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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2004-08-18BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE August 18, 2004 NOTES PRESENT: Commissioners Chapman, Dotson, Romanoff, Schlather, Tsegaye, Mayor Peterson, Alderperson Coles, Superintendent Gray, and Assistant Superintendent Ferrel. The meeting convened at 4:50 p.m. Vice Chair Tsegaye chaired the meeting. There were no additions to or deletions from the agenda ____________________________________________________________________ 1. Special Meeting. A. Encroachment for 140 College Avenue. By Comm. Dotson, Seconded by: Comm. Romanoff WHEREAS, the Po Family Limited Partnership, owner of 140 College Avenue is requesting an encroachment agreement for their property, and WHEREAS, the encroachment includes approximately .5 inches +/- of a retaining wall in to the City’s right-of-way on College Avenue resulting from a construction error which city staff advises does not create a current hardship, and WHEREAS, the City Attorney’s office has reviewed and approved the agreement as to form; now, therefore be it RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works hereby approves the encroachment agreement for 140 College Avenue based on the usual terms and conditions. Brief discussion followed concerning future rights to take back the property at the owner’s cost. A vote resulted as follows: Carried Unanimously B. Request for Wavier of Pavilion Fee for Annual Employee Picnic. By: Comm. Chapman, Seconded by: Comm. Romanoff WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca will hold its annual Employee Recognition Picnic on Friday, September 24, 2004, and WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works wishes to recognize all of its employees; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works wishes to encourage the participation of the parking lot attendants, and be it further RESOLVED, That the board authorizes the closing of the parking booths at all city facilities on Friday, September 24, 2004 at 11:30 am for the remainder of the day, provided the lot attendants participate in the scheduled events or are otherwise assigned work tasks to complete their work day. Supt. Gray reminded the board that this is an annual request. Discussion followed concerning the possibility to allow this annual request to be handled administratively. The consensus of the board was to allow future boards the opportunity to review this request. 2 August 18, 2004 A vote resulted as follows: Carried Unanimously Adjournment of special meeting: By: Comm. Romanoff, Seconded by: Comm. Chapman 2. Request from IWASA. Denise Pritchard, President of the Ithaca Women’s Amateur Softball Association was present to address the board. Ms. Pritchard told the board that field 8, formerly used by the women’s league, has been modified for use by the Cal Ripkin league. She explained that the field dimensions for the two leagues vary. They were told that because of this new league and the decline of the IWASA, they could only use the two remaining fields at Union Fields. During their season, they realized that the Cal Ripkin league was not using field 8 and that their own schedule required them to play late games due to the loss of the third field. Ms. Pritchard noted that since the Cal Ripken league didn’t use field 8 and have the ability to use other fields, the IWASA would like the use of field 8 as in past seasons. Allen Green, Director of the Youth Bureau was present to address the board on this issue. He explained that a lot of people use the fields and that scheduling games is difficult. He noted that this is the first year for the Cal Ripken league and that they were pleased with the enrollment into the league. He added that ideally a master plan is needed for Cass Park for maximum utilization. Discussion followed on field use and how the change of field 8 came about. Alderperson Coles told the board that she is stunned to hear that the change has had negative effects on another league. She added that when the request came to council, information on other leagues was not provided. It was suggested that this item be worked out between the Youth Bureau and the IWASA league. 3. Power to Act - Width of West Court Street. By: Comm. Schlather, Seconded by: Comm. Romanoff WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works has received a petition requesting that the 400 to 600 blocks of West Court Street be narrowed as the street is rebuilt as part of the NYSEG Coal Tar Remediation Project, and WHEREAS, the board has reviewed both positive and negative aspects of narrowing the pavement as well as rational for widening the pavement with its positive and negative effects on the adjacent homes, the city transportation grid, and related items such as the Ithaca Bicycle Plan adopted by Common Council in 1998, and WHEREAS, the board has given consideration to current plans for traffic calming along Court Street including raised intersections, raised crosswalks, and the proposed street narrowing, as well as the traffic shifting impacts of localized changes and the long term impacts on the city transportation grid including limiting capacity to accommodate bicycles with other vehicles, and WHEREAS, some residents have expressed concerns that backing out of their driveways will be even more dangerous, and Department of Public Works employees that trash pick up or the servicing of catch basins, water main valves, or sewer manholes would become more dangerous on a busy urban street if it is narrowed, and WHEREAS, the board finds that the added benefits of narrowing the pavement in addition to the already planned neighborhood traffic calming, are not enough to offset the disadvantages which would result, and WHEREAS, the board believes that the projected benefits of widening the pavement are not adequate or too speculative to offset the disadvantages, which would or could result from widening; now, therefore be it 3 August 18, 2004 RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works directs the department to restore the pavement of West Court Street to its current width of 30 feet curb to curb, while rebuilding the pavement and installing planned traffic calming measures at the expense of NYSEG. Members of the public spoke before the board. Gary Samuels, resident of West Court Street suggested narrowing the street in order to improve safety. Residents Don Slattery, Natasha Tall and Rosie Taube all indicated that they would like to see the street width remain the same. Neal Schwartzbach told the board that the neighborhood association has requested traffic calming for the area, which the city had agreed to years ago. Discussion by the board followed including the approved bike plan that calls for a bike route along West Court Street. It was noted that there are liabilities involved if the street is narrowed since the plan has been adopted. A vote resulted as follows: Ayes: 5 – Dotson, Romanoff, Schlather, Tsegaye, Mayor Peterson Nays: 1 – Chapman 4. Bike Plan. Supt. Gray told the board that this item is for discussion at a future meeting. Discussion then followed concerning adding portions of the plan into the 2005 budget. The meeting adjourned at 6:40 p.m. Notes by: Donna L. Payne Administrative Secretary