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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-09 NewsletterTOWN OF ITHACA NEWSLETTER SEPTEMBER 2021 TOWN OF ITHACA PUBLIC WORKS FACILITY OPEN HOUSE Saturday, September 18, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.: Open House at the Town of Ithaca’s Public Works Facility (Seven Mile Drive, just off from Route 13) Yes, you know that the Town picks up your brush and leaves once/year and plows the roads after a snowstorm but if you were to take a quiz about all the services provided by our Public Works department would you pass? If the answer is “no” or “not sure” we have just the event for you. Come tour our renovated facility, learn more about those services, and explore our equipment. You will be able to climb into a 10-wheel dump truck used for snow plowing and a mini-excavator. Do you know what a vacuum excavator truck is used for? See one up close. Bring the family. We will have COVID-19 safety procedures in place. And no, there will not be a quiz. But there will be cider and apples. RETIREMENT - SANDY POLCE Sandy retired July 30th after 22 years as a Senior Typist in the Planning Department. The Town Board passed a Resolution of Appreciation which Bill Goodman presented to her at a going away luncheon in her honor. Staff enjoyed sharing endearing stories of Sandy’s years at the Town and wished her well in her new adventures. UPCOMING TOWN OFFICE CLOSURES Town Court - NYS Unified Court System Annual Training Conference Court Offices closed Monday, September 13th through Wednesday, September 15th All Town Offices Closed at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, September 10th for training and appreciation picnic FALL BRUSH COLLECTION The Public Works Department will be picking up brush, limbs, and branches starting Monday, October 18th, and will continue throughout the Town until finished. All yard waste must be at the roadside by 7 a.m. on the first day of collection. There will be no second collection and no callbacks. The intention of the Town’s roadside collection service is for residents of the Town of Ithaca outside the Village of Cayuga Heights to put a reasonable amount of yard waste (as is generated during a normal year) out at the roadside for pickup by the Town’s crews. Clearing of building lots and hedgerows is beyond a normal amount of material. Roadside collection crews reserve the right to not pick up excessively large volumes of brush and improperly piled materials. Brush you collect before the first day of the pickup needs to remain out of the rights-of- way until a couple of days before the pickup; this will assure your safety and that of your neighbors. Errant brush piles can wreak havoc on the storm water systems and can create a hazard for walkers and cyclists. You may drop your own yard waste and leaves off at the Public Works Facility at 114 Seven Mile Drive, Monday through Friday, from 7:00 a.m. through 2:30 p.m. year-round. If you have questions, call (607) 273-1656 between 6:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. or send an email to publicworks@town.ithaca.ny.us. WHAT TO DO • Pile brush in neat bundles parallel to the roadway along road shoulder or at end of driveway if no shoulder exists. • Put out limbs no larger than 8 inches in diameter (it is not necessary to cut limbs into small pieces). • Limit brush piles to the size of a pickup load (approximately 2’ H x 4’ W x 8’ L in size). WHAT NOT TO DO • Do not tie bundles of brush • Do not place any materials in a ditch • Do not put out metal, rocks, glass, roots, stumps, or lumber scraps • Do not put brush out until a few days before collection FALL LEAF COLLECTION Leaf collection will begin at 7 a.m. on Monday, November 8th,2021 and will continue throughout the week until finished. Leaves should be at the curb by 7:00 a.m. on the first day of collection. Leaves may be raked to the shoulder of the road or bagged in biodegradable paper leaf bags (30-gallon bags are available at many stores in the area). Other debris such as pine needles, dead flowers, garden waste, grass clippings, etc., cannot be vacuumed and should be placed in bags. Please fill the bags and place them on the road shoulder, folding over the openings of the bags to close. Do not staple or tape openings. No plastic bags will be picked up. The Town’s crews will go around the entire Town once with the leaf vacuum. For the rest of the month of November, the crews will begin picking up paper-bagged leaves each Monday, which could extend through early week to encompass the entire Town. Please note that we may send out leaf crews earlier than November 8th to test our equipment and to pick up paper-bagged leaves before they get wet. ANTICIPATED VACANCIES PLANNING BOARD AND ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS Have you ever wanted to give back to the community you live in, but weren’t sure how to get involved? The Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals have anticipated vacancies for Regular and Alternate membership positions in January. An Alternate Member position is a 1-year term and a great way to see how a board works and the level of time commitment needed. The Planning Board consists of seven regular members with two alternates. The Planning Board is charged with reviewing land use and development issues as well as approving subdivisions, site plans and special permit requests. Planning Board meetings are generally held at 7 pm on the first and third Tuesday of the month. The Zoning Board of Appeals consists of 5 regular members and 2 alternates. The Zoning Board is a quasi- judicial board that is charged with ensuring compliance of the Town’s zoning ordinances and considering variances and/or special approval requests and weighing the criteria set for each type during deliberations. Zoning Board meetings are generally held at 6 pm on the second Tuesday of the month. Some knowledge of the application of municipal law or other rules and regulations is helpful but not required. Both Boards have a Town residency requirement and members receive a small stipend. Please contact Paulette at townclerk@town.ithaca.ny.us with any questions and to receive an application. Thank you for considering serving the Town of Ithaca. TOWN BUDGET MEETING October 7,2021 at 5:30 p.m. The Supervisor’s Tentative Budget will be presented to the full Town Board at the annual Budget Meeting, held the first Thursday of October each year. For health and Safety reasons, the meeting will be available via YOUTUBE and ZOOM. Links are available on the Town Web Calendar and the posted Agenda. Our Process: The Budget Committee, made up of three town board members, the town supervisor and the town budget officer meet monthly beginning in March of each year to begin discussing, prioritizing, and planning the budget. Departments Heads can attend and in July, they submit their budget requests and answer any questions. The Budget Officer works with the Town Supervisor throughout the year collecting information and trends and prepare the Supervisor’s or Tentative Budget for the Town Board to review and consider. At the Budget Meeting, the full Town Board discusses the Tentative Budget, suggests and votes on any changes, and adopts the Tentative Budget as the Preliminary Budget and sets a Public Hearing for comments at the October Regular meeting. The Finance Officer prepares summary sheets and breakdowns of each fund for ease of understanding and to facilitate questions from the Board and public. After the Public Hearing, the Board will discuss any comments received, any proposed changes, and consider adopting the Final 2022 Town of Ithaca Budget. WATER BILLS You should have just received your Water Bills. These are due by September 30th without any late penalty. Postmark counts, and there is a drop box on the Buffalo St. entrance to Town Hall. If you know your account number, you can look up the status on our web page: How do I? – Pay Bills – Water. It is important to remember that on October 15th, any unpaid water bills will be re-levied to your Town and County tax bill that comes out January 1st to balance out accounts (credits roll over). SCHOOL TAXES Reminder that school tax bills come out October 1st Here is a link you can use if they do not arrive by the end of the first week, and later, you can use the same link to check that a payment went through or for receipt(s). http://taxlookup.net/ The school, town and county use a database from Tompkins County Assessments to populate addressing. If your address or ownership status changes after July/August, the information may not have been updated and pushed out to the various bills. It is important to remember that by State Law, you are responsible for any late fees regardless of whether or not you received a bill in the mail. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us. Protect your pet and others – Get your pets vaccinated Fall Drive-Thru Rabies Clinic TCAT Bus Garage, 737 Willow Ave, Ithaca Saturday, September 18thand Saturday October 2nd 10 AM to 11:30 AM – Preregistration Required 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM – Preregistration Recommended https://tompkinscountyny.gov/health/eh/rabies#clinics County Announcements The Tompkins County Legislature is inviting members of the community to apply for the volunteer role of redistricting commissioner. A group of nine volunteer commissioners will be selected to use newly released Census data to assess and propose changes to geographic areas represented by Tompkins County Legislators. Applications are being accepted through Wednesday September 15, 2021. The commission will be tasked with examining the newly released Census data for Tompkins County, drafting new geographic areas for representation by the Legislature, and engaging with community members throughout the process. A final report including recommendations will be presented to the Tompkins County Legislature for adoption. Commissioners will be assisted by Tompkins County staff. Tompkins County will hold a virtual information session and Q&A for interested community members on Thursday, August 19, at 12:00pm. Please pre-register for the virtual session online before the event (https://bit.ly/37uEYTt). A recording of the session will be made available on the following day. To apply, please use the Tompkins County Advisory Board application form, and enter “Redistricting Commission” as the name of the advisory group and “member” as the name of seat in the form’s top right hand corner. For more information on advisory boards, please refer to the Legislature’s website here. Commissioners will be selected by the end of December 2021 for work to begin in early 2022.