting adjourned at 6:14p.m. Submitte Paulette Terwilliger Pg. 8