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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZBA Minutes 2002-10-21 FILE DATE TOWN OF ITHACA ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS MONDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2002 7: 00 P.M. APPEAL of James and Nancy Lavo, Appellants, Attorney Gwen Seaquist, Agent, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 1. 4 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to maintain an existing single-family residence with a front yard building setback of 15 feet (25 feet required) at 111 Sharlene Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 57- 1 -8 . 153 , Residence District R- 15 . WITHDRAWN APPEAL of Tom Greenspun, Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article XI, Section 51 and Article X, Section 21 and 23 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to create by subdivision, a building lot having 50 feet of road frontage, whereas 60 feet is required (with 150 foot width 60 feet back from the street line also being required) at 439 Bostwick Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcels No . 32-2-3 .2, -3 .4, in an Agricultural District (R-30 regulations apply) . APPROVED APPEAL of Pravin Patel , Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV , Section 14 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to maintain a two-family residence with a 9 . 3 foot side yard setback ( 10 feet required for garages) at 198 King Road East, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 44- 1 -4 . 34, Residence District R- 15 . APPROVED APPEAL of the Finger Lakes School of Massage, Appellant, Ciaschi Property Management, Owners, requesting a variance from the requirement of Section 4 .01 - 1 (a) of the Town of Ithaca Sign Law, to be permitted to place a 20 + square foot sign (4 square foot limit) at 1251 Trumansburg Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 24-3-3 .4 in a Special Land Use District #4 . APPROVED APPEAL of Independent Wireless One, Appellant, Timothy Frateschi, Harris Beach , LLP, Agent, Town of Ithaca, Landowner, requesting a Special Approval under Article XIII, Section 70a to be permitted to place a telecommunications antenna at the Town of Ithaca Christopher Circle Water Tank, 99 Christopher Circle, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 72- 1 - 10, Residence District R- 15 . A variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 11 of said Ordinance is also requested in order to have a structure with a height of greater than 30 feet. APPROVED FILE DATE , _ ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS MONDAY, OCTOBER 21 , 2002 7 : 00 P . M . PRESENT : Kirk Sigel , Chairman , Harry Ellsworth , Vice-Chairman ; Ronald Krantz , Board Member; James Niefer, Board Member, Andrew Dixon , Board Member; Andy Frost , Director of Building/Zoning ; John Barney, Attorney for the Town ; Mike Smith , Environmental Planner. ALSO PRESENT : Ron Brunuzi , Pyramid Network Service ; Tim Frateschi , 300 South State Street , Sy Syracuse ; Dick Woodhouse , Moore Woodhouse & Pawlk , Elmira ; Jennifer Heatley, Finger Lakes School of Massage ; Tom Greenspun , 320 Washington St . Chairperson Sigel called the October 21St , 2002 meeting of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Board of Appeals to order at 7 : 05 p . m . Chairperson Sigel — We have five appeals this evening . That of James and Nancy Lavo ; Tom Greenspun ; Pravin Patel ; Fingerlakes School of Message ; and Independent Wireless One . We will be taking them in that order. APPEAL : James and Nancy Lavo , Appellants , Attorney Gwen Seaquist, Agent, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 14 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to maintain an existing single-family residence with a front yard building setback of 15 feet (25 feet required ) at 111 Sharlene Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 57- 1 -8 . 153 , Residence District R-15. Would someone regarding that appeal like to come to the podium ? Apparently they have withdrawn their appeal . APPEAL : Tom Greenspun , Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article XI , Section 51 and Article X , Section 21 and 23 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to create by subdivision , a building lot having 50 feet of road frontage, whereas 60 feet is required (with 150 foot width 60 feet back from the street line also being required ) at 439 Bostwick Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcels No . 32-2-3 .2 , -3 .4, in an Agricultural District ( R- 30 regulations apply) . Chairperson Sigel — Would you give us an overview of your application and why you need what you need . Tom Greenspun , 320 Washington Street — I don 't know how many of you have a map of what we ' re talking about . The reason we ' re asking for a variance is because we ' re subdividing a lot behind the front piece there , that would have been 32 . -2-3 . 4 , 1 believe for the piece that exists as 441 Bostwick Road that has frontage . So , the piece that we ' re looking to subdivide is behind that and we were trying to find a way that we could fulfill the road frontage zoning . We presented a couple things , one 1 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved idea was to have a permanent easement written into the deed of the front piece . That wasn 't a doable option , so this is what we worked out that would give both pieces frontage . Mr. Niefer — We have a picture of a house in the material that we received , is that house on parcel one , parcel two or neither? Mr. Greenspun — Which is parcel one? Do you mind if I take a look at one of these? Mr. Neifer — So it's not on parcel one , not on two , but on another? Chairperson Sigel — So , I ' m a little confused from the map . Is it the case that parcel —3 . 4 is being newly created ? Mr. Smith — It' s a little confusing on the survey map because the parcel that is labeled —3 . 5 is incorrectly labeled on the survey map . The two parcels here are actually —3 . 2 and —3 . 4 . There isn 't a —3 . 5 up there . There was another map that I started to pass around which made it a little clearer. Chairperson Sigel — So everywhere it says —3 . 5 , it should be —3 . 4 ? Mr. Frost — Right . 3 . 5 should be omitted . We actually advertised it as such and then corrected it before it got printed . Mr. Smith — That is actually one of the conditions of the Planning Board Resolution , to correct the plat to the correct numbers . Mr. Greenspun — I believe the surveyor did get a copy of that , of the corrected numbers . Chairperson Sigel — Andy , is this going to be the new map number? Mr. Frost — What Mike had just said is that this is the map that went before the Planning Board and in their review , they determined —3 . 5 does not exist , so they have to file a new map as a condition of finalizing the subdivision for the Planning Board . Mr. Smith — The new parcel that' s created is going to be the combination of parcel one and parcel two . Chairperson Sigel — Are each of those sub- parcels , coming off of larger parcels ? Mr. Smith — Yes . Parcel one is coming off of the larger -3 . 2 and parcel two is coming off of the larger —3 . 4 . And they are going to be combined together to form a parcel . Chairperson Sigel — Okay. Mr. Greenspun - The one that is now labeled —3 . 5 would become it ' s own parcel . I guess that' s why you labeled it —3 . 5 , 1 don 't know . 2 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Krantz — So the only thing that we have to really deal with is the fact that it should be 60 feet? Chairperson Sigel — Well , it would be deficient 60 feet back from the lot line where 150 feet is required . Mr. Greenspun — And I believe we are addressing that issue for the parcel that would be left as what was labeled -3 . 5 is also , I believe we put in variances for both of them . I don 't know if we ' re adjusting that now or if we ' re just adjusting the one . Chairperson Sigel — We don 't have that advertised . Andy , is there an issue with this remaining portion , here ? Mr. Frost — The appeal would apply to both parcels , it' s advertised for both parcels . Chairperson Sigel — This one looks like it has about 60 feet at the road . Mr. Frost — But it' s not going to have the 150 feet at the front yard setback. Chairperson Sigel — So that one does need it . It looks like maybe 120 . It looks like the lot for the remaining land , I guess it' s west of parcel two , it also has a deficiency 60 feet back . It would need to be 150 feet wide . It appears to be only about 120 feet . Mr. Greenspun — I think the way that it breaks down is that it would be 50 at the road and 100 back because it was originally, before this could be cut out , it was 150 here and then 100 at the road . Mr. Frost — But you still would need the 150 . Each lot needs 150 at the road . Chairperson Sigel — So you ' re saying that you had the 150 before you cut out the 50 feet? So that should be approximately 100 feet . Any questions or comments ? Mr. Krantz — How many homes do you think that 50 foot right of way is going to service? Mr. Greenspun — One . Mr. Krantz — It does not service the Holms house ? Mr. Greenspun — No , but the existing driveway will service the house that is on —3 . 4 . Part of the Planning Board ' s specifications was that in the deed , there would have to be an easement drawn up so that they could use that driveway . Chairperson Sigel — Any other questions? This seems pretty reasonable . We have no Environmental Assessment for this . Chairperson Sigel opened the Public Hearing at 7 : 17 p . m . With no persons present to be heard , Chairperson Sigel closed the Public Hearing at 7 : 18 p . m . 3 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Barney — Can I suggest that the dimension not be less than 49 . 5 feet? There is a Town Law that requires for a town road to be 49 . 5 feet so if they' re ever to make this into a road , if you go below 49 . 5 feet you could have a problem . ZB RESOLUTION NO. 2002-066 : Tom Greenspun , Appellant, 439 Bostwick Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 32 . -2-3 .2 , -3 . 4, Agricultural District , R -30 Regulations Apply. MOTION made by Kirk Sigel , seconded by Ronald Krantz . RESOLVED , that this Board grants the appeal of Tom Greenspun , Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article XI , Section 51 and Article X , Section 21 and 23 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance , to be permitted to create , by subdivision , a building lot having not less than 49 . 5 feet of road frontage and not less than 49 . 5 feet of lot width 60 feet back from the street line at 439 Bostwick Road , what is shown on the survey map as a combination of parcels I and II (a new Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel Number to be assigned by the tax assessment department) , in an Agricultural District ( R-30 regulations apply) . FINDINGS : a . All the requirement for an area variance have been satisfied . CONDITIONS : NONE The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously . ZB RESOLUTION NO . 2002-067 : Tom Greenspun , Appellant, 439 Bostwick Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 32 .-2-3 . 4 , Agricultural District , R-30 Regulations ApplV. MOTION made by Kirk Sigel , seconded by Ronald Krantz . RESOLVED , that this Board grants the appeal of Tom Greenspun , Appellant , requesting a variance from the requirements of Article XI , Section 51 and Article X , Section 21 and 23 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance , to allow a lot to have a width at the road not less than 49 . 5 feet and a width 60 feet back from the road not less than 98 feet at 439 Bostwick Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 32-2 - 3 . 4 , in an Agricultural District ( R-30 regulations apply) . 4 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved FINDINGS : a . All the requirements for an area variance have been satisfied . CONDITIONS : NONE The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously . APPEAL : Pravin Patel , Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 14 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to maintain a two-family residence with a 9 . 3 foot side yard setback ( 10 feet required for garages) at 198 King Road East, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 44-1 -4. 34, Residence District R-15 . Dick Woodhouse , Elmira — I represent Mr. and Mrs . Patel in this application . We are asking relief from Article IV , Section 14 of your zoning ordinance in that the residence owned by the Patels at that address , of 198 East King Road is located roughly eight inches too close to their westerly property line . The Patels also own the property to the west , so they' re not imposing on someone else , it ' s their own property . The house was inadvertently built in that fashion when it was built 12 or 14 years ago and it would be unreasonably expensive and damaging to the property to try to correct the situation , to correct an eight inch variation . We ' re asking for variance to allow the building to be maintained in its present location . Chairperson Sigel — That sounds pretty straightforward . Mr. Woodhouse- It certainly does . Chairperson Sigel — Again , we have no Environmental Assessment . Any questions or comments . Chairperson Sigel opened the Public Hearing at 7 : 23 p . m . With no persons present to be heard , Chairperson Sigel closed the Public Hearing at 7 : 24 p . m . Mr. Niefer — I have a question about Town procedure in a matter such as this . In 1987 , when this was built , building permits were issued and presumably the property was staked out . Doesn 't anyone go out and look at these . 5 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Frost — When we measured it , the stakes had been moved , so we thought it was fine . It probably could have been an error from the surveyor for that kind of distance , would be my guess . The permit wouldn 't have been issued if they showed on permit a plot plan that showed that nine foot , seven inches , they wouldn 't have gotten a permit . Mr. Niefer — Because it seems like this happens fairly frequently . My experience has been that the Town of Ithaca has been around to look at projects during the course of construction . At least at our house they did . Mr. Frost — We ' re not surveyors and we would not go out there and certify a survey for the site of the house , unless we asked them to create an "as built" survey after the foundation is in , which we can do , but we try to avoid that . Now , I don 't know if we were doing it in 1987 , but our certificates actually state whether a survey was a part of the certification or not . Chairperson Sigel - Mostly , it is the applicant' s responsibility to make sure that they build it as they indicate . Any questions , would someone like to make a motion . ZB RESOLUTION NO . 2002-068 : Pravin Patel , 198 King Road East, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 44. -1 -4. 34 , Residence District R- 15 MOTION made by Ronald Krantz , seconded James Niefer. RESOLVED , that this Board grant the appeal of Pravin Patel , Appellant , requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV , Section 14 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance , to be permitted to maintain a two-family residence with a 9 foot side yard setback at 198 King Road East , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 44- 1 -4 . 34 , Residence District R- 15 . FINDINGS : a . The requirements for an area variance have been met . CONDITIONS : NONE The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously . 6 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved APPEAL : The Finger Lakes School of Massage, Appellant, Ciaschii Property Management, Owners , requesting a variance from the requirement of Section 4. 01 =1 (a) of the Town of Ithaca Sign Law , to be permitted to place a 20 + square foot sign (4 square foot limit) at 1251 Trumansburg Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 24=3-3 . 4 in a Special Land Use District #4. Chairperson Sigel — Could you please state your name and address . Jennifer Heatly , Fingerlakes School of Massage , 1251 Trumansburg Road — The sign that 's been there since the school was founded ten years ago . The speed limit there is 45 miles per hour. If you ' re going the speed limit , it is really difficult to read the sign and the sign is also really weathered at this point. It can be sort of a treacherous right hand turn to get there into the school . Do you all have the renderings of the new sign ? Chairperson Sigel — Yes , we have a black and white drawing . Ms . Heatly — It' s mostly blue and green and it' s cream colored lettering . So our goal is to have the sign not be an eyesore . It 's slightly bigger than the one that we have now. We want it to be as aesthetic as possible and we think that the blues and the greens blend in nicely with the background . Chairperson Sigel — So , it there still going to be the developmental disabilities sign underneath ? Ms . Heatly — Right , that will be attached underneath . Chairperson Sigel — And the total square footage of both signs is approximately 20? Mr. Frost — Actually , I was looking at the developmental disabilities sign as exempt . Given the nature of what they serve there , I believe it is an exempt institution , similar to a hospital . Chairperson Sigel — Do you have a copy of the sign law Andrew? Mr. Dixon — Yes . It's not on the side of a truck either. Chairperson Sigel — We ' re definitely improving . Mr. Frost — I ' m on page three of the sign ordinance . Actually , they' re allowed up to 24 square feet . Mr. Krantz — Is anything else housed in that building ? Ms . Heatly — There are some residents living on the third floor of the building , I believe and then in the basement of where we are is like a catering service . Mr. Frost — I think I need to clarify that the Developmental Disabilities is not in this building . It' s in an adjacent building , it' s actually a separate property . The buildings are attached , but with a party wall , so to speak . Without complicating things , those are two separate buildings , with a property line running through . The Developmental Disabilities is really run by New York State . 7 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Krantz — Are there likely to be businesses in that building ? Mr. Frost — There are some other kinds of businesses on the second floor. You haven ' t taken over the second floor have you ? Ms . Heatly — No . Mr. Krantz — It's kind of a big building . Mr. Frost — There are apartments on the third floor. Mr. Krantz — Could you run into a situation where you end up with a lot of signs? Mr. Frost — No one else has put signs up , except what we have here . Mr. Krantz — A series of sign could break out . Chairperson Sigel — Well , they've had it up there for ten years and we haven 't had anything else come out . Mr. Ellsworth — They would need a permit to do so anyway. Chairperson Sigel — Has the Developmental Disabilities sign been there as long as the School of Massage sign ? Ms . Heatly — As far as I 'm aware . They don 't plan on changing it any time , it 's not in the budget to change it in the near future . Mr. Frost — Any other signage that' s part of the businesses or the apartments within this building would need a sign permit . Chairperson Sigel — It does appear that it has been about ten years with only these two signs and no one else has wanted to . So you were thinking we would just not . . . Mr. Frost — I wasn 't counting that as a part of the square footage . Chairperson Sigel — So not attach the developmental disabilities sign to the variance at all ? Mr. Frost — Right . Mr. Barney — On what theory? Chairperson Sigel — That Andy says it ' s okay . Government agency and public building identification ? Mr. Barney — I ' m not sure how you get government agency . 8 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Frost — It' s a state run facility . Chairperson Sigel — We ' re just trying to figure out if we have to tack on the Disabilities Services sign as well . According to the Planning Department Memorandum , the old sign is about 17 1/2 square feet , you ' ll be raising it to 20 . 2 square feet . So it' s . . . . . Ms . Heatly - Two feet , seven inches , I think . Chairperson Sigel — It' s not too big an increase . Mr. Smith — Both of those numbers include both those signs together. Mr. Dixon — So we might as well include both signs . Chairperson Sigel — Yeah . It seems it might be the case that the Developmental Disabilities sign might also need an off premises sign variance . Mr. Frost — We were actually going to call this a school and state it was exempt and Mr. Barney felt . . . Mr. Barney — It doesn 't say school . If it said school , I probably would have , but the language is university or college . That' s different than school . Libraries , museums , nursing homes . . . " Signs as needed to identify the buildings or activities of colleges or universities , not to exceed 24 square feet . " I don 't think we could quite qualify this as a college or university? Ms . Heatly — No . Mr. Krantz — You ' re really just increasing this sign by less than 15 % . Ms . Heatly — Yes . Mr. Frost — I think the other thing that I was thinking was perhaps 3 . 02- 1 C , which would allow a 24 square foot sign for nursing homes or similar institutions and one free standing sign under it , which could not exceed 24 square foot . That Development Disabilities sign is definitely not that and they' re not over six foot high . I think that' s actually the one I was looking at , not the state thing , which I think could be argued likewise as legitimate . Mr. Barney — You mean your theory's changed ? Mr. Frost — No , as I told him , I had mentioned institutions , but I couldn 't see that at this meeting here . But I would argue it either way , either as a state or an institution , similar to a nursing home . Mr. Barney — I ' d buy that . Mr. Frost — Which is allowed up to 24 square feet . I think that' s what I originally looked at when I wrote this . 9 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Chairperson Sigel — So we can just not say anything about it? Mr. Frost — It' s less than 24 square feet . Chairperson Sigel — So then we should probably give the variance actually for just the size of the School of Massage sign . Mike said the 20 square feet is both signs combined . Mr. Frost — Well , actually I did the math on that and I think it came out to 11 . 25 on one side . I did three foot by 3 . 75 and came out with 11 . 25 . Chairperson Sigel — Okay , so they only need a variance for, say , 12 feet . Mr. Frost — Okay . Chairperson Sigel — It appears that the School of Massage sign is a little bit under 12 square feet and John ' s opinion is that the Developmental Disabilities sign is completely exempt , at its size . Chairperson Sigel opened the Public Hearing at 7 : 37 p . m . With no person present to be heard , Chairperson Sigel closed the Public Hearing at 7 : 38 p . m . Chairperson Sigel — Mike , any comments on the Environmental Assessment? Mr. Barney — We ' re having a little debate here as to do you or do you not include the posts . Chairperson Sigel — Trying to beef up the variance number. Mr. Barney — Well , normally you exclude the posts , but the posts have a design on them now . Mr. Frost — But the ordinance doesn 't say that , it says , "exclusive of supporting posts . " If you look under definition of sign area for freestanding signs . Would you call that a decorative appendage or a support . I say it' s a support , decorative or otherwise . Mr. Barney - A sign area of 17 , is that what we ' re talking about here ? Mr. Frost — This is a free-standing sign , correct? So on page 15 , it's what a free-standing sign area is . Page 15 , you see it . If you want to argue that the supporting posts are decorative appendages , which I would say not , it says but exclusive of supports . Mr. Barney — But it says " inclusive of decorative appendages" . Mr . Frost — But is a support a support with or without decorations . Chairperson Sigel — You could say that it is a support up to here . Mr. Barney- Right , and then it ' s a decorative appendage . 10 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Frost — I wouldn 't see it that way , but I think we ' ll probably be here all night . Mr. Barney — Plus your sign area specifically says "areas of graphics" . Chairperson Sigel — Okay , so both posts is another foot by 3 and 3/4 square feet . Okay with the upper part of the post , 16 square feet , which is less than advertised . Mike , any comments on the Environmental Assessment? Mr. Smith — Nothing to add . Chairperson Sigel — Any questions or comments? Mr. Krantz — I want to make a comment . I doesn 't seem worthwhile , what you ' re doing . You say your sign is not readable from the road , so you ' re increasing it 14% . That doesn 't make much sense . Why don 't you increase it substantially? Ms . Heatly — Well , we also don 't want it to be obnoxious either. We think it will be readable if we increase it this percentage . Mr. Krantz — I don 't think 14% is going to make a whole lot of difference . Chairperson Sigel — Well , it' s lettering too . Ms . Heatly — The lettering is a lot larger. Chairperson Sigel — The lettering is becoming a larger percentage of the sign , I think and it is a clearer block letter. We ' re not supposed to encourage people to make big signs . If there aren 't any other questions or comments would someone like to make a motion on the Environmental Assessment? ZB RESOLUTION NO . 2002-069 : ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT : Finger Lakes School of Massage , 1251 Trumansburg Road , Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 24. —3 -3 . 4 , Special Land Use District #4. MOTION made by Harry Ellsworth , seconded by Andrew Dixon . RESOLVED, that this Board makes a negative determination of environmental significance in the appeal of the Finger Lakes School of Massage , Appellant , Ciaschi Property Management , Owners , requesting a variance from the requirement of Section 4 . 01 - 1 (a) of the Town of Ithaca Sign Law , to be permitted to place a sign of no more than 16 square feet at 1251 Trumansburg Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 24-3-3 . 4 in a Special Land Use District #4 , based upon the environmental assessment completed by Town planning staff dated October 3 , 2002 . 11 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously. ZB RESOLUTION NO . 2002-070 : Fingerlakes School of Massage, 1251 Trumansburg Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 24.-3-3 . 4 , Special Land Use District #4. MOTION made by Kirk Sigel , seconded by Harry Ellsworth . RESOLVED , that this Board grants the appeal of the Finger Lakes School of Massage , Appellant , Ciaschi Property Management , Owners , requesting a variance from the requirements of Section 4 . 01 - 1 (a) of the Town of Ithaca Sign Law , to be permitted to place a sign not to exceed 16 square feet at 1251 Trumansburg Road , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 24-3-3 . 4 in a Special Land Use District #4 . FINDINGS : a . All requirements of an area variance have been satisfied . CONDITIONS : a . The sign must be constructed according to the specifications set forth in the plans submitted by the applicant . The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously. Chairperson Sigel- You can put the Developmental Disabilities sign back up . The Developmental Disabilities sign is exempt and didn 't need a variance . APPEAL - Independent Wireless One, Appellant, Timothy Frateschi , Harris Beach , LLP, Agent, Town of Ithaca , Landowner, requesting a Special Approval under Article XIII , Section 70a to be permitted to place a telecommunications antenna at the Town of Ithaca Christopher Circle Water Tank, 99 Christopher Circle, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 72-1 - 10, Residence District 12 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved R-15 . A variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 11 of said Ordinance is also requested in order to have a structure with a height of greater than 30 feet. Tim Frateschi , Harris , Beach , 300 South State Street , Syracuse — On September 3 I we came before the Planning Board with our application for special approval to place six antennas on the Christopher water tank , which would provide service for a coverage gap that we have in the northern area in the Town of Ithaca . They reviewed the application and recommended that the Zoning Board of Appeals approve the special approval permit and they also provided us with a negative declaration on SEQR . We come before you tonight as a follow- up to the Planning Board ' s meeting to request that you provide Independent One Wireless Corporation , who Harris Beach represents in this application . Provide them with the special approval to construct the telecommunications tower. Chairperson Sigel — I have one question on the section on page four, in the first section of your binder, under removal of tower, it says that you agree to move the tower. That doesn 't really seem . . . Mr. Frateschi — It doesn 't seem possible . Chairperson Sigel — The Town wouldn 't appreciate that . I don 't know how important that is . Mr. Frateschi — Well , the law requires that we make provision for the tower coming down if we don 't maintain it , but this is a water tank and we will stipulate that we will not take the water tank down unless the Town of Ithaca requests us to do so . Even in that case , we probably won 't take the water tank down , we ' ll take our equipment off of it . Chairperson Sigel — There are actually a couple of sections that deal with removal . Mr. Frateschi — Well , this says that they agree to remove the antennas , structures , buildings , equipment , utilities , fencings , gates , accessory equipment of structures dedicated solely for the use within the telecommunication facility itself , rather than the tower. So , unless you ' re reading something different than I am reading . Chairperson Sigel — On page four, the beginning of the section " removal of tower" it says you agree to remove the tower. Mr. Frateschi — I could remove that from the document , if you ' d like . Mr. Barney — Actually I think it just agrees to remove the antenna and related facilities . Mr. Frateschi — Oh , I ' m sorry . I was looking at the removal on page three . Chairperson Sigel — Yeah , the previous page . Mr. Barney — On page four, Tim , it' s removal of Tower. Mr. Frateschi — 1 see , we can strike the word tower, if you 'd like or have it read anyway you ' d like . We ' ll amend the application . 13 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Barney — If you just said remove the antenna and related facilities . Mr. Frateschi — It falls within the 70 foot fall zone that is required by the Town , but if it didn 't we would request a variance from that , but it does meet the fall zone requirements . Mr. Barney — So , if the tower falls down , a lot of people are going to get wet . The antennas probably won 't be our concern . Mr. Niefer — Is this for different cell phone services ? Mr. Frateschi — This will be for Sprint PCS services . IWO is the licensee for Sprint in upstate New York . Mr. Niefer — Are you going to have to construct a smaller building within the fenced area of the water tower. Mr. Frateschi — We don 't build buildings . We ' ll put a 10 x 12 concrete pad , which we ' ll place our telecommunications equipment on . I think there are three equipment boxes , they look like small refrigerators that ' ll be situated on the concrete pad , but there' ll be no structure — it' ll just be a concrete pad . Apparently, you ' re requiring a variance from the structure height also , even though it's an existing structure . We did that last time . Mr. Frost — Just for the antenna . Mr. Frateschi — Well , the antenna will be below the height of the water tank . Mr. Frost — I ' d rather put it in , than not have it and need it . Mr. Barney — How many antennas are there ? Mr. Frateschi — There will be six . Mr. Barney — These are rod type antennas? Mr. Frateschi — They' re three foot panels . Six foot , I ' m sorry . There should be a photo simulation . Mr. Barney — There is , but I can 't quite tell from that . Chairperson Sigel — The photo shows them as the same color as the tank . Are you going to paint them ? Mr. Frateschi — I don 't think we were going to , but we would be happy to if that 's what you require . Chairperson Sigel — I 've got to say , I was down in West Chester County yesterday and on the Hutchison River Parkway they have about a seventy foot tower that looks like a pine tree . 14 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Frateschi — Counselor, they' ll be six foot by eight inches . Mr. Barney — And they' ll be painted to match the existing tank. Mr. Frateschi — Okay . Chairperson Sigel — It wasn 't brought up at the Planning Board meeting ? Mr. Frateschi — I don 't recall that being brought up at Planning Board , but that' s a requirement that's not uncommon and we'd be happy to do it . Mr. Barney — You ' re representing that you will here . Tank elevation shows proposed antenna cables and the proposed antenna is painted to match the tank . Mr. Frateschi — We ' ll be bound by our drawings . Chairperson Sigel — Does anyone , either Andy or John or Mike do you recall why there were a couple of Planning Board members who voted against it? Were there concerns about it ? Mr. Barney — Unfortunately , I wasn 't at that meeting , Dave covered for me . Mr. Smith — One of the votes I wasn 't really sure of . There were a lot of the residents from the area that were there , that really didn 't have a lot to do with this project . They were unhappy with some of the Town activity on the parcel . They were using it as a storage area for some construction work and they were upset over some of the screening which was promised in the past . I think some of those things influenced the decision , even though it didn 't have anything to do with this project . There were a lot of vocal residents that really didn 't have a lot to do with this application , but it gave them an opportunity to express them . Mr. Barney — They were mostly from Woolf Lane . Chairperson Sigel — Any other questions at this point? Mr. Ellsworth — I would certainly like to encourage using existing structures . If you want to see a beautiful example of what would happen , next time you go by Tully, this thing had to go up just last month . It's not a telecommunications , it must be something else , but it 's got a huge , almost like a radar on top of it . That thing must stick 150 foot above the top of a high hill . It just sticks out like a sore thumb . Chairperson Sigel — I agree . We certainly like to encourage this ; it seems to blend in well . Chairperson Sigel opened the Public Hearing at 7 : 55 p . m . With no persons present to be heard , Chairperson Sigel closed the Public Hearing at 7 : 56 p . m . Chairperson Sigel — Do we need to act on the Environmental Assessment? 15 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Smith — Yes , they only acted on the site plan . Chairperson Sigel — Any comments on the Environmental Review? Mr. Smith — No . Chairperson Sigel — Okay , so we need to make a motion on the Environmental Assessment as well as the appeal itself . ZB RESOLUTION NO . 2002-071 : ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Wireless One, 99 Christopher Circle, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 72 . - 1 - 10 , Residence District R- 15 . MOTION made by Harry Ellsworth , seconded by Andrew Dixon . RESOLVED , that this Board makes a negative determination of environmental significance in the matter of the appeal of Independent Wireless One , Appellant , Timothy Frateschi , Harris Beach , LLP , Agent , Town of Ithaca , Landowner, requesting a Special Approval under Article XIII , Section 70a to be permitted to place a telecommunications antenna at the Town of Ithaca Christopher Circle Water Tank , 99 Christopher Circle , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No , 72- 1 - 10 , Residence District R- 15 based upon the environmental assessment completed by Town planning staff ( undated ) . The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously . Mr. Smith — I just wanted to mention that in the Planning Board 's resolution , if you look at page three , there are three items that need to be waived by the Zoning Board . ZB RESOLUTION NO . 2002-072 : Independent Wireless One , 99 Christopher Circle, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No . 72 .=1 - 10 , Residence District R- 15 . MOTION made by Kirk Sigel , seconded by Harry Ellsworth . RESOLVED , that this Board grants the appeal of Independent Wireless One , Appellant , Timothy Frateschi , Harris Beach , LLP , Agent , Town of Ithaca , Landowner, requesting a Special Approval under Article XIII , Section 70a to be permitted to place a telecommunications antenna at the Town of Ithaca Christopher Circle Water Tank , 99 Christopher Circle , Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No , 72- 1 - 10 , Residence District R- 15 and also grants a variance from the requirements of Article IV , Section 11 of said Ordinance to be permitted to have a structure with a height no greater than 73 feet or the height of the tank , whichever is lower. This board also waives the requirements noted in section 3 of the 16 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Planning Board Resolution dated September 3 , 2002 , which are as follows : a . An inventory report specifying existing telecommunication facility sites and evaluation of opportunities for shared use , b . The dimensional standards indicating the fall zone having a radius equal to the height of attached antennae , and c . The agreement to negotiate with subsequent applicants seeking to co- locate telecommunication facilities on the initial applicant' s structures . FINDINGS : a . The requirements for a special approval and for an area variance have been satisfied . b . The power density is well below the current FCC guidelines for exposure and therefore should have no impact on public health . CONDITIONS : a . The antennae must be painted a color to match the water tower. b . The conditions 2 ( b) , 2 (c) , 2 (d ) , and 2 (e) found in the Planning Board Resolution 2002-093 , dated September 3 , 2002 , must be satisfied . c . The construction and placement of the antennae must be as represented in the plans submitted for the application . The vote on the MOTION resulted as follows : AYES : Sigel , Ellsworth , Krantz , Niefer, Dixon NAYS : None The MOTION was declared to be carried unanimously. Mr. Barney — As a point of information , could you tell me why you need a GPS antenna ? I noticed your engineer says you ' re going to install six communications antennae and one GPS antennae , what would the GPS antenna be for? Mr. Frateschi — The GPS antenna does not need to be located on the tank itself though , it says here . Mr. Barney — What 's it for? Unidentified Member of the Audience — Each piece of equipment has to have a time reference so they can all talk to each other at the correct time . Mr. Barney — I ' m familiar with GPS in other applications , but I was trying to think why you needed it for this . Unidentified Member of the Audience — To have all of our sites talking to each other at exactly the same time . 17 ZBA 10/21 /02 Minutes Approved Mr. Barney — And you get that time off the satellites that way. Thank you . Chairperson Sigel — Any other official business . Chairperson Sigel adjourned the October 21 , 2002 meeting of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Board of Appeals at 8 : 05 p . m . Kirk Sigel , ZBA Chair Lori Waring , ZBA Se r tary 18 TON'VN OF ITHACA ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS MONDAY, OCTOBER 21 , 2002 7 : 00 P.M . By direction of the Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Public Hearings will be held by the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Ithaca on Monday, October 21 , 2002 , in Town Hall , 215 North Tioga Street, Tioga Street Entrance, Ithaca, NY, COMMENCING AT 7 : 00 P.M . , on the following matters : APPEAL of James and Nancy Lavo, Appellants, Attorney Gwen Seaquist, Agent, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 14 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to maintain an existing single-family residence with a front yard building setback of 15 feet (25 feet required) at l 11 Sharlene Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 57- 1 -8. 153 , Residence District R- 15 . APPEAL of Tom Greenspun, Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article XI, Section 51 and Article X, Section 21 and 23 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to create by subdivision, a building lot having 50 feet of road frontage, whereas 60 feet is required (with 150 foot width 60 feet back from the street Iine also being required) at 439 Bostwick Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcels No. 32-2-3 .2, -3 .4 , in an Agricultural District (R-30 regulations apply). APPEAL of Pravin Patel, Appellant, requesting a variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section 14 of the Town of Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, to be permitted to maintain a two-family residence with a 9 .3 foot side yard setback ( 10 feet required for garages) at 198 King Road East, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 44- 14 .34, Residence District R- 15 . APPEAL of the Finger Lakes School of Massage, Appellant, Ciaschi Property Management, Owners, requesting a variance from the requirement of Section 4 . 01 - 1 (a) of the Town of Ithaca Sign Law, to be permitted to place a 20 ± square foot sign (4 square foot limit) at 1251 Trumansburg Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 24-3 -3 .4 in a Special Land Use District #4 . APPEAL of Independent Wireless One, Appellant, Timothy Frateschi, Harris Beach, LLP, Agent, Town of Ithaca, Landowner, requesting a Special Approval under Article XIII, Section 70a to be permitted to place a telecommunications antenna at the Town of Ithaca Christopher Circle Water Tank, 99 Christopher Circle, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No, 724 - 10, Residence District R45 . A variance from the requirements of Article IV, Section I 1 of said Ordinance is also requested in order to have a structure with a height of greater than 30 feet. Said Zoning Board of Appeals will at said time, 7 : 00 p.m. , and said place, hear all persons in support of such matters or objections thereto. Persons may appear by agent or in person. Individuals with visual or hearing impairments or other special needs, as appropriate, will be provided with assistance, as necessary, upon request. Persons desiring assistance must make such a request not less than 48 hours prior to the time of the public hearing. Andrew S . Frost Director of Building and Zoning 273- 1783 Dated : October 11 , 2002 Published : October 14 , 2002 TOWN OF ITHACA AFFIDAVIT OF POSTING AND PUBLICATION I, Dani L. Holford, being duly sworn, depose and say that I am the Town of Ithaca Building and Zoning Department Secretary, Tompkins County, New York; that the following notice has been duly posted on the sign board of the Town of Ithaca and that said notice has been duly published in the local newspaper, The Ithaca Journal . Notice of public hearings to be held by the Town of Ithaca Zoning Board of Appeals in Town Hall 215 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, New York on Monday, October 21 , 2002 , commencing at 7 : 00 P. M . as per attached. Location of sign board used for posting: Town Clerk Sign Board — 215 North Tioga Street. Date of posting: October 11 , 2002 Date of publication: October 16, 2002 Dani L. Holford, Building and Zoning Department Secretary, Town of Ithaca STATE OF NEW YORK ) SS. : COUNTY OF TOMPKINS ) Sworn to and subscribed before me this 16th day of October 2002 . Notary Public CARRIE WHITMORE Notary Public, State of New York No , 01WH6052877 Tioga County ,/— Commission Expires December 26,;