The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutCAC Minutes - June 25, 2015Danby Conservation Advisory Council  Minutes of Regular Meeting June 25, 2015 Present: Joel Gagnon (Chair) Mary Woodsen Bill Evans Jenny Caldwell Don Schaufler (absent) Matt Ulinski (absent) Dan Klein (absent) Others Present: C.J. Randal Ronda Roaring The Meeting was opened at ~7:10pm Public Comments/Privilege of the floor Minutes The April minutes (4/27/15) were approved after agreement of corrections. Bill made the motion to approve the minutes with Joel’s and Ronda’s changes, specifically removal of a sentence contested by Ronda. Jenny seconded and all approved the changes. The May meeting minutes were approved after agreement of corrections. Bill made a motion to approve the minutes with Joel’s additions, Jenny seconded the motion and all approved. DISCUSSION Change meeting date to Monday (discussed out of order) Bill proposed that the meeting date be changed back to Monday to accommodate Matt and Dan’s participation. All approved. Ethics policy Joel reviewed the Town of Danby’s Ethics Policy under which, he noted, the CAC is already covered. He noted the importance of the confidentiality clause due to the nature of the CAC’s easement mission. He also noted that while the intentions of specific policies are clear by the title of their section, the text does not always make sense (e.g., no. 3 – Representation for One’s Agency). All agreed that the document needs some editing. Joel noted we all benefit from setting land aside for conservation, but a CAC member negotiating an easement can’t do anything that would benefit them in particular (e.g., benefit financially, receive gifts). Joel reiterated the importance of the confidentiality clause due to the nature of the CAC’s easement mission. Easement matters are handled in executive session so that leaks of information do not undermine the interest of the Town. For example if a neighbor of a potential easement property found out about the potential transaction, they might put in a competing offer on the property. Joel noted a number of examples where a CAC member might need to recuse themselves from an easement negotiation. For example he said, if you were an agent for a logger and you were negotiating an easement and deciding easement boundaries, you might be in a biased position because you might negotiate the line based on tree value. Ronda suggested that in the future when someone expresses interest to be on the CAC, they should be given the Ethics Policy prior to their formal admission to the Council. Mary moved that we have a formal policy to share the Ethics Policy with applicants prior to their approval to the group. Jenny seconded and all approved. Easement outreach Joel noted that he had had discussions with C.J. and Sue Beeners with regard to what we need to do to promote the Town’s easement program. What do we need to reinforce our doing this? Sue thinks we need to do more than we have done. We currently have a sheet on the tax benefits, a FAQ, a rack card, and the easement template. We have the basics. Sue thinks we need more. She suggested a handout familiarizing potential donors with the steps of the process, how long it’s going to take, etc. Currently we have the Readers Digest version and the more detailed Easement Handbook – what we need is something in the middle. All thought this was a good idea. C.J. noted she was working on a detailed section in the handbook and a 15-page color document. Jenny noted it would be good to have a physical and online location for all the documents. Discussion then proceeded on the best location for where to keep easement documents and site pictures, and how it would be administered. C.J. had many suggestions, but recommended Google Drive – she said she would create an account with a CAC folder. The idea of having a presence at Fun Day dedicated to the easement program was discussed. Joel noted that a previous effort was a huge waste of time. Bill suggested simply having a pile of the rack cards at the moth and bird booth he would be running. Joel volunteered to be there with Bill. The group began discussion on how to solicit easements, but it became clear there was not enough time to flesh out a plan. Talk with C.J. Randal, the new Town Planner C.J. noted that we need to do a natural resource inventory and she handed out a sample assessment overview which would be helpful to evaluate properties based on a bunch of criteria. It was noted that Jake had put together an open space inventory. Discussion on weighting criteria ensued. Jenny gave C.J. a page from Jake’s document that described weighting priorities. C.J. then noted that if she has a ranked list of the top ten targeted parcels and owner contact info, she could contact them to let them know there is funding available to potentially purchase their property for conservation and transfer to the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation. Funding is currently available from NYS from an environmental development fund and NYS has identified in their new open space plan that part of the “emerald necklace” that stretches across Tompkins Co. is a top priority for land acquisition. Land would be acquired by NYS and managed by the parks program – not as state forest. The program provides half the money for the property and the Town would need to come up with the other half. Discussion followed on how we would get the other half. Land owners could also donate property. The Town could raise the money via a Bond. The issue of taking property off the tax roll for park land was then discussed. Joel recollected an investigation he did into this matter some years back where he found that if all the undeveloped land in Danby were taken off the tax toll, this would amount to 10-13% of the current tax base (a relatively small amount). C. J. went on to note that the property needs to be appraised (written estimate of value) before an application can be submitted. There is a rush for the current grant cycle (deadline July 30). However, C.J. noted that another round of funding is likely. C.J. welcomes further discussion during her office hours at Town Hall. C.J. noted that the Town needs a representative for the Tompkins County Environmental Management Council. Bill volunteered for one year. Joel indicated that once he submits an application, the Town Board will nominate him and then the legislature would appoint him. Meeting Adjourned 8:48PM Next meeting July 30, 2015