HomeMy WebLinkAboutCB Packet 2024-01-04
DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING
215 N. Tioga St 14850
607.273.1747
www.town.ithaca.ny.us
TO: CONSERVATION BOARD MEMBERS
FROM: MICHAEL SMITH, SENIOR PLANNER
DATE: DECEMBER 21, 2023
SUBJECT: UPCOMING CONSERVATION BOARD MEETING – JANUARY 4, 2024
This is to confirm that the next meeting of the Conservation Board (CB) is Thursday,
January 4th at 5:30 p.m. The agenda for this meeting is enclosed (see the back of this
memo).
The draft minutes from the December 7th meeting are attached. Please email me any
spelling, grammatical, or other minor edits you have prior to the meeting.
At this meeting, we will continue the conversation on indigenous environmental justice
with Mike R.
We will also continue the conversation regarding the CB assisting with deer browse
monitoring as part of the Town’s Deer Management Program. Lori and James were
going to research two of the browse monitoring methods and bring back additional
details for the CB to consider.
At this meeting we will also take some time to discuss the CB’s activities and
accomplishments from 2023, the 2024 work goals, and the 2024 committee
assignments. Please review these attached draft documents for additions or
modifications.
As a reminder to everyone, please start thinking about nomination ideas for the next
Richard B. Fischer Environmental Conservation Award. The deadline is February 28,
2024. Also, please remember that we have a new nomination form that can be used
this year (https://www.town.ithaca.ny.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Richard-Fischer-
Award-Nomination-Form-July-2023.pdf).
Frank is signed up to take minutes at the January meeting.
If you have any questions prior to the meeting or are not able to attend, please contact
me at msmith@town.ithaca.ny.us or 607-273-1747.
Conservation Board Members and Associates (*)
Lori Brewer (Chair), Frank Cantone (Vice-Chair), Lindsay Dombroskie*,
James Hamilton, Eva Hoffmann, Michael Roberts, Ingrid Zabel
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TOWN OF ITHACA
CONSERVATION BOARD
5:30 p.m., Thursday, January 4, 2024
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Aurora Conference Room
215 N. Tioga Street
Ithaca, New York 14850
(The rear entrance is handicapped accessible)
(607) 273-1747
Members of the public are welcome to attend in-person at Town Hall
or virtually via Zoom (https://zoom.us/j/6750593272).
AGENDA
1. Persons to be heard (5:30 pm)
2. Members comments / concerns
3. Environmental Review Committee Update (Lori)
4. Chair and Coordinator reports
5. Approval of minutes from December 7, 2023
6. Continue discussion of Indigenous Environmental Justice (Mike)
7. Town’s Deer Management Program – continue browse monitoring discussion
8. Discussion of:
- Town of Ithaca Conservation Board Activities & Accomplishments for 2023
- Conservation Board 2024 Work Goals
- Conservation Board Committees 2024
9. Regular reports and updates (6:30 pm)
a. Scenic Resources Committee (Eva)
b. Communications Committee (James)
c. Tompkins County EMC (Ingrid)
d. Six Mile Creek Volunteer Monitoring Program (James)
e. Cornell Botanic Gardens Natural Areas Program (James)
10. Other Business (6:50 p.m.)
11. Review 2024 Work Goals / Discuss February Agenda
12. Adjourn (7:00 p.m.)
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Town of Ithaca Conserva on Board (CB) Mee ng
December 7, 2023, 5:30 p.m.
(In-Person at Town Hall and via Zoom Video Conference)
Dra Minutes
Members present: Lori Brewer (Chairperson), Frank Cantone, James Hamilton, Eva Hoffmann,
Michael Roberts, Ingrid Zabel.
Staff: Michael Smith, Senior Planner
1. Persons to be heard (5:30 pm) (none)
2. Members comments / concerns (none)
3. Environmental Review Commi ee Update (Lori)
a. There isn’t anything that is currently being reviewed.
b. Eva – the self-storage facility looks as though some grading work has been done. There is
quite a lot of fill that has taken place.
c. Lori – That work is outside the area where the self-storage facility is being proposed.
d. Lori – Just so folks here have a frame of reference, we have reviewed roughly the same
number of projects this year as last.
4. Chair and Coordinator reports
a. The Chair has nothing to report on this month.
b. Coordinator – Mike S. has an update on the grants that the Town applied for the
purchase of lands (off South King Rd).
1. The proposal to the NYS Parks was unfortunately denied
2. Park Founda on ($50K) did come through.
3. Babcock Preserve – The RFP had been released and four proposals have
been received. Their review will take place shortly.
a. 2024 design phase
b. 2025 construc on phase
c. S pend checks for Conserva on Board Members will be cut around the first of the year.
d. The Town Board will be looking at the deer program applica on for the Deer Damage
Permit for 2024. There will be nine loca ons for bai ng and shoo ng total.
i. Three bait loca ons around Coy Glen
ii. Six throughout 6 Mile Creek
iii. One Member asked how the bait loca ons on Town property are marked for
safety, since they are open to the public.
1. Mike – par cipants cannot use the sites during the day (limited to one
our before sunset to one hour a er sunrise). So their use is out of phase
with non-par cipants.
2. There is some signage placed around areas being used.
5. Approval of minutes from October 5, 2023 and November 2, 2023
a. James – Moves to approve; Ingrid seconded; all others are in favor. They’ve been
adopted as wri en.
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6. Con nue discussion of Indigenous Environmental Jus ce (Mike)
a. Mike R and Steven Henhawk would like to be able to make recordings to link to from the
plant labels using a QR code. Mike R asked if the Town has audio recording equipment?
i. No, but Mike S reports that they have had pre y good results using a laptop in a
quiet room to gather the audio for another project.
b. Anyone here have experience on audio produc on?
i. Recommenda ons from members include:
1. Audacity – so ware
2. Lori has a connec on to a video produc on professional. Anne Michel.
She used to work at IC and may have access to equipment.
3. Eva – Deborah Horde, has done a lot of work with a local film maker, and
may have equipment to use.
4. The History Center might also have equipment and or funding to help
support this.
7. Town’s Deer Management Program; a con nua on of the browse monitoring discussion
a. Mike S had sent out a link to the study that compared four methodologies for measuring
deer browse pressure/ecological indicators of overabundant deer.
b. James – Many of the study methods that were described in the paper use a fence, with
plots inside and plots outside of it, differen al browse rates across the fence can make
for rich comparisons.
i. Member – Where would we locate such a plot and fence area? Would we look
for an area that was “hit” badly?
ii. Ingrid – Would we really go back to take measurements mul ple mes a year?
c. Lori – we don’t have to be quite as rigorous as a scien fic study. What can we do that
would be compelling but not so onerous.
i. Mike R – This is jus fica on for the DEC to issue the permit and agrees this
doesn’t need to as iron-clad as a scien fic study.
ii. Lori – We could plant bluestem goldenrod, tag it and see if it gets browsed.
iii. James – The bluestem goldenrod is a good candidate since there are not as
many predators for that as other sen nel species.
d. Member – It would be good to try and engage a student group to help collect this data.
e. Lori – We should try some of these methods to see how do-able or onerous any one
method may be.
f. James will read more deeply on the feces census method. Lori will read more deeply on
the twig-age method. Each will report back to the CB in January and we can schedule an
ou ng to test these two methods.
g. Mike S. – We can even look to public complaints as another source of data for the DEC.
8. Discussion of upcoming NYS Open Space Conserva on Plan update (James)
a. The property on South Hill, the one the Town did not get funding to buy, would be a
good candidate for this sort of program.
b. The public comment period is in the summer next year, though individuals here could
reach out to DEC staff in the interim to share their sen ments and recommenda ons.
c. Mike R – How will these lands be used? Who will have access to them? Is there a way
that these lands could be offered to Indigenous communi es whose lands were stolen?
d. Ingrid – Would like to see lands bordering waterways protected to help protect
communi es from flooding.
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e. Lori – Would this group like to host one of the stakeholder members (Andy Zepp (Finger
Lakes Land Trust) or Ka e Borgella (Tompkins County Planning Department)) involved
with this during our February or March mee ng?
i. [General agreement]
9. Regular reports and updates (6:30 pm)
a. Scenic Resources Commi ee (Eva)
i. No report
b. Communica ons Commi ee (James)
i. James doesn’t want to be the Commi ee Chair any more
ii. He got locked out of Facebook again for 3 weeks, then was let back in. He has no
desire to get a cellphone or “key” gizmo for the “2-Factor Authen ca on” they
now and then demand he gets. Our Facebook page now has 347 “followers.”
iii. We have ll Feb 28 to nominate the next Fischer Award winner; start
considering a nominee now.
iv. Ingrid – Has been pos ng material featuring our Town parks and would like to
see more traffic go to the Instagram account.
v. Eva – would like to see social media content on the Town website.
1. Mike S. will work to get those imbeds into the Town website.
c. Tompkins County EMC (Ingrid)
i. Don Barber gave a presenta on on TompkinsFoodfuture.org
d. Six Mile Creek Volunteer Monitoring Program (James)
i. Community Science Ins tute’s Biomonitoring Lab has changed its weekly BMI
Open Lab Night to Wednesdays, from 6 to 9 pm at Langmuir Lab, 95 Brown Rd,
Suite 288
ii. Volunteers recently finished analyzing a July sample from Salmon Creek near
Myers Point, finding a “slight impact” in a low diversity of organisms, with
rela vely high propor on of pollu on-tolerant ones.
iii. The 7/11/23 BMI sample taken at Plain Street is part-way analyzed; samples
from German Cross and 600 Rd wait for volunteers to find the me to analyze
them.
iv. Six Mile Creek volunteers took an early morning synop c water sample in Six
Mile on November 8.
v. CSI got a grant to support purchase of a very accurate rain gauge for volunteers
to use in the Community Collabora ve Rain, Hail and Snow Network.
vi. CoCoRaHS has more than 20,000 trained volunteer observers helping the
Na onal Weather Service get accurate local precipita on measurements.
vii. James signed on, and will report his local back-yard “sta on” precipita on as
soon as his gauge arrives.
e. Cornell Botanic Gardens Natural Areas Program (James)
i. Volunteers killed woody invasives in the Salt Road fen on November 7 to give
rare American Globeflowers there more sunlight, and returned again on
November 14 for more of that job.
ii. They planted na ve trees in Upper Cascadilla gorge, just downhill from Oak
Avenue in Collegetown on a slope where large invasive Norway Maples were
felled.
iii. They weeded out more woody invasives from Fall Creek Gorge south of Risley
Hall above Rocky Falls. The volunteers needed reminders of what Amur Cork
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trees look like, but were well-acquainted with Buckthorn, Honeysuckle, Privet,
Mul flora Rose and Oriental Bi ersweet.
iv. More woody invasives were removed around Beebe Lake's south bank behind
the Toboggan Lodge this week.
10. Other Business (6:50 p.m.) - Approval of the 2024 Mee ng Schedule - Recommenda on of a
Chair for 2024 - Nomina on and Elec on of a Vice-Chair for 2024
a. Mee ng Schedule - James moves we approve all mes except for a July mee ng; Mike R
seconds. All others are in favor.
b. Chair – Eva moves that Lori remain Chair; Mike R seconds. All others are in favor.
c. Vice-chair – James moves to re-elect Frank Cantone as the Vice-chair; Eva seconds the
mo on. All other members are in favor of the mo on.
11. Review 2023 Work Goals / Discuss January Agenda
a. Indigenous res tu on
b. Deer browse pressure monitoring conversa on
c. Eva- we need to recruit new members
d. Review commi ees
e. Tallying our 2023 accomplishments
12. Lori moves to adjourn at 7pm; all are in favor.
Mee ng Minutes respec ully submi ed by Mike Roberts
December 21, 2023
Town of Ithaca Conservation Board Activities &
Accomplishments for 2023
Awarded its 20th annual Richard B. Fischer Environmental Conservation Award to
the Friendship Donation Network and held a tree planting ceremony in West Hill
Park where 3 American Basswood trees were planted;
Environmental Review Committee continued to provide comments on 13 site plan
and subdivision projects;
Provided support to the Town’s Deer Management Program;
Continued to update and monitor the Conservation Board Facebook page
(http://www.facebook.com/IthacaConservationBoard) and created a new Instagram
account (https://www.instagram.com/townofithacaconservationboard/);
Hosted a public invasive species education event (swallow-wort removal) at
Westhaven Preserve in June as part of NYS’s Invasive Species Awareness Week;
Continued to monitor and clean the Bluebird boxes along Town trails;
Discussed several topics related to Indigenous Environmental Justice throughout
2023, including planning work being done to create an ethnobotanic trail at Tutelo
Park;
Participated in and held several public events regarding pollinators and converting
lawns to gardens, including maintaining an information table at the Tompkins
County Library during Pollinator Week, setting up a table at a pollinator event at
Marshy Gardens, and hosting a Town garden tour (four locations) in August;
Participated in a public tree planting event at the East Ithaca Nature Preserve in
October where 75 native trees were planted and provided a table with educational
materials on invasive and native plants;
Participated in the 2023 NYS Conference on the Environment held in Ithaca in
September, including providing a presentation on the lessons learned conducting
environmental reviews;
Recruited one new full member 2023.
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Conservation Board 2024 Work Goals
Goal and Supporting actions Goal Steward
Conduct and improve environmental
review process to better promote
environmental conservation. Make field
trips to application sites.
Lori
Promote awareness of the importance of
scenic resources.
Get permission to place the third
view sign on Cornell land at the
intersection of Snyder Hill and
Pine Tree Roads. Refine and
finish earlier draft language and
design for this sign and get
approval of the draft from the
whole CB. Send the design to our
local design firm for final layout
before sending it to the
manufacturer of the earlier signs.
Work with the Town Highway
Department to get the sign
located the optimal way at the
site.
Update the Scenic Views map and
guide brochure.
Eva
Continue outreach through both
traditional and new social media
methods, including Facebook page and
newsletter articles to encourage and
foster more public participation in
conservation of our resources and
environment. Explore the use of
Instagram.
Post 4-5 times per month articles
and events of interest.
Generate novel text periodically.
Solicit input at outreach events
and on Facebook from residents
on environmental issues that are
important to them.
?
2
Outreach can focus on topics like
land & water conservation,
bluebird boxes, invasive species
& other pest management, and
promoting biodiversity.
Continue ongoing activities such as
Fischer Award, Earth Day (April 22nd),
Invasive Species Week.
Nominate and select Fischer
awardee!
Plant tree and host a rollicking
party!
James
Conduct a year-end review of goals and
accomplishments.
Track progress on goals.
Communicate accomplishments
to the public and the Town Board.
?
Conservation Board recruitment
Host 1-2 events for potential new
CB members Lori
Revised 12/18/2023
December 20, 2023
Conservation Board Committees - 2024
_____________________________________________________
Environmental Review Committee
(review of applications for site plan approval, subdivision approval, rezoning,
special permits and zoning variances for the PB, ZBA, TB)
Lori Brewer – Chair
Lindsay Dombroskie
Eva Hoffmann
Michael Roberts
_____________________________________________
Scenic Resources Committee
(interpretative view signs, scenic views map and guide)
Eva Hoffmann – Chair
James Hamilton
_____________________________________________
Communications Committee
(Richard B. Fischer Environmental Conservation Award, Town newsletter,
CB website & Facebook pages, recruitment, education & outreach)
James Hamilton – Chair
Lindsay Dombroskie
Ingrid Zabel
____________________________________________
Other Appointments:
Tompkins County Environmental Management Council – Ingrid Zabel
Six Mile Creek Volunteer Monitoring Program – James Hamilton
Cornell Botanic Gardens Natural Areas Program – James Hamilton