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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2012-07-23BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS PROCEEDINGS CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Regular Meeting 4:49 p.m. July 23, 2012 PRESENT: Mayor Myrick Commissioners (5) – Acharya, Darling, Goldsmith, Jenkins, Leccese OTHERS PRESENT: Superintendent of Public Works – Gray Assistant Superintendent of Water and Sewer – Whitney Assistant Superintendent of Streets and Facilities – Benjamin Common Council Liaison – Fleming Executive Assistant – Gehring Historic Preservation Planner – Truame EXCUSED: Commissioner – Morache City Attorney – Lavine DAC Liaison – Roberts ADDITIONS TO OR DELETIONS FROM THE AGENDA: There were no additions to or deletions from the agenda. MAYOR’S COMMUNICATIONS: The Mayor had no communications at this time. COMMUNICATIONS AND HEARINGS FROM PERSONS BEFORE THE BOARD: No members of the public appeared to address the Board. RESPONSE TO THE PUBLIC No response was necessary. REPORTS Board Liaisons Commissioner Acharya reported that the Planning and Development Board meeting on July 24, 2012, would be lengthy due to multiple topics being on the agenda, including Cayuga Green Apartments and Pier Road Properties projects. Superintendent and Staff Asst. Supt. Whitney reported the first three water main breaks of the year occurred on July 12 and July 13, 2012. Asst. Supt. Benjamin reported that the Ithaca Road Reconstruction project was behind schedule but progressing. Supt. Gray reported that the Engineering Department had several design projects in progress, including a project to replace the generator for City Hall, and preparing for the Seneca Street Garage repairs. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Approval of the October 26, 2011 Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes - Resolution By Commissioner Jenkins: Seconded by Commissioner Acharya RESOLVED, That the minutes of the October 26, 2011 Board of Public Works Meeting be approved as published, and be it further Approval of the June 25, 2012 Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes - Resolution RESOLVED, That the minutes of the June 25, 2012 Board of Public Works Meeting be approved as published, and be it further Board of Public Works Page 2 July 23, 2012 Regular Meeting Approval of the July 9, 2012 Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes - Resolution RESOLVED, That the minutes of the July 9, 2012 Board of Public Works Meeting be approved as published. Carried Unanimously VOTING ITEMS: Water and Sewer: Appeal of Water Bill for Nate’s Floral Estates – Resolution By Commissioner Darling: Seconded by Commissioner Leccese WHEREAS, the owner of Nate's Floral Estates has requested that the late payment fees for their March water and sewer bill be waived because the owner had medical issues in April and had overlooked the bill until it was re-billed in May with interest added, and WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works, while sympathetic to any property owner's individual issues, notes that Nate's Floral Estates has been late and paid penalties before, and the Board recognizes that bills issued are for goods and services received months before the bill is issued, consequently the Board has a policy of not waiving late fees unless there is a dispute concerning the bill that is the result of a mechanical or human error, or from some procedural or clerical error, originating with City staff, and the property owner has raised the issue prior to the due date of the bill, and WHEREAS, the Board believes that to waive fees for any reason other than one centered in City staff or equipment would make collecting the City's bills difficult, inconsistent, and costly, and WHEREAS, the Water and Sewer division has pointed out that the owners of Nate's Floral Estates has a long history of working with the division to provide pipeline easements and construction access over their property in a heavily populated commercial district, saving the division many hours of administrative work, many thousands of dollars in land agreements, and months of schedule time, and has suggested that they would like to pay the penalties on this bill in recognition of that history of cooperation, now therefore be it RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works denies the request to expunge late fees and requests that Water and Sewer work with the property owner to see that the bill is paid in full, and be it further RESOLVED, That the Board wishes to thank the Weiner family for their years of cooperation and assistance with the Water and Sewer group as they sought to maintain and improve the water and sewer service to the southwest portion of the City. Carried Unanimously Supt. Gray explained the reasoning behind why the fees were not waived, but the Water & Sewer Division would pay the fees for the property owners. He stated that the City does not routinely expunge bills unless something was read wrong or equipment malfunction. DISCUSSION ITEMS: Request to Change Fall Creek Drive to One-Way Traffic Historic Preservation Planner Truame joined the Board for the discussion of this item, and explained the request that is routinely brought up at the Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission meetings. Commissioner Goldsmith noted that one-way traffic tends to be faster, and to retain the two- way lanes would probably be safer. Supt. Gray explained that Cornell University was concerned with the stability of the rock underneath of the road. Discussion followed on the floor regarding installing a new fence and guard rail, and creating a “walking lane” with the use of wheel stops to separate vehicles from pedestrians. Commissioner Acharya suggested closing the street to all but local residents as the easiest solution. Supt. Gray explained that a public street cannot be restricted for local residents only. The street can be abandoned and transferred to private owner, but then the City would not continue to maintain or plow the street. The Board agreed to discuss this topic further at a future meeting once Transportation Engineer Logue has been able to complete his analysis. Board of Public Works Page 3 July 23, 2012 Regular Meeting Loaves & Fishes Lot “D” Request Rev. Christina Culver and Sharon Clark, representatives of Loaves and Fishes, joined the Board for the discussion of this topic. Ms. Clark explained the request and why Lot “D” was chosen to build their temporary garden, stating that container gardens would be grown through November 2012. She further explained the some advantages for locating the gardens downtown, including easy access for patrons with disabilities. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the Cayuga Green Two Apartment development project planned for the same location, other possible locations for the community garden, and current traffic from the contractor working on the East Clinton Street Bridge that is utilizing the lot. Mayor Myrick stated that City Attorney Lavine was researching the issue of utilizing a public park for the organization as it serves the public. Suggestions of other locations within the City that could be utilized for this gardening project included the city-owned lot at the corner of South Titus Avenue and South Cayuga Street, behind the Tompkins County Mental Health building where raised bed are currently maintained along the creek walk, a triangle parcel of land on South Titus Avenue along the creek, and property at Markles Flatts that is owned by the Ithaca City School District. Ms. Clark stated that Loaves and Fishes could be a pilot program if the City changed the policy on use of gardens in parks. Budget Update Supt. Gray explained his concern that the Department of Public Works won’t be able to maintain the City’s infrastructure with the budget cuts for the 2013 budget. The cuts comprise a 10% reduction in the personnel lines, which would include the deletion of currently vacant positions, resulting in 7% reduction of the required 10%. However, the duties from those vacant positions must be distributed to other employees, causing a lack of comprehensive oversight. He further explained that the remaining 3% budget reduction would be made up from acquiring revenues from federal and state dollars by completing projects in-house, rather than hire contractors. Asst. Supt. Benjamin stated that if City crews were to work on more federal and state projects, the crews would not be available to maintain or make repairs for other departments. He further stated that the trash handling operation would need to change to reduce costs, and pooling fleet vehicles to reduce the number of vehicles employees could utilize. Supt. Gray requested assistance in determined which services the City should discontinue providing in order to obtain the required 10% reduction in the budget. Discussion followed on the floor regarding possible areas the Department could save money, including accelerating the rate of selling unused property, offloading several parking lots, possible privatization of the golf course, and utilizing people ordered to do community service or volunteers for some services (i.e. park cleanup, etc.). Mayor Myrick explained that pension costs and healthcare costs have driven the budget deficits. He compared the $3 million deficit to 15-17% property tax increase, 30 police officers, or 35 firefighters. ADJOURNMENT: On a motion, the meeting adjourned at 6:27 p.m. Kathrin D. Gehring Svante L. Myrick Executive Assistant Mayor