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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPB Minutes 2012-02-21TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD 215 North Tioga Street Ithaca, New York 14850 Tuesday. February 21. 2012 AGENDA 7:00 P.M. Persons to be heard (no more than fiye minutes). 7:05 P.M. SEQR Determination: Northyiew Water Tank Replacement, 350 Coddington Road. 7;05 P.M. PUBLIC HEARING: Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approyal for the proposed replacement of the Northyiew Water Tank located on the west side of Coddington Road (350 Coddington Road) at the end of an access driye. Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2, Medium Density Residential Zone. The proposal inyolyes replacing the existing 2(M),(X)0 gallon steel water tank (34' in diameter and 30' in height) with a new 500,000 gallon glass lined water tank (48' in diameter and 39' in height) in the same location. The proposal also inyolyes grading, modifications to the existing fence and seyeral new stormwater elements. Ithaca College, Property Owner; Town of Ithaca, Applicant; Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer, Agent. 7:15 P.M. Discussion regarding upcoming projects at the Town of Ithaca Public Works Facility, Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer. 5. Approyal of Minutes: February 7,2012. 6. Other Business: • New York Planning Federation Conference April 15 - 17"', Saratoga Springs, NY 7. Adjournment Susan Ritter Director of Planning 273-1747 NOTE; IF ANY MEMBER OF THE PLANNING BOARD IS UNABLE TO ATTEND, PLEASE NOTIFY SANDY POLCE AT 273-1747. (A quorum of four (4) members is necessary to conduct Planning Board business.) TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS Tuesday. February 21.2012 By direction of the Chairperson of the Planning Board, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Public Hearing will be held by the Planning Board of the Town of Ithaca on Tuesday, February 21,2012, at 215 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, N.Y., at the following time and on the following matter: 7:05 P.M. Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approyal for the proposed replacement of the Northyiew Water Tank located on the west side of Coddington Road (350 Coddington Road) at the end of an access driye. Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2, Medium Density Residential Zone. The proposal inyoWes replacing the existing 200,000 gallon steel water tank (34' in diameter and 30' in height) with a new 500,000 gallon glass lined water tank (48' in diameter and 39' in height) in the same location. The proposal also inyolyes grading, modifications to the existing fence and seyeral new storm water elements. Ithaca College, Property Owner; Town of Ithaca, Applicant; Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer, Agent. Said Planning Board will at said times and said place hear all persons in support of such matters or objections thereto. Persons may appear by agent or in person. Indiyiduals with yisual impairments, hearing impairments or other special needs, will be proyided 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. Susan Ritter Director of Planning 273-1747 Dated: Monday, February 13,2012 Publish: Wednesday, February 15,2012 TOWN OF ITHACA AFFIDAVIT OF POSTING AND PUBLICATION I, Sandra Polce, being duly sworn, depose and say that I am a Senior Typist for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York; that the following Notice has been duly posted on the sign board of the Town of Ithaca and that said Notice has been duly published in the local newspaper. The Ithaca Journal. Notice of Public Hearings to be held bv the Town of Ithaca Planning Board in the Town of Ithaca Town Hall. 215 North Tioga Street. Ithaca. New York, on Tuesday. Februai'v 21. 2012 commencing at 7:00 P.M.. as per attached. Location of Sign Board used for Posting: Town Clerk Sign Board - 215 North Tioga Street. Date of Posting; February 13, 2012 Date of Publication: February 15, 2012 Sandra Polce, Senior Typist Town of Ithaca STATE OF NEW YORK) SS: COUNTY OF TOMPKINS) Sworn to and subscribed before me this 15^^ day of February 2012. Notary Public CARRIE WHITMORE Notary Public. Slate of New York No. 01VVH6052877 Tioga County Commission Expires December 26 Wednesday, February 15,2012 1 THE ITHACA JOURNAL TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS Tuesday, February 21,2012 By direction of the Chair person of the Planning Board, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Public Hear ing will be held by the PIs^ ning Board of the Town of Ithaca on Tuesday, Febru ary 21, 2012, at 215 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, N,Y.,. at the following time and o(i die follovwng matter 7;05 P.M. Consideration of Prelimina ry and Final Site Ran Ap proval for the proposed re placement of the Northview Water Tank located on the west side of Coddiogtori Road (350 Coddingloii Road) at the end of an ac cess drive. Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No, 4M-30.2, Medium Density Residerv tial Zone. The proposal In volves replacing the exist ing 200,000 gallon sled water tank (34' In diameter and 30' In height) with 4 new 500,0(X) gallon glas^ lined water tank (48' in di ameter and 39' in height) irj the same location. TTi^ proposal also involvea grading, modifications to the existing fence and sev eral new stormwater ele- ments, Ithaca College, Property Owner; Town of Ithaca, Applicant: Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer, Agent. Said Ranning Board will at said times and said place hear all persons in support of such matters or objec tions'thereto. Persons may appear by agent or In per son. Individuals with visual impairmenta, hearing .fmpairments or other spe cial needs, will be provided with assistance as neces- ^ry, upon request. Per sons desiring assistance fnust make such a request not less than 48 hours prior .fo the lime of the public hearing. Susan Ritter Director of Ranning 273-1747 Dated: Mt^iday, February 13, 2012 2/15/2012 DRAFT TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD MEETING Tuesday, February 21, 2012 215 N. Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 Board Members Present: Fred Wilcox (Chair), Linda Collins, George Conneman, Jon Bosak, Hol- lis Erb Staff Present: Susan Ritter, Director of Planning;Bruce Bates, Director of Code Enforcement; Creig Hebdon, Engineer; Deb DeAugistine, Deputy Town Clerk Call to Order Mr. Wilcox called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. and accepted the secretary’s posting of the pub- lic hearing notice. AGENDA ITEM Persons to be heard No one came forward to address the Board. AGENDA ITEM SEQR Determination: Northview Water Tank Replacement, 350 Coddington Road Creig Hebdon introduced the project, which involves replacing the 200,000-gallon Northview tank with a 500,000-gallon tank. The existing tank was placed in 1954; in the mid 1980s, Public Works did an underwater evaluation of the tank and found that it was already deteriorating. When the decision was made to either rehab the tank or replace it, they determined that the costs would be roughly equivalent. Looking at the system as a whole, they decided it would be best to go with a 500,000-gallon tank. Mr. Hebdon gave a brief overview of the system in that area. There are three distribution tanks in the loop: Northview, Ridgecrest, and Troy Road. The East Hill tank is a 3-million-gallon transmis- sion tank (the water comes directly from Bolton Point) that moves the water to the distribution tanks. When the water drops to a certain level in the Ridgecrest tank, it triggers the valves at the Troy Road pump station to pump water back to the tank. This starts a domino effect. Eventually, the water level in the Troy Road tank starts to drop, which kicks in the Coddington Road pump. That, in turn, runs until the Northview tank starts to drop, and when it reaches a certain level, the Pearsall control valve opens up to let water through from the East Hill tank. During normal opera- tion, the tanks drain down in the daytime and start calling for water in the evening. By 6 a.m. every morning, all the tanks are filled back up. A lot has happened on South Hill since the tank was in- stalled, and to stabilize the system and for better fire control, Public Works decided on replacing it with a half-million-gallon tank. The Town has a permanent easement from IC for the tank. Regarding fire fighting, Mr. Hebdon stated that most tanks are set up for three days of water with- out a fire. With a fire, everything kicks in all at once and the water is pumped in. The new tank will look like a blue farm silo. The new installation won’t get near the tree line, and all the existing lines will remain in place. The project is scheduled for May 2 to June 30. While the tank is out of service, PB Draft 02-21-2012 Page 2 of 5 water will be drawn from the Danby Road tank since it’s close in elevation, and the Pearsall tank will be throttled open more during this time. They hope to have the tank back on line by June 18. The old tank needs to be drained, cut up, and removed from the site. There’s a drain underground for draining the tank so it doesn’t go back into the water lines. The old tank will be hauled off site in two or three truckloads, and the new tank will be delivered on two or three large flatbeds. The maximum number of workers on site at any one time will be five or six, and there are plenty of park- ing spaces to accommodate them. To assemble the tank, the dome of the structure is built first; it’s jacked up and a ring is placed underneath; that’s jacked up and another ring is placed underneath; etc. The tank should last at least 50 to 60 years. The new chain link fence will match the old eight-foot-high fence. Only the back section will need to be removed to install the tank, and they will reuse as much material as possible. No excavated material will be moved off site. Since most of the trees in the area are higher than the tank, it will barely be visible. Ms. Erb asked what will happen if the tank is breached in a disaster. Mr. Hebdon replied that there’s a drainage ditch that runs below, which will capture most of the water. It was pointed out that the IC wetland will also provide storage containment. Mr. Hebdon has never heard of a tank breaching. Mr. Bosak asked how the Planning Board became the lead agency. Mr. Wilcox responded that the Planning Board is automatically the lead agency for site plan approval. In an uncoordinated review, each board does its own review. Mr. Hebdon said that the project has already obtained approvals from the ZBA for height, from the Town Board for funding, and from the Health Department. PB Resolution No. 2012-007: SEQR, Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval, Northview Water Tank Replacement, Coddington Road, Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2 Moved by Hollis Erb; seconded by Jon Bosak WHEREAS: 1.This action involves consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval for the proposed replacement of the Northview Water Tank, located on the west side of Coddington Road (350 Coddington Road) at the end of the access drive, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2, Medium Density Residential Zone. The proposal involves replacing the existing 200,000 gallon steel water tank, 34’ in diameter and 30’ in height, with a new 500,000 gallon glass-lined water tank, 48’ in diameter and 39’ in height, in the same location. The proposal also involves grading, modifications to the existing fence and several new stormwater elements. Ithaca College, Owner; Town of Ithaca, Applicant; Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer, Agent; and 2.This is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board is acting as lead agency in the environmental review with respect to Site Plan approval; and 3.The Planning Board, on February 21, 2012, has reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short Environmental Assessment Form Part I, submitted by the applicant, a Part II prepared by Town PB Draft 02-21-2012 Page 3 of 5 Engineering and Town Planning staff, site plans titled “Town of Ithaca Northview Road Tank Replacement Project,” including Sheets GP-1 through GP-5, titled “Existing Site Plan,” “Demolition Plan,” “Proposed Site Plan,” “Erosion and Sediment Control Plan,” and “Profile of Tanks,” and Sheets MD-1 through MD-4, titled “Existing Tank,” “Tank Details,” “Miscellaneous Details,” and “Standard Erosion and Sediment Control Details,” prepared by the Town of Ithaca Public Works Department and date-stamped January 24, 2012, and other application materials; and 4.The Town Planning staff has recommended a negative determination of environmental significance with respect to the proposed site plan; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby makes a negative determination of environmental significance in accordance with Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law and 6 NYCRR Part 617 New York State Environmental Quality Review for the above referenced actions as proposed, based on the information in the EAF Part I and for the reasons set forth in the EAF Part II, and, therefore, a Draft Environmental Impact Statement will not be required. Vote: Ayes: Wilcox, Collins, Conneman, Bosak, Erb AGENDA ITEM PUBLIC HEARING : Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval for the proposed replacement of the Northview Water Tank located on the west side of Coddington Road (350 Cod- dington Road) at the end of an access drive, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2, Medium Density Residential Zone. The proposal involves replacing the existing 200,000 gallon steel water tank (34’ in diameter and 30’ in height) with a new 500,000 gallon glass lined water tank (48’ in diameter and 39’ in height) in the same location. The proposal also involves grading, modifications to the existing fence and several new stormwater elements. Ithaca College, Property Owner; Town of Ithaca, Applicant; Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer, Agent Mr. Wilcox opened the public hearing at 7:28 p.m. Hearing no one, Mr. Wilcox closed the public hearing at 7:30 p.m. Mr. Wilcox mentioned that last year, the Ridgecrest tank was painted. The paint didn’t cure correct- ly and some of the chemicals in the paint leached into the water, prompting the Town to notify all residents who might have been affected. Mr. Hebdon added that the incident figured into their rea- soning for choosing a glass-lined tank: they don’t have to be painted. PB Resolution No. 2011-008: Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval, Northview Water Tank Replacement, Coddington Road, Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2 Moved by Linda Collins; seconded by George Conneman WHEREAS: PB Draft 02-21-2012 Page 4 of 5 1.This action involves consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval for the proposed replacement of the Northview Water Tank, located on the west side of Coddington Road (350 Coddington Road) at the end of the access drive, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 41-1-30.2, Me- dium Density Residential Zone. The proposal involves replacing the existing 200,000 gallon steel water tank, 34’ in diameter and 30’ in height, with a new 500,000 gallon glass-lined water tank, 48’ in diameter and 39’ in height, in the same location. The proposal also involves grad- ing, modifications to the existing fence and several new stormwater elements. Ithaca College, Owner; Town of Ithaca, Applicant; Creig Hebdon, Town Engineer, Agent; and 2.This is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board, acting as lead agency in environmental review with respect to this project has, on February 21, 2012, made a negative determination of environmental significance, after having reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short Environmental Assessment Form Part I, submitted by the applicant, and a Part II pre- pared by Town Engineering and Town Planning staff; and 3.The Planning Board, at a Public Hearing held on February 21, 2012, has reviewed and accepted as adequate, site plans titled “Town of Ithaca Northview Road Tank Replacement Project,” in- cluding Sheets GP-1 through GP-5, titled “Existing Site Plan,” “Demolition Plan,” “Proposed Site Plan,” “Erosion and Sediment Control Plan,” and “Profile of Tanks,” and Sheets MD-1 through MD-4, titled “Existing Tank,” “Tank Details,” “Miscellaneous Details,” and “Standard Erosion and Sediment Control Details,” prepared by the Town of Ithaca Public Works Depart- ment and date-stamped January 24, 2012, and other application materials; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: 1.That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby waives certain requirements for Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval, as shown on the Preliminary and Final Site Plan Checklists, hav- ing determined from the materials presented that such waiver will result in neither a significant alteration of the purpose of site plan control nor the policies enunciated or implied by the Town Board, and 2.That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board grants Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval for the proposed Northview Water Tank, as shown on the site plans titled “Town of Ithaca Northview Road Tank Replacement Project,” prepared by the Town of Ithaca Public Works Department and date-stamped January 24, 2012, subject to the following conditions: a.That the applicant obtains a building permit for the proposed tank replacement, and b.Submission of one set of the final site plan drawings on mylar, vellum, or paper, signed and sealed by the registered land surveyor, engineer, architect, or landscape architect who pre- pared the site plan material, prior to the issuance of a building permit. Vote: Ayes: Wilcox, Collins, Conneman, Bosak, Erb AGENDA ITEM PB Draft 02-21-2012 Page 5 of 5 Discussion regarding upcoming projects at the Town of Ithaca Public Works Facility, Creig Heb- don, Town Engineer Mr. Hebdon stated that he hopes to have a new pole barn and annex built this year. They plan to use the pole barn for the storage of leaf vacs, chippers, and other cold storage material – equipment that is currently stored outside all the time. They hope to get a variance for sprinklers because it’s an open-faced storage area. The annex will have higher overhead doors and will store water and sewer equipment and all the material that’s currently out by the salt storage shed. They plan on replacing the storage shed next year, so they want to remove all the equipment that is stored in the area. The wood shop in the annex is the only area that is currently heated. In the new annex, they also plan to heat the area where the jet vac and other water equipment will be stored because this equipment is continuously wet. The new salt storage shed will be much larger than the existing one. They current- ly have to dump the salt at the entrance because they can’t back the dump truck in; they also have to mix materials on site. With the new storage shed, they’ll be able to purchase a whole winter’s supply of premixed materials all at once, and have it delivered directly into the shed with a tractor trailer so all of the material will be enclosed. AGENDA ITEM New York Planning Federation Conference Ms. Ritter encouraged Board members to sign up. Mr. Wilcox noted that the conference has been moved from October to April. Attendance at this multi-day conference has dropped over time because of the cost of travel and squeezed town budg- ets. Other non-profits are going to regional one-day conferences. Board members spoke in favor of a change in venue. Mr. Wilcox said the most popular destinations are Saratoga and Lake Placid; they tried holding it in Syracuse, but it didn’t work. They need a hotel big enough for 150 people per night if the conference is held far enough away from Albany. Ithaca has been brought up, but it doesn’t have the meeting space. Popular locations are also those to which attendees want to bring their significant others. Mr. Bosak said he read that the Holiday Inn is planning on tearing down the hotel and building a convention center. He attended the planning conference in Lake Placid, and although he thought it was worthwhile, it was held during a time of year when there was nothing about it that interested him. Board members agreed that Ithaca would be a good place to hold the conference if it was scheduled for a nice time of year (after school is out). Adjournment Upon a motion by Hollis Erb, the meeting adjourned at 7:49 p.m. Respectfully submitted, _____________________________________ Debra DeAugistine, Deputy Town Clerk PB Meeting 02-21-2012 Page 5 of 5 Discussion regarding upcoming projects at the Town of Ithaca Public Works Facility, Creig Heb- don, Town Engineer Mr. Hebdon stated that he hopes to have a new pole barn and annex built this year. They plan to use the pole barn for the storage of leaf vacs, chippers, and other cold storage material - equipment that is currently stored outside all the time. They hope to get a variance for sprinklers because it's an open-faced storage area. The annex will have higher overhead doors and will store water and sewer equipment and all the material that's currently out by the salt storage shed. They plan on replacing the storage shed next year, so they want to remove all the equipment that is stored in the area. The wood shop in the annex is the only area that is currently heated. In the new annex, they also plan to heat the area where the jet vac and other water equipment will be stored because this equipment is continuously wet. The new salt storage shed will be much larger than the existing one. They cur rently have to dump the salt at the entrance because they can't back the dump truck in; they also have to mix materials on site. With the new storage shed, they'll be able to purchase a whole win ter's supply of premixed materials all at once, and have it delivered directly into the shed with a trac tor trailer so all of the material will be enclosed. AGENDA ITEM New York Planning Federation Conference Ms. Ritter encouraged Board members to sign up. Mr. Wilcox noted that the conference has been moved from October to April. Attendance at this multi-day conference has dropped over time because of the cost of travel and squeezed town budg ets. Other non-profits are going to regional one-day conferences. Board members spoke in favor of a change in venue. Mr. Wilcox said the most popular destinations are Saratoga and Lake Placid; they tried holding it in Syracuse, but it didn't work. They need a hotel big enough for 150 people per night if the conference is held far enough away from Albany. Ithaca has been brought up, but it doesn't have the meeting space. Popular locations are also those to which attendees want to bring their significant others. Mr. Bosak said he read that the Holiday Inn is planning on tearing down the hotel and building a convention center. He attended the planning conference in Lake Placid, and although he thought it was worthwhile, it was held during a time of year when there was nothing about it that interested him. Board members agreed that Ithaca would be a good place to hold the conference if it was scheduled for a nice time of year (after school is out). Adjournment Upon a motion by Hollis Erb, the meeting adjourned at 7:49 p.m. Respectfully submitted. eputy