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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTB Minutes 1995-12-11 Town of Ithaca Town Board Meeting December 11 , 1995 5 : 30 P . M . 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 : PRESENT : John G . Whitcomb , Supervisor ; Karl Niklas , Councilman ; David Klein , Councilman ; Carolyn Grigorov , Councilwoman ; Ellen Harrison , Councilwoman ; Catherine Valentino , Councilwoman . EXCUSED : Ed Conley , Councilman . ALSO PRESENT : John Barney , Attorney for the Town ; Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk / Director of Administrative Services ; Daniel Walker , Director of Engineering ; Fred Noteboom , Highway / Parks Superintendent ; Andrew Frost , Director of Building and Zoning ; Sally Alario , Assistant Budget Officer ; Jonathan Kanter , Director of Planning . OTHERS PRESENT : Kristina Bartlett , Ithaca Journal ; Doug Look , Holt Architects ; David Cahill , M& T Bank ; Tim Joseph , T . C . Board of Representatives ; Mary Russell , Councilwoman Elect ; M . Lou McIsaac ; Paul R . McIsaac ; Stan Seltzer ; Mary Brcak ; Bruce Brittain ; Susan Bryson ; Steve Allen Jr . Call To Order : The Supervisor called the meeting to order at 5 : 30 p . m . , and led the assemblage in the Pledge of Allegiance . Agenda Item No 4 - Reports of Town Officials : a . Town Supervisor - See attached . b . Director of Engineering - See attached . Councilwoman Harrison - What is the Town Engineer ' s role with Bolton Point regarding development of the water project and design for the Burdick Hill Road storage tank ? Mr . Walker - The Town Engineering Department provides Engineering services and in turn charges Bolton Point for those services . C . Town Highway Superintendent - See attached . As a follow up on the school speed zone at Boynton Middle School , it appears the Town will need to hire a crossing guard in order to be able to have a school speed zone . In order for the State to complete the study for our request for ' the speed zone , a crossing guard must be in place at the time . Presently the speed limit is 35 m . p . h . Supervisor Whitcomb - The procedure at this point then would be for TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Mr . Noteboom to bring a proposal before this Board to hire a crossing guard in anticipation of a school zone ? Mr . Noteboom - We would then forward the request for the speed limit reduction to Region 3 DOT and complete their study . Supervisor Whitcomb - Does the crossing guard need to start work before the study is done ? Mr . Noteboom - DOT stated we need a school crossing guard because the middle school is for students below grade 10 . Supervisor Whitcomb - I would like Mr . Noteboom to put prepare a proposal for the December 29 , meeting requesting the crossing guard . Councilwoman Valentino - Do we really want to do that ? Councilwoman Harrison - This is an area which is unsafe with a lot of students walking . d . Director of Planning - See attached . The Codes and Ordinance and Planning Committee a joint meeting which was very successful . They agreed on the wording of the Conservation District proposal . The Planning Committee will review issues pertaining to the district and will present the draft to the Planning Board , Councilwoman Harrison - What will the waterfront grant accomplish and who are the participants ? Mr . Kanter - The participants include the County , City , the Chamber of Commerce and the Town of Ithaca . The purpose would be to look at the waterfront in the respective areas and assess opportunities for public access and improvements . Supervisor Whitcomb - What is the local share of the grant ? Mr . Kanter - The Town ' s share is $ 5 , 000 , the County ' s is $ 5 , 000 , and the City ' s $ 5 , 000 . We have received a letter from the County asking for our share . A letter of understanding will be included with the check . Councilwoman Valentino - Who is responsible for the radio transmission tower ? Mr . Kanter - A local church is responsible for the tower on Bostwick Road , it relays from a satellite transmission to broadcast to congregations in the area on a very small scale . 2 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 e . Director of Building and Zoning - See attached . f . Town Clerk - See attached . The Town could receive up to $ 50 , 000 in a SARA Grant for the construction of a vault in the new Town Hall . The application must be submitted by February 1 , 1996 for the calendar year July 1 , 1996 through June 30 , 19970 The application must include quotes from three different vendors . I am not sure whether we should submit the application since we do not know where we will be located , or the kind of vault needed . I would like some direction as to whether this grant should be pursued now , or whether the Town should wait until we are in our new facility . Councilman Klein - It sounds like the grant is based on an existing building in which a vault would be added . Assuming we are going to build a new building and we would be receiving bids on the building itself , it would be conceivable to ask for vault bids at that time . Mrs . Noteboom - The grant stipulated it must be for an existing building , however if a government has been active in a records management program and they are considering a move , they may look at the application favorably . Supervisor Whitcomb - Could you talk to the sponsor and get some additional information from them? Mrs . Noteboom - I will get more information and report back at the December 29 , 1995 meeting . Councilman Niklas - If this is anything like the National Science Foundation or the Federal funding agencies they will fund upgrading but not for new . They are very strict in their funding . Councilwoman Harrison - When do we anticipate being connected to the Internet within Town Hall ? Mrs . Noteboom - The modem is hooked up and we are ready to go . Additional training is needed . Councilwoman Harrison - Will the Town Clerk be the only one connected or networked ? Mrs . Noteboom - Yes , at this time . Others will be able to use it after a scheduling system is set up ; who they called , how many hours they were connected , etc . The grant money was specifically for records management , the Town Clerk is responsible to insure usage according to the grant . 3 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilwoman Harrison - How long is this grant ? Mrs . Noteboom - The Town will receive 100 hours of free on line time through June of 1996 , after which the Town will be required to pay for our usage on the Internet . The estimated cost to the Town after June is $ 2 . 50 per hour , an 800 number it would be approximately $ 9 . 50 per hour . Supervisor Whitcomb - I assume one of your fellow Department Heads could help you with the training . Mrs . Noteboom - I have received two days training , but would like someone to sit with me the first few times . g . Assistant Budget Officer - See attached . Councilman Klein - What did NYNEX over bill us on in order for us to receive this amount of a refund ? Mrs . Alario - This was some water and sewer telemeters they were billing both the City and the Town for when they were actually a City charge . Mr . Walker - The pump stations and water tanks are connected to different telemetry at Bolton Point and the City water plant . Bolton Point started operating our phone line system for the Trumansburg Road tank which comes down to the pump station that reports to the City water plant . NYNEX was billing everyone for this connection . The phone bills are confusing , and are being reviewed for overcharges . Councilman Klein - Do these utility auditors work on a commission basis ? Mrs . Alario - Yes , 50 % of the amount found . Agenda Item No 7 - Presentation : David Cahill , M&T Bank : David Cahill - I am the municipal banker for M&T Bank in the Tompkins , Broome and Cortland Counties . I have lived in this area all of my life . I came here this evening to discuss the bank itself and a collateral agreement . To do business with a bank , the Town needs a collateral agreement as all deposits over $ 100 , 000 must be collateralized with treasury securities . M&T dos not presently have a signed collateral agreement with the Town . This prevents M&T from accepting town deposits . 4 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Banking is transparent , but M&T does business differently . M&T can do things on a competitive basis which would benefit the Town . M&T did not come to Ithaca to put the Tompkins County Trust Company out of business . M&T believes there is room in the Town and City for another good commercial bank . The bank was founded in Buffalo in 1856 as Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company and part of First Empire State Corporation which is the holding company for M& T Bank and East New York Savings Bank . M& T is a $ 12 million bank and they do business solely in New York State outside of the mortgage business . The operation in Ithaca stands on its own . M&T in Ithaca makes its own decisions . One of the advantages M& T brings to the area is they are a large enough bank that if they are involved in a project of size they can have resources to bring the project to fruition . I am a dedicated government banker and call on school districts , villages , towns , cities , etcetera . I have been involved with municipal banking for 10 years . M&T on the whole does business with approximately 500 municipalities across the state . In the triple cities area they do business with almost every entity in the area , and they dominate western Broome County . M&T is hoping the Town will act on this collateral agreement , and look at M& T as an additional provider of services . Councilman Klein - How would M& T draw a distinction between what they could offer versus the Tompkins County Trust Company ? Mr . Cahill - M&T is extremely innovative in the cash management area . There are a number of things M&T can do , they are at the forefront of computerized banking . M&T has a PC based banking product called , " In Focus " which would allow the Town to do all of its banking on line , moving money between accounts , sending wire transfers , account reconciliations , and much more . This service would also allow the Town to bring up detailed information from accounts at other banks . M& T ' s rates are consistently higher for certificates of deposits and the money remains in the area for lending purposes . Councilman Niklas - Do you have any literature , or a prospectus on the information you have discussed which could be sent to the Town Supervisor ? Mr . Cahill - M& T is going to introduce the PC based banking for home use on Friday , December 15th . M& T is innovative and has worked extremely hard to develop this business . Councilman Harrison - What has happened with parking ? M&T is a 5 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 neighbor who has a parking lot next door and we were able to use the lot from time to time . What has been happening with that ? Mr . Cahill - I cannot tell you anything concrete in terms of the parking . How many spaces do you have ? Supervisor Whitcomb - We rent two spaces from M&T in the back lot . Councilwoman Harrison - The issue has been both formal and informal . Use in the evening has not been a problem , and there has been some informal allowances for daytime use . Mr . Cahill - I do not know about the parking situation , however I will try to find out and get back to you . Mrs . Noteboom - The last status was M&T did not know how many back lot spaces they would need because of the new employees they have . once that had been determined they could possibly rent more spaces to the Town . The Town has two spaces in the back lot and one handicapped space next to our ramp which M&T graciously allowed us to put up . Mr . Cahill - I am here three days a week and do not find the lot full . I will see what I can do and get back to you . Councilwoman Valentino - We had a problem with being able to use the parking lot a while ago , but over the past 6 to 8 months there hasn ' t seemed to be a problem that I am aware of . Councilwoman Valentino - I was wondering why M&T discontinued its student intern program? Mr . Cahill - M&T will be bringing it back . It was discontinued because 1995 was a year M&T would like to put behind them . It was a very difficult year converting the bank ' s computer system and with the loss of staff . M&T did not feel it was justified to hire student interns when long time employees of the bank who had been " let go " might be able to come back in some role . It is my understanding that very shortly internships will be available again . Councilwoman Valentino - Do you think M&T has stabilized its employment situation ? Mr . Cahill - In terms of banking , if an employee is in operations they are in big trouble . Banking is a business that has been traditionally very old fashioned . It is hard to believe that every check you write still gets seen by human eyes . People still sit at desks clearing the checks , but as automation steps in that end of 6 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 banking is going to change . I am on the Management Committee and most of the staff reductions were in operations . There is a different philosophy in companies on how you do business . There is a period where people leave or look elsewhere and the reductions were very .painful for M&T as well . M&T kept everyone with the bank as long as they could . M&T did everything they could do , unfortunately it is a part of business . M&T is at a point where they are beginning to build , business is beginning to come in and solidify things . Conversion is behind us . Councilwoman Valentino - M&T picked up some on the small business loans . Are they going to try and do more with home mortgages ? Mr . Cahill - Yes , the specifics are unknown , but things are turning around . Councilwoman Valentino - I think it is important to have more than one bank in the community , but as a group we are concerned about the overall effect on the community . Mr . Cahill - M&T is a very supportive bank in terms of the communities . The bank has supported various activities throughout the year and this is true all over the state . Mr . Barney - I assume you lend money to municipalities on Bond Anticipation Notes ( BANS ) , how do your rates compare ? Mr . Cahill - Yes , M&T is competitive . People call us for rates on a daily basis . Municipalities always pay back their loans and the degree of risk is low . If the Town is rated we could do it on the same day . Mr . Barney - What kind of paper work do you require for your BAN ' s ? Mr . Cahill - We would require a bond counsel depending on the amount the municipality would be borrowing . M&T does not have a tremendous amount of red tape , I would be the one to talk to . Agenda Item No 5 - Report of Tompkins County Board of Representatives : Tim Joseph , T . C . Board Representative - The Board met with State Senator Seward and Senator Kuhl recently . They talked about the possibility of getting a solid waste benefit district . The State law which allows benefit districts specifically excludes solid waste districts . The County attempted a few years ago , but failed , to get the legislation changed . The Senators ' felt that this time they might be able to get it passed as a Home Rule Law instead of trying to change the law State wide . That would allow the County 7 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 to make the solid waste fee part of the tax bill , and it would charging according to assessed value . Tompkins County is under a State mandate to greatly increase the number of Department of Social Service clients who are on Work Fare . The County is looking for job placements for these individuals . If the Town has any way to use these people , the County would like to place them with you . Supervisor Whitcomb - How does one get that type of information and what does it cost ? Mr . Joseph - I do not believe it would cost anything except for providing the supervision . The Department of Social Services would be the contractor . Councilwoman Valentino - How would the solid waste district affect the tax exempt properties if it were based on assessed value ? Mr . Joseph - They would be included even though they do not pay property tax . The fee would be based on their assessed value . Councilwoman Harrison - One of the points of discussion , was - related occupancy rather than assessed value . Mr . Joseph - Getting away from assessed value was never one of the reasons the County had a fee , it was one of the consequences of having the fee . The County used the fee in order to include the non - profits . Having a fee one is not allowed when using assessed value , therefore we needed to find another way . Assessed value is not particularly related to the production of solid waste , but nothing is . Councilman Niklas - If you used assessed value for Cornell and Ithaca College , presumably there would be cost sharing so the amounts being paid by individuals . could be lessened . Mr . Joseph - We would not be required to use assessed value , we just have a lot more options . Councilman Niklas - You could use assessed value as part of a formula and work it out . I would like to encourage the County to consider a reduce rate for the elderly and fixed income persons in their deliberations . Mr . Joseph - I am sure there will be long discussions regarding what the formula will be . Agenda Item No 9 - 6 . 15 p m - PUBLIC HEARING - _CONSIDER A " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE 8 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 DISTRICT ( LIMITED MIXED USE ) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 711 : The Supervisor opened the public hearing at 6 : 15 p . m . The Town Clerk had proof of posting and publication . Nancy Brcak , President of Forest Home Improvement Association - Forest Home is very happy this Board has revisited this document . Bruce Brittain , Chair of the Forest Home Traffic Committee would like to speak . Bruce Brittain - I would like to make a small correction regarding the October 1995 meeting . When we were discussing this , John Barney did a quick calculation as to the amount of development which would be allowed under the current zoning regulations . The new legislation would allow approximately six times the development as would the current R - 30 zone . There are some continuing problems which Forest Home sees with the document as it stands . There is still a tremendous amount of development not everyone in Forest Home feels comfortable with . A large number of people had hoped there would be some resolution of the existing traffic problems before allowing any further development . It is understand why there was reluctance to have a development moratorium , however that is a continuing concern for many . Some feel the language in the legislation is too soft and the process was done backwards starting with Cornell ' s " Wish List " instead of starting with the Comprehensive Plan ' s suggestions for that area and ultimately revising that to make it acceptable to Cornell . There is continuing concern regarding development done by the State and whether the measures being proposed would be sufficient to understand it . There is tremendous improvement over the first draft . I am pleased we have been listened to and our concerns addressed . I would like to thank all who have worked on this . I do not know if what we have now is sufficient , but there is a mechanism available and as long as Forest Home remains alert and aware of ongoing projects we can be cautiously optimistic . I have been working on this for the past three years and expected a battle to the end , however it is not the case . Nancy Brcak - The community , as Bruce indicated , is terribly concerned about the traffic and we had hoped this document would have addressed that concern in a more specific way . Our concerns include increased traffic which will occur as a result of any 9 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 development in that district . We hope you will monitor that aspect as well . As no others in attendance wished to be heard , the Supervisor closed the public hearing at 6 : 20 p . m . Supervisor Whitcomb - There were a few changes in wording in the document . Councilwoman Harrison - The Town tried to respond to some of the concerns raised as a result of the hearings and meetings held . The changes deal both with traffic issues and the issue of what if the State were to come in and do something which did not meet the special land use requirements . What ways do we have to be sure that as development proceeded the cumulative impacts were still acceptable . That is what we attempted to do here . Agenda Item No 10 - Consider Enactment of a " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE DISTRICT ( LIMITED MIXED USE ) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 711 : Resolution No . 231 : Motion made by Councilwoman Harrison , seconded by Councilman Niklas enacting the said " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE DISTRICT ( LIMITED MIXED USE ) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 7 " and authorizing and directing the Town Clerk tc file said local law as required by law . Councilman Klein - In Paragraph 9 of the proposed law , there is a reasonable mechanism which has been established in terms of the traffic impacts with the Planning Board given the power to look at that issue at any given time . Councilwoman Harrison - As well as setting up the Transportation Committee . Councilwoman Valentino - We do understand your ongoing concern regarding the traffic presently generated through Forest Home and what future impacts there could , be . It has been high on our priority list and together we need to continue to monitor the ongoing concerns . Councilman Niklas - Many members of the Town Board are concerned with traffic problems townwide . Forest Home has its agenda with traffic as do most of the neighborhoods . The Town is certainly sensitive and will try and be proactive townwide . Supervisor Whitcomb - I think we have done a good job of developing this plan , a number of compromises which have been reached , and 10 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 everyone is relatively happy with the final product . A year ago when we assigned this to committee , I stated that I had a potential conflict of interest regarding this issue due to my position at Cornell as an administrator in the College of Agriculture . Even though you might debate whether or not there is a conflict of interest , to avoid that type of debate I will declare the potential conflict of interest and abstain from voting on this . A Roll Call vote on the resolution resulted as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , abstained ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried . Councilwoman Harrison - At our last meeting we thought there were two things which needed to be changed in the law . Our Attorney suggested any changes in intent needed to be readdressed by the Planning Board , we decided to go ahead and pass this as these changes were not changes of intent . I would like to suggest a change , presented by Forest Home , that the set back along Route 366 be back 100 feet and not the 75 feet as stated in the law because of the potential for widening Route 366 in the future . The other , in defining a site or the area Cornell would come in for a proposal , there was a limitation in the law stating a site shall not be greater than 30 acres . We came to the conclusion these did not seem to be desirable , in fact if Cornell was planning a larger piece that would be fine . These are two changes I would like us to refer back to the Planning Board for their comments and recommendations , hopefully resulting in an amendment to this law . Agenda Item No . 8 - 6 : 00 . m . - PERSONS TO BE HEARD : Lou McIsaac , 107 Forest Home Drive - Has there been any consideration regarding the traffic problem in the Town ? Could we do something with a bypass , using what is there , like Route 13 to 366 and coming in Route 366 ? Supervisor Whitcomb - Yes , the Town of Ithaca is a member of the Metropolitan Planning Organization , the Ithaca Tompkins County Transportation Council and we have had as approved our Transportation Improvement Plan a $ 260 , 000 expenditure for a planning study of that area to incorporate some of the earlier studies to make a recommendation to the Town of Ithaca , to the County and the State as to what transportation management should be done . Perhaps some sort of bypass or a combination of solutions . Money has been held up from New York State DOT , who in turn are being held up for funds by the Federal Government because the Federal budget has not been passed on time . We are hopeful that money will be released and that study can take place . A letter was 11 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 signed by the five municipalities who belong to the MPO urging the release of that money . We are aware of the needs of a long term transportation solution in that area . Mr . Guttenberger - On behalf of Cornell University I wish to thank everyone in the Town of Ithaca who has been involved in this SLUR process . This project was started five years ago as long range planning . Thanks to every one past and present involved . Agenda Item No 11 - Consider agreement with Cornell University regarding Federal and State projects proposed SLUR # 91 Councilman Niklas - Would anyone from Cornell Administration like to comment on the agreement ? Councilwoman Harrison - The concept is to hold Cornell to agree to try to advocate to full extent possible for adherence with SLUD . Recognizing the State may elect not to do so in some cases . It also states that Cornell is not obligated to refuse a building that does not comply , and it also sets forth their will be ongoing communications with Cornell to keep the Town - informed of their thoughts for development on Precinct 7 , Resolution No . 232 : Motion made by Councilwoman Harrison , seconded by Councilman Niklas , that the Town of Ithaca enter into an agreement with Cornell University to inform the Town regarding potential projects and preliminary plans to be addressed to the Town Supervisor and Town Planner as it relates to the SLUD 9 , ( see attached prepared resolution ) . A vote on the resolution resulted as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye . Carried unanimously . Agenda Item # 4 Report of Town Committees : Councilman Klein - Public Works Committee minutes have not been completed , many of the issues addressed will be discussed at the Town Board ' s next meeting . Councilwoman Valentino - The Recreation Partnership met and reviewed the registration in the programs , all registrations are increasing substantially . The partnership is working on the problems that are being heard about in the news related to violence in the schools . The issues are more from the localities the children come from rather than the racial issues . The partnership and the County is focusing on activities and programs where we can 12 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 have the children from the those areas have more interaction with one another to avoid some of these problems . A group from Ithaca College has a programming class that do special events . Mrs . Noteboom and I have requested they put together a special event for the youth in the Town of Ithaca that will be related to the 175th Anniversary , and will be something that will provide a historical perspective of the Town of Ithaca . I submitted my resignation as Chair of the Recreation Partnership as of January 1 , 1996 , because of my new duties as Town Supervisor . There are sometimes committees and groups you may be happy to get away from , but it was hard to leave this board . The subjects they address is very close to me . Councilwoman Valentino - I have received complaints from residents regarding the changes Time Warner Cable is making in the cable boxes . The residents feel Time Warner Cable has found a way to circumvent the Federal regulation of fees . The way they are now increasing the fees is by charging more for the boxes they are forcing people to put in their homes . Attorney Barney - Research was completed by Hugh Kent in my office , and he determined that it does not appear that Time Warner Cable is doing anything illegal . Councilman Klein - The cable company in Elmira tried to do the same thing , and there was a huge public outcry . This new fee amount to about a 10 % increase in the bill . Councilman Niklas - A grassroots organization of users is needed to protest . Councilwoman Valentino - It appears under the Towns current franchise with Time Warner Cable the Town does not have any leverage to regulate this fee , it is beyond the regulations . The franchise agreement has been expired for at least two years . Time Warner is mandated to operate under the old franchise until the Town negotiates a new franchise agreement . The Cable Commission and the Attorney for the Town , Hugh Kent have felt it is in the best interest of the Town not to renew the franchise , because of these type of reasons . The Town is still trying to establish the best way to work out an agreement . Councilman Klein - Asked that the Town Supervisor write a letter to the manager of the cable company expressing the extreme dismay of the Town Board that Time Warner Cable uses such back handed methods to increase fees by forcing people take equipment they don ' t want . 13 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Agenda Item # 6 Review of Correspondence : a . James M . Niefer , b . David Stotz - Expressing ideas about the proposed new Town Hall . c . Eco - Village - Asking that the Town consider. changes in its sub - divisions and zoning provisions accepting more Eco - Village type clustered housing in the Town . Councilman Niklas - Since the Planning Committee and Codes and Ordinance Committee are going to be actively involved in the revision of the zoning ordinance , a copy of the letter from EcoVillage could be forwarded to the members of those committees . It is something to be kept in the back of the mind as the revisions are to be made . d . Denis P . Meadows , Unit Head of Grants Administration Department of SARA requesting the Town Board allow our Town Clerk and Records Management Officer , Joan Noteboom to provide training to the Town of Caroline in inventory records management . Mrs . Noteboom : The time involved would be one full day , and then occasionally for a few hours for 11 or 12 weeks . Resolution # 230 : Motion made by Councilman Klein , seconded by Councilman Niklas to authorize the Town Clerk to assist the Town of Caroline in training for their Inventory Records Management Grant , Councilman Niklas - If the Town Clerk does have the time , this Town Board should determine this is not only agreeable , but desirable . A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Agenda Item # 15 - Consent Items : Resolution # 235 ( b - 1 ) , # 235 ( 1 - m ) : Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Councilwoman Grigorov to approve Consent items 15 ( b ) - 15 ( j ) , 15 ( 1 -m ) as presented ; items 15 ( a ) and 15 ( k ) shall be considered separately . A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; 14 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilman Niklas , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Resolution # 236 : Item 15 ( a ) Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded , Councilwoman Grigorov to approve the minutes of the Town Board meeting of 11 / 9 / 95 with the following amendment : Page 29 , Additional Item No . 1 , Paragraph 5 , Sentence 4 Mr . Barney - " I do not think it was unreasonable . " AMENDMENT : I do not think the delay was . unreasonable . " Minutes 11 / 9 / 95 , Agenda Item No , 35 Resumed , Paragraph 1 - " Councilman Klein transmitted a preliminary cost in detail a few weeks ago " . AMENDMENT : " Councilman Klein received a preliminary cost in detail a few weeks ago . " A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Resolution # 237 : Item 15 ( a ) - Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded , Councilwoman Harrison to approve the minutes of the Special Town Board Meeting of 11 / 20 / 95 . with the following amendment : Page 14 , Paragraph 7 . Councilwoman Valentino - ( Was not in attendance , Councilwoman Harrison actually made the statement . ) AMENDMENT : Councilwoman Harrison A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Catherine Valentino - At the Public Information Meeting held on 11 / 20 / 95 , Mr . David Stotz made statements as to what I had said 15 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 related to the new Town Hall . I did not attend that meeting and would like to refute some of the statements made by Mr . Stotz . Attorney Barney - The record can be set straight this evening during the course of the conversation about the new Town Hall . Councilman Niklas - Councilwoman Valentino may wish to comment at this time to insure they respond to the minutes in question . Councilwoman Valentino - Mr . Stotz stated at the 11 / 20 / 95 special meeting that I was in favor of a referendum related to the acquisition of a new Town Hall , What I stated at the meeting held at Ellis Hollow during my campaign was that the acquisition was subject to a permissive referendum , and if the people chose to go through the process of course , there would be a referendum , because that is the law . I did not state that the Town was committed to doing a referendum . Mrs . Theusen also indicated that I was quoted in the Ithaca Journal as having said that . I have researched the Ithaca Journal and could find no indication I was quoted . Item 16 ( k ) : We have worked with the Justices and Court Clerks to try and take care of the backlog . Ms . Bernal was put on as a full time employee with benefits . During the meetings it was stated we continue to review that status . This is one reason we asked for a written permission and an explanation of the extra hours worked by Ms . Bernal . A decision will have to be made as to whether she needs to continue at 40 hours or go to half time , and have Justice Bordoni ' s clerk assume some of the work . On the first resolved of the resolution , it should be said that the status of that position should be up for review . It would not be fair to Ms . Bernal to assume by the resolution the full time status will continue indefinitely . The position could be reviewed in six months . Supervisor Whitcomb - The positions budgeted for in Justice Larkin ' s court is one full time , one part time , and a very part time date entry clerk . Councilman Klein - The hope is to eventually have two Court Clerks who work 20 hours each week . Councilwoman Valentino - We are sure at this point . One clerk may always have a heavier case load than another . Supervisor Whitcomb - The Judges do not have much say over their case load it is determined by the law enforcement agencies who write the tickets . 16 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilwoman Valentino - The Justices must continue to provide information of the case load and back load so we can made some decisions , especially in June . Resolution # 238 : Motion made by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded , Councilman Niklas , approval of the continuation of the employment status of Judith Bernal as full - time Court Clerk with all full - time benefits through June 30 , 1996 . A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye , Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Agenda Item # 17 • - Consider chancres in Real Property Tax Law Effecting Senior Citizens . Supervisor Whitcomb - Annually we receive a letter from Irene Stein apprising us of the changes in the tax law effecting Senior Citizen exemptions requesting that we follow suit and adopt them as they have been recommended . Mr . Barney : The new local law would add another tier of income eligibility . Running $ 25 , 000 to $ 25 , 900 and the reduction would be 5 % . Other changes could be made such as extending the exemptions to cooperative apartments , also a state law changes the implementation of this entirely across the board in that you can now prorate that exemption from the time they take ownership and the assessment bureau has to go through it . That happens regardless of whether this board takes any action . It seems most reasonable to just add the extra tier and not get involved with cooperative apartments . Councilman Klein - Doesn ' t exemption of the income level rise every year ? Attorney Barney - It didn ' t this year . Councilman Niklas : The best solution is to just add that tier . Resolution # 240 - Amendment Local Law No . 2 / 1995 : Motion made by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded , Councilman Klein , to schedule a public hearing January 8 , 1996 at 6 : 15 p . m . , to consider a , " LOCAL LAW INCREASING THE PARTIAL TAX EXEMPTION FOR REAL PROPERTY OWNED BY PERSONS WITH LIMITED INCOMES WHO ARE 65 17 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER " , to include an additional tier to the income limits of exemptions . A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . OPENED PUBLIC HEARING 7 : 00 p . m . : Contract Village of Cayuga Heights Fire Protection Services . Proof of Posting and publishing confirmed by Mrs . Noteboom . No one came forward to be heard . Public hearing closed at 7 : 01 p . m . Supervisor Whitcomb - Mr . Barney was provided the contract for his review . Mr . Barney - I reviewed it and aside from some technical changes it seems to be in compliance . Making sure that the area covered by the Village was the same area excluded from the contract with the City and it appears they have done that . I would have worded it differently and have requested a wording change . I don ' t see a problem with it . You should know its an agreement to agree because there is only one years monetary value included , and it is set up to determine next years monetary value by August . Resolution No 233 - SE OR Contract With the Village of Cayuga Heights For Fire Protection Services . Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded , Councilwoman Harrison , that the Town of Ithaca Town Board makes a negative determination of environmental significance with SEQR for the contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights . A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye , Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Mr . Frost : On Item # 6 , they say they have no obligations to complete inspections , " although the Village Fire Inspector may inspect in the Town at his discretion without securing further Town approval " . How that relates ? 18 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Mr . Barney : They are not obliged to make the inspections of multiple residences , it may or may not be required by law . It doesn ' t exclude them making inspections in that area . Mr . Frost : Does this contract some sort of hazardous materials response by the Town ? Supervisor Whitcomb - There was request by Cayuga Heights that they would a sentence acknowledging operating under the hazardous materials response plan . It does appear not to have been included in the final version . Councilman Niklas : There is a certain arrogance in referring to the Village Fire Inspector as a " him " . Even though that may be the case now , there is no reason to assume that a future Fire Inspector could not be a " her " . So I think the contract should be changed to reflect " his or her discretion " . Supervisor Whitcomb - What do you propose we do about the absence of this language about hazardous response ? Mr . Barney - Cayuga Heights can be contacted to include the language . The contract terminates if we don ' t get an agreement on the following year by a certain date for a certain amount . Supervisor Whitcomb - What constitutes agreement , does that have to be Town Board approval of the contract ? Is that part of the budgetary process or a separate item sometime prior to the budget process ? Mr . Barney - I would assume you would want to approve this agreement by August or September . Mr . Frost - Do we want that ? Sometimes it is better to be silent on certain issues but something that makes a statement about a contingency , or something that is beyond their ability to handle should be considered . Would a situation the Village cannot handle be referred to Cornell or the Ithaca Fire Department , Supervisor Whitcomb - Are you referring to hazardous response or responses in general ? Mr . Frost - Hazardous response . Supervisor Whitcomb - Please work with Mr . Barney about the language needed in regards to the hazardous materials response . This resolution authorizes the Supervisor to execute the contract . 19 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilman Niklas : But also it has a phrase to allow changes by the Supervisor with the advice . of the Attorney for the Town . Presumably , these additional negotiations would fall in the purview of the changes therein . Resolution No . 234 - Authorizing Execution of Contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights for Fire Protection Services . Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded , Councilman Klein , that the Supervisor be authorized to execute the contract for fire protection with the Village of Cayuga Heights substantially in the form submitted to this meeting with such changes therein as the Supervisor with the advice of the Town Attorney may approve . A vote on the resolution was as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye , Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Agenda Item # 20 - Consider Paving of Chase Lane as requested by Chase Farm development : Agenda Item # 23 - Consider a Request by Chase Farm Development to Establish a Lighting District . _ Mr . Noteboom - Paving of Chase Lane is on the work plan for 1996 , based upon what has already been presented to the Public Works Committee . The plan will be presented to the Town Board at their January 1996 meeting . Councilman Klein - Does the paving that ' s listed on that work plan include the entire length of Chase Lane ? Mr . Noteboom : " Yes . " Steven Allan , 8 LeGrand Court - Does that include temporary repairs to the current potholes so they will not get bigger ? Mr . Noteboom : There has already been some temporary repairs done using cold packs . Councilman Niklas - I assume the Town Board has no objection considering this and possibly doing this , but in the past when a petition has been presented there were questions of its legality . Mr . Barney - This petition does not meet the requirements for a legal petition . In the past when a petition was presented by a neighborhood and the majority had signed it , the Town Board adopted 20 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 a resolution starting the process subject to permissive referendum . Councilman Niklas : I wanted clarification for the record if this constitutes a legal petition . If this petition doesn ' t meet the legal requirements we still need to find a way of determining if the community as a whole wants what the petition asks . Councilman Klein - That can be accomplished by going through the public hearing process once we establish the projected costs . Supervisor Whitcomb - Assuming that we do want to move forward with this what is our next step ? Mr . Barney - Adopting a resolution authorizing the Engineer to conduct a study as to the area to be benefitted and the cost of the development . Supervisor Whitcomb - Then the Engineer would report back and then the Town Board could set a public hearing date . Mr . Barney - I could draft a formal petition and give it back to the petition signers to complete . Councilwoman Valentino - That does not seem necessary , lets authorize the Engineer to do a study and report back . Councilman Klein - There were quite a lot of variables on the cost of the work . The NYSEG memorandum was confusing , all the utilities are buried there , correct ? I didn ' t see any costs for putting in the wiring for the street lights . Did I miss something ? I suspect the cost would be substantially higher than many of these estimates . Mr . Barney - I would like to suggest , if you want to authorize it , I would like to go back and do a formal resolution that meets the statutory requirements authorizing Mr . Walker to do the investigation and present it to you for your next meeting . You do have a meeting later this month . Councilman Niklas - Our standard policy is that when we do get to the point of holding a public hearing these people will be contacted by mail to let them know that it is being considered . Councilwoman Harrison - The people contacted should be everyone who would be effected by this decision , not just those who signed the petition . Mr . Barney - I will prepare the proper documentation for the 21 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 December 29th meeting . Mr . Allan - This represents over 30 families of the 38 residences on Chase Farm . I understand from Dan Walker there are 50 lot owners in Chase Farm that you need mail to . Agenda Item # 18 - Consider Expenditure of Funds for New Town Hall . Supervisor Whitcomb : At our last meeting Doug Look was instructed to change the schematic design to develop a plan which would come within our original cost estimates . Mr . Look - As a result of the direction from the last meeting we looked at two different strategies to bring the overall cost of the project down . One would be to maintain the building as a three story plus with basement , except for shrinking the floor plan or the foot print by reducing the overall amount of square footage . That resulted in a workable design which achieved 13 , 000 square feet overall . The second strategy was to look at a two story building plus basement . The cost savings that were associated with this plan seem to be much greater than the three story . Upon direction of Dan Walker and some representatives of the Town Board , we pursued the two story plus basement schematic . We were able to eliminate an entire floor of the building . The first floor still has administrative areas with some other areas relocated . On the second floor , a board room was added along with the offices for the planning , engineering and building inspector . This schematic accommodates the program even though it is a smaller amount of square footage . Supervisor Whitcomb - Does this accommodate the program in total square footage for the entire building and for each of the frontal areas as we planned it out ? Mr . Look - It is definitely not equivalent to the area of the original design , there have been reductions in some areas . The areas reduced the greatest would be the engineering , planning and building areas . They lost approximately 1500 square feet compared to the last design . This new design would meet the current needs of the Town personnel . The administrative areas are relatively the same . Town Court houses about 40 persons , board room houses about 90 persons which was the same . Some functions were relocated to the basement area , the staff employee lounge , janitor offices , and supplies . This solution does retain a generous amount of storage in the basement area . 22 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilwoman Harrison - I am concerned with no only what goes on inside the building , but how the building presents to the street on the external . Will there be an austere big wall facing the street ? Mr . Look - I don ' t believe so , we retained the basic materials of the building , it is still a brick facade . We were able to achieve cost savings because we eliminated the top floor which deleted the cost for an elevator stop , entire floors of brick , windows , sprinklers etcetera . It is certainly a shorter building , its not a three story building , yet it won ' t be an austere , ugly building . Based on the probability of cost it is a good solid building . Councilwoman Harrison - We have given up space primarily from planning , building and engineering ? Mr . Look - There was additional consolidation on the second floor . The conference room for building , planning , and engineering doubles as the executive session conference area for the Town Board . Councilwoman Valentino : What ' s the square footage of the building now ? Mr . Look - Approximately 13 , 700 square feet including the basement . Councilwoman Valentino - The feasibility study indicated we needed about 12 , 000 square feet . Mr . Look - Twelve thousand was the projection , which did not include the storage areas in the basement . Councilman Klein - The only program functions that are in the basement are janitorial and the employee lounge . Mr . Look - Also , the mechanical space . Supervisor Whitcomb - The original program study didn ' t include storage space or mechanical space in the 12 , 000 square feet ? Mr . Look - It didn ' t include the amount of general storage space . When we reduced the building to two stories we also made the footprint larger . We added a twelve foot bay to the end of the building so it is a longer building . We did not simply take off one floor it had to be balanced . Councilman Klein - The large general storage in the basement is the only non program space ? Mr . Look - The employee lounge in the basement will double as a general seating area and additional conference area . 23 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilman Klein - Has the staff had an opportunity to review the new design , and are they reasonably comfortable there is enough space provided ? Mr . Walker - There is a limitation , if we looked at the original program specifically for the planning , zoning , and engineering areas including the secretarial space . The study indicated the need for an estimated square footage of around 2600 . The new schematic shows 2200 square feet . The technical staff will be compressed with this reduction of 400 square feet . The concept of having everything centralized is meeting the original program , but the space is compressed . The space is smaller than everyone would like , but its still within workable limits . It doesn ' t give us any capability of expansion on staff , and it limits one or two of the work spaces that would have been available for interns . One solution to that is I may keep a couple of the people I was planning to bring into Town Hall at the engineering trailer because they serve a dual role on the public works projects . The new design will not allow space for the full engineering staff in the Town Hall . Councilwoman Harrison - Town Board and Town Justice functions generally take place at night . Would it be absurd to consider that or to putting those functions in the basement ? Mr . Look - That issue was considered , and I think you could certainly direct us to take a look at that . We felt to balance out the design that it didn ' t seem like an appropriate solution to be building a Town Hall and putting the space where the public is most likely to attend in the basement . Councilman Niklas - There should be some general storage space in the building . Councilwoman Harrison - I was dealing with the issue of whether we are just squeezing the staff into the building . An employee lounge is the kind of space that should be in a more pleasant space than a basement . Could the space designed in a way so that it doesn ' t .feel like a basement . Mr . Look - Our main goal was to look at the original plan and see if the overall cost could be lowered in a design that would fit this site . You do have Town Justices and clerks office space , so they would for the first time be present in the building during the day . The new design allows for the possibility for direct independent public access to the courts . 24 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilman Niklas - Is there a reason why the vault is not in the basement ? Mr . Look - The program shows the people who access the vault on a regular basis are the administrative staff . Councilman Niklas - The vault foundation takes some space out of the basement flooring , if it were in the basement that foundation would not be needed . Mrs . Noteboom - During tax collection season the vault is accessed very frequently . The records should not be in the basement unless we build a more expensive vault with temperature and humidity controls . Councilman Niklas - The vault should have those even if it is not in the basement . Mrs . Noteboom - Yes , but in the basement it would be more likely to be exposed to those conditions and may be more expensive to maintain . Councilwoman Valentino - If there is going to be an employee area and janitorial services in the basement the ceiling will have to be high enough , and it will have to be a dry basement . Councilman Niklas - One way to open up a basement is to have casement windows for light . Supervisor Whitcomb - How far below grade is the basement floor ? Mr . Look - Approximately , ten feet below grade . The reason why items such as area ways , windows , etc . were not included was because , the Board directed to cut the price below the $ 2 million amount projected previously . Supervisor Whitcomb - The price has been cut below the two million dollar amount as requested . However , I think you can build any kind of building for any price that you want to build . The question is , is this the building that you want ? Having spent two million dollars , are you going to end up with a building that you like , that you can use , and that ' s going to be efficient for your staff . I know certainly it ' s efficient for the public in terms of access , but is it something that staff can work with ? Mr . Look - After looking at the two story schematic , we felt programmatically in many ways the two - story scheme actually addresses the program much better than a three story . The program is essentially laid out on two stories . All program areas are much 25 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 more closely accessible in the Planning , Engineering and the Building Departments , as well as having the Town Board room all on floor . Councilman Niklas - What is the impact of the new design on the available parking spaces ? Mr . Look - We recalculated the requirements for the parking because it is based on a number of things , primarily the square footage of office space as well as the available seating in board room and justice court . The earlier requirement for the original design was 51 spaces . The new requirement for parking spaces comes out at 37 spaces , this included six spaces that were originally to go along with the existing white building of the sellers . Councilman Niklas - How many less spaces will there be from the original design to the new design , if any ? Mr . Look - There will be four less parking spaces . Supervisor Whitcomb - Does that require a variance from the city , or by reducing the square footage have we also reduced the number of spaces required ? Mr . Look - The new design is well within the parking space requirements inside the city . Even with the four less the total number of parking spaces of 43 is enough Supervisor Whitcomb - What ' s the floor plan of the building ? How many square feet per floor ? Mr . Look - Approximately 4500 square feet per floor . Supervisor Whitcomb - Essentially on the two floors that are the main working floors there would be 9000 square feet , whereas originally , we had hoped for how much square footage , actual work space ? Mr . Look - The net space was approximately 9000 square feet and the gross anticipated was 12 , 000 square feet . Councilman Niklas - The reason I ' m making the point about the parking is because the absolute number of parking spaces is an important issue . I understand the issue of variance and non - variance , but one of the attractions of this location was that there was a number of parking spaces and this design cuts four of them out , regardless of whether we request a variance or not . The issue that I wanted to raise is that feedback from community members asks if we are we really using our money to the best 26 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 advantage . How much more money would we save if we were to build a similar building out by the Highway Department on town land which wouldn ' t have to be purchased ? Out there we have the potential for a lot more parking spaces without a variance . When town board meetings are held there ' s not an intrinsic limitation on the number of people that can come , plus out there we also have the benefit of saving money . Councilwoman Valentino - Does the Town own enough land by the Highway Department ? Councilman Klein - I think the highway site was felt to be too small . Assuming that you put the town hall in front of the barn right off the road , but it would impact parking that is presently developed . Mr . Walker - It would be cheaper to build on that site , but it would require additional land to be purchased . That land has an assessed value of about $ 100 , 000 - $ 120 , 000 . Councilman Niklas - But the assessed value of that property is less than the property that we ' re considering buying . Councilwoman Harrison - Building the same building wouldn ' t be cheaper , the land would be . Councilman Niklas - Councilman Klein said we could save money because there were some elements of this design which could be eliminated . Councilman Klein - A one story building could be built . There would be no need for an elevator or two stairwells . Councilwoman Harrison - We as a board decided a city location had advantages despite some of the disadvantages . Councilman Klein - There is a higher land cost , and possible higher construction costs for the building in the City . At the highway site there will probably be some higher site development costs because it would be raw land without utility service . There are some trade offs . Councilman Niklas - I don ' t think it hurts to repeat this discussion , it should be entered into the minutes . We have gotten letters asking us to look at this again . I personally do not think that OBGYN location is the best . I personally think that building out of the city is best for the town . 27 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilwoman Valentino - I would like to discuss the basement in the new design again . What kind of ceiling will there be in the basement , how can we be assured it will be a dry basement , especially at this total cost ? Mr . Look - The basement would have at least a minimum ceiling height of at least eight foot . The basement would be dry based on how it is designed , waterproofing would be included . It would be a fully conditioned space . Supervisor Whitcomb - The reason you didn ' t design the basement up out of the ground was so it would allow more windows , what are those cost considerations ? Is it feasible to have only six feet in the ground ? Mr . Look - Accessibility for persons with disabilities will also be considered . Councilman Klein - It ' s very difficult to do buildings now that aren ' t at grade because of the handicap accessibility , otherwise there would be major ramp construction . Mr . Look - This particular site is actually very good for providing accessibility . Councilman Klein - The building will probably be up eight to twelve inches from base grade , and there would be the sidewalk . Mr . Walker - On the east side of the building the library currently has an excavated driveway ramp that goes down to their lower loading dock level . The County Senior Civil Engineer has asked if it would be possible to use our building as their retaining wall because their retaining wall is collapsing . Having a portion of the basement wall exposed and facing the county ' s parking area , loading dock , and court area is a possibility . Councilman Niklas - With windows ? Mr . Walker - Yes . Councilwoman Harrison - That ' s expensive , is that the issue ? Mr . Walker - It would be more expensive , probably an additional $ 200 , 000 . Councilman Niklas - Would the county pay the difference ? Mr . Walker - The advantage would be having space with natural light in the basement . 28 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilman Niklas - Is there any possibility of getting the mechanical to the other side of the general storage to get it away from the employee ' s area since they would probably vibrate , move and make a lot of noise . Mr . Look - There would be a need to access intake air , so it would have to be located on that side . Supervisor Whitcomb - Do we know enough about this building to make an intelligent decision , or are there enough unknowns that we need more information before we make a decision ? Councilman Klein - The architect has done what we asked him to do , revise the building and bring it within our $ 1 . 2 million goal for the building . I think it ' s a little better building with two levels than on three levels in terms of function . The building does have some flexibility . The basement does allow , though it may not be the best base to grow into . If certain things happen where changes have to be made in five or ten years functions could be put in the basement . I think it can be determined later exactly how deep we can go to the basement . I ' m a little nervous about the ten feet ; it depends on the soil conditions and the light . We will be getting test borings which would tell us where the water table is and what real premium we might pay if we had some serious water problems . The estimate does include water proofing as opposed to damp proofing . Supervisor Whitcomb - I ' m not frightened of the basement . One of the existing buildings that we visited had a very well - utilized basement . Councilwoman Valentino - That ' s what I was thinking about , that basement was very dry and allowed for expansion if needed . Councilman Klein - If this project is approved , there are some more opportunities to get the design refined . Supervisor Whitcomb - But within that budget is the key . Mr . Look - The schematic design is just the start of the process . There are many decisions still need to be made . We still are holding the fifteen percent design contingency to accommodate slight variations and unanticipated items , including windows in the basement or moving adjacent walls . Mr . Kanter - I definitely have concerns about the amount of space available in the planning , zoning and engineering . I ' m not convinced from this brief look that there will be sufficient space 29 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 for those functions . An example is the secretarial and copier area on the second floor . It ' s listed as a total of 13 ' x 211 , or 273 square feet . It is intended to have all three of the secretaries in that area , and I don ' t see how that can work in that space . Another concern is the open office area basically meeting the needs for the non department heads to be located along with all the accessories . There doesn ' t really seem to be any area on this floor plan for current maps and current files which we would need ready access to . I ' m not talking about archival storage or long term record storage . I ' m talking about things we need day to day where it just does not make sense to have to go down to the basement to retrieve something . I don ' t see that fitting in this given floor plan . Also , if we have an open office area like this I think its very important to work out a really good circulation and privacy , because when you have that many people working in a small space you have to consider the different things going on and that some people need quiet time while others are doing more noisy types of work . It varies so much day to day that you really need to be able to have some distinct separation . I wasn ' t sure if even the current cost estimates would allow for the types of modular furniture partitions that are used downstairs . Is that something that would be in the budget ? Mr . Walker - The present budget includes $ 100 , 000 for furnishings . We may not get partitions in appropriate condition the immediately . It may take several years to fully furnish the offices for efficiency . That was one of the compromises to lower the cost . Mr . Kanter - It wouldn ' t make sense to start in just a large open space and not have people able to work . Mr . Walker - The furniture partitions are important , and the architect needs more time to lay out the work stations . Those are 80 square foot work stations , industry standard for technical staff . This is not a 200 square foot office , but there aren ' t too many businesses that are giving technical staff 200 square foot spaces . In that space there are 9 work stations plus a few additional working areas . We could compress about 7 to 8 work spaces into this 23 ' x 40 ' foot space with the modular partitioning furniture . Supervisor Whitcomb - We ' re making this building work , but that doesn ' t mean that it ' s the ideal situation . Mr . Walker - No , it ' s not the ideal situation . Mr . Kanter - In many ways we ' d like to have what we have upstairs , 30 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 just with more people in it . Ms . Alario - There are certain times when staff needs the concentration , my staff certainly needs to be able to concentrate on their work because it ' s very involved . They are actually going to be in an area where the printer will make noise and the phone ringing . Mr . Walker - There will not be a public area , that is why there will be conference areas . Mr . Kanter - Everyday there are times where the conference room is occupied with a meeting and people will come in to ask a quick question of somebody and it ends up in a twenty minute conversation . Councilman Klein - Part of that is how you work during the day , and I think that ' s something that ' s how you deal with the people and your own work habits . Traditionally when you start laying out an office there ' s always those battles about everybody wants private offices and everybody ' s all worried about privacy . Every office I ' ve every worked on as an architect has those problems . Everybody complains about privacy and the management has to start making some decisions . If an open office is properly planned with a sound masking system ( white noise in the background ) , if you use proper acoustic treatment , both on your partition and in your ceiling by a high noise - reduction coefficient ceiling , you can create some vast improvements in the acoustic quality of the space . Upstairs in this building there is barely an eight foot ceiling , and lot of hard services from the cabinets . You have really no acoustical separations . You can ' t begin to compare the present situation with what you would get in the newly designed facility . Mr . Kanter - On the other hand it doesn ' t make sense to not include what you need to make that facility like you ' re talking about in order to keep the cost down . Councilman Klein - There is nothing in this design which doesn ' t give something to work with . We have contingencies , the real issue is there enough space ? I think that as the design develops , there will have to be some tradeoffs and some adjustments . One of the issues that people have raised is how large a board room do we need ? Should we design the board room for the exception rather 31 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 than the rule ? We might consider going to a 60 person board room if that shifts that partition down to give the staff a little more space . The plans are flexible within the parameters shown . Mr . Frost - I personally think it ' s a pretty good design . I would contemplate making the board room smaller , perhaps having the executive session conference room area with some type of slide - open doors where you can put extra seats when the meetings are anticipated to be attended by more than 60 people . I think it would be very rare to have 70 - 80 people . Councilman Valentino - How often does that happen ? Not very often . Councilman Klein - The Town Clerk could look at the minutes of the Town Board , Zoning Board , and Planning Board to see the attendance average over the last two years . Councilwoman Valentino - The Justices have raised a question about space for a jury room with box in the design , where does that fit in . There ' s no space for a jury and they ' re finding they ' re having more jury trials than ever before . Mr . Look - The assumption with the new design is that the functions for the court would have to be shared and scheduled for the board room , because that room was of a size that would accommodate the courts . Councilman Niklas - There are really two issues , whether this site is a done deal or not . I understood from previous discussions , the Town Board has decided that this is the place . If that ' s true , than I have every confidence that the architect , by necessity as well as skill can make the floor plan fit the needs , " to the best of human ability " and budgetary constraints . If the site is a done deal , and if we assume that these people , as I do , are clever enough to solve these concerns , then the issue is back to the agenda item as it reads which is : Consider expenditure of funds for new Town Hall . That ' s the real issue . It seems like you ' ve decided that this is the site and you ' ve got good people who can fine tune it . Resolution No . 241 - BOND RESOLUTION TOWN HALL : Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Councilman Klein approving and or authorizing the acquisition of land and construction of a new Town Hall , authorizing the expenditure of funds from the Town Building Reserve Fund for such purpose , and authorizing the issuance and sale of serial bonds for the balance of the costs of such project . 32 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilwoman Valentino - When we revised the design to bring the project within the budget , and as Mr . Walker mentioned , there were huge slashes in the furnishings which is somewhat worrisome . The contingencies look favorable as if there might be some extra money to make adjustments , but it would be a pity if we build a brand new building and not be able to have the petitions interior needed . I hope that we just didn ' t eliminate these things to meet a budget and not think seriously about just exactly what was being eliminated . Councilwoman Harrison - Do you typically bond things like the furnishings ? Or are furnishings not necessarily conceived as part of this cost ? Mr . Barney - The bond resolution puts together a two part program for $ 2 , 000 , 000 . One is to use capital reserve funds which have been put aside for several years , and then the bonding . I also recall , funds from next years budget will be used for this as well . Supervisor Whitcomb - Funds from the Capital Reserve will be used next year . It was anticipated that by the end of 1996 there would be approximately $ 1 . 5 million , either in capital reserve , or available for those purposes . Mr . Barney - The total project is $ 2 , 000 , 000 whether you ' re bonding for the equipment or for the building . The Capital Reserve funds can be expended for anything related to any new building . Councilwoman Harrison - Do we consider furnishings and partitions something we would want a referendum on . What if it were decided a year later that we needed more in the way of furnishings ? Mr . Barney - That could be purchased out of current funds , or it could be bonded at that time as long as it has a period of probable usefulness for five years . Supervisor Whitcomb - Keep in mind there is still an expensive plan being proposed for parks . There is still $ 200 , 000 available from the penny on the sales tax which is going into some kind of a reserve that has not been appropriated . I warned in my budget message that sooner or later the Town will probably have to start tapping into that money in order to hold the lien on taxes . The point is that you will have some cash available in future years for furniture and petitions out of current expenses . Mr . Walker - There could be a five year pay off cycle on this and using the 1 % sales tax if it stays in place . 33 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Supervisor Whitcomb - The Town is only $ 500 , 000 to $ 600 , 000 short of having enough cash to build this project at the end of 1996 . Councilwoman Valentino - Not including extra general fund money . Supervisor Whitcomb - Does the bonding resolution preclude us from using BAN ' s paying it off over five years , and never going to full bonding . Mr . Barney - No , there is a BAN provision in the contract . This resolution does three things , all of which are subject to a permissive referendum . Supervisor Whitcomb - Individually ? Mr . Barney - No , that is why it was put into one resolution . The three actions subject to permissive referendum are the acquisition of a new Town Hall , the transfer of money from the capital reserve fund to use to purchase or acquire the new town hall , and the bonding under Finance Law , Councilwoman Valentino - The two floor plan is much better than the three floor plan . No matter what site is looked at , no one can accuse the Board of not thoroughly looking at everything available in this community , at least once , and probably several times . No matter what we look at there ' s going to be things that we will be concerned about as not being perfect . We are not going to build a perfect building , we have to look at what we think is the best site with a reasonable cost , with the least number of problems . Mr . Look should be commended for a really good job . Councilman Niklas - I wish to thank Mr . Look for his excellent work . Mr . Barney - Are we taking $ 1 . 5 million out of the reserve fund , or do you want to be conservative and take $ 1 . 4 million ? Supervisor Whitcomb - I ' d rather be conservative , $ 1 . 4 million . There is approximately $ 1 . 2 million now . After closing the 1995 books there will be another $ 140 , 000 . There will be about $ 1 . 3 to . $ 1 . 4 million at the end of 1996 . Mr . Barney - Can the budget be amended to maintain the amount you are putting in next year as current funds instead of transferring to capital reserve ? Ms . Alario - The budget doesn ' t actually have to be amended , the transfer just won ' t be made . 34 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Mr . Barney - I would suggest we use $ 1 , 350 , 000 in the bond resolution , by putting in a new paragraph C , which would be an expenditure of whatever you anticipated to put in out of current funds of 1996 the budgeted amount of about $ 150 , 000 . This would leave bonding for about $ 500 , 000 . Councilman Klein - Have we talked to the owners of the property about taking down the brick building ? Mr . Barney - Mr . Look and I spoke this morning and I ' m not sure whether the new cost estimates assume that we get a clear site or whether it will be necessary to expend about $ 10 , 000 more for the property to have the clear site . The present owners have a mortgage on the building . They are understandably reluctant , and I ' m sure their bank is very reluctant for them to knock the building down before they pay off the mortgage . They won ' t have the mortgage money to pay off until we pay them . So the only way we can handle it is to close in escrow and have them then demolish the building , and then get the money at the time the building site was cleared . We have not really discussed the demolition of that building at great length with the sellers . This resolution is drawn on the assumption that we ' re going to bear the problems of getting the building down . Councilman Niklas - What do you think would be the cost if we bore the brunt of demolishing and moving the rubble ? Mr . Walker - $ 10 , 000 has been budgeted in the cost estimates for that purpose . building . Mr . Look - It was more than that by the time contingencies were added , probably $ 20 , 000 . Councilman Klein - Would it be cheaper to have the sellers demolish the building ? Mr . Look - Certainly . Mr . Walker - If we could give them $ 10 , 000 more for doing it , then we wouldn ' t have the problems associated with the demolition . Mr . Look - There are a lot of positive benefits to having them do it . Councilwoman Harrison - I thought their taking down the building was a bargaining instrument , they offered to take it down for no 35 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 additional cost . Mr . Walker - Not the brick building , the white building . Councilman Niklas - For $ 20 , 000 within the error limits of the estimates , it ' s almost a trivial amount of money , if you can negotiate . Mr . Barney - I ' m reluctant to see the town write a check for the property and have it go into escrow without getting that deed and reporting that deed . I can understand why the owners would be equally reluctant to give us the deed and allow us to record it until they have the money . Councilman Niklas - Could they remove the cost of demolition and removal from the purchase order ? Mr . Barney - No , because the agreement was that we would pay them ten thousand dollars more . Our original deal was to take the building as is . Councilman Niklas - Isn ' t there a way of contracting them to do it ? Mr . Barney - No , not after we own it . Then we ' re subject to public bidding . I would recommend the town forget expecting the sellers to demolish the brick building . The town will absorb that cost by buying the property for $ 10 , 000 less . It ' s not increasing the purchase cost right now , it is out of one hand and on the other . Councilwoman Harrison - What is the status of the white building within this agreement ? Mr . Barney - The sellers own it , the white building is not part of the offer . Supervisor Whitcomb called the motion . Councilwoman Harrison , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilman Niklas , No , because the site forces unacceptable compromises on space . ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Supervisor Whitcomb , No , I agree with Councilman Niklas . Roll call vote carried . Councilwoman Harrison - Do we want to do anything about a referendum? Mr . Barney - The resolution just enacted is subject to permissive referendum . Councilwoman Harrison - The question was whether we wanted to schedule a referendum rather than wait for it to be called by 36 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 petition . Mr . Barney - Not if you do , the resolution should have been written differently . Councilwoman Harrison - I ' m comfortable with leaving this as it stands because of the costs which will be involved with a holding a referendum . I feel as though we ' re entrusted on the Town Board to make decisions on behalf of the residents of the town . We spent a lot of time thinking about this and if there are citizens who feel strongly that there needs to be referendum , then there will be one . Perhaps rather than voting at this time to have a referendum and spend the funds on it , let ' s wait and make sure that the citizen ' s feel its necessary . Mr . Barney - The resolution enacted calls for thirty days for the filing of a petition . Councilwoman Valentino - I agree with Councilwoman Harrison . That ' s the way the democratic process was set up to work , the board makes the decision and if the public wishes to question it they have legal avenues to do it . Councilman Niklas - It might be better to ask if anyone objects to Ellen ' s suggestion ? No objects to allowing the Bond Resolution to stand by allowing a permissive referendum were made . Agenda No 19 - Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy : Mr . Barney - I would like to ask that this item be postponed until the next meeting . It has been determined there are some problems with the model that was given to the town to work from . We ' ve drafted a revised version which should be reviewed by the Personnel Committee prior to adoption . Councilman Niklas - Is there a legal definition for narcotic drug ? Does it refer to what the Food and Drug Administration determines ? It isn ' t synonymous necessarily with an addictive drug , things like amphetamines and opium , not cigarettes . Mr . Barney - This is directed at controlled substances / drugs that you can ' t get . Mr . Niklas - There doesn ' t seem to be anything in the policy which addresses possession of drugs in the work space . 37 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Mr . Barney - This policy is a testing policy , it ' s not designed to address possession of either alcohol or drugs . The Personnel Manual would be the document to address those issues . Councilman Niklas - But it does relate to the suspicion of , because there ' s the phraseology that a Supervisor may feel that there is suspicion . Mr . Barney - This as drafted doesn ' t fully comply with the federal regulations , that is why I am asking to postpone consideration of its enactment . Supervisor Whitcomb - Is the board comfortable with postponing this item until the December 29th meeting , even though the personnel committee will not meet ? Will you feel confident to make a decision without the recommendation of the Personnel Committee ? Councilman Klein - Why was a different policy drafted rather using the one we ' ve have already ? Mr . Barney - The previous policy was drafted by Fred Noteboom and Sherm DiSanto based on the form that was derived from the consortium that we ' re doing our testing with . The consortium ' s form itself was almost incomprehensible . Fred and Sherm did a nice job of making it more comprehensible . However , in the process when looking at both the consortiums and at this one , there were gaps that need to be covered and there are recent things that need to be included by law . Hugh Kent of our office was revising the policy . Agenda Item No . 21 - Engineering Technician Position : Mr . Walker - Civil Service had informed the Town it was mandatory to have a 26 week probationary period for this position . We have since learned the probationary period can be for a minimum of eight weeks . The employee has taken the civil service exam and is awaiting the results sometime the end of January or early February . At that time he will have been working very satisfactorily for over a year . I feel he ' s successfully met any probationary requirements . My recommendation would be that he has already met his probationary period requirements , but I believe the law requires that we have at least an eight - week probationary period after the results of his exam are known . Resolution No . 242 - Engineering Technician Probationary Status . Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Councilwoman Valentino approving the reduction of the twenty six week probationary period for Charles White , Engineering Technician to an 38 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 eight week probationary period commencing from the date of notification of Civil Service certification . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Carried unanimously . Agenda Item No 22 - Support Grant Funding , Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 , ISTEA : Mr . Kanter - This represents one of two applications we are pursuing , one within the town , the other is a joint city and town application . Budget implications would be such that if we were successful in obtaining grants , there would be up to 80 % federal funding . The budget impact would be in our 1997 budget , not the 1996 budget . This looks ahead at some - nice opportunities to get significant funding for projects being considered for a long time . George Frantz , Assistant Town Planner will describe the first one . It is in the East Ithaca area with two portions that would link up the East Ithaca Recreation Way . Mr . Frantz - This was outlined in the memo included in your packet . It ' s actually taking advantage of the opportunity that ' s been afforded the town by Frank and Blythe Baldwin , and Royal and Susanna Colle . Last year they approached the town about granting an easement from Pine Tree Road to at least Park Lane . If two other easements can be secured from other property owners we can go all the way to Tudor Park out to Park Lane . This would include the construction of a bike path or recreation way from Pine Tree up to Park Lane . The town would construct a sidewalk from the intersection of Honness Lane up the East side of Pine Tree Road to Snyder Hill Road . It would be a five foot wide walkway connecting this path to the existing walkway along Pine Tree Road to provide direct route to East Hill Plaza . I ' m proposing that the town build another five foot wide walkway from Pine Tree Road along the North side of Honness Lane down to Slaterville Road . This walkway will connect this path to East Ithaca Recreation Way , and fill in a gap between the East Ithaca Recreation Way . This is going to fill a gap in the city ' s Circle Greenway system which is a network of paths on - streets , off - streets , through the woods and along streams that encircles the City of Ithaca . This has always been a problem to them because users of the Circle Greenway have had to walk from the East Ithaca down to Slaterville Road and to the Winners Circle to get back into the woods . There are a number of bus routes along Honness Lane down on Slaterville Road . 39 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 The walkway would provide access for residents from this area down to Slaterville Road . Councilwoman Valentino - Is that right along the roadway ? Mr . Frantz - It would be right along the roadway . Honness Lane as it exists has the roadway and ditches on either side . What we ' re proposing to do is essentially fill in the ditch on the north side of the road and create a six to seven foot wide grass shoulder with a five foot wide walkway . Councilwoman Harrison - Would there be any opportunity for planting or anything to separate the walkway from the cars ? Mr . Frantz - There will be a grass strip , there is really no opportunity to plant anything in that strip . It may be used on occasion by residents for on - street parking as it will have a solid gravel base . Councilwoman Harrison - Because of the esthetics of walkways and because sidewalks are right at the road , it does not make a very appealing place to be . Is there any way to leave open the possibility of a design so there would be some way to get the walkway further away from the road ? Mr . Frantz - On Honness Lane , no because of the 50 foot right of way . Councilwoman Harrison - Similarly , there will be no way to do so on Pine Tree ? Mr . Frantz - Unfortunately , there isn ' t any opportunity for even grass because the county has the road and a five foot wide shoulder . What we ' re proposing along Pine Tree is what we did along Mitchell Street , the granite curb and walkway right along the road . Councilwoman Grigorov - That will be a big improvement . Councilwoman Harrison - What are we doing to avoid this in the future ? It becomes a pretty unappealing pedestrian habitat . Mr . Frantz - Two things , the Park and Open Space Plan will be providing a lot more opportunities for off - road pathways . Councilwoman Harrison - Non - contiguous to roads . Mr . Frantz - The fact that we now require a 60 foot wide right of way helped , that shows on Chase Lane even though that was 70 feet , 40 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 nonetheless we do have extra space . Councilwoman Harrison - I think it ' s a great idea and a great improvement . Mr . Kanter - This project would connect the East Ithaca Recreation Way with Tudor Park . Mr . Frantz - On Honness Lane , from Harwick down to Slaterville Road because of the embankment on the North side , we ' re going to have to have the road with a four foot shouldered granite curved five foot walkway . On Maple Avenue we can get the pathway more than six feet away from the road . Because of the make of the terrain in some locations it ' s going to be two or three feet higher than the road . There is that opportunity for separation along Maple Avenue we are going to take advantage of that . Supervisor Whitcomb - This is part of the ISTEA Enhancement Program the Metropolitan Planning Organization ( MPO ) is considering ? Mr . Kanter - Yes , the MPO will be considering it through the Planning Committee next Tuesday , and then the Policy committee will consider it tomorrow . Councilwoman Harrison - The prepared resolution in the packet looked at options of more than the minimum match , whereas the new resolution represents 20 % ? Mr . Frantz - No , the new resolution deals with a second application . Councilwoman Harrison - There are two resolutions , one represents the proposal just made , which includes one 20 % match or 25 % match . Mr . Kanter - There are several options . The minimum local match is 20 % , but you actually get additional rating points if you go with the higher local match . We wanted to talk with you about the options of going with 25 % , or even 30 % local match . Councilwoman Valentino - Is that Agenda Item Number 22 ? My concern was for the small increase , and the work that goes into putting a proposal together , why don ' t we just do the 30 % . We want to do the project , it ' s not that much more , it ' s going to put us in a much better chance of getting the grant ? Councilman Niklas - I agree , when you start counting the hours involved in writing that application , you ' re talking a great deal of money . ' 41 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Resolution No . 244 - Authorization to Proceed with ISTEA Transportation Enhancement Program Grant Application : Motion made by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded by Councilman Niklas authorizing staff to complete and submit an application for grant funding through the ISTEA Transportation Enhancement Program , for the above described project , for an amount not to exceed $ 183 , 100 to represent 70 % of the total project cost not to exceed $ 261 , 575 . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Recess : Supervisor Whitcomb - It has been suggested that we take a momentary break to have a small celebration . Councilman Niklas - ( Provided sparkling grape juice for a toast . ) " This is my way of saying goodbye and saying thank you for six wonderful years , . and to extend my compliments and gratitude to all of the past , the current , and future Town Board members and in particular to town staff . It ' s never been a dull moment , and it has always been a privilege to work with you . We may not have always agreed , as witnessed by the way I ' ve just voted on some issues , but I ' ve always respected your opinion and most , your professionalism and efficiency . So here ' s to all of you . Thank you and good luck . All in attendance thanked Councilman Niklas , and wished him well in the future . Supervisor Whitcomb - Presented a resolution of appreciation to Councilman Niklas : WHEREAS , Karl J . Niklas was first appointed to the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca in January 1990 , was subsequently elected to such position and has served on the Town Board continuously since his initial appointment , and WHEREAS , Councilman Niklas ' term of office will end December 31 , 1995 , by reason of his decision not to seek re - election and during the nearly 6 years of service on the Town Board , Councilman Niklas has been a leader in preparing the town for the 21st century as well as in addressing the needs of the town on a current basis , and 42 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 WHEREAS , among his many accomplishments , Councilman Niklas served on the Comprehensive Planning Committee , which resulted in a new Comprehensive Plan for the town , chaired the Codes and Ordinances Committee which drafted much of the legislation that governs the town today , and served on the Planning Committee which is guiding the town in implementing the new Comprehensive Plan , and WHEREAS , during his years of service , Councilman Niklas has diligently , competently and articulately represented the interests of the town and it ' s citizens , and WHEREAS , the town is indebted to Councilman Niklas for his long an exemplary service as a Town Board member and wishes to express its appreciation to him for his contributions , now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca and on behalf of the Town and citizens and residents , expresses its sincere gratitude to Councilman Karl J . Niklas for his distinguished , articulate and visionary service to our community . Karl : Good heavens ! Thank you . All others : Here , Here ! Resolution # 239 , Resolution of Appreciation to Karl J . Niklas . Motion made by Supervisor Whitcomb , - seconded by Councilwoman Valentino enacting the Resolution of Appreciation to Karl J . Niklas , Town of Ithaca Councilman Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Agenda Item No . 22 - Continued : Mr . Frantz - The second proposed application for ISTEA funding encompasses the desire to connect the South Hill trail to Buttermilk Falls and the vicinity . About a month ago , the City Planning Department approached us about doing a joint ISTEA grant to actually go from the future Black Diamond trail all the way to the South Hill Recreation Way . That unfortunately isn ' t ready to happen . We ' ve had several meetings with representatives of Emerson Electric , and there issues to be resolved with them before we can go from Buttermilk to the South Hill trail . Councilwoman Harrison - Those have to be resolved before you can make an application ? 43 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Mr . Kanter - Yes , they are not things which will happen quickly , they ' ll take quite a bit of work . Mr . Frantz - The City Planning Department is taking a lead on the proposed connection from the Black Diamond Trail up west to Buttermilk Falls State Park on the East , ( i . e . the bridge across the Elmira Road ) . This would be a half a mile of bicycle pedestrian paths including a bridge across Elmira Road . The State has finished the abutments for it across the railroad tracks . This is an estimated cost of $ 200 , 000 , of which $ 135 , 000 is the bridge . The difference in funds would be for the grading off of the old railroad grades , minor filling , paving . The Common Council last Wednesday authorized the application for an ISTEA grant with an 80 % federal match and a 20 % local match . The city is proposing is that together the city and town put up $ 40 , 000 . The city will put up $ 20 , 000 , the Town $ 20 , 000 as the local match . Supervisor Whitcomb - What is the likelihood of that rising to a high priority item as far as the ISTEA officials are concerned , with the large federal share and small local share ? Councilwoman Harrison - It doesn ' t have any weight the fact that they ' ve put in the abutments . Does the Black Diamond Trail have some priority with the state ? Linking up a state park . Can we make a case for the state interests as well ? Mr . Kanter - That portion probably puts it at a high priority . Lower local match obviously would make it somewhat lower . Councilwoman Harrison - I think we could make a case this really serves the State . Supervisor Whitcomb - Is there an issue with Emerson Transmission not allowing access to their property ? Mr . Frantz - Emerson Transmission has concerns about plant security , access , and about what is happening right now in certain areas of the complex with environmental remediation action . Our bikeway would go right through an area in Emerson they have monitoring wells , and plumbing that they are using to siphon ground water . Councilman Niklas - Getting back to the drop in priority because the local municipalities are only putting in a total of $ 40 , 000 . In that grant application , it seems like you could elude to the other , where for example , we ' re putting up $ 75 , 000 for walkways , the greenbelt , etcetera . If the issue is how much is the municipality willing to commit , we can say that we have a limited 44 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 amount of income and we ' re investing in an area that almost fully benefits the town . However , here the State and the City would benefit so our ability to contribute is diminished and it seems like it ' s only fair that because it ' s benefitting others . Councilwoman Harrison - I think we can make a lot of arguments for that . Does it make sense that the City and the Town have to put it an equal share ? Was that discussed and how did we come up with that as an equitable decision ? Councilman Niklas - What percentage of the land is in the town and in the city ? Mr . Kanter - It is basically split down the middle because it goes along the railroad and the face the falls . Mr . Frantz - The 20 % local funding isn ' t going to help in terms of competition for the grants , but there are other factors about this project that may get competitive . It ' s essentially going to connect Buttermilk Falls State Park via the Black Diamond Trail with a very significant portion of the Ithaca urban area by just providing that Bridge across the Elmira Road . It ' s going to greatly enhance pedestrian bicycle access to Buttermilk Falls State Park by a pretty significant portion of both the city and the town . Mr . Kanter - If the rest of the stretch out to the South of the Recreational Way even met there it could be a very valuable project . Councilman Niklas - The real issue is whether it ' s worthwhile doing , taking the time to write the grant . I think this is something worthwhile , it ' s worth the investment . Mr . Walker - Is the Black Diamond funded by ISTEA also ? Mr . Frantz - The Black Diamond Trail has an ISTEA grant . They have a $ 900 , 000 ISTEA grant . They are one of the first and one of the largest for bicyclists . Mr . Kanter - It also must be understood there are about 30 projects now being proposed by different municipalities in our own upstate region . The grants will be very competitive . Resolution No . 243 Authorization to Proceed With ISTEA Transportation Enhancement Program Grant Application : Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Councilwoman Harrison that the Town Board authorizes staff to work with the staff of the City of Ithaca to complete and submit an application for grant 45 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 funding through the ISTEA Transportation Enhancement Program , for the above described project , for an amount not to exceed $ 160 , 00 , to represent 80 percent of the total project cost not to exceed $ 200 , 000 . The Town of Ithaca ' s portion of the total cost of said project shall not exceed $ 20 , 000 . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Agenda Item No . 24 - Acceptance Sanctuary Drive Roadway and Public utilities * Mr . Walker - We have received certification from the owner and the record drawings for the utilities . Easements have been received for portions of the utilities that cross existing or new lots . They have not been reviewed by the Attorney for the Town . They appear to be in proper form . I believe Mr . Barney has the deed to the roadway . Mr . Barney - I don ' t believe that we have the actual deed . I ' ll try to work on it . Mr . Walker - The Highway Superintendent has signed off on the road , and I have signed off on the utilities , this meets the developers requirements for construction . I recommend that the town accept the roadway condition upon receipt of the deeds and final signed easements to the satisfaction of the Attorney for the Town . Resolution No . 249 - Acceptance Sanctuary Drive Roadway and utilities , Sanctuary Woods Subdivision : Motion made by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded by Councilman Niklas accepting approximately 735 lineal feet of road shown as Sanctuary Drive on the aforementioned subdivision plat as Town Highway . The Town Board accepts approximately 860 lineal feet of 8 " water main and appurtenances as public water main , and approximately 580 lineal feet of 8 " PVC sewer main and appurtenances as public sewer , the details of which are shown on the subdivision plan and plans for water and sewer improvements upon receipt of the deeds and final signed easements to the satisfaction of the Attorney for the Town . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Agenda Item No 25 Acceptance Slaterville Road Sanitary Sewer Extension : 46 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Mr . Walker - Has the Attorney resolved the issues related to the park ? Mr . Barney - No . Consideration postponed until a later date . Agenda Item No . 26 : Memorandum of Understanding NYSDEC : Mr . Noteboom - This is an agreement we renew every year in case work needs to be completed in our streams . Resolution No . 245 - Memorandum of Understanding , NYS Department of Environmental Conservation : Motion made by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded by Councilman Niklas authorizing and directing the Supervisor to execute the Memorandum of Understanding with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for the period January 1 , 1996 through December 31 , 1996 . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Additional Agenda Item No 2 - 1995 Youth Services Agreement with Tompkins County : Councilwoman Valentino - This is our standard agreement ? Mrs . Noteboom - This is the agreement that was brought to the Board in August to be reviewed by the Attorney for the Town to work out an agreement on the indemnification sections and he has told us that these were , that we should enact it the way it is . We need to adopt this tonight because if we don ' t have a signed contract by December 16 , we will lose our matching funding . Mr . Barney - We worried about indemnification because this is a one year contract which expires in another two weeks . So unless something happens in the next two weeks- we should be alright . Resolution No 246 - 1995 Youth Services Agreement with Tompkins County : Motion made by Councilwoman Valentino , seconded by Councilman Niklas authorizing and directing the Town Supervisor to execute the 1995 Youth Services Agreement with Tompkins County , including subcontracts on behalf of the Town . The Attorney for the Town is hereby authorized and directed to continue negotiations with the 47 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 County Attorney to reach a mutually acceptable arrangement for the removal of the indemnification provisions in all contracts and agreements with Tompkins County . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Additional Agenda Item No . 3 - Sick Leave Donation Request : Supervisor Whitcomb - Mr . George Frantz brought this to our attention . One of our employees is quite ill and has used up all of her sick time and is proposing that the Town adopt some sort of a procedure . I ' m aware of at least company in town that has the procedure in place of allowing other employees to contribute time , take their sick time away and give it to the person in need . Mr . Barney - I suggest that this should be discussed during an Executive Session as a personnel matter . Additional Agenda Item No . 4 - Payment Archeological Research Assistant : Resolution No . 248 : Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Councilwoman Harrison ratifying the additional hours worked by Ms . Quinn , and authorizing the payment of an additional $ 82 . 50 in wages , additional wages to be charged to account B8020 . 110 . $ 100 . 00 shall be transferred from account B8020 . 406 , Planning Study to account B8021 . 110 , Student Interns , for the purpose of covering the additional hours worked . Councilwoman Valentino - How many times ' is this going to be done ? Is this the last one ? Mr . Frantz - There will be one more resolution in January to authorize payment to Kathleen Quinn through June . She has already been authorized through June 30 , 1996 , and that is in the budget . Mr . Kanter - This payment is for the miscalculation of the number of hours Ms . Quinn would work this fall . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Additional Agenda Item No . 5 - Interview Procedures for 1996 Appointments . Mrs . Noteboom - Councilwoman Harrison called this morning and asked 48 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 if this was talked about at the November - meeting and wanted to make sure it was discussed this evening as a follow- up . The advertisement did go in the paper , and we are receiving a great deal of responses from the people whose terms are expiring . We have also received several resumes from people who have moved into the town and would like to be considered to serve on one of the boards or committees . Councilman Niklas - We did pass a resolution which I wrote a fairly long time ago in terms of the interviewing procedures for things like the Town Planning Board and the Conservation Board . The Interviewing Committee would have two members of the Town Board and two members of the relevant board or committee . If there were a deadlock vote , the Town Board which authorizes those appointments can break the vote . Councilwoman Harrison - The discussions we have ad in the past brought out issues such as , how to treat incumbents who want to be reappointed . Should interviews be just Boards that actually have regulatory powers , like the Conservation Board . Should we set policies and procedures ? Councilman Niklas - What are the by -,laws for the Conservation Board regarding the appointments ? Mr . Barney - The issue was about whether substitute members would be allowed . Mr . Niklas - It is the Town Board that officially makes the appointments to the Conservation Board . Supervisor Whitcomb - In the recent past there has not been enough interest to be select in the interviews , there has been no competition . Councilwoman Harrison - In that case , the Town Board would always have the discretion of not holding interviews . Mrs . Noteboom - One person is interested in the Planning Board , one is interested in the Conservation Board , and one is interested in the Zoning Board of Appeals . There are additional seats to be filled and with no one interested in the appointment . Supervisor Whitcomb - Let ' s say we have three seats and one applicant , we may not necessarily want to appoint that applicant either . Mrs . Noteboom - We have an Interviewing Committee of Catherine Valentino and David Klein now , and then two new members to that 49 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 committee may be appointed on January 1 . Maybe those two individuals can review the letters I ' ve received and set a time for conducting interviews with the people who have interest in being appointed for the first time , and for those wishing to be reappointed . We do need to appoint on December 29th , we only have three weeks to conduct interviews and contact the successful candidate or there will not be enough voting members at the first meeting of the Planning Board and Zoning Board in January . Mr Klein - We normally would do the interviews the night of their meetings . Mr . Kanter - The Planning Board meets on the 19th . Councilman Niklas - It is in the best . interest of all the Town Board members to recruit , because they must live with the decision . Councilwoman Harrison - Which boards have fewer applicants than vacancies . Mrs . Noteboom - The Conservation Board and Zoning Board of Appeals . Supervisor Whitcomb - I thought we weren ' t going to reappoint anyone to the Planning Board ? Mrs . Noteboom - Stephen Smith has said that he does not wish to return . Councilman Niklas - The agenda item is to consider procedures , not procedures for interviews . Supervisor Whitcomb - I thought we had procedures in place ? Mrs . Noteboom - The only procedures that the November 8th meeting referred to was whether or not you were going to interview incumbents . Councilwoman Harrison - I feel strongly' that we should . Councilman Niklas - I tend to agree , because there ' s no guarantee that an incumbent is necessarily a person who has done a good job . I don ' t think it should be automatic reappointment just because they ' re an incumbent and they want to continue to serve . Councilwoman Grigorov - In seven years , someone else really good might turn up . Councilman Niklas - If someone doesn ' t do a good job , it ' s your opportunity then to find someone who can . 50 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 Councilwoman Harrison - Sometimes these members aren ' t really known to the Town Board people . Supervisor Whitcomb - Interviewing incumbents provides and opportunity to talk to them about their ideas and objectives . Councilman Niklas - It is also an opportunity to thank that person publicly for what they ' ve done and to acknowledge " You ' ve done a great job , that ' s why we ' re re - appointing you . " Mrs . Noteboom - I will provide copies of the interested peoples letters and resumes to Councilman Klein , and Councilwoman Valentino to review . They can notify me when they would like to set up the interviews . Councilwoman Harrison - Does somebody have to appoint the members from the Conservation Board and the members from the Planning Board ? Supervisor Whitcomb - Yes , they do . Whose going to remind the Planning Board and the Conservation Board to come up with two members for this Interviewing Committee ? Andy would you do that at the Conservation Board meeting Wednesday night ? Mr . Barney - There are two candidates and one opening for the Planning Board . Mrs . Noteboom - The Conservation Board also has resignations , and and Mr . Fischer has said that he does not wish to seek reappointment . Supervisor Whitcomb - Do we want to include the Conservation Board in this measure ? Councilman Klein - No , let them make their recommendations . Mrs . Noteboom - We will also have three seats on the Ethics Board . Two people have asked not be re - appointed and there was one seat that was already vacant . Councilman Niklas - We have got to start recruiting . EXECUTIVE SESSION : Motion made by Councilman Niklas , Seconded by Councilwoman Valentino to move into Executive Session to discuss matters of Personnel and Property Acquisition , and that Councilwoman Elect Mary Russell attend the Executive Session . Motion carried unanimously . 51 TB Minutes 12 / 11 / 95 The Town Board moved into Executive Session at 9 : 10 p . m . Motion made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Councilwoman Valentino to resume regular session . Motion carried unanimously . The Town Board resumed regular session at 9 : 18 p . m . As a result of the Executive Session the following resolution was adopted . Resolution No . 247 - Sick Leave " Donation " : Motion made by Councilwoman Grigorov , seconded by Councilman Klein authorizing the transfer of sick time from Mr . George Frantz to the employee designated in his memorandum of December 6 , 1995 , up to 75 hours . The Town Board further authorizes the voluntary transfer of sick time from other employees to the individual denominated in Mr . Frantz , memorandum . Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . Adjournment : As there was no further business to come before the Town Board a motion was made by Councilman Niklas , seconded by Supervisor Whitcomb to adjourn . Motion carried unanimously . The meeting was adjourned by the Town Supervisor at 9 : 19 p . m . Respectfully submitted , ' co .-� -n �. )oa�n Lent Noteboom Town Clerk 52 TOWN OF ITHACA 146 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 6 (d ) Authorization For Town Clerk To Assist Town of Caroline With Records Management Indexing Grant Resolution No . 230 WHEREAS , the Grants Administration Unit of the NY State Education Department has requested that Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk be allowed to assist the town of Caroline with their LGRMIF Inventory Grant by helping to plan the project and train staff; and WHEREAS , the time required by the Town Clerk to assist the Town of Caroline with the said project would be minimal compared to the positive impact Ms . Noteboom would have on the Town of Caroline' s project ; and WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca Town Board is dedicated to promoting Intermunicipal cooperation with other local governments ; and WHEREAS , Ms . Noteboom has determined she would be able to donate time to help the Town of Caroline without it adversely effecting her duties and responsibilities to the Town of Ithaca ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby approve permission for Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk to assist the Town of Caroline with their LGRMIF Inventory Grant by helping to plan the project and train staff. MOVED : Councilman Klein SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 146 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 10 Local Law Amending Zoning Ordinance Special Land Use District ( Limited Mixed Use) Cornell University Precinct 7 Resolution No . 231 WHEREAS , the properly advertised public hearing has been held to consider the enactment of a , " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE DISTRICT ( LIMITED MIXED USE) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 7" ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby enacts the said , " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE DISTRICT ( LIMITED MIXED USE ) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 7 and be it further RESOLVED , the Town Clerk is hereby authorized and directed to file the said local law as required by law. MOVED: Councilwoman Harrison SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Roll Call Vote : Supervisor Whitcomb , abstain ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried . DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHA►CA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No , 11 Agreement Cornell University Special Land Use District No , 9 Resolution No . 232 WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca is considering rezoning certain lands owned by Cornell University ("Cornell') along Route 366 and Game Farm Road from Residential R30 to Special Land Use District No . 9 ; and WHEREAS , in the past Cornell and/or the State of New York and/ or the United States Government have maintained that certain facilities constructed on the Cornell University Campus by the State of New York or one of its agencies or by the federal government or one of its agencies are exempt from local zoning and building code regulations ; and WHEREAS , the intent of the Special Land Use District rezoning is to provide for a cohesive and comprehensive plan for development of the area included in Special Land Use District No . 9 ; and WHEREAS , to effect such land use planning it is desirable that , insofar as possible , any projects or structures that would not otherwise be subject to local zoning regulation be built in accordance with the limitations and requirements of the Special Land Use District; NOW THEREFORE , in consideration of the premises Cornell agrees , with respect to structures or projects built by New York State or the United States , or funded by State or Federal monies , in the Special Land Use District and which structures or projects are not subject to local zoning regulation , that during the identification of program needs and subsequent project planning and development of site criteria , it will advocate to the fullest extent possible that such structures or projects comply with the provisions of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance and use its best efforts to accomplish such compliance . It is understood that Cornell is unable to bind New York State or the United States . It is also understood that Cornell shall not be obligated to decline or refuse such a building or project that does not comply. TB Mtg . 12/11 /95 Res . No . 232 Cornell further agrees that it will on a regular (at least annually) and timely basis (i . e . , when a program need is identified for Special Land Use District No. 9) inform the Town regarding potential projects and preliminary plans by notice addressed to the Town Supervisor and Town Planner. This agreement shall not become effective until such time as the Town of Ithaca has enacted the Special Land Use District legislation presently pending before the Town . The execution of this document by the Town of Ithaca shall in no way require the Town to adopt such legislation . IN WITNESS WHEREOF , the parties have executed this agreement as of this day of 11995 , TOWN OF ITHACA CORNELL UNIVERSITY By: By: MOVED : Councilwoman Harrison SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye. Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Agenda Item No , 13 SEQR : Contract With the Village of Cayuga Heights For Fire Protection Services Resolution No . 233 WHEREAS , this action is the approval and authorization to enter into a contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights for fire protection services ; and WHEREAS , this is an unlisted action for which the Town of Ithaca Town Board is legislatively determined to act as Lead Agency in environmental review with respect to the approval and authorization for such contracts ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board , at a public hearing held on December 11 , 1995 , has reviewed and accepted as adequate the Short Environmental Assessment Form , Parts I and II for this action ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town of Ithaca Town Board hereby makes a negative determination of environmental significance in accordance with the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act for the above referenced action as proposed and , therefore , neither a Full Environmental Assessment Form , nor an Environmental Impact Statement will be required . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Harrison Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joa Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN of ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ffMCX NEW YORK 148M Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 14 Resolution Authorizing Execution of Contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights For Fire Protection Services Resolution No . 234 RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca acting on behalf of the Fire Protection District of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves the fire contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights providing fire and emergency vehicle protection in the northeast section of the Town of Ithaca and the Hamlet of Forest Home as more particularly described in said contract , a copy of which is presented to this meeting ; and it is further RESOLVED , that there be appropriated the sum of $66 , 578 . 00 to pay to the Village of Cayuga Heights for fire protection services pursuant to the terms of such proposed agreement ; and it is further RESOLVED , that the Supervisor be authorized to execute the contract for fire protection with the Village of Cayuga Heights substantially in the form submitted to this meeting with such changes therein as the Supervisor, with the advice of the Attorney for the Town may approve , his execution of such agreement to be due evidence of such approval . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilman Klein Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED: December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ffHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14WO Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Items No . 15 (b) - 15 (j) , 15 (1 -m ) Consent Agenda Items Resolution No . 235 (b) - (j ) , 235 ( 1- m ) BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves and/or adopts the Consent Agenda Item resolutions numbers 15 (b) to 15 (j) , 15 (km ) as presented ; items 15 (a) and 15 (k) shall be considered separately. MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (b) Town of Ithaca Warrants Resolution No . 235 (b) WHEREAS , the following numbered vouchers have been presented to the Ithaca Town Board for approval of payment; and WHEREAS , said vouchers have been audited for payment by said Town Board ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Ithaca Town Board hereby authorizes the payment of said vouchers . General Townwide Vouchers : No. 589 , $209786 . 00 ; No . 590 , $20 , 525 . 05 ; No . 591 - 592 , $8 , 098 . 77 ; No . 593 , $20 , 365 . 43 ; No . 594 , $ 12 , 849 . 03 ; No . 595 -638 , $28 , 900 . 14 . General Outside Village Vouchers : No . 226 , $ 12 , 182 . 14; No . 227 , $ 12 , 747 . 53 ; No . 228 , $3 , 803 . 98; No . 229 , $ 13 , 387 . 69 ; No . 230 , $8 , 859 . 25 ; No . 231 , $4 ,253 . 10 . Highway Vouchers : No . 316 , $ 11 , 215 . 01 ; No . 317 , $ 10 , 506 . 32 ; No . 318 , $4 , 161 . 19 ; No . 319 , $ 13 , 918 . 49; No . 320 , $ 10 , 349 . 60 ; No . 321 Payroll (see check register) ; No . 322-344 , $ 179177 . 14 . Lighting District Vouchers : No . 68-71 , $ 1 , 962 . 53 Water District Vouchers : No . 172 , $ 1 , 094 . 71 ; No . 173 , $ 11 , 050 . 00 ; No . 174 , $ 1 , 851 . 52 ; No . 175 , $86. 54 ; No . 176 , $ 1 , 116 . 83 ; No . 177, $ 1 , 094 . 71 ; No . 178 , $468 . 32 ; No . 179- 199 , $99245 . 63 . Sewer District Vouchers : No . 148 , $45 , 050 . 00 ; No . 149 , $ 1 , 093 . 55 ; No . 150 , $86 . 55 ; No . 151 , $2 , 788 . 17 ; No . 152 , $ 1 , 200 . 19 ; No . 153 , $468 . 31 ; No . 154- 167 , $2 , 2578438 MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 { �^ Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET 1THACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15© Bolton Point Warrants Resolution No , 235© WHEREAS , the following numbered vouchers have been presented to the Ithaca Town Board for approval of payment; and WHEREAS , said vouchers have been audited for payment by said Town Board ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town Board hereby authorizes the payment of said vouchers . Operating Fund Vouchers : No . 708-72 , $78, 876 . 97 ; No . 722-771 , $52 , 702022 MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 T own Clerk Joan Lent Noteboo m o TONIM OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (d) Financial Report 11 /30/95 Resolution No . 235 (d) WHEREAS , the Assistant Budget Officer has presented the Financial Report of the Town of Ithaca for the month ending November 30 , 1995 to the Town Board for their approval ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board has reviewed said reports; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board does hereby adopt the Financial Report for the month ending November 30 , 1995 as the official Town of Ithaca Financial Report for the month indicated . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Cmy '� r. - Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk f TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET RHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda No , 15 (e) Budget Amendments Resolution No . 235 (e) WHEREAS , certain line items of expenditures have exceeded their budgeted amount for 1995 ; and WHEREAS , it will be necessary to amend the budget to bring these. 'line items �Irito balance ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the gown of Ithaca does hereby approve and authorize the following : GENERAL_ TOWNWIDE FUND INCREASE DECREASE A1110 , 200 Justice Equipment $ 300 . 00 A1110 . 405 Justice Co ;itr, Expenditure 11700 . 00 A1410. 200 Town Clerk Equipment 170 . 00 A1430 . 400 Personnel Gontr , Expenditure 568 . 00 A1460 . 200 Records Management Equipment 344 . 00 A1620 . 413 Bldgs . Town Hall 32 , 000. 00 A1670 . 405 Shared Serv. Cont . Exp , 4, 000 . 00 A7320 . 404 Community Serv. 11226 . 00 A1430 , 200 Personnel Equipment $ 568 . 00 A1460 . 400 Records Management Contr, Exp . 400 . 00 A9901 . 900 I/F Trans . 32 , 000 . 00 Al 990 , 400 Contingency 71340 .00 GENERAL OUTSIDE VILLAGE FUND 61670 . 409 Legal Ads $ 700 . 00 B1990 . 400 Contingency $ 700 . 00 68020 . 200 Plan Equip . : 40 . 00 B8020 . 407 Conservation Board 140 . 00 I TB Mtg . 12/ 11 /95 Res . No . 235 (e) HIGHWAY FUND INCREASE DECREASE D61289 Judd Falls Road Recon . $ 60 , 830 . 20 DB5112 . 453 Perm , Improvements 60 , 830 . 20 SEWER FUND G8120. 200 Sanit . Swr Equip . $ 220 . 00 G8120 . 481 Jnt . Trans . 140 , 000 . 00 G599 Appropriated Fund Balance $ 140 , 220 . 00 MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED: December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk f TOWN of ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda No , 15 (f) Water Bill Refund Resolution No . 235 (f) WHEREAS , Mr. Thomas Bell , 5401 Curry Road , Trumansburg , New York 14886 has had the water service turned off; and WHEREAS , Mr. Bell has paid the final bill twice; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby approve and authorize a water bill refund for Account C4822 in the amount of $57 . 34 . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14860 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (g) Approval of 1996 Floating Holiday for Town Hall Staff Resolution No . 235 (g) WHEREAS , the annual poll of Town staff to determine their preference for the 1996 floating holiday has been completed ; and WHEREAS , the said poll determined 74 . 4% of the employees voted for Friday, July 51 1996 as their preference of the floating holiday for the coming year, now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby approves the date of Friday, July 5 , 1996 as the 1996 Floating Holiday for the Town of Ithaca employees . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk f t I TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (h ) NYS Association of Towns 1996 Training School & Annual Meeting Resolution No , 235 (h ) WHEREAS , the NYS Association of Towns will be holding their 1996 Training School and Annual Meeting on February 18 through 21 , 1996 in New York City; and WHEREAS , the attendance at said Training School and Annual Meeting by various Town Officials , Department Heads , and employees will benefit the Town of Ithaca by providing additional schooling for these said individuals ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Ithaca Town Board hereby approves the attendance of the following individuals at the NYS Association of Towns 1996 Training School and Annual Meeting to be held in New York City on February 18 through 21 , 1996: Catherine Valentino - Supervisor Elect Carolyn Grigorov - Town Board Member Eva Hoffmann - Planning Board Member Mary Russell - Town Board Member Elect John Wolff - Town Board Member Elect Joan Lent Noteboom - Town Clerk Fred Noteboom - Highway Superintendent Richard Schoch - Parks Manager Joanne Cornish - Epps - Planner Sally Alario - Assistant Budget Officer Mary Bryant - Administrative Secretary and , BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED , the Town Board also approves the payment for overnight lodging ($ 123 to $ 144 nightly estimate) ; the registration fee ($60 . 00 each) ; meals ($38 . 00 day) ; and travel on the cooperative County bus for each individual attending said Training School and Annual Meeting ; and be it further RESOLVED , the Town Attorney, John Barney may attend as a registrant of the Town of Ithaca and subsequently reimburse the Town for those costs , and be it further f TB Mtg . 12/11 /95 Res . No . 235 (h ) RESOLVED , Southern Cayuga Lake Intermunicipal Water Commission (SCLIWC) employees so designated by the SCLIWC Administrative Manager may attend as a registrant of the Town of Ithaca , SCLIWC will subsequently reimburse the Town of Ithaca for those costs . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilman Klein Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye. Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joae Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET RHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (1 ) Authorization for the Town of Ithaca to Pay the Employee Share of the Health Insurance Increase for December 1995 Resolution No . 235 (1 ) WHEREAS , employee and retiree health and dental insurance premiums are paid one month in advance of the coverage period ; and WHEREAS , the health and dental insurance premiums have increased 14 . 2% and 3 . 7% respectively beginning December 1995 for January 1996 coverage ; and WHEREAS , historically the Town has paid any increase in premium for December since applying an increase to certain employee contributions will result in less take home pay; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca , as it has in previous years , hereby authorizes the Town to pay both the retirees' and employees' portion of the increase in health and dental insurance premiums for the month of December 1995 . The total amount of the payment will be $463 . 96 . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (j ) Security and Safety Procedures Policy Resolution No . 235 (j ) WHEREAS , the Personnel Committee has developed and reviewed a Security and Safety Procedure Policy for the Town ; and WHEREAS , the Personnel Committee has recommended approval and implementation of the said Security and Safety Procedures Policy with its inclusion in the Town of Ithaca Personnel Manual ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby approve and authorize implementation of the Security and Safety Procedure Policy as recommended by the Personnel Committee ; and be it further RESOLVED , the Human Resource Specialist is hereby authorized and directed to incorporate the said policy into the Town of Ithaca Personnel Manual and distribute a copy of the said policy to each Town employee , all applicable Town officials , board and committee members ; and be it further RESOLVED , the Department Heads are hereby authorized and directed to perform the steps necessary to insure compliance with the said Security and Safety Procedures Policy. MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 ,� i 4 i Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 146 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14860 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 ( 1) Resolution of Support , Transportation Industry Committee Funding for Local Transportation Resolution No . 235 (1 ) WHEREAS , the Transportation Industry Committee was formed to provide a foundation to promote to the New York State Legislature the need to secure funding for local transportation ; and WHEREAS , the Transportation Industry Committee meets with the Senate and Assembly Transportation Committees to discuss concerns about transportation funding and to recommend alternative sources of future revenue ; and WHEREAS , the Transportation Industry Committee plans to continue meeting with Senate and Assembly representatives to further emphasize our mission of adequate and dependable local transportation funding ; and WHEREAS , the Transportation Industry Committee supports all agencies , businesses , and organizations in the transportation industry ; and WHEREAS , the transportation issues affect every New Yorker daily, the need for secure funding for local transportation in 1996-7 and beyond is immense ; and WHEREAS , local governments are responsible for 9 , 000 bridges and 95 , 000 miles of road (85 percent of New York State roads) ; and WHEREAS , the Consolidated Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS) ends in 1996 ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town of Ithaca goes on record strongly supporting the Transportation Industry Committee ' s efforts promoting to the New York State Legislature the need for secure and adequate funding for local transportation ; and be it further S TB Mtg , 12/ 11 /95 Res . No . 2350) RESOLVED , that copies of this resolution be submitted to Governor George Pataki and all members of the New York State Legislature, as well as others deemed necessary and proper. MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED: December 11 , 1995 TOWN OF ITHACA 146 EAST SENECA STREET RHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No. 15 (m ) Christmas Tree Pick Up Resolution No , 235 ( m ) WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca Highway/Parks Department will be picking up holiday trees for the residents of the Town of Ithaca ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that on January 17 , 1995 , the Town of Ithaca Highway/Parks Department will pick up holiday trees for the residents of the Town of Ithaca . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF IT IACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (a) Town Board Meeting Minutes 11 /9/95 Resolution No . 236 WHEREAS , the Town Clerk has presented the Town Board meeting minutes for the regular meeting held on November 9 , 1995 , to the Town Board for their review and approval ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board has reviewed the said minutes and requested the following amendment be made; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board does hereby adopt said minutes with amendment as the official minutes of the Ithaca Town Board for the regular meeting held November 9 , 1995 , Town Board Minutes - 11 /9/95 : Page 29 , Additional Agenda Item No , 1 , Paragraph 5 , Sentence 4 . Mr. Barney - " I do not think it was unreasonable . " AMENDMENT: " I do not think the delay was unreasonable . " MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Grigorov Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 i Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No , 15 (a) Special Town Board Meeting Minutes 11 /20/95 Resolution No . 237 WHEREAS , the Town Clerk has presented the Town Board meeting minutes for the special meeting held on November 20 , 1995 , to the Town Board for their review and approval ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board has reviewed the said minutes and requested the following amendment be made; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board does hereby adopt said minutes with amendment as the official minutes of the Ithaca Town Board for the regular meeting held November 20 , 1995 . SQecial Town Board Minutes - 11 /20/95 : Page 14 , Paragraph 7 , Councilwoman Valentino - AMENDMENT: Councilwoman Harrison - MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Harrison Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 can Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk f TORN OF ITHACA 146 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 148.50 Town Board Meeting 12/11 /95 Agenda Item No . 15 (k) Employment Status = Justice Court Clerk Resolution No . 238 WHEREAS , on August 7 , 1995 , the Town Board adopted Resolution No . 149/ 1995 to change the employment status of Judith Bernal from a part-time Court Clerk to a full- time Court Clerk with full employee benefits ; and WHEREAS , the said resolution stated that the change in status of this position would be effective only through December 31 , 1995 , and would revert back to a part= time position on January 1 , 1996 unless continuation of the full-time status was approved by the Town Board ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby approve the continuation of the employment status of Judith Bernal as a full-time Court Clerk effective January 1 , 1996 through June 30 , 1996 ; and be it further RESOLVED , the hours worked by Ms . Bernal shall not exceed forty (40) hours per week without written signed permission from Justice Clarence Larkin . Written permission and explanation of why extra hours are needed shall be attached to Ms . Bernal's time sheet before payment for time worked over forty (40) hours per week; and be it further RESOLVED , all other full-time benefits apply. MOVED: Councilwoman Valentino SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN of ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET MACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/11 /95 Agenda Item No . 16 Resolution of Appreciation to Karl J . Niklas Resolution No . 239 WHEREAS , Karl J . Niklas was first appointed to the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca on January , 1990 , was subsequently elected to such position , and has served on the Town Board continuously since his initial appointment; and WHEREAS , Councilman Niklas' term of office will end December 31 , 19952 by reason of his decision to not seek re- election ; and WHEREAS , during the nearly six years of service on the Town Board Councilman Niklas has been a leader in preparing the Town for the twenty-first century as well as in addressing the needs of the Town on a current basis ; and WHEREAS , among his many accomplishments Councilman Niklas served on the Comprehensive Planning Committee which resulted in a new comprehensive plan for the Town , chaired the Codes and Ordinances Committee which drafted much of the legislation that governs the Town today , and served on the Planning Committee which is guiding the Town in implementing the new comprehensive plan ; and WHEREAS , during his years of service Councilman Niklas has diligently competently, and articulately represented the interests of the Town and its citizens ; and WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca is indebted to Councilman Niklas for his long and exemplary service as a Town Board Member and wishes to express its appreciation to him for his contributions ; Now, Therefore , Be It RESOLVED that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca , on behalf of the Town , its citizens and residents , expresses its sincere gratitude to Councilman Karl J . Niklas for his distinguished , articulate and visionary service to our community. MOVED : Supervisor Whitcomb SECONDED : Councilwoman Valentino Adopted Unanimously this 11th day of December, 1995 . - nj — Yan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOUW OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET . RNACA, NEW YORK 148N Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No, 17 Amendment Local Law No . 2/ 1995 Tax Exemptions Persons With Limited Incomes Resolution No . 240 BE IT RESOLVED , the Attorney for the Town is authorized and directed to draft an amendment to Local Law No . 2/1995 , "A LOCAL LAW INCREASING THE PARTIAL TAX EXEMPTIONS FOR REAL PROPERTY OWNED BY PERSONS WITH LIMITED INCOMES WHO ARE 65 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER", to include an additional tier to the income limits of exemptions allowed for persons who are 65 years of age or older; and be it further RESOLVED , the said draft amendment is to be presented to the Town Board at their year end meeting on December 29 , 1995 , in order that they may consider a resolution setting a public hearing on the said local law . MOVED : Councilwoman Valentino SECONDED : Councilman Klein Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye. Motion carried unanimously. DATED: December 11 , 1995 Join Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 18 Bond Resolution Resolution No . 241 At a regular meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca , Tompkins County, New York , held at the Town Hall , at 126 East Seneca Street , Ithaca , New York , in said Town , on December 11 , 1995 , at 5 : 30 o 'clock p . m . , Prevailing Time . The meeting was called to order by Supervisor Whitcomb , and upon roll being called , the following were PRESENT : Supervisor John Whitcomb Councilwoman Catherine Valentino Councilman David Klein Councilman Karl Niklas Councilwoman Carolyn Grigorov Councilwoman Ellen Harrison ABSENT: Councilman Ed Conley BOND RESOLUTION DATED DECEMBER 11 , 1995 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ACQUISITION OF LAND AND CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW TOWN HALL, AUTHORIZING THE EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS FROM T TOWN BUILDING RESERVE FUND FOR SUCH PURPOSE , AND AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE AND SALE OF SERIAL BONDS FOR THE BALANCE OF THE COSTS OF SUCH PROJECT WHEREAS , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca has found that the present Town offices at 126 East Seneca Street , Ithaca , New York , are grossly inadequate for the needs of the citizens of the community, the staff of the Town , and the Town Board ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca has investigated a number of possible sites and buildings for possible use as a new Town Hall ; and WHEREAS , the Town , after a great deal of investigation and review of various proposals and sites , entered into a contingent purchase agreement for the purchase of property owned by 114 West Buffalo Street Associates located at 119 West Court Street in the City of Ithaca , Tompkins County, New York , for the purposes of constructing a new Town Hall ; and Ob-Cy Lres, wp5l\ith December 18, 1995 9:45am WHEREAS , the Town Board retained the architectural firm of HOLT for the purposes of analyzing the costs of constructing a new building on said site for use as a Town Hall and Town staff offices at a cost that was reasonable to the Town Board and the taxpayers of the Town of Ithaca ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board has received the report of such architectural firm indicating that the building may be constructed at a price and upon terms that the Town Board believes to be appropriate ; and WHEREAS , the acquisition of the property and the construction of a new Town Hall has been determined to be an " Unlisted Action " pursuant to the regulations of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation promulgated pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act and the laws and regulations of the Town of Ithaca, the implementation of which as proposed , the Town Board has determined , will not result in any significant environmental effects ; and WHEREAS , it is now desired to authorize the acquisition of such property , the construction of a new Town Hall , and financing of such capital project ; NOW, THEREFORE , BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca as follows: Section 1 . The Town of Ithaca acquire premises known generally as 119 West Court Street, Ithaca , New York , for the purposes of constructing a Town Hall for the Town of Ithaca on such location at a purchase price of $437 , 500. 00 all in accordance with the terms of the purchase offer previously executed by the Town Supervisor on August 17 , 1995 and accepted by the seller on August 18 , 1995 , Section 2 . The Town of Ithaca , subject to the contingencies set forth in said purchase offer and other contingencies relating to obtaining necessary approvals including , if a referendum is held , the approval of the voters of the Town of Ithaca , hereby authorizes the expenditure of up to $2 , 000 , 000 . 00 , inclusive of the land purchase costs set forth above , for the acquisition of such property, the demolition of the existing building on said property, and the construction and equipping of a new building for a new Town Hall on said property, all of said actions being authorized pursuant to Section 220 of the Town Law. Ob-Gymres, wp5lVth December 28, 1995 10:01am Section 3 . That for the object or purpose of purchasing said property and paying the costs of constructing said building , including demolition , grading , site improvements , original furnishings and equipment , machinery or apparatus required for the purposes for which said building is to be used , and other improvements and incidental expenses necessary in connection therewith , $500 , 000. 00 of the General Obligation Serial Bonds of the Town of Ithaca , New York, are hereby authorized to be issued pursuant to the provisions of the Local Finance Law. Section 4 . $2 , 000 , 000 . 00 is estimated as the maximum cost for the acquisition of the above mentioned real property , the demolition of the building on the same , the construction and equipping of a new Town Hall on same , hereinafter collectively referred to as the " Project" . Section 5 . The plan for the financing of the project consists of (a) The expenditure of all of the funds in the "Town Building Reserve Fund" established in September of 1993 and estimated to be approximately $ 1 , 350 , 000 . 00 , for the acquisition of the property and for the costs of constructing a new Town Hall thereon ; and ( b) The issuance of General Obligation Serial Bonds of the Town in the principal sum of not more than $500 , 000, to be issued pursuant to the Local Finance Law for a portion of the remaining costs of constructing the building ; and © The expenditure of $ 150 , 000 . 00 from current funds of the Town in the Town ' s budget for 1996 , which funds are hereby appropriated therefor. Section 6 . It is hereby determined that the period of probable usefulness of the aforesaid specific objects or purposes is 30 years , pursuant to Subdivisions 11 (a) ( 1 ) and 21 (a) of Paragraph a of Section 11 . 00 of the Local Finance Law. It is further determined that the maximum maturity of the serial bonds herein authorized will exceed five years . Section 7 . The full faith and credit of said Town of Ithaca , Tompkins County, New York , are hereby irrevocably pledged to the payment of the principal of and interest on said bonds as the same respectively become due and payable . An annual appropriation shall be made in each year sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on such bonds becoming due and payable in Ob-Gymres, wp5l\ith December 18, 1995 9:45am such year. There shall annually be levied on all the taxable real property in said Town a tax sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on such bonds as the same become due and payable . Section 8 . Such bonds shall be in fully registered form and shall be signed in the name of the Town of Ithaca , New York , by the manual or facsimile signature of its Supervisor, and a facsimile of its corporate seal shall be imprinted thereon and attested by the manual or facsimile signature of its Town Clerk . Section 9 . The powers and duties of advertising such bonds for sale , conducting the sale and awarding the bonds , are hereby delegated to the Town Supervisor, who shall advertise such bonds for sale , conduct the sale , and award the bonds in such manner as he or she shall deem best for the interests of said Town , provided , however, that in the exercise of these delegated powers , he or she shall comply fully with the provisions of the Local Finance Law and any order or rule of the State Comptroller applicable to the sale of municipal bonds . The receipt of the Supervisor shall be a full acquittance to the purchaser of such bonds , who shall not be obliged to see to the application of the purchase money. Section 10 . Subject to the provisions of the Local Finance Law, the power to authorize the issuance and to sell bond anticipation notes in anticipation of the issuance and sale of the serial bonds herein authorized , including renewals of such notes , is hereby delegated to the Supervisor, the Chief Fiscal Officer. Such notes shall be of such terms , form and contents , and shall be sold in such manner as may be prescribed by said Supervisor , consistent with the provisions of the Local Finance Law. Section 11 . All other matters , except as provided herein relating to such bonds , including determining whether to issue such serial bonds having substantially level or declining debt service and all matters related thereto , prescribing whether manual or facsimile signatures shall appear on said bonds , prescribing the method for the recording of ownership of said bonds , appointing the fiscal agent or agents for said bonds , providing for the printing and delivery of said bonds (and if said bonds are to be executed in the name of the Town by the facsimile signature of the Supervisor, providing for the manual countersignature of a fiscal agent or of a designated official of the Town ) , the date , denominations , maturities and interest payment dates , place or places of payment , and also including the consolidation with other issues , shall be determined by the Supervisor . It is hereby determined that it is to the financial Ob-Gym res, wp51\ith December 18, 1995 9:45am advantage of the Town of Ithaca not to impose and collect from registered owners of such serial bonds any charges for mailing , shipping and insuring bonds transferred or exchanged by the fiscal agent , and accordingly, pursuant to paragraph c of Section 70 . 00 of the Local Finance Law, no such charges shall be so collected by the fiscal agent . Such bonds shall contain substantially the recital of validity clause provided for in Section 52 . 00 of the Local Finance Law and shall otherwise be in such form and contain such recitals in addition to those required by Section 52 . 00 of the Local Finance Law, as the Town Supervisor shall determine . Section 12 . This resolution shall constitute a statement of official intent for purposes of Treasury Regulations Section 1 . 150- 1 . Other than as specified in this resolution , no moneys are , or are reasonably expected to be , reserved , allocated on a long-term basis , or otherwise set aside with respect to the permanent funding of the object or purpose described herein . Section 13 . The validity of such bonds may be contested only if: 1 . Such bonds are authorized for an object or purchase for which said Town is not authorized to expend money, or 2 . The provisions of law which should be complied with at the date of publication of this resolution are not substantially complied with , and an action , suit or proceeding contesting such validity is commenced within 20 days after the date of publication , or 3 . Such bonds are authorized in violation of the provision of the Constitution . Section 14 . Pursuant to the provisions of Section & c of the General Municipal Law, as amended , the Town Supervisor of the Town of Ithaca be and such Supervisor hereby is authorized and directed to expend from the "Town Building Reserve Fund " of the Town of Ithaca , duly established by resolution in September of 1993 , all of the principal and accumulated interest in said reserve fund , presently amounting to approximately $ 1 , 350 , 000 for the purposes of acquiring said real property , demolishing the building on the property , and constructing and equipping a new Town Hall , said expenditures to be made for the acquisition of the property at the closing and for the demolition , construction , and equipment upon receipt of requisitions for sums for same pursuant to approved bids in appropriate form for such work . Ob-Gynres, wp5l\ith December 18, 1995 9:45am Section 15 . Within 10 days after the adoption of this resolution by the Town Board , the Town Clerk shall , as set forth in Section 90 of the Town Law, post and publish a notice which shall set forth the date of the adoption of this resolution and contain an abstract of this resolution , concisely stating the purpose and effect thereof. Such notice shall specify that such resolution was adopted subject to a permissive referendum . Section 16 . If no referendum is requested , or if requested , a referendum is held and the referendum approves the resolution , this resolution shall be published in full by the Town Clerk of the Town of Ithaca , together with a notice in substantially the form prescribed by Section 81 . 00 of said Local Finance Law, such publication to be in the Ithaca Journal , a newspaper published in the City of Ithaca and having a general circulation within such Town . Section 17 . This resolution shall take effect immediately, unless a referendum is requested , in which event it shall take effect , if approved at such referendum , upon such approval . Section 18 . This resolution is adopted subject to a permissive referendum pursuant to Town Law Section 220 , General Municipal Law Section 6=c and Local Finance Law Section 35 . 00 . The question of adoption of the foregoing resolution was duly put to a vote on a roll call , which resulted as follows : Supervisor Whitcomb Voting Nay Councilperson Valentino Voting Aye Councilperson Klein Voting Aye Councilperson Niklas Voting Nay Councilperson Grigorov Voting Aye Councilperson Harrison Voting Aye The resolution was thereupon duly adopted . DATED : December 11 , 1995 -SEAL= Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 21 Engineering Technician Probationary Status Resolution No . 242 WHEREAS . on June 12 , 1995 , Resolution No . 104// 995 ratified the appointment Of Charles White a S Engineering Technician by estabiishing a twenty six (26) 1week ;probationary pericd cor;� menc ng after Civi Service certification ; and WHEREAS , the Town has since been informed by Tompkins County Personnel thGt u orcbaticnary period commencing after Civil Service certification is required , but that it can be for a period from a minimum of eight (8) weeks to up to twenty six (26) weeks ; and WHEREAS , Mr . White on November 18 , 1995 completed the civil service examination and is awaiting notification of the results from the New York State Civil Service Commission ; and WHEREAS , the Town Engineer has requested a reduction of the probationary period for Mr . White frorn twenty six weeks to eight (8 ) weeks upon Civil Service certification due to : ( 1 ) new information from Tompkins County Personnel ; (2) Mr. White ' s satisfactory performance since May 1995 ; (3) and the lengthy time frame to schedule the first applicable Civil Service examination ; now therefore be it RESCLVED . the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby approve the reduction of the twenty six (26) week probationary period for Mr. Charles White , Engineering Technician to an eight (8 ) week probationary period commencing from the date of notification of Civil Service certification ; and be it further RESOLVED , all other conditions and benefits of employment enacted in Resolution No . 104/ 1995 shall apply . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman '%/alentino Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino . aye; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman C. rigorov, aye . Counci ' Nomar, Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . DATED : December 11 , 1995 _ .. , ,�L Joan l_„ n ; NotoU.-#am . Tnwr Clerx TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET RHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting , December 11 , 1995 Agenda Item No . 22 Authorization for Town Staff to Proceed with ISTEA Transportation Enhancement Program Grant Application Resolution No . 243 WHEREAS , the City of Ithaca and Town of Ithaca have a mutual desire to construct a bicycle/pedestrian path from the South Hill Recreation Way to Buttermilk Falls State Park, and to cooperate with the New York State Office of Parks , Recreation , and Historic preservation to develop a comprehensive system of bicycle/pedestrian facilities in Ithaca; and WHEREAS , the opportunity exists to construct a portion of this envisioned bicycle/pedestrian facility that would connect Buttermilk Falls State Park on the east with the proposed Black Diamond Trail bicycle pedestrian path to be constructed by the State Office of Parks , Recreation , and Historic Preservation , via a bridge over Elmira Road ; and WHEREAS, this proposed bicycle and pedestrian path would serve as a safe and convenient off- road connection between Buttermilk Falls State Park and the proposed Black Diamond Trail ; and WHEREAS, the location of the proposed bicycle and pedestrian improvements described above are consistent with the 1975 and 1984 Park and Open Space Plans for the Town of Ithaca; and WHEREAS , the estimated total cost of the improvements described above is $200 . 000 ; and WHEREAS, funds are available on a competitive basis to municipalities through the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act ( ISTEA) Transportation Enhancement Program for improvements to the transportation infrastructure such as the one proposed ; and WHEREAS , the City of Ithaca Common Council has authorized the submission of a grant application to New York State Department of Transportation ISTEA Transportation Enhancements Program for the above proposed project, and has committed to funding up to one-half of a local matching share of 20 percent of total project costs , or $20 ,000 ; and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca Common Council desires that the Town of Ithaca join in applying for the above referenced Transportation Enhancements Program grant, and to commit to funding up to one-half of a local matching share of 20 percent of total project cost, or $20 , 000 , NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca authorizes staff to work with the staff of the City of Ithaca to complete and submit an application for grant funding through the ISTEA Transportation Enhancement Program , for the above described project, for an amount not to exceed $ 160 , 000 , to represent 80 percent of the total project cost not to exceed $200 ,000 : AND BE IT FURTHER TB Mtg . 12/11 /95 Agenda Item No . 22 = Res . No . 243 RESOLVED , that the Town of Ithaca's portion of the total cost of said project shall not exceed $20 ,000 . MOVED: Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Harrison Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk F . TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town 6card Meeting , December 11 , -1995 Agenda Item N -) . 22 Authorization to Proceed with ISTEA Transportation Enhcncement Program Grant A.9plication R :.lsolution No . 244 WHEREAS , an easurnent has I.-,e =;a of`ere-: io the Town of Itllac:a by Frank. and Blythe Baldwin , and Royal and SL' sa ►ina Colia , lardowners, for the purpose of constructing a bicycle and pedestrian, path over thei . properties from Pine Tree Road to regency Lane and Park Lane , and WHEREAS , a bicycle and pedestrian path , and connecting walkways in the proposed locations would serve as a safe and convenient off - ; oad connection between homes in the Eastern Heights neighborhood and the existing Town network of walkways and 3; ktw �y� ill tt- e area , and WHEREAS , providing a safe , off- road fink between the northern anc' souther^ sections of the East lthc ca Recreation Way would enhance its wility for pedestrian and bicyclists using that facility , and WHEREAS , the possibility for such a connection exists on the north side cf Maple Avenue, within the existing public right of wa7 , anc WHEREAS , tF. e location; of the proposed bicvele and peda.,triari imorovooments doscribed above are consistent with the 1975 and 1934 Park and Open Space Plans for the T own of Ithaca, and WHEREAS , the estimated total cost of the improvements described above is Sr-901.575 , and WHEREAS , funds are available on a competitive basis to municipalities through the Intermcdal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act ( ISTEA) Transportation Enhancement Program for improvements to the transportation infrastructure such as the ones proposed above , and WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca Town Board intends to commit to funding a local match up to 30% of the total project costs for the above described project, in :,r amount not to exceed $78 ,475 , now therefore hie it. RESOLVED , that the Town Board of the Town o` Ithaca authorizes stuff t-, complete and submit an application for grant funding through the ISTEA Transportation Enhancement PrcSram , fcr tre abova described project , ion an amuwit not to exceed $ 183 , 100 to represent 70% of Lhe total project post not to exceed $261 .f , . MOVED : Coundiwoman Valentino SECONDED : COLLICilman Niklas SLIperviser Whi ►comb , aye ; Coundiwoman Valentino : aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Counciiworian Gricolov. aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unariirnous ! y . DkTF D - December 11 . ! 9J- 5 oan I_rni Noteboorn , 70%, pl Cleric TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 26 Memorandum of Understanding New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Resolution No . 245 WHEREAS , it is necessary that the Town of Ithaca and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) establish an agreement of cooperation for the protection of the water resources of certain classified water in New York State as set forth in Title 5 of Article 15 of the Conservation Law on a yearly basis ; and WHEREAS , the present Memorandum of Understanding with the NYSDEC expires on December 31 , 1995 ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board , Attorney for the Town , and Town Engineer have reviewed and approved the referenced Memorandum of Understanding with the NYSDEC for the period January 1 , 1995 through December 31 , 1996 ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca hereby authorizes and directs the Town Supervisor to execute the said Memorandum of Understanding with the NYSDEC for the period January 1 , 1996 through December 31 , 1996 . MOVED : Councilwoman Valentino SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . DATED : December 11 , 1995 1 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOUIN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET TTHACA, NEW YORK 14BSO Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda ! tem Additional No . 2 1995 Youth Services Agreement With Tompkins County Resolution No , 246 WHEREAS , i "t is necessary for the Town of Itinaca to Pnter into an agreement with Tompkins County in order to participate in the Tcmpkins County Youth Services Program ; and WHEREAS , the Town Supervisor and the Attorney for the Town have reviewed the proposed agreement with Tompkins County for the Youth Services Program , the subcontractor agreement for the Summer Employment Program sponsored by the Ithaca Youth Bureau , and the subcontractor agreement with the Learning Web : and WHEREAS , the Town Supervisor and the Attorney for the Town agree with the conditions and terms of payment in the said agreement and subcontracts with the exception of the indemnifications provisions ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Supervisor is hereby authorized and directed to execute the said agreement and subcontrac� s on behalf of the Town of Ithaca ; and be it further RESOLVED , the Attorney for the Town is hereby authorized and directed to continue negotiations with the County Attorney to reach a mutually acceptable arrangement for the removal of the indemnification provisions in all contracts and agreements with Tompkins County, MOVED : Councilwoman Valentino SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye : Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison. , aye .. Motion carried unanimously . DATED : December 11 , 1995 ,x„ . Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item Additional No . 3 Sick Leave " Donation " Resolution No . 247 WHEREAS , a Town of Ithaca employee has requested the Town Board approve the one time transfer of his sick leave time to another employee because of the extended illness of that employee who no longer has enough vacation , sick, or personnel time; and WHEREAS , the Town Board has considered the said request in executive session ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board does hereby authorize the transfer of sick time from Mr. Frantz to the employee designated in his memorandum of December 6 , 1995 , up to 75 hours ; and be it further RESOLVED , the Town Board does hereby authorize the voluntary transfer of sick time from other employees to the individual denominated in Mr. Frantz' memorandum . MOVED : Councilwoman Grigorov SECONDED : Councilman Klein Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov, aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye. Motion carried unanimously . DATED : December 11 , 1995 i. Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN OF ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item Additional No . 4 Authorization to Increase Hours of Archaeological Research Assistant and Approval of Budget Amendment Resolution No . 248 WHEREAS , the Town Board on August 7 , 1995 , authorized the continued employment of Kathleen Quinn as a temporary part-time employee through June 30 , 1996 ; and WHEREAS , the Town Board authorized Ms . Quinn to work a total of 260 hours at a rate of $ 10 . 00 per hour not to exceed $2 , 600 . 00 , to be charged to Account 138020 . 110 , with 100 hours of her time to be worked between August 8 , 1995 and December 31 , 1995 , and 160 hours to be worked between January 1 , 1996 and June 30 , 1996 ; and WHEREAS , due to some additional work performed by Ms . Quinn during the Fall 1995 semester , she has as of December 11 , 1995 worked a total of 108 . 25 hours , or 8 . 25 hours more than authorized ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , that the Town Board here dditional hours worked by Ms . Quinn , and authorize the payment of an ions $82 . $0 in wages , said additional wages to be charged to Account 138020 . 1 Q• and 'further RESOLVED , that $ 100 . 00 be transferred from Account 88020 . 406 , Planning Study to Account B8020 . 110 , Student Interns , for the purpose of covering the additional hours worked . MOVED : Councilman Niklas SECONDED : Councilwoman Harrison Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously. DATED : December 11 , 1995 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk TOWN of ITHACA 126 EAST SENECA STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Board Meeting 12/ 11 /95 Agenda Item No . 24 Acceptance of Sanctuary Drive roadway and Utilities Sanctuary Woods Subdivision Resolution No . 249 WHEREAS , the Town of Ithaca Planning Board , on September 6 , 1994 , granted Final Subdivision Approval for the subdivision of Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel 731 - 1 -7 . 2 into 14 parcels , as shown on the subdivision plat entitled " Final Subdivision Plat - . Sanctuary Woods" prepared by Lawrence P . Fabbroni , Surveyor, dated January 21 , 1994 , revised April 12 , 1994 , and June 29 , 1994 ; and WHEREAS , this is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board acting as Lead Agency in environmental review , has , on June 7 , 1994 , made a negative determination of significance ; and WHEREAS , Stephen Lucente has completed construction of Sanctuary Drive roadway, storm drainage ditches and culverts , water improvements and sewer improvements ; and WHEREAS , the Town Highway Superintendent has inspected the road and determined that the roadway has been constructed to Town specifications ; and WHEREAS , the Town Engineer has inspected the water and sewer improvements , and received record drawings and certifications from the developers Engineer that the improvements have been constructed to the Town of Ithaca specifications ; now therefore be it RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca does hereby accept approximately 735 lineal feet of road shown as Sanctuary Drive on the aforementioned subdivision plat as Town Highway; and be it further TB Res . No. 249 - 12/ 11 /95 Page 2 . RESOLVED , the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca accepts approximately 860 lineal feet of 8" water main and appurtances as public water main , and approximately 580 lineal feet of 8" PVC sewer main and appurtances as public sewer, the details of which are shown on the subdivision plan and plans for water and sewer improvements upon receipt of the deeds and final signed easements to the satisfaction of the Attorney for the Town . MOVED : Councilwoman Valentino SECONDED : Councilman Niklas Supervisor Whitcomb , aye ; Councilwoman Valentino , aye ; Councilman Niklas , aye ; Councilman Klein , aye ; Councilwoman Grigorov , aye ; Councilwoman Harrison , aye . Motion carried unanimously . DATED : December 11 , 1996 Joan Lent Noteboom , Town Clerk OFIn FINAL F a TOWN OF ITHACA ,p� �04`� 126 EAST SENECA STREET , ITHACA , N . Y . 14850 TOWN CLERK 273-1721 HIGHWAY 273-1656 PARKS 273-8035 ENGINEERING 273-1747 PLANNING 273-1747 ZONING 273-1783 FAX (607) 273-1704 Town Board Meeting December 11 , 1995 5 : 30 p . m . AGENDA 1 . Call to Order. 2 . Pledge of Allegiance . 3 . Reports of Town Officials . a . Town Supervisor b . Director of Engineering c . Town Highway Superintendent Cl . Director of Planning e . Director of Building and Zoning f. Town Clerk/Director of Administrative Services g . Assistant Budget Officer 4 . Report of Town Committees . 5 . Report of Tompkins County Board of Representatives . 6 . Review of Correspondence : a. James M . Niefer - New Town Hall b . David Stotz - New Town Hall c . Ecovillage Cohousing Cooperative d . Denis P . Meadows = NY State Archives and Records Administration 7 . 5 : 45 p. m . = Presentation : David Cahill , M &T Bank. 8 . 6 : 00 p. m . = PERSONS TO BE HEARD . 9 . 6: 15 p . m. = PUBLIC HEARING to consider a , " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE DISTRICT ( LIMITED MIXED USE) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 7" . . TB Agenda - 12/ 11 /95 Page 2 . 10 . Consider enactment of a , " LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE A SPECIAL LAND USE DISTRICT (LIMITED MIXED USE) FOR THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRECINCT 7" . 11 . Consider agreement with Cornell University regarding Federal and State projects in proposed SLUD #9 . 12 . 7: 00 p. m. - PUBLIC HEARING to consider contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights for fire protection services . 13 . Consider SEQR related to the contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights for fire protection services . 14 . Consider approval and authorization to enter into a contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights for fire protection services . 15 . Consent Items : Consider resolutions approving and/or authorizing the following : a . Town Board Meeting Minutes = 11 /9/95 . b . Town of Ithaca Warrants . c. Bolton Point Warrants . d . Monthly Financial Report - 11 /95 . e . Budget Amendments . f. Water Billing Refund . g . Floating Holiday for 1996 . h . Attendance Association of Towns Training School & Annual Meeting . I . Town Payment of Health Insurance Premium - December 1995 . j . Security and Safety Procedures . k . Justice Clerk Employment Status . I . Association of Towns , CHIPS Funding Support . m . Holiday Tree Pick- up Date , 16 . Consider resolution of appreciation to Councilman Karl Niklas . 17 . Consider changes in Real Property Tax Law affecting senior citizens . 18 . Consider expenditure of funds for new Town Hall . 19 . Consider approval of Town Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy. TB Agenda - 12/ 11 /95 Page 3 . 20 . Consider paving of Chase Lane as requested by Chase Farm development . 21 . Consider resolution regarding the Engineering Technician position . 22 . Consider resolution of support for possible grant funding through the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 , (ISTEA) 23 . Consider request by Chase Farm Development to establish a lighting district . 24 . Consider acceptance of Sanctuary Drive roadway and public utilities . 25 . Consider acceptance of Slaterville Road sanitary sewer extension . 26 . Consider approval of Memorandum of Understanding with NYSDEC to allow maintenance of streams . 27. Consider ADJOURNMENT. ADDITIONAL 1 , REMOVED FROM CONSIDERATION . Consider approval for Supervisor Elect to attend 1996 Training School for Newly Elected Supervisors , 2 . Consider approval of 1995 Youth Services Agreement with Tompkins County . 3 . Consider sick leave "donation " request . 4 . Consider authorization for payment of additional hours worked by Archaeological Research Assistant , and approval of budget amendment related to same . 5 . Consider procedure for interviews related to Town Board 1996 appointments . Item 3a SUPERVISOR ' S REPORT December 11 , 199 FINANCIAL Yes , there is life after the annual budget process , but it does not slow down ! In the flurry of activity at the November Board meeting , I neglected to express adequate appreciation to the staff for a job well done . Each of the department heads deserves appreciation for an attitude of cooperation and teamwork . Special thanks to Sally Alario for her analysis of fund balances , her recommendations , and for her work on compiling and entering reams and reams of data . I ' m also grateful to Joan Noteboom for assisting me in developing a more systematic approach to budgeting and to Dan for sorting out the water and sewer budget and consumption estimates . The staff has assumed much more responsibility in the annual budget preparation . It is my hope that we have de- mystified the process and that we have a system in place that will serve the town well , no matter who is in office . INTERNIUNICIPAL Much time was spent during the past month in intermunicipal meetings . In fact, intermunicipal cooperation has assumed such mammoth proportions that it consumes a large share of the supervisor' s time . In addition to the regular Bolton Point meeting , the Sewer Sub -committee meeting , the MPO Policy Committee meeting and the Local Government Leaders meeting , I also met with Mayor- elect Cohen , Fire Chief Wilbur , and Assistant Chief Dorman , and several times with Supervisor- elect Valentino . In my 1995 annual report , I will list the status of all our intermunicipal initiatives and ongoing projects that the Supervisor and Board needs to continue to be aware of . NEW TOWN HALL A meeting and several conversations with Doug Look have brought us closer to producing a building plan with a project cost of less than $ 2 million . The results will be presented at the 12/ 11 Town Board meeting . In addition , several other building owners have approached us , wondering if we might be interested in their properties . In addition , Mr. Stotz , following up on his comments at the 11 /20/95 information meeting , has sent a letter containing several thought provoking ideas and comments . Please take time to review prior to the meeting , Agenda # 314bo Town Engineer ' s Report for 12 / 11 / 95 Town Board Meetincr DEVELOPMENT REVIEW The Engineering Staff has been reviewing compliance on the following projects that have received Planning Board approval and are under construction : Saponi Meadows Subdivision , Seven Mile Drive No change in status from August report . Sanctuary Woods Subdivision , Sapsucker Woods Road Road has been completed and final acceptance is pending the developer ' s engineer ' s certification of the improvements . EARTH FILL PERMITS An earth fill permit for a site on Five Mile Drive with the potential source of fill being the Rte . 96 Project has been I ssued . Construction of the stabilized entrance has been initiated . The Cornell University earth fill permit application for work in precinct 7 has been issued . Construction activity planned for spring 1996 . WATER PROJECTS The Town Engineering staff is continuing to work with the Bolton Point staff to implement the master metering program for connections to the water transmission main . The Town Engineering staff is making final revisions to the plans and contract documents for all of the master metering locations within the Bolton Point system , and will assist the Bolton Point staff in construction administration . The SCLIWC is considering the commission approval of the project at the December 7 meeting and will be forwarding the project to the municipal boards for approval . The Town Engineer is working with the Bolton Point staff to develop the design for a new transmission water storage tank at Burdick Hill Road . This additional tank is an element of the SCLIWC capital plan and will provide needed additional storage which will allow for energy savings due to off peak pumping , sufficient reserve storage , and maintenance on the existing steel tank . The cost of the improvement will be covered by existing fund balance and will not require borrowing . Town Engineers Report 8 / 7 / 95 2 SEWER The snow storm on November 15 - 16 resulted in power interruptions and voltage drops in the northeast portion of the Town and caused failures of several pump stations in the Forest Home area . Two of the large pump stations operate on 3 - Phase power and the reduced voltage on leg of the 3 - phase caused several coils in the motor starters to burn out . The controls are over 20 years old and replacement parts are not readily available which resulted in several days of semi - automatic operation ( pumps had to be manually started twice a day ) . No residents were adversely affected , but an evaluation of the controls is underway to determine if an upgrade of the controls which would provide additional protection in the case of power outages is appropriate . One of the pumps in each station is currently operating automatically ( parts were scavenged from second pump ) and replacement parts have been located and ordered to bring the stations back to normal capability . The Town and City staff worked cooperatively to handle this emergency . The Town Engineer is working with the Finger Lakes State Parks engineering staff to develop a sewer plan to serve the Buttermilk Falls State park . This may be installed as part of the improvements to the park facilities planned for possible construction in 1996 . PEREGRINE HOLLOW SEWER DISTRICT The town of Dryden request to purchase IAWWTP capacity for the extension of service to the Snyder Hill sewer district is under consideration by the SJS . Construction of sewer improvements by the developer is substantially complete . Authorization to use the sewer has not -been granted pending completion of the sewer use agreement with the Town of Dryden . The agreement is near signing . f Town Engineers Report 8 / 7 / 95 3 HIGHWAY AND PARKS The Forest Home bridge project has not shown significant progress since last month . John Lampman , the ' County Project Manager , has been told by NYSDOT that the ISTEA funding is secure for the project , and he is attempting to have this confirmed in writing . The design engineer has evaluated an alternative to install new abutments on the face of the existing abutments eliminating the need to remove existing abutments . This alternate has resulted in a reduction of the estimated project cost to $ 470 , 000 from the original estimate of $ 650 , 000 . The final design with this alternate is expected from the consultant by the end of December . FACILITIES The Town Engineer has continued to work with the Town Clerk and HOLT architects on the revised schematic design which has reduced the building to a 2 story design with basement , and reduced the construction cost estimate to approximately $ 1 , 200 , 000 . This will be presented to the Town Board for approval . C : \MEM0S\ERPT9511 . REP Agenda Item # 3c PARK AND OPEN SPACE MANAGER ' S REPORT , NOVEMBER 1995 TOWN OF ITHACA TOWN BOARD MEETING , DECEMBER 11 , 1995 1 . Parks staff contributed 88 hours towards leaf pick up , including several early runs with the leaf vacuums . The snow storm which occurred during our second week of pick up forced us to stop , so it was fortunate we got an earlier start then was advertized . 2 . Park and trail leaf removals , totalling 16 hours , were interrupted by the snow storm as well . However , we were able to clean up the worst spots . The remaining areas will be finished during our normal spring clean - up schedule . 3 . Snow removal for trails and sidewalks required 70 hours during an unusually snowy November . Parks also helped with Highway snow removal during regular and overtime hours an additional 40 . 5 hours . 4 . Renovation work on our new barn annex took 20 hours to install several windows . 5 , various routine maintenance tasks , totalling 309 hours , occupied the rest of our time . Items includes : setting up our new one - ton truck with cinder spreader , sideboards , and toolbox ; installing our cab and snowblower on John Deere 935 tractor ; storm damage clean up ; finished mowing water line at Elm Street tank ; and polling place set - ups . December Parks Protects 1 . Snow removal as needed . 2 . Finish leaf vacuum during thaw periods . 3 . Continue new barn annex renovations . 4 . Year - end reports and purchases . 5 . Continue cleaning up storm damaged trees . ghk Agenda Item # 3c Highwav Superintendent ' s Monthly Report , November 1995 Town of Ithaca Town Board Meeting , December 11 , 1995 10 During November the Highway staff worked 364 hours completing miscellaneous road work throughout the Town . This includes hauling materials , ditching , and various requests from residents . 2 . The semi - annual leaf collection was started in November . Despite a major snow storm , the crews worked 498 . 75 hours removing leaves . The collection was halted because of the snow . The total hours include some clean up work created during the November storm . 3 . Snow removal operations took 671 hours , with 210 . 5 of those hours as over time . officially the storm dumped 11 inches , but because it was a heavy snow , many trees , etc , where brought down . Some of the clean up of trees is included in these hours . In November , we used 2 '83 tons of salt . The West Hill Fire Station and South Hill Fire Station were plowed six times each and salted eight times each . 4 . Eighty - eight hours were spent on vehicle maintenance . 5 , Twenty - six hours were spent on water maintenance and ten hours were spent on sewer maintenance , three of which were over time . December Projects 1 . Snow removal , as necessary . 2 . Possible pick up of brush and leaves , as time permits . 3 . Brush removal town wide . 4 . Repair and store equipment for winter . ghk Agenda Item #3d Planning Director' s Report for December 11 , 1995 Town Board Meeting DEVELOPMENT REVIEW Planning staff has been working on the following projects under Planning Board review jurisdiction: South Hill Complex Subdivision, Danby Road Preliminary Subdivision Approval was granted at the November 7, 1995 Planning Board meeting for the proposed subdivision of + / - 3.68 acres into four lots. Site Plan Approval had previously been granted for a retail / office development to consist of approximately 37,500 + / - square feet. The proposed subdivision is to enable financing to be obtained by the applicant. Radio Transmission Tower, Bostwick Road The Planning Board issued a positive recommendation to the Zoning Board of Appeals at the November 7, 1995 meeting with respect to a request for Special Permission to allow the proposed siting of an 8 foot diameter ground-level satellite dish receiver and a radio transmission tower consisting of a 50 foot + /- wooden pole and 36 inch transmission antenna proposed to be located approximately 400 feet south of Bostwick Road in an AG Agricultural District. Ithacare Center Senior Living Community, Danby Road The Ithacare FEIS has been completed and submitted to the Planning Board for consideration of acceptance. Planning staff coordinated the preparation of the FEIS . Responses to the Town Board member comments on the DEIS are included in the FEIS. The Planning Board had a preliminary discussion regarding the FEIS at their November 21 , 1995 meeting, and will consider acceptance of the FEIS at the December 5, 1995 meeting. Once accepted, the Board has up to 30 days to adopt a findings statement. Lakeside Nursing Home, Trumansburg Road A Sketch Plan for proposed modifications at Lakeside Nursing Home was discussed at the November 21 , 1995 Planning Board meeting. Modifications would consist of interior renovations, a new building entrance court and pedestrian facilities, courtyards and landscaping, and 50 additional parking spaces . John Babcock Subdivision, Culver Road A Sketch Plan for the proposed subdivision of 101 +/- acres into three lots is scheduled for discussion at the December 5, 1995 Planning Board meeting. The purpose of the subdivision is for the donation of land comprising a significant portion of the Coy Glen Critical Environmental Area (CEA) to Cornell Plantations for permanent preservation as an addition to the Coy Glen Natural Area. ZONING BOARD SEOR REVIEWS SEQR reviews were done in conjunction with the following actions before the Zoning Board of Appeals : Anthony Lucatelli, 1456 Trumansburg Road - Use variance to construct a restaurant and convenience store in an AG Agricultural District Because of the nature of the proposal and character of the area, staff has significant concerns regarding this use variance, and will be issuing a recommendation to the ZBA not to approve the variance. The proposal was discussed with the Planning Board and Conservation Board, and both Boards also have strong concerns. Evan Monkemeyer, 1060 Danby Road - Special approval to add a fourth dwelling unit in a non-conforming building (residential use in a commercial zone) . The applicant previously received approval from the ZBA for a three-unit residence with an owner-occupied office. The office was actually built and occupied as a fourth apartment. CURRENT PLANNING DEPARTMENT PROTECTS Planning Department staff is working on the following projects: Conservation District: A special joint meeting of the Codes and Ordinances Committee and Planning Committee will be held on December 6, 1995 to discuss the proposed Six Mile Creek Conservation District. An update can be provided at the December 11th Town Board meeting. Analysis of MR , Commercial Industrial and Special Land Use Districts : The Codes and Ordinances Committee has completed an analysis of the above-referenced zoning districts on parcels where no development has occurred, and has prepared draft local laws for selected rezonings. Affected landowners have been notified, and public hearings for recommendations on the rezonings will be held by the Planning Board at the December and January meetings . Parks , Recreation and Ooen Space Plan Update : Work is still progressing on 2 assembling a completed draft Plan so that review by the appropriate boards and committees can be initiated. Cornell GEIS / SLUD: Cornell and Town representatives met to resolve final details of the SLUR revisions and an Agreement regarding State and Federal facilities . The public hearing is scheduled for December 11 , 1995 . Defining Buildable Land: Comments have been received from boards and committees on the draft amendment to the Subdivision Regulations to clarify the procedure for determining the location and number of dwelling units or lots in conventional and clustered subdivisions . The proposal was discussed with the Planning Board at their December 5, 1995 meeting. The Attorney for the Town has been asked to research legal issues relating to whether these provisions can apply to both conventional and cluster subdivisions, and whether a zoning amendment may be necessary to address conventional subdivisions. Ithaca-Tompkins County Transportation Council (ITCTC): The consultant has completed the draft County Trail / Corridor Study. The ITCTC Planning Committee will be meeting on December 12, 1995 to discuss the draft study and make a recommendation to the Policy Committee. The ITCTC is also in the process of considering Transportation Enhancement (ISTEA) grant application endorsements from a number of municipalities (see below for description of Town of Ithaca grant applications) . Comvrehensive Zoning Rem sions : The Codes and Ordinances Committee has begun a review of the current Zoning Ordinance to determine where revisions may be appropriate. This will be a long term project and will include recommendations for updates, clarifications, reorganization, consistency, etc. The Codes and Ordinances Committee and Planning Committee may want to discuss how this work should proceed into 1996 . ISTEA Grant Applications: Staff is working on two possible grant applications for ISTEA enhancement funds for bicycle / pedestrian trails . The Town is cooperating with the City on a combined proposal for a trail linking Buttermilk Falls State Park and the future Black Diamond Trail with the South Hill Recreationway. City and Town staff met with representatives from Emerson Power to discuss the possibility of using the existing railroad grade through their property. A number of problems and issues have been identified which may require more time to address. The City is in the process of preparing the grant application for this proposal, but a decision will have to be made soon as to whether this project proposal will be able to proceed in the current grant cycle . Staff is also preparing a grant application for the proposed William and Hannah Pew Trail in the Eastern Heights / Snyder Hill area of the town, which would link the Eastern Heights neighborhood with the southern terminus of the East Ithaca Recreationway ( at the Pine Tree Walkway) , and would link several of the Town' s 3 parks in this area. Several landowners have already expressed interest in providing easements for the proposed trail. Project may also include Maple Avenue pathway extension to link the two separate segments of the existing East Ithaca Recreationway. The Town Board will be asked to approve a resolution of support to pursue one or both of the above grant applications at the December 11th meeting. Materials describing the William and Hannah Pew Trail are included in Board packets. Inlet Parcels: As a follow-up to the Town and City interest in acquiring for park purposes the two parcels in Inlet Valley that were being offered at auction by the County, the City hired a consultant to prepare a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment. A copy of a cover letter from Thys Van Cort, City Planning Director, regarding the Environmental Assessment is attached to this report, indicating that it is basically a "clean" report. Planning and Engineering will review the Environmental Assessment and provide a recommendation to the Town Board. The City is being asked to draft a Memorandum of Understanding outlining procedures for acquiring the parcels and timing for transferring ownership to the City. County Waterfront Study: Correspondence was received from the County Planning Department indicating that a N. Y.S. Council on the Arts grant was approved for the waterfront study (a copy of that letter is attached to this report). The County will proceed with this project starting in December and continuing into 1996, and has requested that the local funds ($5,000) that had been committed by the Town Board be sent to the County. Staff is preparing a letter of agreement between the Town and County indicating that the purpose of the local share is for the waterfront project and that any portions that are not used for that purpose must be refunded to the Town. A meeting between the County, City, and Town is scheduled for December 11th to discuss initiation of the project. Filename: Istaff\ion \ tpre1295.mem 4 OPY Tompkinscounty 7t"T 1995] DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING 121 East Court Street MNN143G. 7() Ithaca, New York 14850 James W. Hanson. Jr. Telephone (607) 274-5560 Commissioner of Planning FAX (607) 274,5578 November S . 1995 Mr. Jonathan Kanter, Town Planner Town of Ithaca 126 E . Seneca Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Jon : At its November 8th meeting, the Planning, Community Development and Education Committee of the County Board of Representatives approved the acceptance of the New York State Council on the Arts grant for the Waterfront Project. An account has also been established for the project. The Town should sent its matching funds for the Waterfront Project directly to the County Planning Department and to the attention of Darielle Drake. Please reference the Waterfront Project and account number A8020 . 3989 . Thank you for participating in the Waterfront Project. Sincerely , 1 � James W . Hanson Commissioner of Planning �s Recycled paper NOV-22-1995 08038 TOMPKINS PLRNNING/ ITCTC 607 274 5578 P . 01 toAzool r . : V9'i . wL;too'I a L � COPY RESOLL71ON NO . ACCEPTANCE OF NEW YORK STATE COLNCIL ON THE ARTS GRAIN7 FOR LVTEIMMMCIPAL WATERFRONT PROJECT WHEREAS , Totzmldns County applied For a S 1 ?rO gmnt from the New York State Cour61 on the Arcs (.NYSCA) for funds for the = pledon of a Waterfront Ptoj= for the southern end of Cayuga Lake, and ti'VVMREAS, N. SCA has approved a �t of 58,400 and forwarded a grant a�eemcn: :o the County for agpavval, now therefore be it RESOLVED, up m rr,===dadon of the Pbxming, Cammuaity Dt"velopment and FIJ77ca-f4m Commiam that the acceeprance of the INYSCA grant be approved, and RESOLVED, thaz the County efr?yin; s=at , or his designM has the authority to sign all dccun== relating to the grant accepmwe. SEQR TYPE 11- 15 �4 r rk we Pcmtat^ brand fax transmittal memo 76711 # cf ► ! New eMEM ca t co. J owe Phone Fax , TOTAL P . 01 NC, rJ NP Fj NOV 2 819 L. TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING. ZQNING. ENGINEERING CITY OF . ITHACA 106 EAST GREEN STREET ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 DEPARTMENT OF TELEPHONE 607/ 274-6550 PLANNING 3 DEVELOPMENT FAX: 607/ 274-6558 607/ 272-7348 H. MATTHYS VAN CORT, DIRECTOR HERMAN SiEVERDING, AICP, DEPUTY DIRECTOR November 27 , 1995 Jonathan Kanter Town Planner Town of Ithaca 126 E. Seneca St. Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear John. This is to follow up our telephone conversation of November 16 regarding the Gaynor Associates phase 1 environmental assessment for 615 Five Mile Drive. You will find attached for your consideration a copy of the report After reading the report, I discussed it with Marjory Rinaldo-Lee, the Vice President of Gaynor Associates and the primary author of the report. It is Ms. Rinaldo- Lee ' s opinion that this is essentially a clean report. She does not recommend any follow- up with the possible exception of physical investigation of the existence of an unfilled basement on the site. The primary reason for looking for this basement would be to fill it if it did exist since it might constitute a physical hazard if it ever collapsed With respect to the possibility of any leakage from a petroleum storage tank, she says that there was no indication on the site of its existence, and because of the proposed use of the area, very little risk would be entailed even if it were later determined that there was a buried tank remaining near the former site of the abandoned slaughterhouse. If, however, the Town does wish to proceed further with engineering studies of the site , Ms. Rinaldo-Lee said that the site could be searched for underground storage tanks with a magnetometer. This would cost approximately $2,500.00 . A further possible step, 0 although she does not feel it is warranted, is a search of the site for underground contaation usi min ng a geoprobe. This step would cost roughly an additional $3 ,500. 00. Primed on Recycled Paper 'An Equal Opportunity Employer with an Atfinnau" Acgon Program' Jonathan Kanter November 27, 1995 Page 2 As I said above, Ms. Rinaldo-Lee recommends neither the magnetometer nor hydroprobe studies. She feels that if the buyer wants to be particularly cautious they could see whether there is an unfilled abandoned basement on the site. Please let me know how you wish to proceed with regard to the acquisition of the title to this property. Sincerely, H. Matthys Van Cort Director of Planning and Development HMVC/kdr Enc. xc: John Barney, Esq. , Town Attorney (w/ enc.) Dan Walker, Town Engineer (w/ enc.) John Whitcomb Ben Nichols Bill Gray (w/ enc.) Chuck Guttman - I Q:\Plan=g\StaMlhysVxuas\Kanter m TOWN OF ITHACA. REPORT OF BUILDING PERMITS ISSUED FOR THE MONTH OF NUMEMBER 1995 YEAR TO DATE TYPE OF PERMIT �Tq�rj # OF PERyLITS AMOUNT 1 # A.MIOUNT SINGLE FAMILY ATTACHED 199510 0 0 0 RESIDENCES 1994 , 0 0 0 0 SINGLE FAING Y DETACHED 1995 1 100,000 18 29143.833 RESIDENCES 199411 167,000 18 22 32�� 199510 0 3 469.000 nXrO F.A.MIL.Y RESIDENCES 1994 , n 0 6 9997000 199510 0 14 304.495 RENOVATIONS 1994 I0 0 19 3379121 1995 0 0 5 67.364 CONVERSIONS OF USE 1 199411 1349000 6 196.850 1995 ' 113,000 12 277,150 ADDITIONS TO FOOTPRINT 1994 1 1 29.000 21 480.090 -- — lgg5 0 n 0 0 MULTIPLE RESIDENCES � 1)94 0 0 0 0 1 Bridges 315.01111 1 Hospital renovate outpatient office area 1905 2 334.7W 15 977.414 BL SNFSS `1994 1 575,000 15 1.324.-119 1995 0 0I 1) 0 AGRICULTURAL, 1994 . 0 0 1 25.0W 1995 0 0 0 0 INDUSTRIAL, 1994 0 0 0 0 1995 1 Print shop handicap ramp 267482 9 1,312,97.8 EDUCATIONAL 1994 0 0 9 3,8091510 MISCELLANEOUS 1 Install bow window 200 1 Attached garage 19220 1 Convert garage to art studio 7,500 1 Repair fire damage 15,000 1 Replacing electric heaters with gas 1201500 1995 5 162,420 59 516,344 CONSTRUCTION 1994 3 24.530 35 262.941 TOTAL NUMBER OF 1995 11 7369602 134 610989528 PERMITS ISSUED 1994 7 929.530 130 9.667,431 TOTAL FEES 1995 11 11475 134 13.015 RECEIVED 199417 1,410 130 16,895 Date Prepared: December 4, 1995 Dani L. Holford Building/Zoning Department Secretary - 2 — TOTAL CERTIFICATES OF OCCUPANCY ISSUED THIS MONTH — 8 1. 1 Perry Lane — new single — family dwelling. 2. 163 Whitetail Drive — new single — family dwelling. 3. 152 Whitetail Drive — new single —family dwelling and outside wood deck 4. 114 Kay Street — 11' x L' bathroom addition. � . 100 Christopher Circle — install bow window. 60 2 Whitetail Drive — new single —family dwelling. 7. 100 Christopher Circle — emsting two— family dwelling. 8. Suite 190 East Hill Plaza (CU) — renovated office space. TOTAL CERTIFICATES OF OCCUPANCY YEAR TO DATE, 1995 — 143 TOTAL CERTIFICATES OF OCCUPANCY YEAR TO DATE 1994 — 152 COMPLAINTS INVESTIGATED THIS MONTH — 4 11 '112 Sapsucker Woods Road — property maintenance — abated. 2. 404 Winston Court, #2 — building code — abated. 3. Danbv Road, Ithaca College Science Building — building code — pending. 4. 623 Elmira Road — building code — pending. From October 1995 1. 141 Kendall Avenue — building — no violation found. 2. 310 St. Catherine Circle — property maintenance — pending. 3. 139 Ridgecrest Road — zoning — pending. From September 1995: 1. 140 Ridgecrest Road — building code — pending. From June 1995 : 1. 1120 East Shore Drive — building code — pending. From lfav 1995 : 1. 1152 Danbv Road — zoning and building code — pending legal action. From April 1995 : 1. 1?8 Salem Drive — illegal basement apartment — pending. From January 1995: 1. 1022 Danby Road, #7C — occupancy — pending legal action. From November 1994: 1. Various Cayuga Vista properties — occupancy — pending legal action. From Lurch 1994: 1. 132 Forest Home Drive - building code — pending. From February 1993: 1. 155 Poole Road — ZBA conditions violated — pending. From June 1990: 1 . Various Sapsucker Woods properties — occupancy — pending. TOTAL COMPLAINTS INVESTIGATED YEAR TO DATE, 1995 — 73 TOTAL COMPLAINTS INVESTIGATED YEAR TO DATE 1994 — 75 I - 3 — TOTAL FIELD VISITS THIS MONTH — 78 Uniform Building Code — 45 Local Law and Zoning Inspections — 14 Fire Safety — 8 (4 schools, I group home, 2 businesses, I public assembly) Fire Safety Reinspections — 5 (2 schools, 3 businesses) Fire Occurrences — 4 ( 1 dormitory [electrical], 1 house [electrical], 2 houses [fireplace/chimneys]) Fire Occurrence Reinspections — 1 TOTAL FIELD VISITS YEAR TO DATE, 1995 — 897 TOTAL FIELD VISITS YEAR TO DATE 1994 — 1016 TOTAL SIGN PERMITS THIS MONTH — 4 ( Big Al's Quikstop Hilltop) TOTAL SIGN PERMITS YEAR TO DATE, 1995 — 13 TOTAL SIGN PERMITS YEAR TO DATE, 1994 — 11 ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS 1 MEETING — 4 NEW CASES — AGENDA ATTACHED TOWN OF ITHACA ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS WEDNESDAY , NOVEMBER 8 , 1995 7 : 00 P . H . By direction of the Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Public Hearings will be held by the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Ithaca on Wednesday , November 8 , 1995 , in Town Hall , 126 East Seneca Street , ( FIRST Floor , REAR Entrance , WEST Side ) , Ithaca , N . Y . , COHIMNCING AT 7 : 00 P . M . , on the following matters : APPEAL of the Bible Broadcasting Network and the Tabernacle Baptist Church , Appellant , Everett A . Robinson , Agent , Richard D . Baker , Landowner , requesting a Special Approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals , under Article XI , Section 51A of the Zoning Ordinance , to site man 8 ' diameter ground level satellite dish receiver and a radio transmission tower consisting v of a 60 ' + wooden pole and 36 " transmission antenna proposed to be located at 383 Bostwick Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 32 - 2 - 4 . 2 , Agriculture District . APPEAL of Lynne and Jeffrey Worsfold , Appellant , requesting a variance from Article XIII , Section 65 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance , to be permitted to maintain a privacy G fence with a varying height , up to 9 ' 3 " ( 6 ' maximum height allowed ) , at 320 Forest Home (::r Drive , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 66 - 3 - 8 , Residence District R- 15 . APPEAL of Davide Sayada , Appellant , Lucia and Douglas Armstrong , Landowners , request authorization from the Zoning Board of Appeals under Article XII , Section 54 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance , to be permitted to add a second dwelling unit in the basement of an /G existing one - story , non- conforming single - family residence and to construct a new second (2- story on said home at 975 Taughannock Boulevard , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No , 21 - 2 - 32 , Residence District R- 15 . The building and lot do not conform to the zoning requirements fo � lot width or side yard building setbacks . APPEAL of Savino Ferrara , Jr . , Appellant , requesting the modification of a previously approved variance , from the requirements of Article V , Section 21 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance , to be permitted to maintain a single - family residence having an east side A property line building setback of 20 ' + ( 40 ' setback required ) at 145 East King Road , Town Cof Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 44 - 2 - 4 , Residence District R- 30 . The previous approval allowed for Can east side building setback of 24 ' and is to be modified with the proposed construction of a new garage . Said Zoning Board of Appeals will at said time , 7 : 00 p . m . , and said place , hear all persons in support of such matters or objections thereto . Persons may appear by agent or in person . Individuals with visual or hearing impairments or other special needs , as appropriate , will be provided with assistance , as necessary , upon request . Persons desiring assistance must make such a request not less than 48 hours prior to the time of the public hearing . Andrew S . Frost Building Inspector/ Zoning Enforcement Officer 273 - 1783 Dated : October 31 , 1995 Publish : November 3 , 1995 TORT of ITSACA 146 EAST SENECA STREET Agenda Item No . 3f. n NACA, NEW YORK 14850 Town Clerk/Director Administrative Services Monthly Report - December 1995 Town Clerk: A preliminary report on the dog enumeration conducted by the SPCA has been received . Thus far, the SPCA found 767 dogs which were unlicensed in the Town . This is less than what was predicted (2 , 600) , the SPCA is still working on contacting those residents who were not home during the enumeration , but whose residences indicated there was a dog . Materials were left and follow- up phone calls and visits are being made . Through 12/5195 , 121 new dog licenses have been issued as a result of the enumeration , 24 have been renewed . The anticipated additional revenues to the Town as a result of those licensed after the enumeration are : To Date Received : 121 New Licenses X $6 . 00 Local Fee = $ 726 . 00 24 Outstanding Renewals X $6 . 00 = $ 144 . 00 $ 870 . 00 To Be Received : 726 Dogs Enumerated - 121 New Licenses = 605 To Be Licensed . 605 Licenses X $6 . 00 Local Fee = $3 , 630 . 00 Deputy Town Clerks , Betty Poole and Mary Saxton have done an outstanding job in keeping up with all the additional licensing work . They have processed and accounted for all licenses the day they were received , and have given excellent service to the Town residents and the SPCA. Thank you both , for a job very well done ! ! On November 28 , 1 attended the second mandated seminar for the grant received from the Hudson Valley Community College for the Telecommunications Initiative Project . The grant provided funding of $ 300 . 00 for an upgrade of the memory on the computer, and the Internet program . The program has been loaded on the computer and will be running as soon as the new modem is installed . The Telecommunications Initiative Project allow s us to "surf the net" without cost to the Town , except for the phone line , for 100 hours each month until June 1996 . Some of the State agencies we will be able to communicate with include the State Archives , State Comptroller , State and local officials , and the agencies associated with the GEIS . i Two box advertisements were placed in the Ithaca Journal requesting letters of interest for appointments to various boards and committees . Several responses have been received , and they will be distributed to the Town Board with the mail out packet for the year end meeting . Records Management: On November 25 , Mary Saxton , Deputy Clerk and I visited the Town of Salina to see a demonstration of their indexing program . They also received a SARA grant for indexing which they have completed . The Town of Salina utilizes the same Windows program we will be using . Mary and I were very excited about what we saw, and learned many "tips" which will help us with our program . Suzanne Etherington , Certified Archivist visited on December 1 , to continue training on indexing through the Windows program . We are "fine tuning" the indexing terms and list to be able to work on the minutes and documents which are presently on the computers . HAPPY HOLIDAYS ! ! ! Respectfully submitted , Joan Lent Noteboom Town Clerk Director of Administrative Services December 6 , 1995 Agenda 3g. Assistant Budget Officer Report With the adoption of the 1996 budget at our November Town Board meeting , staff is getting ready for the year end crunch . We have already started the review process . We are also keeping a close eye on budget balances for 1995 . As year end get closer this becomes even more important . I briefly spent time with the Human Resource Specialist going over his duties for year end and working with him to reconcile his accounts . Time was spent with the auditors as they finished up their audit of the justice accounts . A final report is expected shortly . The third quarter sales tax money received was $ 442 , 234 . 75 . This is down from last year at this time . Attached to this report is a comparison of sales tax revenues received . Other significant revenues received during the month include REPO interest $ 17 , 031 . 30 and justice fees $ 10 , 856 . 33 . Our utility auditors are still hard at work . They are currently dealing with NYNEX and in the next 4 - 5 weeks hope to get us a refund of over $ 30 , 000 . 001 The ADP Committee met briefly in November to discuss the status of our back up program and upgrading our computers . The meeting scheduled for December has been canceled . D O m � � cm � wc�nLv � a�oc�n m (� n D c m livi nin A A � w p OC mo m j MZW =HMZw =w Q z - C oo -i = oo - imo D a O j 1 � " ma �A j " � � ccoccccc (`(pp° � coccoc � coo � m m D A A A A A A A A A A 0 N N A 0 'A N O 0 0 O C N �4 0 M N M N 0 -06 � N W W M �4 0 �4 0 N A A v j A N V W W V OD w W o w W O w P 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Y b t W < ) O N j t f _ . . O u Y t ) 0 } f j E ) Y Y S O u Et j , 0 N O � 4 'O ? b 4 ) ? . .. .. . ... .. ': - ..._nit 1..::.. ..: .. U 1 Y u f i j ; . Agenda JAMES M . NIEFER 103 BRANDYWINE ROAD ITHACA, NEW YORK 14530 ( 607 ) 357- 1093 Ile I J `tl ee. 5 ��l r , 0 v z z Lt PL `L•J �! }� C-�-c r t C o eG t ��-j 74 Lo vr r f l - VL t LJ l � � I Agenda # 6 b David J. Stotz , 11/21/95 4 : 28 PM ,New Ithaca town hall 1 X - Sender : djs2 @postoffice . mail . cornell . edu ( Unverified ) Mime -Version : 1 . 0 Date : Tue , 21 Nov 1995 16 : 28 : 55 -0500 To : ezhl@cornell . edu ( Ellen Z Harrison ) , jgw2 @cornell . edu (John G Whitcomb) From : " David J . Stotz" <djs2@cornell . edu > Subject: New Ithaca town hall Cc: sws8 @cornell . edu ( Stuart W Stein ) TO : John Whitcomb , Ithaca Town Supervisor Ellen Harrison , Ithaca Town Councilwoman Thanks again for having that very informative meeting concerning plans for the new town hall . Involving the public to the maximum extent possible is vital . While I and others may not exactly agree with your directions we all certainly appreciate the dedication and hard work that you and the other board members have exhibited in advocating this project . To reiterate , my specific concerns center on the following : 1 . Designing spaces to fit the exception rather than the rule ( specifically the board room ) is an inefficient investment . 2 . The construction of expensive , specially designed , records retention facilities for public records might best be approached through a cooperative effort of the town , city , and county . 3 . New technologies for record storage and access will shortly obviate the need for retaining large numbers of paper records . To design a facility without this eventuality in mind is somewhat wasteful . 4 . The licensing , permitting , and bill paying functions of the town , city , and county should be consolidated at one physical location while retaining the separate municipality responsibility and accountability required by State law . Such a consolidated operation would allow more staff sharing , take advantage of certain economies of scale , permit the sharing of equipment and systems , and provide the public with more convenient " one stop shopping" for their transactions with government . Provision of such an office might make the construction of spaces for such public transactions unnecessary in the new town hall . 5 . If we are really serious about issues of intermunicipal cooperation then we must look at ways to consolidate staffs , including those within engineering and planning . Aside from the obvious benefit of facilitating intermunicipal collaboration , such consolidations would also benefit from sharing technical support staff and expensive technical tools such as CAD and mapping systems . Should these consolidations take place (and I hope they do) it may mean that the town will have fewer staff to provide space for. Designing a facility without considering the possibility of technical staff consolidations could mean that , at some point , we may end up with a town hall with a lot of empty space . 6 . The County is looking for space . Why couldn 't the town consider a shared Printed for jgw2 @cornell . edu (John Whitcomb ) 1 David J . Stotz , 11/21/95 4 : 28 PM,New Ithaca town hall 2 facility with the County . For that matter, why couldn 't the city , county and town get together and consider one governmental administration center for the greater Ithaca metropolitan area . At the very least there could be some savings in pooling overhead costs such as facility maintenance , computer systems development and maintenance , official transportation , copying costs , procurement , and so forth . Additional benefits might accrue from support staff pooling , greater informal cross -municipality communication among administrators , greater ease in forming team approaches to the solution of problems affecting multiple municipalities , etc . Just because all of these governmental units worked out of one building does not necessarily mean they would loose their autonomy . Maybe working in such an environment would serve to convince all of us that many of the overlapping governmental responsibilities and services we currently have are wasteful and really unnecessary - that local autonomy does not necessarily translate into the need to maintain isolated islands of duplication . 7 . New work processes , organizational culture , commuting and air pollution concerns , family management issues , and technology are converging in forming new ways of working (see some of Frank Becker' s work for a detailed discussion of this topic . Frank works in Hum Ec in design and environmental studies ) ; shared work spaces , "just- in -time offices " , " hoteling " ; the use of public spaces such as municipal and school buildings , universities , libraries , restaurants ; the use telework centers , and telecommuting , Private industry is reducing its space requirements by carefully adopting some of these strategies . Even government is involved . For example , the Internal Revenue Service is actively pursuing the goals of reducing space requirements , increasing work efficiency through cross - unit collaboration and team sharing , accommodating employee family management concerns , and addressing air quality and commuting issues - all through the use of some very innovative ways of structuring new work environments . Why couldn 't we do the same ? For example , do staff that are primarily field located need to have their own dedicated private offices or could shared offices be made available on an as needed basis? Could some of our staff telecommute some of the time ? Could we have a desks available at different places in the town ( maybe some businesses or municipalities might even volunteer space - Cornell ? ? ) where field staff could " drop in " to do office work and be connected to computer information resources by modem ? What about cellular phone technology and cellular data access ? The point is that there are alternatives to the traditional one person - one office setup . These alternatives will not only be more available and viable as time goes on , but costs , and environmental and family issues (the increase in single parent families , for example ) will make it increasingly imperative that we use them . Designing a town hall without considering these options is somewhat remiss . 8 . As technology develops and becomes more widespread ( particularly computers and the internet) there will be increased opportunities for the public to transact business with government without leaving their homes . You only have to read about what is going on in the banking business to understand that transaction processing using a personal computer is not a distant pipe dream - it is a reality . Likewise , there will be ( and already hitcombl 2 Printed for jgw2 @cornell . edu ( John �V o • David J . Stotz, 11/21/95 4 : 28 PM,New Ithaca town hall 3 are ) many opportunities for the town to offer public transaction services from a distance . The public will eventually demand such services . If we are serious about car usage , air pollution , traffic congestion and public services costs , then we must ( particularly in this technologically savvy community) take the lead in exploring ways in which the town can address such concerns by actively and wisely embracing the technological means to enable us to do so . It is shortsighted to design a public facitity in the traditional way without first exploring how we might use technology to decrease the need for the public to visit that facility . It is my opinion that In this era of declining public resources it is essential that governments particularly refrain from committing to costly capital projects unless : 1 ) meeting the core government responsibilities of public health and safety make it . absolutely imperative to do so , or 2) there are REAL, QUANTIFYABLE dollar savings that clearly exceed the debt service costs (plus , in this case , the " opportunity cost" of the $ 1 . 5 mil reserve fund) of the project. As far as I can determine , this town hall project meets neither of these criteria . I would strongly suggest that the town put its building plans on hold until these suggestions (as well as others) are more fully explored . Now may be a particularly ideal time to suggest innovation . There is a new administration in Ithaca city hall that I am sure is open to exploring bold new ways of bringing government costs under control . The county administration under the leadership of Stuart Stein has , as far as I can determine , always been open to suggestions for change and improvement . All it takes is some intelligence , imagination , energy , and leadership on our part - qualities which I am sure our Town Board and Town residents do not lack. Thanks again for your time and attention . Please feel free to contact me if you wish further discussion . I ' d like to help if I can . Regards , Dave Stotz Printed for jgw2@cornell . edu ( John Whitcomb ) 3 s V 1 r E8 M NIE R . DEC - 195 BRANDYWINE I 17HACA. NY TOWH .OF ITHACq 11 2