HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994-03-21 - PB um
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TOWN OF ULYSSES
P LANNING BOARD BUSINESS FORUM
MARCH 21 , 1994
TOWN HALL
P RESENT : ACTING CHAIRWOMAN KRYS CA .lL ; MEMBERS : BUDD STOVER ,
GREG HOFFMIRE , PETER DEMJANEC AND GERRI KEIL ;
SECRETARY : ROXANNE SMITH
GUESTS : TOM SMITH ( TCTC ) , TOM MYERS ( CONTRACTOR , KRYS CAIL ' S
HUSBAND ) , JIM SEAFUSE ( SHUR- SAVE ) , LARRY THOMPSON
( ULYSSES SQUARE ) , INGRID POTENZA ( ARCHITECTURAL BUILDERS )
AND SUE WHITAKER ( BLACK SHEEP DESIGNS )
® The Chairwoman called the meeting to order at 7 : 35 PM . The
purpose of the meeting was to hear from people involved in business /
or people interested in starting a business in Ulysses . The Board
would specifically like to hear what they could / should take into
consideration to make it easier for businesses to succeed .
Tom Smith introduced himself . He lives in the Village , and
works for Tompkins County Trust Company . He stated some primary
t hings that the banking community sees .
1 . Tompkins County Area Development ( TOAD ) , Industrial Development
Agency ( IDA ) - they have a way of finding resources and getting
t hings done . They do this by creating a type of a bond that
t he IDA owns . A piece of real estate , plus a building will
be owned initially by IDA ; ownership will revert to the devel -
o per at the end of twenty or twenty - five years ( whatever length
o f time chosen ) . During that time frame ( because the IDA owns
it ) tax exempt bonds can be issued . The banks are more likely
t o finance it . The IDA is a shell ; if there is a foreclosure
the IDA is not involved . The foreclosure is on the bond .
U ltimately , the person who finances it , gets back the real
e state . It doesn ' t cost the taxpayer anything . Most devel -
o pment that has been done , has been done in Lansing ( possibly
due to the airport ) .
2 . Municipal cooperation - roadblocks are avoided .
a . An area in a community is chosen ; a commercial development
is started . A person can start up a business in that
area , thus avoiding a zoning appeal , etc . Environmental
studies still have to be done . They are called Economic
D evelopment Zones . Cherry Street is a good example . It ' s
a good idea to have already detirmined what type of businesses
should go in . Clean businesses , like light manufacturers ,
h igh - tech , distribution centers would be likely .
b . A municipality can help out by creating tax incentives .
P ayment of rural taxes can be paid continuously by the
business . The payments start out low , gradually they
pay full taxes . This might be arranged over a period
of ten years , increasing yearly .
There is a tremendous resource with New York State Economic
development . They have a representative in Binghamton . Their
staff goes throughout the Southern Tier . That would be a good
® office to contact . There are other resources ; one is called South -
e rn Tier East Economic Development Agency - they operate out of
Corning . There are a lot of little agencies operating in the south -
e rn tier . People aren ' t aware of the economic resources in the
area . Economic Development has taken a high priority this year .
A good person to contact would be Marty Luster . Tompkins County
is sometimes not eligible for some of these things because of our
low unemployment rate . If you talk to the right people you can
break down the numbers in the unemployment ratio to prove Tompkins
County is , in fact , under employed . Tompkins County has lower
wages than any of the surrounding counties . The average income
in Tompkins County is several thousand dollars ( per year ) lower
t han any of the contiguous counties .
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P LANNING BOARD BUSINESS FORUM
MARCH 21 , 1994
The airport and the incubator at Cornell encourage high tech
d evelopment firms to locate there . They give breaks in rent . He
is aware that a local firm is actually developing a private incu -
bator. facility . It will probably be announced in a month or so .
( It is on the other side of the lake . ) There is a lot of truth
t o the statement that Tompkins County is centrally isolated .
There is a limited facility airport and we don ' t have a four lane
h ighway running through the County . The biggest incentive in
Tompkins County is the presence of Cornell University . There are
limited communication abilities . There is a total misunderstanding
o f the difficulty of getting out to Trumansburg and back .
® Years ago , the Village desired to maintain their ambiance .
For that reason they chose not to allow Moog Synthesizer to
develop a plant in the Village . That type of thing sends a. message
t o the Business community .
Krys discussed the excellent relationship in the Town of
G roton between the local bank , Village , and the Town ; something
Mike Stamm ( TCAD ) mentioned when he talked to the Ulysses Planning
Board . She asked for, suggestions on how the Board could get a
better overall cooperation going on . (Mike said he has a direct
line in Groton which was very helpful . ) Tom Smith responded that
TCTC ' s bank president is on the IDA Board . Everyone at TCTC is
very interested in economic development . He suggested that it
would be a good idea to sit down with someone like Mike , and set
o ut a TASK FORCE of interested parties on the part of the Village ,
banks , institutions , the Town of Ulysses , and perhaps someone from
the Southern Tier East Economic Development Agency . Groton has
been fairly agressive and have had successes ( Community Health
Center , housing for elderly ) .
Krys and Greg attended a conference on tourism on Saturday .
Two groups that reported back ( after, the workshops ) , mentioned
t he possibility of locating a resort enterprise on the east side
o f the lake ( topographically it makes far less sense than on the
west side ) . They did say they plan to get there by train . Reasons
for locating there may be the proximity to the airport ; that side
gets more sun . Tom Myers mentioned that the concrete plant has
been sold . Tom Smith mentioned the closeness to Route 81 .
Tourism is New York State ' s big thing right now , due to the
loss of a tremendous amount of manufacturing jobs , said Tom Smith .
Mike Stamm addressed the kinds of jobs we have with this " low rate "
o f unemployment at the conference on Saturday . These jobs don ' t
let people progress beyond entry level pay , said Krys . Tourism
fits that mode again , said Gerri . Krys said that the average
tourist spent 20 % on basic retail items available in the community ,
o utside of eating out .
Tom Smith said the biggest roadblocks are in the City of
Ithaca , itself . He hears that they are difficult to work with ,
e ven though they have promised more cooperation with developers ,
0 they have in fact , not delivered . Lansing has a reputation of
being very difficult to work with . Someone has to let people know
t hat Ulysses welcomes business . Some of the problems are the N . Y . S .
B uilding Codes which have to be enforced ; environeinntal codes ,
etc . Tight zoning ( which Ulysses is known for ; people like , as
it protects the value of their, property ) doesn ' t bring in economic
d evelopment . An economic development zone might be more of an
incentive for people to come out here - there might be less hassle .
The Village stymies with water and sewer . The Town was instrumental
in getting water out to Alpha House . Perhaps they could be again
if the need was close enough to the Village limits . Getting the
information on where the Town of Ulysses ' s commercial areas are
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TOWN OF ULYSSES 3
PLANNING BOARD BUSINESS FORUM
MARCH 21 , 1994
out to the community would be helpful ( through distribution of maps
to realtors , local Chamber of Commerce , offices of Mike Stamm and
Marty Luster ) .
If an industry wanted to move to North Carolina , the State
agreed to have " x " number of trained people ready for them , said
Tom Smith . Groton could probably offer that ( due to Smith Corona
closing down ) , said Gerri . TC3 is interested in school to work
transition , said Krys .
Tom Smith mentioned that with the Clinton Health Care Program
® coming up , having the hospital on this side of the lake could be
✓ ery beneficial . There are ancillary services ; labs might choose to
locate there . Krys mentioned that Cornell is bringing people here
for training . Tom mentioned the elderly population - geriatrics , as
having a future , too . He did say that TCTC would be very willing to
w ork on the TASK FORCE .
Jim Seafuse introduced himself ( he is the owner of Shur - Save ) .
H e feels the water situation has got to be addressed . The Town of
U lysses Zoning code currently says that you can not build anything
w ithout a pre - approved permit from Tompkins County Health Department
for water and sewer . The State is getting really tough on what ap -
proved water is . They ' re getting stricter all the time . He has
n ever had approved water in the store . He buys all his water for
u sage . He honestly believes , that sometime this year , the Tompkins
County Health Department will tell him he has got to have approved
w ater because of state mandates . You can get it by drilling wells ,
getting the Village to do it , or have the Town of Ulysses step in .
This is not for expansion - this is to maintain what he has . By law ,
in the Town of Ulysses , to build on commercial property , all he should
h ave had to do was meet all the NYS building codes and do everything
locally . Instead he had to have numerous meetings with professors
from Cornell , Ithaca College , and local groups to prove he wasn ' t
g oing to harm Smith Woods . Well , he didn ' t zone it commercial - he
wasn ' t even here ! ( It has been zoned commercial since zoning was
put in place . ) He feeels that no one wants commercial placed on
commercial property . Now that the store is there , people feel that ' s
all that should be there . He feels that that is a true statement as
it has taken him almost three years to get street lights put in at
t he end of his driveway ( after eighteen accidents ) , with him offer -
ing to pay for everything . He needed the Town Board to do a resolu -
t ion with NYSEG . Water hasn ' t been addressed . The Town agreed to
form a water district for his store ( like they did for Alpha House ) ,
providing he agreed to get all the right - of - ways . He. agreed to pay
for it all , in full , and was willing to pay a rate and a half for
the water . He has been in the store four years ( since last December ) .
The Town wrote a letter to the Village indicating they would support
Mr . Seafuse . Krys inquired as to whether the Town received a reply
from the Village ? Jim went to the Village Board Meetings for four
months in a row after his written request was submitted . They either
t abled it or didn ' t bring it up . He had a certified check for the
✓ equired amount along with the formal request submitted to the Village .
® Before the fifth month he called a Village Board Member and asked
if they would be addressing water . He had to go out of town ; if they
were , he would send someone else to represent him . He was told no ;
they wouldn ' t get to it . It is his belief , that at that meeting ,
t hey brought up his water situation ( because he was not there ) , and
✓ oted not to do it . The certified check was returned to him three
weeks after that meeting . He feels that the first thing that needs
t o be accomplished is to have the Village and Town realize that they
are one and the same - that they ' re not enemies . If the Village and
Town can ' t do it perhaps the community can . Tom Smith mentioned that
he ' s heard this story before ; he cited Wilcox Press .
Larry Thompson ( Ulysses Square ) asked what the feasibility would
be to go with Bolton Point ? The Village is almost at capacity he said .
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P LANNING BOARD BUSINESS FORUM
MARCH 21 , 1994
When you run lines , you pay by the foot said Krys . The highest
spot ( needed to build up pressure in the Town of Ulysses ) , is the
property owned by Wilbur Briggs . It is at the top of Jacksonville ,
✓ ight at the end of Halseyville Road . You could run a line down
H alseyville , go back down Perry City Road , to Route 96 ; you could
go down Halseyville to Route 96 ; Bolton Point is at Iradell now .
B olton Point wants the loop , water isn ' t getting any cheaper , and it
isn ' t getting any better . You need about five Town Board Members
who have poor water , said Jim .
An approach could be taken by the Town , where they state to
® the Village , that they would offer to alleviate some of their water
problems , and in return , the Village would sell Ulysses a certain
n umber of gallons , said Tom Smith .
Referring to Bolton , Krys said , there is a pumping station on
Wolf Lane with major maintenance problems . The guy is there , fre -
q uently .
If a municipality is sincere they need to show proof . There
is no reason to take as long as it does to get approval . Road blocks
put up against developers happen in Lansing , and Ithaca too . ( Tom
cited several examples . )
K rys stated that the two things she hears are :
1 . things don ' t move quickly enough and 2 . there isn ' t enough
clarity about what is needed to begin with .
J im disagreed with the clarity issue , stating that the Town of
U lysses is pretty fortunate in having an Alex Rachun . He knows what is
going on . He was a big asset to Jim ; at times perhaps the only asset .
H e walked Jim through each stage .
A specific time frame would be helpful , said Krys . Water is
critical . You can have any zones you want , but if the Health De -
partment won ' t give approval , nobody is going to do it . Shur - Save
is trying to get approval for an addition now . Jim has all the
permits from the state saying he has twice what is needed ( in
capacity ) . He ' s been talking to John Anderson in excess of three
months , trying to get him to write a letter saying that he can put
in another restroom . John ' s response was that the water is a prob -
lem . Jim said that he has done everything he said he would do with
t he water . He ' s not asking to put in a drinking fountain , just a
✓ estroom . Give him an approval for the restroom and he ' ll have a
d rug store in by July . Larry mentioned that besides the on going
maintenance for his water ; Congress has required that a new test
be done ( based on what ' s happening on the west coast ) that has cost
h im $ 700 . This will be a yearly requirement . They were suppose to
t est for chemicals that aren ' t even used in this area .
N ow , you have to buy the land on speculation that you ' re going
t o have water . If you buy the property ; drill a well ; do everything
you are suppose to do ; then the test results don ' t pass , what ' s
®
the guy going to do ? You ' ll never be able to sell the commercial
property , said Jim . He really approves of Tom ' s idea of the TASK
FORCE . When the Village doesn ' t want to give you water , they ' re al -
ways at capacity . Yet , they ' re watering the golf course to the tune
o f hundreds of thousands of gallons . He uses five hundred gallons
a day and he can ' t have it .
For three years Jim has been trying to get the OK from the State
t o dispense food stamps . His store has a customer base of nine zip
codes . ( He took a random sample from the five thousand or so cash
cards he has on file . ) Because there were under two hundred served
in the 14886 zip code ( for food stamps ) the State denied him the
✓ ight to dispense . He wrote a letter to the State indicating that
TOWN OF ULYSSES 5
P LANNING BOARD BUSINESS FORUM
MARCH 21 , 1994
there were more than two hundred eligible if they looked beyound just
t he 14886 code and counted the other eight zip codes that he serviced .
That didn ' t matter to the State . Jim continued to submit requests ,
and he continued to get the same form letter, back , denying him . Once
he went over the magic number of two hundred he received a letter
from the State . They said he now has been approved ( a week ago , to -
morrow ) , and he has to have everything in place in seven days ( secur -
ity cameras , separate telephone line , circuts for the computer ) :
Tom Myers introduced himself as a remodeling contractor within
U lysses . Serving somewhat narrower interests here ; he did want to
® state one thing that he felt helps his business ; efforts made in up -
h olding the quality in housing stock in this Town . He likes the
square footage rule as it helps keep modulars out . They ' re basically
a lower quality house . When it comes time to remodel ( or add an
addition ) there is a real difference . The idea of having corridors ,
with strip malls , etc . would seem to lower the quality of housing and
life in those areas , to a degree . ( People will tend to build away
from them . ) If there were areas of water and sewer obviously that
would be better for commercial development .
P hilosophically , Gerri stated she had a problem with Tom ' s
comments about modular housing . In an attempt to keep housing stock
high , can affordable housing still be offered ? She stated she could
probably not buy her property today , if she was just starting out , or.
✓ etiring . She said that the Planning Board has been discussing set
back as a means for diversity . They haven ' t discussed it much for
Single residences though . Jim pointed out that there are more taxes
✓ eceived now , than with the land sitting empty ( he cited modulars
o ut on Cold Springs Road , and the new home next to Tom Majors on
Main Street ) . Gerri also mentioned the tree planting incentive the
Village offered . ( They ' ll pay 50 % - up to $ 75 . ) Perhaps the Town could
o ffer this too . Tom Meyers did state that he is Krys Cail ' s husband .
Ingrid Potenza is an owner of Architectural Builders . She has
been here for fourteen years . Though she is not located in the Village -
she is very interested in it . She has done a lot of listening ; there
appears to be a divided Village . The first group likes T - burg the
way it is with no growth / change . The second group is for growth . Of
t hat group , one part desires growth , any growth , any place . The sec -
o nd part says growth with zoning , and a Master Plan . She falls within
t hat part , of the second group . The Village needs a face lift . The
whole picture is not addressed . There are a lot of grants available
for improvements , and that is where volunteers are needed . Some of
h er ideas / comments are : sidewalks are needed , from beginning to end ,
t he Village is not inviting . ( People have to walk to the fairgrounds
in the road . ) There is too much asphalt ; there is a need for more
green . Tourism is a positive thing . A community she knows of bought
street lights and it made all the difference . There are a lot of services ;
n ot enough retail . ( Perhaps the right kind of retail is needed . )
J im mentioned that when Carl Mann was mayor he wanted to install
n ew sidewalks . A lot of effort went into a presentation at the fire
®
hall . He offered the Village ' s involvement . You ( merchant ) could pay
u p front , or put it on your tax bill and pay it off over a ten year
period . The Merchants didn ' t care . The sidewalks aren ' t kept shoveled
in the winter time . The kids walk to school in the street . We have
n o ordinance stating that if the side walk isn ' t shoveled ; the Village
will come through and do it and put it on the owner ' s tax bill . Obviously
t he Merchants in Trumansburg are satisfied with the business they are
d oing or they would do something different ( new facades , sidewalks
[ shovel ] , new trees ) . Torn Smith mentioned the Downtown Development
D istrict . Jim said they ' ve been trying to get rid of the telephone
poles for, fifteen years now .
L arry mentioned that tourism isn ' t in the Village , it ' s in the
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PLANNING BOARD BUSINESS FORUM
MARCH 21 , 1994
park . We need a draw like a hotel .
One thing for sure is there are going to be some changes once
the Octopus is completed . We are at a juncture where we can have some
e ffect on that ; or not . The next step will be to meet as a Planning
Board on Monday to sort through all this information . The idea for a
TASK FORCE is excellent , said Krys . It is important to note that we
. are an advisory board only . The Town Board is made up of elected
o fficials . Each citizen has an obligation / responsibility / an interest
in getting the right officials on the Town Board to support the things
t hey are interested in . A lot of work needs to be done in terms of
® who is on that Board , said Gerri . Krys stated that she has great faith
in peoples educability . If you get the right people to come speak ,
w ith the right information ( people with expertise in certain areas ;
Mike Stamm ) change can occur .
Tom Smith is on the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce ' s
B oard . Once a year they look for board members . He also chairs the
L egislative Affairs Committee . They discuss economic development ;
what the state laws are ; and resolutions . Trumansburg ' s president
o f their local Chamber would be responsible for keeping the larger
Chamber informed ( Herb Brewer ) .
Krys thanked everyone in attendance . Larry Thompson indicated
t hat he would be very interested in participating on the TASK FORCE .
The next meeting will be March 28 , 1994 at 7 : 30 PM at the Town Hall .
Greg made the motion for adjournment and Gerri seconded . The meeting
adjourned at 9 : 20PM .
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