HomeMy WebLinkAboutCB Minutes 2007-01-04 Town of Ithaca Conservation Board
January 4, 2007
Final Minutes
PRESENT: Diane Conneman, Lenore Durkee, James Hamilton, Eva Hoffmann, Brent
Katzmann, Susan McCutcheon, Jon Meigs, Larry Sallinger
STAFF: None
Chair and Coordinator Reports: Diane reported that the Finger Lakes Land Trust
(FLLT) has purchased approximately 30 acres of land in a UNA near the Sweedler
Preserve parcel and hopes that Tompkins County and the Town of Ithaca could donate
$20,000 to the FLLT to support this acquisition. The money would come from the
Town's Open Space Reserve fund. The question that arises is can the Town contribute
these funds for property that it does not own? It appears to be an inappropriate use of
such funds.
So far, no work has been done on the Natural Heritage Preservation Program.
Finally, the Town has named Cathy Valentino, Pat Leary, and Herb Engman, and will
ask others to serve on the Comprehensive Plan Review Committee. Diane said that CB
members may be approached to serve.
Business: The minutes of December 7, 2006 were approved as corrected.
2007 Work Plan:
Project List:
After discussion, the list was revised as follows:
Top Priority: add "Promote implementation of the Stream setback Ordinance".
Important and to be addressed as soon as possible: revise the statement on energy
to "Encourage the Town to use renewable resources and practice energy conservation".
Keep informed and act as needed: Remove the statements on the Natural Heritage
Preservation Program and wetland protection from the Top Priority list and place them
in this section. Also, revise the statement to read: "Deer Containment and Population".
James pointed out that a report on deer management from CU's Human Dimensions
Research Unit of the Dept. of Natural Resources, is to be available on line in early 2007.
Committee Assignments:
Jon Meigs will leave the Fischer Award Committee. Diane Conneman will fill the
position.
At Brent's suggestion, and with the approval of the CB members, a new committee has
been formed--the "Energy Strategies Committee" --and its members are Jon Meigs,
Brent Katzmann, and Eva Hoffmann.
Scenic Resources Committee: Diane passed around copies of the insert planned for
the Town Conservation Newsletter that describes the Committee's work and asks for
public input by inviting them to visit the Town Hall lobby to see some photographic
displays and maps. The Committee wants to know if people have questions about the
validity of the standards used to evaluate scenic areas, their opinion on the SRC's
ranking of the views, what types of views (sweeping vistas? open fields?) are important
to them, and if they have additional ideas for places to evaluate and criteria to use.
The Committee needs to get approval from the Town Board for this and also some
decision must be made about using color vs. black and white photos as the cost
difference is significant.
Fischer Award Committee: Brent has sent press releases, soliciting nominations, to
the Tompkins County Weekly, Ithaca Community News, Positive News and other
publications. Sue will send the same information to the Ithaca Journal, the Ithaca Times,
and other media. Brent has also forwarded information on the Award to acquaintances
and urged CB members to do the same if possible.
Regular Reports and Updates:
ERC: Lenore reported on visit to the sites of the future IC athletic facility, the IC dump
site, and the CU Animal Health Diagnostic Center. There is some concern about the
size of the athletic facility and the wetlands and woods that will likely be affected by the
structure. There are large parking lots planned which will affect drainage patterns, and
the lighting for the practice field may intrude on nearby residences. The fact that the
building is to be constructed over a 25-year period led to questions about conforming to
Town regulations that likely will change during that time.
The dump site has been used for other projects, but the ERC members are still
concerned about the impact of adding 25.000 cubic yards of fill to this site and have
requested a tour with IC officials in the near future. IC plans to complete the filling by
2012.
There are no problems foreseen with the CU animal health facility.
The ERC visited the Longview site two years ago and does not believe that further
recommendations are necessary. The question arose of providing an intensive care
facility at a time when the State is mandating the closing of many such facilities.
TOMPKINS COUNTY EMC: Larry reported that the County Water Resources Council
and Cornell are forming a critically needed partnership for monitoring water quality at
the south end of Cayuga Lake. It is envisioned that the cooperation and expertise of
various persons and groups in the area, will help to broaden the program to eventually
include oversight of the entire watershed.
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SIX MILE CREEK VOLUNTEER MONITORING PROGRAM: No report.
CITY OF ITHACA NATURAL AREAS COMMISSION: No report.
Other Business: Brent announced that the seven-week Green Building Seminar
Series will begin on January 10 and will be held every Wednesday from 7-9 PM at the
DeWitt Middle School auditorium. A variety of topics will be discussed ranging from
living roofs, to solar panel use in the community, to using salvaged material in building.
Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 9:15PM.
Lenore Durkee
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