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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPB Minutes 2013-12-17TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD 215 North Tioga Street Ithaca, New York 14850 Tuesday. December 17.2013 AGENDA 7:00 P.M. SEQR Determination: Comell University Tower Road Safety Improvements, along Tower Road between the west entrance to the Alumni Field Parking Lot and Wing Drive. 7;00 P.M. PUBLIC HEARING: Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval and Special Permit for the proposed improvements along 1,250 +/- linear feet of Tower Road on the Comell University campus. Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 67-1-13.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The proposal involves removing approximately 105 parking spaces to allow for new bike lanes, two bus pull offs and shelters, stormwater management and green infrastmcture, a sidewalk, landscaping, and lighting. A portion of the project, including the bus pull offs and shelters, are located along Tower Road in the City of Ithaca. Comell University, Owner/Applicant; Tammi B. Aiken, Agent. 7:15 P.M. SEQR Determination: Comell University Water System Improvements Project, Dryden Road. 7;15 P.M. PUBLIC HEARING: Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval regarding a request to allow an additional time extension to demolish the existing Comell University 0.5 million gallon water tank located along Dryden Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 65-1-5.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The December 18,2008 site plan approval for the Comell University Water System Improvements project required the demolition of the water tank to be completed within four years of the approval. An extension was previously granted until March 31, 2014. The current request is for an extension until March 31,2015 to demolish the water tank. Comell University, Owner/Applicant; Kristin E. Gutenberger, Manager, Real Estate Operations. 5. Consideration of approval of the 2014 Planning Board Meeting Schedule. 6. Consideration of a recommendation to the Town Board regarding the Chairperson of the Planning Board for 2014. 7. Persons to be heard 8. Approval of Minutes: December 3,2013. 9. Other Business 10. Adjournment Susan Ritter Director of Planning 273-1747 NOTE: IF ANY MEMBER OF THE PLANNING BOARD IS UNABLE TO ATTEND, PLEASE NOTIFY SANDY POLCE AT 273-1747. (A quorum of four (4) members is necessary to conduct Planning Board business.) TOWN OF ITHACA PLANNING BOARD MEETING Tuesday, December 17, 2013 215 N. Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 file •5. DATE Board Members Present: Fred Wilcox (Chair), Linda Collins, Joseph Haefeli (Alternate), John Beach, Yvonne Fogarty, Paula Wedemcyer, Jon Bosak, Hollis Erb Staff Present: Sue Ritter, Director of Planning; Chris Balestra, Planner; Bruce Bates, Director of Code Enforcement; Dan Thaete, Civil Engineer; Susan Brock, Attorney for the Town; Deb DeAugis- tine. Deputy Town Clerk Call to Order Mr. Wilcox called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. AGENDA ITEM SEQR: Cornell University Tower Road Safety Improvements, along Tower Road between the west entrance to the Alumni Field Parking Lot and Wing Drive David Cutter, Cornell landscape architect, and Tammi Aiken were present. Mr. Cutter stated that this project is part of the Cornell Master Plan created in 2007-2008. One focus is to improve the public realm on campus, and in particular, they saw the Tower Road streetscape as a defining feature. They recognized that there were some safety concerns and that the health of the trees has been declin ing over time. They want to improve the safety for cars, buses, bicycles, and pedestrians. Most of the work will be on the southern side of road. They will take out parallel parking so cars no longer back out into traffic. That will give them improved space for bicycles, sidewalks, and true pull-offs for buses. In addition to the safety concerns, they're interested in maintaining the beauty of the campus. They're initiating a restoration plan for trees that will go into the next 150 years, so a number of the trees will be replanted. They're also looking at more innovative ways of dealing with stormwater. Ms. Aiken stated that the project involves widening the road to accommodate bicycle lanes and side walks. They will add gothic-style lights on the south side of the road, which will go into the landscape and stormwater buffer between the road curb and the sidewalk. Scupper drains will direct stormwater off the road and into cobbled and scuppered drains. She explained how the water will flow down into the area where trees are being planted. There will also be stormwater improvements on the north side of the road. Mr. Cutter added that the planted swale area will be planted with low-growing shrubs. The hope is that between the water infiltrating into the soil and being taken up by the shrubs, there will be little to no excess stormwater in there. Ms. Aiken said that the cross-section will be filled with plantings for the full length of Tower Road. The project involves cleaning up pedestrian crosswalks to better direct pedestrians into safer areas to cross Tower Road. Another purpose of the landscape area between the sidewalk and the road is that the plantings and cobble will hopefully keep people from crossing in those areas, which are not friendly places to cross. It will be better to cross at the crosswalks. Regarding the loss of parking spaces, there is excess capacity in the alumni lot and in the Human Ecology building garage off Forest Home Drive. Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 2 of 12 Ms. Erb pointed out that the sheet Ms. Aiken had on the easel showed more trees than are on Sheets ClOl and C102 in the packet. She's delighted to see extra trees, but said the Board would need re vised drawings. She also pointed out that Judd Falls Road was labeled as Wing Drive. Ms. Aiken responded that her flip chart is more updated. They're putting new trees in all the gaps so there will be a continuous line of trees. Also, the exact locations of the scupper drains may have changed. Ms. Erb said that if Mr. Thaete is happy, it's fine. Ms. Aiken said they're in the middle of a lighting study for the area. Ms. Wedemeyer asked about scupper drains. Ms. Aiken explained that the water flows through the curb openings into the scupper drains, which are rectangular holes in the ground. Some of the sediments settle out; the water is cleaned a bit. The water moves into some of die swales or maybe into the stone underneath the swale via the swale itself or a perforated pipe. For larger storm events, water that does not infiltrate into the slope and the area around it will make its way to the stone-lined feature that runs under the sidewalk and under where the topsoil and new soil is, then spread out along the slope. Ms. Collins asked whether the oak trees would be replaced by other oak trees. Mr. Cutter responded that they're planning on several species of oak to provide a diversity instead of planting all red oaks. They'll look pretty much the same, and it will be hard to tell the difference. The existing oaks are being monitored and pruned annually. Over the next five to ten years, they will mostly be replanted. They'll be kept as long possible and taken out only when it becomes a safety haz ard or they look so bad, they're an embarrassment. Mr. Bates stated that the lighting they currently have does not meet the Town's lighting requirements. They have to meet both the university construction standard and the Town's Outdoor Lighting Law. He explained that the standard requires the area to be lit to a certain number of lumens, but it might be a problem to meet the Town's shielding requirements and still get the lumens out where they need them. It might mean increasing the number of lights. It's an area coverage problem because of the cutoff. Ms. Balestra added that the City requires no review of their portion — Cornell can probably put any lighting they want on the City side. But in the Town, they have to meet the Outdoor Lighting Law. PB Resolution No. 2013-055: SEQR, Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval and Special Permit, Cornell University Tower Road Safety Improvements Project, Tax Parcel No. 67.-1-13.2, Tower Road Moved by John Beach; seconded by Yvonne Fogarty WHEREAS: Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 3 of 12 1. This action involves Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval and Special Per mit for the proposed improvements along 1,250+/' linear feet of Tower Road on the Cornell University campus, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 67.-1-13.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The proposal involves removing approximately 105 parking spaces to allow for new bike lanes, two bus pull offs and shelters, stormwater management and green infrastructure, a sidewalk, landscaping and lighting. A portion of the project, including the bus pull offs and shelters, is located along Tower Road in the City of Ithaca. Cornell University, Owner/Applicant; Tammi B. Aiken, Agent; and 2. This is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board is acting as Lead Agency in the environmental review with respect to this project; and 3. The Planning Board, on December 17, 2013, has reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short En vironmental Assessment Form Part 1, submitted by the applicant, and Parts 2 and 3, prepared by Town Planning staff, a narrative titled "Tower Road Safety Improvements Project," dated No vember, 2013, drawings titled "Tower Road Safety Improvement Project," including Sheets C- 101, O102, C-301, C-302, and C-501, all prepared by Cornell University Facilities Engineering and dated November, 2013; and other application materials; and 4. The Town Planning staff has recommended a negative determination of environmental signifi- cance with respect to the proposed action; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED: That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby makes a negative determination of environmental significance in accordance with Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law and 6 NYCRR Part 617 New York State Environmental Quality Review for the above referenced actions as proposed, based on the information in the EAF Part 1 and for the reasons set forth in the EAF Parts 2 and 3, and, therefore, a Draft Environmental Impact Statement will not be required. Vote Ayes: Wilcox, Collins, Beach, Fogarty, Wedemeyer, Bosak, Erb AGENDA It EM Public Hearing: Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval and Special Permit for the proposed improvements along 1,250 +/- linear feet of Tower Road on the Cornell University campus. Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 67-1-13.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The proposal in volves removing approximately 105 parking spaces to allow for new bike lanes, two bus pull offs and shelters, stormwater management and green infrastructure, a sidewalk, landscaping, and lighting. A portion of the project, including the bus pull offs and shelters, is located along Tower Road in the City of Ithaca. Cornell University, Owner/Applicant; Tammi B. Aiken, Agent Mr. Wilcox opened the public hearing at 7:38 p.m. Mr. Thaete said that they exceed the stormwater requirements; there are no issues from an engineer ing standpoint. Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 4 of 12 Mr. Bates pointed out that the Town is going to have jurisdiction only on our side of the project. He asked whether they will use the same lighting on both sides of the street. Mr. Cutter said they plan to use the same lights throughout. Mr. Bosak asked why a special permit was needed. Ms. Balestra responded that it's in a residential zone and educational or institutional uses within a residential zone automatically kick in the special permit criteria. Mr. Wilcox pointed out that under new zoning, that might change. Ms. Balestra said the Town might create an institutional or campus zoning district that would apply to Cornell, Ithaca College, and a couple of other institutions. A high school student in the audience asked which shrubs and trees were going in. He learned in class that roots of plants can crack the pavement and cause potholes, so he wondered what they were doing about it. Mr. Wilcox closed the public hearing at 7:49 p.m. Mr. Cutter stated that both shrubs and trees will be planted in the landscape buffer. The trees are going to be planted on the side away from the street, so there will be the curb, the shrubs, the side walk, and then the trees will be on the outside. In between the sidewalk and the road itself, there will be low shrubs. Roots are looking for water, and there's not a lot of water under the road itself, and the soil under the road is very compacted, both of which factors discourage roots. Six different species of shrubs will be planted, which are listed in the memo. These shrubs are relatively salt tolerant. If they get damaged by snow being piled on top of them, they can be cut back and will resprout from their roots. They will stay low - under three feet tall. Ms. Brock said that at Stanford University, they have enormous eucalyptus groves and that's where people park for football games and alumni weekend, so people are parking on the roots. She asked why they're not being damaged after so many years and our oaks so impacted. She wondered whether Cornell was writing off the oak trees a bit too quickly. Mr. Cutter responded that there is a lot of variability among tree species and how they are impacted by compaction. Oaks are in the middle in terms of sensitivity. Fifty years' worth of parking impact has taken that long to bring about that level of decline. They're not going to cut them down just to re place them; they'll wait until there are safety-hazard indicators, such as a lot of dead wood, rot, major structural damage in the trunk, etc. ^■0^ Mr. Bosak said that eucalypti are not like northern hardwoods - they're very aggressive in their growth habit. In California, they're invasive. Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 5 of 12 PB Resolution No. 2013-056: Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval and Special Permit, Cornell University Tower Road Safety Improvements Project, Tax Parcel No. 67.-1-13.2, Tower Road Moved by Hollis Erb; seconded by Jon Bosak WHEREAS: 1. This action involves Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval and Special Per mit for the proposed improvements along 1,250+/- linear feet of Tower Road on the Cornell University campus, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 67.-1-13.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The proposal involves removing approximately 105 parking spaces to allow for new bike lanes, two bus pull offs and shelters, stormwater management and green infrastructure, a sidewalk, landscaping and lighting. A portion of the project, including the bus pull offs and shelters, is located along Tower Road in the City of Ithaca. Cornell University, Owner/Applicant; Tammi B. Aiken, Agent; and 2. This is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board, acting as lead agency in environmental review with respect to the project has, on December 17, 2013, made a negative de termination of environmental significance, after having reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short Environmental Assessment Form Part 1, submitted by the applicant, and Parts 2 and 3, prepared by Town Planning staff; and 3. The Planning Board, on December 17, 2013, has reviewed and accepted as adequate, application materials including a narrative titled "Tower Road Safety Improvements Project," dated Novem ber, 2013, drawings titled "Tower Road Safety Improvement Project," including Sheets C-101, C- 102, O301, C-302, and C-501, all prepared by Cornell University Facilities Engineering and dated November, 2013; and other application materials; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That the Planning Board hereby finds that the special permit standards of Article XXIV Section 270- 200, Subsections A - L, of the Town of Ithaca Code, have been met, specifically that: a. the health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community, in harmony with the general purpose of this chapter, will be promoted, because the project largely involves site and transpor tation improvements on the Cornell campus that will improve the health and safety of the cam pus and overall community, and b. (i) the premises are reasonably adapted to the proposed use, given that the premises already con sist of a road, some sidewalks and other transportation-related uses, and (ii) the proposed use fills a neighborhood or community need because it involves expanding the alternative transportation mode options for pedestrians and those traveling by bus and bicycle along Tower Road, and c. the proposed use and the location and design of any structures are consistent with the character of the district in which they are located, for the same reasons as noted above, and Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 6 of 12 d. the proposed use will not be detrimental to the general amenity or neighborhood character in amounts sufficient to devalue the neighborhood property or seriously inconvenience the neighboring inhabitants, for the reasons noted above, and e. operations in connection with the proposed use will not be more objectionable to nearby proper ties by reasons of noise, fumes, vibrations, illumination or other potential nuisance than the op eration of any permitted use in the particular zone, for the reasons noted above, and f. community infrastructure and services, including but not limited to, protective services, road ways, garbage collection, schools and water and sewer facilities, are currently, or will be, of ade quate capacity to accommodate the proposed use because the use is already operational as a road and there are minimal changes proposed, and g. the proposed use, building, design and site layout comply with all provisions of Chapter 270, Zoning, and, to the extent considered by the Planning Board, with other regulations and ordi nances of the Town, with the Building Code and all other state and federal laws, rules and regu lations, and with the Town Comprehensive Plan, and h. the proposed access and egress for all structures and uses are safely designed and the site layout provides adequate access for emergency vehicles, and i. the general effect of the proposed use upon the community as a whole, including such items as traffic load upon public streets and load upon water and sewer systems, is not detrimental to the health, safety and general welfare of the community, for the reasons noted above, and j. the lot area, access, parking, and loading facilities are sufficient for the proposed use; and access, parking, and loading facilities are adequately buffered to minimize their visual impact, as there are no proposed changes to the existing use, and any parking facilities that are lost will be ac commodated elsewhere on the Cornell campus, and k. natural surface water drainage is adequately managed in accordance with good engineering prac tices and in accordance with any applicable Town local law or ordinance, and existing drainage- ways are not altered in a manner that adversely affects other properties, per the recommended condition of approval by the Public Works Department noted in the Further Resolved clause be low, and 1. the proposed use or structure complies with all the criteria applicable to site plan review set forth in this chapter. AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby waives certain requirements for Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval, as shown on the Preliminary and Final Site Plan Checklists, having de termined from the materials presented that such waiver will result in neither a significant altera tion of the purpose of site plan control nor the policies enunciated or implied by the Town Board; and Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 7 of 12 2. That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby grants Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval for the proposed improvements to Tower Road on the Cornell University campus, as described in the materials listed in Whereas #3 above, subject to the following conditions: a. Submission of one original large-sized set of the final site plan drawings (Sheets C-101, C-102, C-301, C-3Q2, and C-501), revised to show the addition and location of ten new oak trees on the south side of Tower Road, the number and location of lights along Tower Road, and re vised scupper drains and locations as proposed by applicant at the Planning Board's Decem ber 17, 2013 meeting and that are acceptable to the Town Engineer, signed and sealed by the registered land surveyor, engineer, architect or landscape architect who prepared the materials, prior to the application for any building or electrical permits, and b. Submission of a Basic Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) to the Town of Ithaca Public Works Department, for review and approval, prior to the application for any building or electrical permits, and c. All proposed outdoor lighting shall conform to the requirements in the Town of Ithaca Out door Lighting Law. Vote Aye: Wilcox, Collins, Beach, Fogarty, Wedemeyer, Bosak, Erb AGENDA ITEM SEQR: Cornell University Water System Improvements Project, Dryden Road Ms. Gutenberger gave a brief overview. In 2008, they were given a special permit to take down the water tank. In the four years they were given to do this, they were working on building a cellular monopole to relocate the cell towers for three carriers onto the monopole. That project took longer than they had anticipated, but they can now move over two of the three cell carriers. The four-year extension would have expired in December 2012, so Ms. Gutenberger came before the Board to get an extension until the end of March 2014. At the time, she was not aware that there was a separate project she is not involved with. Verizon is building a cell site on Riley Robb Hall, and that project has also been delayed for various reasons. That project is now on track and is scheduled to be con structed in the very near future. If Verizon takes down their antennas from the water tank prior to the Riley Robb site being complete, there will be a gap in cell coverage on campus and in the surrounding community. Cornell is asking for an extension to put off taking down the tank until Riley Robb is complete. Then it comes down to the time of year the tank is taken down. If they take it down in win ter, they can cut the legs off and the tank will fall over and hit the harder ground. So they're asking for an extension until next winter to take down the tank. Mr. Wilcox pointed out that the narrative refers to unavoidable delays in constructing the monopole. Ms. Gutenberger said that since it's been in the planning for four years, technology has changed and the cell carriers realized that some of the loading requirements were no longer accurate because their antennas were now different weights. There were delays with regard to coordinating three different Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 8 of 12 cell carriers and three large companies. As for the unforeseen matters on Riley Robb, she is not in volved in the project, but her understanding is that they're related to timing issues due to class sched ules and time of year and time of day construction could happen. Also there were funding issues. Ms. Erb stated that class issues are not unavoidable. She asked that in the future, the narrative have a date, signature, and be on letterhead. Ms. Guterberger confirmed that the tank is empty and that the geothermal component of the new facility is up and running. They got their certificate of occupancy. Board members expressed interest in being present when the tank is pulled down. Mr. Bosak said that although the tank itself doesn't bother him, he realizes that Verizon knows that they can come up with whatever unforeseen problem they run into and the Board will say okay be cause otherwise there will be a gap in Verizon coverage. What's bothering him is the way this kind of thing comes about. There is a mounting resistance to buying this as a reason. Ms. Wedemeyer pointed out that on a college campus, internet connection is a necessity. Mr. Bosak agreed, saying it would be a hardship. Ms. Fogarty commented that if Cornell said they were taking the tank down, Verizon would get Riley Robb done. Ms. Collins finds it particularly annoying because she voted against the monopole. She tried to argue that they should leave the tank up and preserve it. She (jokingly) suggested putting a condition in the resolution that if they don't take the tank down in a year, then they must preserve it. Part of the ar gument for the monopole was that if they didn't get it up, there wouldn't be coverage. She also feels annoyed frustration. Ms. Erb noted that she spent eight years at the University of California, Davis, where the tank with the logo on it is an icon of the university - not an eyesore. It actually made her feel at home to have the water tank there, so she has no problem with granting an extension except for the cell phone screw ups. PB Resolution No. 2013-057: SEQR, Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval: Time Extension for Water Tank Demolition, Cornell University Water System Improvement Project, Tax Parcel No. 65.-1-5.2, Dryden Road (NYS Rt. 366) Moved by Hollis Erb; seconded by Yvonne Fogarty WHEREAS: This action involves Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval regarding a re quest to allow an additional time extension to demolish the existing Cornell University 0.5 mil lion gallon water tank, located along Dryden Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 65.-1-5.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The December 16, 2008 site plan approval for the Cornell University Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 9 of 12 Water System Improvement Project required the demolition of the water tank to be completed within four years of the approval. An extension was previously granted until March 31, 2014. The current request is for an extension until March 31, 2015 to demolish the water tank. Cornell University, Owner/Applicant; Kristin E. Gutenberger, Manager, Real Estate Operations, Agent; and 2. This is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board is acting as Lead Agency in the environmental review with respect to this project; and 3. The Planning Board, on December 17, 2013, has reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short En vironmental Assessment Form Part 1, submitted by the applicant, and Parts 2 and 3, prepared by Town Planning staff, a "Water Tank Demolition Extension Request Narrative" with attachments, date-stamped November 22, 2013, prepared by the applicant, and other application materials; and 4. Tlie Town Planning staff has recommended a negative determination of environmental signifi cance with respect to the proposed time extension; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED: That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby makes a negative determination of environmental significance in accordance with Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law and 6 NYCRR Part 617 New York State Environmental Quality Review for the above referenced actions as proposed, based on the information in the EAF Part 1 and for the reasons set forth in the EAF Parts 2 and 3, and, therefore, a Draft Environmental Impact Statement will not be required. Vote Ayes; Wilcox, Collins, Beach, Fogarty, Wedemeyer, Bosak, Erb AGENDA ITEM Public Hearing: Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval regarding a request to allow an additional time extension to demolish the existing Cornell University 0.5 million gallon water tank located along Dryden Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 65-1-5.2, Low Density Resi dential Zone. The December 18, 2008 site plan approval for the Cornell University Water System Improvements project required the demolition of the water tank to be completed within four years of the approval. An extension was previously granted until March 31, 2014. The current request is for an extension until March 31, 2015 to demolish the water tank. Cornell University, Own er/Applicant; Kristin E. Gutenberger, Manager, Real Estate Operations Mr. Wilcox opened the public hearing at 8:18 p.m. The high school student from the audience wanted to know where the water from the tank went. Ms. Aiken responded that around five years ago, the utility that owns and operates the water system at Cornell built a new transmission line from the filtration plant located on Caldwell Road. The clean water is pumped from a new pumping station near the new tank up to the Hungerford Hill Road tank. That tank has additional capacity to deal with increasing demand at the university. It also backs Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 10 of 12 up the Bolton Point and City of Ithaca systems - each system backs up and provides redundancy for the other systems. Mr. Wilcox closed the public hearing at 8:27 p.m. PB Resolution No. 2013-058:Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approvals Time Extension for Water Tank Demolition, Cornell University Water System Improvement Project, Tax Parcel No. 65.-1- 5.2, Dryden Road (NYS Rt. 366) Moved by Hollis ErJ); seconded by Jon Bosak WHEREAS: 1. This action involves Consideration of Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval regarding a re quest to allow an additional time extension to demolish the existing Cornell University 0.5 mil lion gallon water tank, located along Dryden Road, Town of Ithaca Tax Parcel No. 65.-1-5.2, Low Density Residential Zone. The December 16, 2008 site plan approval for the Cornell University Water System Improvement Project required the demolition of the water tank to be completed within four years of the approval. An extension was previously granted until March 31, 2014. The current request is for an extension until March 31, 2015 to demolish the water tank. Cornell University, Owner/Applicant; Kristin E. Gutenberger, Manager, Real Estate Operations, Agent; and 2. This is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Ithaca Planning Board, acting as lead agency in environmental review with respect to the project has, on December 17, 2013, made a negative de termination of environmental significance, after having reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short Environmental Assessment Form Part 1, submitted by the applicant, and Parts 2 and 3, prepared by Town Planning staff; and 3. The Planning Board, on December 17, 2013, has reviewed and accepted as adequate, application materials including a "Water Tank Demolition Extension Request Narrative" with attachments, date-stamped November 22, 2013, prepared by the applicant, and other application materials; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: 1. That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby waives certain requirements for Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval, as shown on the Preliminary and Final Site Plan Checklists, having de termined from the materials presented that such waiver will result in neither a significant altera tion of the purpose of site plan control nor the policies enunciated or implied by the Town Board; and 2. That the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby grants Preliminary and Final Site Plan Approval for the time extension to demolish the existing Cornell University 0.5 million gallon water tank, in order to provide additional time to transfer telecommunication antennas located on the water tank to a new monopole, as described in the "Water Tank Demolition Extension Request Narra tive," including attachments, date-stamped November 22, 2013, subject to the following condi tions: Planning Board Minutes 12-17-2013 Page 11 of 12 a. The demolition of the 0.5. million gallon water tank will require a demolition permit from the Town of Ithaca Building Department, and b. The demolition shall be completed by March 31, 2015. Vote Ayes: Wilcox, Collins, Beach, Fogarty, Wedemeyer, Bosak, Erb AGENDA ITEM Consideration of approval of the 2014 Planning Board Meeting Schedule PB Resolution No. 2013-059jTown of Ithaca Planning Board, Schedule of Meetings for 2014 Moved by John Beach; seconded by Hollis Erb RESOLVED, that the Town of Ithaca Planning Board hereby adopts the following as its schedule of Regular Meetings for the Year 2014. Unless otherwise noted, all meetings will be held on the first and third Tuesday of each month, commencing at 7:00 p.m. and ending by 10:00 p.m. FIRST MEETING OF THE MONTH January 7, 2014 February 4, 2014 March 4, 2014 April 1, 2014 May 6, 2014 June 3, 2014 July 1, 2014 August 5, 2014 September 2, 2014 October 7, 2014 November 4, 2014 December 2, 2014 Vote Ayes: Wilcox, Collins, Beach, Fogarty, Wedemeyer, Bosak, Erb SECOND MEETING OF THE MONTH January 21, 2014 February 18, 2014 March 18, 2014 April 15, 2014 May 20, 2014 June 17,2014 July 15, 2014 August 19, 2014 September 16, 2014 October 21, 2014 November 18, 2014 December 16, 2014 AGENDA ITEM Consideration of a recommendation to the Town Board regarding the Chairperson of the Planning Board for 2014 Planning Board Minutes 12'17'2013 Page 12 of 12 On a motion by Ms. Erb and seconded by Ms. Collins, the Planning Board recommended that Mr. Wilcox be reappointed chairperson of the Planning Board for 2014. The motion passed, with Mr. Wilcox abstaining. AGENDA ITEM Persons to be heard - Nobody came forward to address the Board. AGENDA ITEM Approval of Minutes PB Resolution No. 2013-060: Minutes of December 3, 2013 Moved by Fred Wilcox; seconded by Hollis Erb WHEREAS, the Town of Ithaca Planning Board has reviewed the draft minutes from the meeting on December 3; now therefore be it RESOLVED, the Town of Ithaca Planning Board approves the minutes, as amended, to be the final minutes of the meeting on December 3. Vote: Ayes: Wilcox, Collins, Haefeli, Beach, Fogarty, Bosak, Erb Abstentions: Wedemeyer AGENDA ITEM Other Business On a motion by Mr. Bosak and seconded by Ms. Erb, the Planning Board voted to cancel the meeting of January 7. AGENDA ITEM Adjournment Upon a motion by Hollis Erb, the meeting adjourned at 8:35 p.m. rs Respectfully submitted. Debra DeAugistine, DeputvTown Clerk , 5-/, hereby certify that the foregomg-l&^tfb^ & exact^copy of a resoiulion adapted by the /--v/; ^ a, of the Town of Ithaca, TomRklra County, New York, pfn the day of lunr.x.-r 20j^ D^te {First Deputy Town Clerk / \