HomeMy WebLinkAboutAG Minutes 2022-07-26 Town of Ithaca Agriculture Committee Meeting
Tuesday,July 26,2022, 7:00 pm
(Via Zoom Video Conference)
Final Minutes
Members Present: Matthew Stalker(AJ Teeter Farm), Chair, Claire Forest(Forest Family Farm), Christianne
White(Steep Hollow Farm), Lisa Ferguson(Laughing Goat Fiber Farm)
Town Representatives: Mike Smith(Senior Planner)
Guests: None
1. Farmers Round Robin—What's happening on your farm?How is the season going/went? Issues/concerns?
Announcements?
Matt reported dry conditions leading to low pasture growth requiring dry hay to be fed to the heard.
Decreasing the heard size is also possibility also due to high costs of the feed. The barn is being expanded
to accommodate more hay and the freezers are being stocked for local beef purchasing. They also started
raising pigs and chickens for meat and eggs this year as well.
Claire reported dry conditions as well on her farm although the berry plants seem to be doing well and
should be ready to harvest in August.
Christianne reported dry conditions overall. Field corn is growing in her rented fields looks to be doing
well although the sweet corn stand has high demand,the size and quality may be less then hoped for
compared to previous years. Onsite ponds are used for irrigation which has been helpful. Her sheep and
horse are doing well.
Caterpillar damage to fruit trees and bushes was noted.Fireworks and livestock were briefly discussed.
Lisa shared about the Local Fiber Downtown Discovery Day in June. There were 16 farmers and artists
with onsite animals and products and the event was well attended. Supply chain issues were noted in the
fiber industry along with higher costs of processing. Goat sales on her farm are down,possibly due to the
drought. 4H was briefly discussed and Christianne mentioned introducing local 4H clubs to YEM (Youth
Entrepreneurship Markets)who run a series of markets for youth to sell goods,take classes and be
connected to mentors as well as The Learning Web and its ties with the Cornell Sheep program. NY Soil
and Water Conservation program approved a pasture improvement project on Lisa's farm for perimeter
fencing, electric and water,with a low-cost share portion to the property owner. Lisa applied for and
received a grant from the Farm to Fork tourism program for a parking and access area to her barn off
Sheffield Road.
Promoting 4H overall was supported by the Committee members. Lisa noted her club members are not
youth from local farm families but rather Cornell staff children.Parental support and transportation are a
big part of the program and it's a challenge to get widespread participation in the rural areas. Cornell
Cooperative extension was also noted as a helpful partner in bridging the program opportunities with
families.
2. Persons to be heard-none.
3. Chair(Matthew) and Coordinator(Mike)reports/updates:
Matt asked about meeting in person, Mike replied that the State Executive orders are being extended
month to month so advance warning of changes has not been predictable. The Town has generally been
going with all virtual for the main part or a hybrid version for some Boards during the Executive order.
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Mike from Planning reported that the Town Board is interested in another Farm Tour this Fall and he will
be reaching out to farms for possibilities. The new Town Website was shown by Mike,highlighting
access to the meetings calendar and meeting documents as well as the Agriculture in the Town page and
other relevant page tabs and links. Claire asked for all the farms in the Town to be listed on the website
rather than just those with websites to link them too. Lisa suggested adding 4H and other youth
organizations under the Agriculture Organizations tab and information for local agritourism.
The new online application system(Viewpoint/Open Gov) for permits and projects was also shown and
explained by Mike as a tool for transparency and communication with between the Town and applicants.
Christianne and Lisa asked about creating a parking lot and vehicle access to places on their property and
permits or permissions needed. One was a County Road, and the application was reviewed/approved by
County Highway Department. The other would be a possible easement between two properties for access,
also on a County Road. Mike suggested talking with the County Highway Department and possibly Town
Engineering to discuss potential stormwater permits required.
4. Approval of minutes—March 29t'', 2022.
Mike noted a discussion with the Town Clerk about waiting until a quorum to formally approve the
minutes and he was advised that an acceptance by the members at the meeting would be appropriate for
Committee meeting minutes.
Christianne moved to accept the March 29t'', 2022,minutes as presented,Lisa seconded, and the minutes
were unanimously accepted.
5. Other Business: An upcoming in person dinner meeting for the local Farmland Board was mentioned.
6. Adjourn.
Christianne moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:02 p.m.
• Next meeting 11/29/2022 6pm.
Minutes were drafted by Planning Admin Staff Abby Homer 8/17/2022
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