HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-11-25- TB Town of Ulysses
Town Board & Planning Board
Joint Zoning Work Session
11 /25/2002
PRESENT : Town Supervisor Douglas Austic , Councilpeople Carolyn Duddleston and
Sue Poelvoorde, Planning Board Chairman Lorren Hammond, Planning Board Members
Richard Coogan, Rose Hilbert, George Kennedy, Rodney Porter, David Tyler, Code
Enforcement Officer Alex Rachun , Town Clerk Marsha Georgia, Planning Consultant
George Frantz.
The meeting was called to order at 7 : 00 pm .
Article III-Definitions
Mr. Frantz began by handing out two sheets containing sample sketches of setback
requirements for the various zoning areas of the draft Ordinance . The consensus of the
Board was that these sketches should be included in the Ordinance, and should be
inserted on Page 17 , following the written definitions .
Also under the heading of definitions, Mr. Frantz was asked to include a definition for
"Professional Office" , and the question was posed , whether or not "junk yard" should be
defined. Mr. Frantz noted that it is not explicitly defined in the current Zoning Ordinance.
The consensus was that there should be a specific definition of "junk yard, Mr. Frantz
suggested, "An open area for the outdoor storage of used building materials , scrap metal ,
papers, rags, glass, broken appliances, refuse, and unregistered automobiles". The Boards
discussed this, some felt that the definition perhaps should allow for summer cars, taken
off the road and unregistered during winter, and also for individuals who repair their
vehicles at their residences .
Special Permits-Multiple Articles of Ordinance
Mr. Tyler suggested delineating between those uses that require a " special permit" and
those that would essentially be a special exception . Another thought was to grant the
Town Planning Board explicit discretionary powers in regards to special permit
applications .
Mr. Austic noted that wherever "bed and breakfast inn" is entered in the Ordinance, it
should be changed to read, "bed and breakfast" .
Public Meeting
The next point of discussion was whether or not the tentatively scheduled public meeting
set for December 11 `h should take place at that time or not . The consensus was that the
draft Ordinance needs more revision before it should be presented to the public .
Some of the assembled were of the opinion that the draft Ordinance as it now stands does
not sufficiently deal with the protection of views and will not direct development as they
feel it should by eliminating the trend towards single- family construction on small lots
along roads and by, instead, pushing development in and immediately surrounding the
established Village of Trumansburg and Hamlet of Jacksonville, as well as the Waterburg
area. The Boards discussed how the Ordinance might be changed to meet these goals .
-It was noted that SEQR could be used to protect views , if the views to be
preserved are officially defined . Mr. Frantz urged against using SEQR as a crutch
to get by with in the absence of a solid and effective Zoning Ordinance.
-In regards to the Al District, the Boards discussed potential tax breaks to
encourage development in desirable directions . Mr. Austic noted that the only
taxes the Town of Ulysses could help a landowner with are the Town taxes, and,
since the Town tax rate is lower than those of the school or the County, it would
not be a very effective tax break . Another way of obtaining a tax break would
Town of Ulysses
Joint Zoning Work Session
11 /25/2002
necessitate the cooperation of the Tompkins County Assessment Department. Mr.
Austic and Mrs . Georgia stated this was not very likely to happen.
-The idea of encouraging cluster development where several residences are built
off a private road was also discussed . It was explained that the N . Y . S . Attorney
General 's Office handles the approval of such roads , and that the legal fees to go
about the application process make it very expensive .
-Mr. Austic suggested a provision of the Subdivision Ordinance whereby a
property may be split once, and all subsequent subdivisions of either the original
lot or the newly formed lot will require site plan review . Mr. Tyler spoke in favor
of requiring all subdivisions to be heard by the Planning Board . Mr. Rachun
pointed out that this would create an enormous burden on the Planning Board .
-Mr. Frantz stated that one relatively fail-proof method of controlling
development is the purchase of development rights . Mr. Tyler related how one
community that he is familiar with sets a certain percentage of the proceeds from
each real property sale aside specifically for the purchase of development rights to
protect its views . Mr. Tyler asked how the Town of Ulysses could do this . No
conclusion was reached, though this was discussed briefly.
-The suggestion was made that certain areas of the Town could be zoned only for
cluster development .
-Mr. Hammond's view is that development needs to be pushed in towards the
Village of Trumansburg and the Hamlets in such a way that it will be feasible to
walk to services provided in these more densely populated areas . In connection to
this , Mr. Hammond suggested a requirement that commercial buildings be at least
two stories tall, to allow for more rental residences .
-As was discussed at previous meetings, the consensus of the Town Board and
Planning Board was that more space should be designated as commercial .
-The Al District was discussed at length. Mr. Austic suggested reducing front
setbacks and inserting a setback requirement that would mandate a house be built
as close to a side lot line as possible, in order to protect open space .
In concluding the evening's business, the Planning Board set a meeting for December 11 `h 1
to address some matters of business that have recently come up . The Boards set the next
joint work session for 7 : 00 pm on December 5 `h
With no further business, the meeting adjourned at 10 : 25 pm .
Respectfully Submitted,
Marsha L. Georgia
Ulysses Town Clerk
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