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Home My WebLink About2020-09 NewsletterTOWN OF ITHACA NEWSLETTER SEPTEMBER 2020 Bicentennial Tidbit - Election 1845 Town Lobby display cases will be rotating interesting exhibits by staff and the History Center This month, we have the election results of 1845 transcribed and displayed. Come check it out! Early Voting for the 2020 General Election at Town Hall Saturday, October 24th thru Sunday, November 1st https://tompkinscountyny.gov/boe/EarlyVoting www.town.ithaca.ny.us FB Town of Ithaca NY Twitter @IthacaTown Fond farewell Lisa Carrier-Titti retired Tuesday, September 15th after 22 years and 1 day of service to the Town. We gave her a send-off at our training session held Friday at Tutelo Park. It was a bit chilly, but the sun came out for cake! The Town Board adopted and presented a “Resolution of Appreciation” and staff had their own “resolution” roasting her a bit. FALL BRUSH AND LEAF COLLECTION 2020 Brush Collection The Public Works Department will be picking up brush, limbs, and branches starting Monday, October 19th, 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 SCHOOL TAXES Reminder that school taxes come out October 1st Here is a link you can use if they don’t arrive by the end of the first week, and later to check that a payment went through or for receipts. 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 of not you received a bill in the mail. If you have any issues, feel free to reach out to us. WATER BILLS Similar to school taxes, water bills 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. On October 15th, any unpaid water bills will be re-levied to your Town and County tax bill to balance accounts. (credits roll over) Leaf Collection Leaf collection will begin at 7 a.m. on Monday, November 2nd, 2020 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 2nd to test our equipment and to pick up paper-bagged leaves before they get wet. 2021 TENTATIVE BUDGET TOWN BOARD MEETING October 1, 2020 at 5:30 p.m. The Town of Ithaca’s Tentative Budget is available on our webpage under Quick News. The budget will be presented to the full board at the annual Budget Meeting, held the first Thursday of October each year. Due to the pandemic, the meeting will be available via ZOOM and the link is on our web calendar, the agenda and here: https://zoom.us/j/5664892655 Our Budget Officer prepares summary sheets for the overall budget as well as each fund to break down all the pertinent information for you. After discussion, the Budget becomes the Town’s Preliminary Budget and a public hearing will be set for Monday, October 19th to hear comments, discuss any changes, and possibly adopt the 2021 Budget. Don’t forget to complete your 2020 Census #2020 – www.2020census.gov NEW NEIGHBORHOOD CODE Public Hearing Set – October 19th at 5:30 p.m. The New Neighborhood Code (NNC) is set for public hearing and possible adoption on October 19th. The full NNC and everything you would ever want to know and more is available on our website here: http://www.town.ithaca.ny.us/newcode and if you don’t find the answer there, or would rather talk to someone, Sue or Dan are the contacts. sritter@town.ithaca.ny.us dtasman@town.ithaca.ny.us PLANNING BOARD VACANCY The Planning Board consists of seven regular members and one alternate. The Planning Board reviews land use and development issues and is charged with determining approvals for 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. There is a residency requirement; applicants must live in the Town of Ithaca and there is a small stipend paid quarterly. CODES CORNER As Summer comes to an end and we welcome Fall with all of its vibrant colors and brisk mornings, please remember building permits are required for heating system/unit replacements and new installations. “Heating units” also includes solid fuel burning appliances such as, but not limited to; wood, pellet, and coal stoves; natural gas or propane room heaters, etc... If an emergency situation occurs, and a heating system/unit needs to be replaced over a holiday, in the middle of the night, or on a weekend; the system can be installed, but a permit application needs to be filed within three (3) days of that installation. After the building permit application is filed and a permit issued, a Code Official will conduct a site visit to inspect the installed system and verify that it was installed to NYS and Town Code and is safe to operate. Applications for all of our building permits are here: http://www.town.ithaca.ny.us/documents/forms Please remember to check and replace the batteries in your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. If you have any questions, please feel free to call our offices at 607-273-1783 (option #2) or email us at codes@town.ithaca.ny.us. Thank you, Marty Moseley Director of Code Enforcement CLERKS CORNER Is there some question you would like answered? A topic you would like to hear more about? Please let me know. If you are thinking it, chances are other people are too. Townclerk@town.ithaca.ny.us or feel free to call Becky or myself at 607-273-1721 Option 3. Coming in October Anticipated reopening of the renovated Public Works Facility Anticipated completion of the Route 96B sidewalk Anticipated update on Short Term Rental legislation