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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2013-08-26BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS PROCEEDINGS CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Regular Meeting 4:45 p.m. August 26, 2013 PRESENT: Mayor Myrick Commissioners (4) - Jenkins, Darling, Morache, Leccese OTHERS PRESENT: Acting Superintendent of Public Works - Benjamin Assistant Superintendent of Water and Sewer – Whitney Common Council Liaison – Fleming Information Management Specialist - Myers Director of Parking – Nagy Director of Engineering – West EXCUSED: Commissioners Goldsmith, Acharya City Attorney - Lavine DAC Liaison – Roberts ADDITIONS TO OR DELETIONS FROM THE AGENDA: Director of Engineering West requested the addition of item 8.4B entitled “Award of Contract for Six Mile Creek Scour Remediation – Capital Project #787 – Resolution”. No Board Member objected. Commissioner Morache announced that he would be recusing himself from the discussion of item 9.5A entitled “Request to Purchase City Property from New Earth Living” due to a personal conflict. MAYOR’S COMMUNICATIONS: The Mayor had no communications at this time. COMMUNICATIONS AND HEARINGS FROM PERSONS BEFORE THE BOARD: Stanley McPherson, representing “ReComunity Recycling of Tompkins County”. He is campaigning throughout Tompkins County for that business as well as every business in the community to pay their employees a living wage. He has addressed the Tompkins County legislators on this topic multiple times to try to get a resolution on their table – it has been discussed at different committees, but nothing has been voted on yet. However, they use that as a platform when they’re applying for different grant opportunities. He is also asking the County to consider the need to require all their contractors pay a living wage as well. He also has a show on the local television channel that he uses to bring this matter to the attention of community members and to garner their support in these efforts. This affects many families in the community who need to work at 2-3 different jobs in order to make ends meet for their families - payment of a living wage to them would make a significant difference in their quality of life. RESPONSE TO PUBLIC: Mayor Myrick stated that paying a living wage to everyone one is very important to him. He knows that Tompkins County Legislators are wrestling with the situation and hoping they can get contractors to pay living wage well. He is also working with County Legislator, Martha Robertson, on this topic. REPORTS: Commissioner Leccese announced that she is resigning from the Board of Public Works effective at the end of today’s meeting. She has taken a new position at the University of Buffalo, and will be leaving Ithaca in a few weeks. She thanked the Mayor for the opportunity to serve on the Board, and noted that it has been a pleasure working with everyone. Everyone extended her their best wishes for her future endeavors. Director of Engineering West reported on the following items: Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 2  The Seneca Street garage repairs are moving along. He is unhappy to report that the contractor has found a very large number of tendons that need repair, which does not bode well for the overall health of the garage. He will provide the Board a full report at a later date.  NYS Bridge Inspection staff conducted a full inspection of the pedestrian bridge over Route 13 South near Home Depot last week. They found the deck to have some rot; otherwise the structure looks fine. Asst. Supt. Whitney reported on the following items:  Construction is underway for the new Water Treatment Plant’s various components. This includes the Giles Street residual facility, interconnecting the buildings on Water Street; the access road to the 60' dam is almost half done, with final completion to occur in 2014. A second bid for work on the 60’ dam will have to be done to complete the dredging – so all the work on the new water treatment plant is keeping engineers very busy accounting for every dime of the project.  Crews are working along Cayuga and Lake Street doing some directional drilling to replace a water main near Ithaca High School. They found one unmetered connection to a field house there so a new meter will be installed.  Crews are within three days of completing the water line replacement on Edgecliff Place, it’s taken longer than expected there because the crew has been pulled off the project several times to address other issues.  The fire flow pipe to Ridgewood Road to Thurston Avenue and to Highland Avenue were replaced and the flow went from 180 gallons per minutes to almost 900 gallons per minutes, almost 2,000 linear feet cleaned – with a replacement value of $100,000. He is very happy with those results. Acting Superintendent Benjamin reported on the following items:  The highway crew finished the lane widening project on East State/East Martin Luther King, Jr. Streets at Mitchell Street.  Crews will be setting up to repave Floral Avenue this week. They hope to have the repaving completed within two to three days with the assistance of county trucks/crews. The project will mean that some residents will be cut off from their driveways until the end of day. He stated that prior notification to all affected residents will be provided.  Crews have also been called to remove debris, including trash that has been dumped into the nets under the bridges. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Approval of the August 12, 2013 Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes – Resolution By Commissioner Darling: Seconded by Commissioner Jenkins RESOLVED, That the minutes of the August 12, 2013 Board of Public Works meeting be approved as published. Carried Unanimously VOTING ITEMS: Buildings, Properties, Refuse and Transit: Award of Contract for Ithaca Youth Bureau Sprinkler System Modifications – Resolution By Commissioner Morache: Seconded by Commissioner Leccese WHEREAS, bids were received on Monday, August 19, 2013, for the Ithaca Youth Bureau Sprinkler System Modifications on the Ithaca Youth Bureau Building located at 1 James L. Gibbs Drive, Ithaca, New York. 14850, and Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 3 WHEREAS, Davis Ulmer Sprinkler Co. Inc., 7633 Edgecomb Drive, Liverpool, New York, 13088, submitted the apparent low bid for the base bid for the Ithaca Youth Bureau Sprinkler System Modifications project of $35,950.00, now therefore be it RESOLVED, That the contract for the Ithaca Youth Bureau Sprinkler System Modifications, in the base bid amount of $35,950.00, is hereby awarded to Davis Ulmer Sprinkler Co. Inc., and be it further RESOLVED, That the Superintendent of Public Works be authorized to enter into and administer this contract. Carried Unanimously Creeks, Bridges and Parks: Recommendation for Appropriation to Capital Project #791 for the Lake Street Bridge Rehabilitation Project – Resolution By Commissioner Morache: Seconded by Commissioner Darling WHEREAS, a project for the rehabilitation of the Lake Street Bridge Over Six Mile Creek, P.I.N. 375534(“the Project”) is eligible for funding under Title 23 U.S. Code as administered by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), as amended, that calls for the apportionment of the costs such program to be borne at the ratio of 80% Federal funds and 20% non-Federal funds, and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca desires to advance the Project by making a commitment of 100% of the non-Federal share of the costs of Scoping, Preliminary Design, Detailed Design, Right of Way Incidentals ,Construction and Construction Inspection, and WHEREAS, this project constitutes a reconstruction of facility in-kind on the same site as well as maintenance or repair involving no substantial change in an existing facility, and is therefore a Type II action under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Regulation and in accordance with 6 NYCRR Part 617 requiring no environmental review; now therefore, the Common Council, duly convened does herby RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works recommends that Common Council hereby authorize the City of Ithaca to pay in the first instance 100% of the Federal and Non-Federal share of the cost of Scoping, Preliminary Design, Detailed Design, Right of Way Incidentals, Construction and Construction Inspection for the Project or portions thereof; and be it further RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works recommends that the sum of $1,464,250 be appropriated from Capital Project #791 and made available to cover the cost of participation in the above phase of the project; and it is further RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works recommends in the event the full Federal and Non-Federal share costs of the project exceeds the amount appropriated above, Common Council of the City of Ithaca shall convene as soon as possible to appropriate said excess amount immediately upon the notification by the New York State Department of Transportation thereof, and be it further RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works recommends that the Common Council authorizes the Superintendent of Public Works to administer the above project, and be it further RESOLVED, That a certified copy of this resolution be filed with the New York State Commissioner of Transportation by attaching it to any necessary Agreement in connection with the Project, and be it further RESOLVED, That this resolution shall take effect immediately. Carried Unanimously Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 4 Award of Contract for Six Mile Creek Scour Remediation – Capital Project #787 – Resolution By Commissioner Leccese: Seconded by Commissioner Morache WHEREAS, bids were received on August 26, 2013 for Six Mile Creek Scour Remediation, and WHEREAS, the Common Council established Capital Project #787 for Six Mile Creek Scour Remediation, and WHEREAS, Economy Paving Co., Inc., 1819 NYS Route 13, Cortland, NY submitted the lowest qualified responsible bid for general construction work of $115, 434.00; now, therefore be it RESOLVED, That the contract for general construction work related to the Six Mile Creek Scour Remediation project is awarded to Economy Paving Co., Inc., 1819 NYS Route 13, Cortland, NY for its low bid of $115,434.00, and be it further RESOLVED, That the Mayor be and hereby is authorized to execute this contract, and that the Superintendent of Public Works be and hereby is authorized to administer the same. Carried Unanimously Appeal of Snow Removal Bill for 903-05 North Cayuga Street - Resolution By Mayor Myrick: Seconded by Commissioner Jenkins WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works has received an appeal of the invoice for sidewalk snow removal by the Department of Public Works on January 4, 2103, at 903- 05 North Cayuga Street, and WHEREAS, the Board has reviewed photos and other information provided by city staff and the protest written by the owner of the property, and WHEREAS, it appears that the adjacent property owner at 903-05 North Cayuga Street failed to remove snow in a timely manner as required by City ordinance, now therefore be it RESOLVED, That the Board denies the appeal, and be it further RESOLVED, That the Board requests that no late fees or interest be charged on the bill. Carried Unanimously Request for Funding for a Historic Gravestone Conservation Workshop at Ithaca City Cemetery By Mayor Myrick: Seconded by Commissioner Morache WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca Cemetery is currently maintained by the Parks Department, and WHEREAS, over the years maintenance of the cemetery has diminished from a staff dedicated specifically to maintaining the cemetery to currently providing maintenance of it in the form of mowing five times a year and resetting approximately 5-10 headstones per year; and WHEREAS, views from the cemetery, the interesting terrain, rich history and diverse tree species composition gives this area a huge amount of potential to be a valued location for residents and visitors to the City, and WHEREAS, in its current state the cemetery appears to be a forgotten backwater of the City, where many residents are not even aware of it at all, and WHEREAS, Historic Ithaca, Inc. and the Friends of the Ithaca City Cemetery will bring stone conservator Jonathan Appell to the Ithaca City cemetery on September 20-21, 2013 to conduct a one and a half day hands-on workshop on how to assess cemetery conditions, prioritize conservation needs, re-set leaning or fallen stones, rejoin broken tablets, consolidate eroded stone, and clean tables using suitable materials, and Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 5 WHEREAS, the immediate benefit is that dozens of tablets will be conserved, stabilized and/or cleaned by workshop participants during the event, creating a safer environment, a more enjoyable and respectful park setting, and serve as an impetus for future work, and WHEREAS, the total event cost is $3,500-$4,000 for the conservator’s fee and $500 in other costs, for which Historic Ithaca is seeking financial and other support, and WHEREAS, the Parks Commission met on August 13, 2013 and indicated their support for the workshop, and WHEREAS, financial assistance has been obtained from Cornell University’s Department of Landscape Architecture and additional financial support is being sought from other University departments and from private sources, and WHEREAS, to take advantage of this private financial support, $1,500.00 is being requested from the City of Ithaca, in addition to assistance obtaining needed materials (sand/gravel) from the Department of Public Works, and the participation of DPW Crews in the workshop, and WHEREAS, the expert guidance provided at this workshop should put the staff of the Department of Public Works in a better situation to care for and repair current and future issues with monuments and stones in the cemetery, and WHEREAS, the limited time staff have to care for the cemetery will be put to good use, with the knowledge of which areas/monuments have the most immediate need as well as knowledge of how to best repair damaged stones with techniques that will provide lasting repairs, and realize the goal of the workshop which is long-term care for this unique city park and historic cemetery, and WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works met on August 26, 2013 to review, and discuss this request, and WHEREAS, the Board expressed support for the project which will empower and provide the necessary tools to both staff and volunteers from a relatively small financial investment from the City of Ithaca for a long term benefit to the entire city, residents, and visitors, now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works recommends and requests that the City Administration Committee and Common Council authorize the release of an amount not to exceed $1,500.00 from an account as recommended by the City Controller for the Historic Gravestone Conservation Workshop. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the request, the current budget for all city parks, and the need to maintain the gravestones and cemetery in a respectful, attractive, and durable manner – both now and in the future. Alderperson Fleming arrived at 5:10 p.m. A Vote on the Resolution Resulted as Follows: Carried Unanimously DISCUSSION ITEMS: Parking Division Update: Parking Director Nagy provided a Power Point presentation to the Board that outlined the accomplishments, findings, recommendations, and statistics for each of the three city parking garages since his hire in June: Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 6 Summary Agenda Board of Public Works meeting on 8/26/13 60-day review of New Director of Parking Accomplishments 1) Creation of new cashier sheet. 2) Creation of Operational memos. 3) Creation of Ticket summary. 4) Auditing of daily cashier tickets. 5) Have ridden with each enforcement officer and reviewed coin collection on Street. 6) July ticket summary analyzed and about to be reviewed. 7) Started to Introduce Ambassador Program and Disney Concept 8) Issues with Union President in regards to the name Ambassador vs. Maintenance worker. 9) Many Meetings with new potential Vendor and current existing Vendors 10) Plan for meter clearing audit and 30 day audit. Today’s Presentation 1) Ticket summary review 2) Purpose: to track and control customers activities inside garages 3) How many patrons per day per garage. Average customer pay range 4) How many patron in garage while staff is present 5) After hour parkers 6) Free parkers nights and weekend 7) Missing ticket: usage vs. Paying customers 8) % of free parking 9) Revenue Loss per location 10) Options on how to fix this Revenue Loss for Month of July: Dryden Road Garage: $958.34 Seneca Street Garage: $29,919.77 Green Street Garage: $30,926.91 What part of revenue does City want to recover: 1. Overnight parkers leaving before staff come in. 2. Restaurant parkers coming in before 8 pm and waiting until staff at garages leave. 3. Daily parkers that wait until staff leave to come out. 4. Daytime workers that switch tickets with second shift so first shift workers only pay $1 when they leave for the day – second shift workers leave after staff leave 5. Nights and weekends free parking? May limit this? Proposed Options to Consider for Stopping the Loss of Revenue to the City: 1. Replace current equipment A. Cost to City about $1 to $2 million to do all three garages B. Return on investment, 2-3 years C. The current equipment is 6 years old, at least. D. Due for server replacement this year, cost of about $10,000.00 E. Current service company does not meet our standards. 2. Fix what we have: A. Currently have two automated systems that, if fixed and maintained, we could operate efficiently. B. Add a pay machine or, better yet, pay machines to Green Street and automate Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 7 C. Staff all garages 24/7 just like Dryden Road 1. Constant cost that will continue through the years 2. 12 hour a day times 2 employees at $14.87 an hour plus benefits times 5 days a week, times 52 weeks a year will cost the City $171,659.80 per year. D. Must change vendor E. Recommendation - get back what belongs to the City. Program all pay machines the same for both Seneca and Green Street garages. Leave Dryden Road garage as is but repair equipment to work 24/7. 3. Cost to repair current equipment: A. $100,000 – should repair and buy the pay machines we need B. Return on investment 2 to 3 months after installation Parking Director Nagy explained that he is tracking vehicles that go in and out of the garages daily, utilizing a reporting system on the current machines (a reporting system that was not in place before his arrival, and had to be set up). He further noted that he knew there were challenges facing him, and the ticket summary shows in black and white where the gaps are. He further explained that any garage operator uses some form of parking management system to monitor parking revenue, and that a summary is needed on a regular basis to track where improvements or changes need to be made. Mayor Myrick thanked Mr. Nagy for the presentation and stated that the City should have hired him sooner! He further stated that the City has made the decision to subsidize some parking especially nights/weekends. It's a decision that needs to be revisited; however, for now plugging the noted holes in system should be done - especially with the amount of money going uncollected and the dire financial situation the City is in. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the statistics that were provided and the need to recover the revenue for parking being lost on a daily basis. Director of Engineering West asked whether there is funding in place at this point that could be allocated for making these important changes and repairs? Acting Supt. Benjamin responded that the department would not need to ask for funds from the contingency account. There is money already allocated in the on-street parking budget line that has not been used. He suggested that money be used to patch the holes noted, and then pay back that budget line later with the revenue collected from the changes to the parking management system. Parking Director Nagy explained that the next thing he needs to work on is evaluating on street parking needs. He reported that an initial audit will be conducted and then another one in 30 days. He plans to gps every on street parking meter so that staff will know where the high demand areas of the City are located, where pay machines are needed so that rates can then be adjusted up and done depending on the location and demand for parking in particular areas of the City. Alderperson Fleming asked what parking lot attendants would do, if all the garages went to an automated parking management system. Parking Director Nagy responded that he would utilize staff as “Ambassadors” who would assist users within the parking garage, they would walk through the garage to: pick up trash, and wipe down hand rails, and do whatever else may be needed to keep the garage looking clean, attractive, and welcoming. The gates would stay down, and parkers will have to go to the pay machine in order to exit the garage. He stated that the City would also need to invest in new signage and providing information to the public in as many ways as possible of any changes that are planned. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the need to change vendors in order to program and utilize the City’s current pay stations to their full advantage. Once that is done, the equipment repaired and timing programmed, which could be done by the end of September, the City could begin to collect the revenue it’s been losing and be ready to add/increase the parking revenue to the budget in 2014. He further noted that Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 8 current permits are underpriced and rates should be adjusted accordingly. He would recommend a similar rate structure to Cornell University to encourage workers to utilize remote parking areas, take public transit to work, and therefore pay a different rate depending on the location of the parking area – i.e. the farther away the less expensive the permits would be, the closer to the downtown core the more expensive the permits. He noted that will be the next study he will undertake to develop a possible three tiered system based upon the location of the parking. It all takes time to collect the data and review how the City is doing business. Mr. Nagy went on to report that as technology advances with parking pay and display stations that he would like to see pay stations located on either end of the Commons that could be programmed to alert parkers that their time is almost up, do they want to continue to park and if so, they can then pay by credit card. He wants to make parking in the City of Ithaca as easy and convenient as possible for everyone. Storm Water Utility Discussion: Mayor Myrick reported that City Attorney Lavine wanted to participate in the discussion of this topic. He requested that it be placed on the September 9, 2013 BPW agenda for discussion. No Board Member objected. Request to Purchase City Property from New Earth Living: Commissioner Morache left the meeting at 5:40 p.m. Sue Cosentini joined the Board for the discussion of her request to the City. She has submitted the following proposal to purchase City property that is located with the Town of Ithaca along Five Mile Drive: As many of you may already know, we have completed our pilot community on Aurora Street (The Aurora Pocket Neighborhood or APN) and now have three happy families living in our new homes there. In addition, over 220 people toured our homes and site in June and currently over 80 people have expressed an interest in our next community. We recently purchased a beautiful property on Five Mile Drive. Below is a brief description of the cooperative housing community ("Amabel") that we are proposing to create there. Regarding a conversation about the project; If not for the receptivity by various City departments for The Aurora Pocket Neighborhood, Amabel would not have been possible. Although Amabel will be in the Town, I am interested in locating our next project in the city. Our goal is to apply the lessons learned from Amabel and APN to a state-of-the-art development that is urban in all respects; physically, socially and economically which leverages all that we have learned about affordability, energy efficiency and the power of generating close social ties. Regarding the city parcel: According to Director of Planning, Building, and Economic Development Cornish, the parcel is not a natural area or parkland. It is in a flood zone and does not have a city easement. For this and other reasons the parcel may have marginal value to the city. The value to Amabel, on the other hand, is significant. The addition of this parcel would provide the possibility of a large natural area, a future forest garden and more area for storm-water management if necessary. Combining this new model for living with a low effort, no-till food production concept could help pave the way for a future of nourishing food, strong social bonds, and health, (of people and planet), being the standard for housing developments as well as our expectations in general. Mayor Myrick explained that the role of the Board of Public Works in this request is to determine whether or not the City of Ithaca has any need or use for the property currently or in the future. Preliminary research by Director of Planning, Building, and Economic Development, Cornish suggests that this 3 acre sub-parcel of tax parcel #31.-2-6 located in the Town of Ithaca was not purchased as substitute park land and is therefore available for other uses or sale. The 3 acre sub-parcel located west of the RR tracks is connected to the 22 acre parcel located east of the RR tracks, so it appears that a subdivision would be Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes August 26, 2013 9 necessary to sell the property. The 22 acre portion of the site appears to be included in the Negundo Woods unique natural area as well. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the location of the property and what kind of access, if any, the City might need in the future to it. Mayor Myrick stated that he has asked Community Development Director Bohn to work with Ms. Cosentini and the City on the process the City must follow in order to sell the property to a private party. The request will also need to go through the Planning and Development Board of the City and Town of Ithaca, as well as Tompkins County Planning for approval as well. Further discussion followed on the floor regarding an access road near the inlet that the City may need to maintain an easement or right-of-way to for accessing a storage site. Ms. Cosentini reported that TG Miller surveyed the property recently, and the survey does show right-of-ways for New York State Department of Transportation and NYSEG, but did not show anything for the City of Ithaca. The Board suggested that if the City needs access at the railroad tracks perhaps as a condition of the release of the property an easement or right-of-way could be granted. Mayor Myrick stated that he thinks that would make sense, and asked the Board whether they see any other future foreseeable use of the property by the Department of Public Works. If not, would the Board feel comfortable having a resolution on the agenda for the September 9, 2013 meeting that the Board finds no public works use for the property, with the exception of the access to the inlet road? The Board supported that suggestion. NEW BUSINESS: A brief discussion of the following topics followed: The City will be rebuilding/repaving Esty Street/North Plain Street next year after NYSEG completes the coal tar removal project there. NYSEG will be picking up the cost of that work for the City. The work will include new curbs, sidewalks, and street plantings. Water and Sewer crews need to put in new water and sewer lines on Floral Avenue this Fall. Streets and Facilities crews will then put in binder where they can for the winter to make it ready to clean and plow and will repave completely in 2014. Alderperson Fleming reported that she has been hearing a lot of negative comments from many constituents about the timing of the street work at Mitchell and East State/East Martin Luther King Jr. Street coinciding with the move in of returning students. ADJOURNMENT: On a motion, the meeting adjourned at 6:10 p.m. Sarah L. Myers Svante L. Myrick Information Management Specialist Mayor