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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2007-07-18BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS PROCEEDINGS CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Committee of the Whole Meeting 4:45 p.m. July 18, 2007 PRESENT: Mayor Peterson Commissioners (6) - Jenkins, Dotson, Chapman, Schlather, Tripp, Wykstra OTHERS PRESENT: Superintendent of Public Works - Gray Assistant Superintendent of Streets and Facilities - Ferrel Assistant Superintendent of Water and Sewer – Whitney Common Council Liaison – Coles Information Management Specialist Myers City Clerk – Holcomb City Attorney – Hoffman City Chamberlain – Parsons Deputy Director of Planning & Development – Cornish EXCUSED: DAC Liaison – Roberts Mayor Peterson reported that the trees have been removed on the 100 block of North Aurora Street as part of the street re-design project. New trees are expected to be planted in the Fall. 421 North Cayuga Street – Appeal to dismiss sidewalk construction costs: Christine and Jeremy Potter, new owners of the property previously owned by Byron Caplan. Christine and Jeremy received a bill from the City Engineer’s office for the sidewalk replacement at their property at 421 North Cayuga Street on May 21, 2007. This work was completed by the City in 2005 when the property was owned by Byron Caplan. At the time of the closing on the property, on June 26, 2006, the Potters were advised that the property was free and clear of all outstanding debts or claims. They feel that the previous owner, Mr. Caplan, should be responsible for the bill of $1,200.45 Commissioner Schlather arrived at the meeting at 5:00 p.m. Extensive discussion followed on the floor regarding how the City has treated previous appeals similar to this one and requested that City Chamberlain Parsons conduct further research into whether the tax search completed prior to the sale of this property showed this outstanding bill. They requested that these findings be shared with the Board so that they can make a final decision. Commissioner Schlather stated that he would support the denial of this appeal and let the current owners of the property work with the previous owner to pay the bill. Proposal for City Charter and City Code Related to Sidewalk Construction or Repair and Water and Sewer Billing: City Chamberlain Parsons addressed the Board and requested that, in light of the many appeals being made to the City, that the Board approve her request to work with appropriate City Departments to draft language to update the City Code and Charter (§C-73 – Sidewalks and §348-48 – Rates and Rents established). The proposed changed would provide the City Chamberlain’s office the ability to issue bills for sidewalk repair in a timely manner, and to change the penalty structure for late utility payments to reflect the procedure that is followed for collecting city taxes. She further explained that the City Charter and Code currently treats the construction of new sidewalks and the repair of existing sidewalks the same. Both require notice and public hearings before work is commenced and then again before a bill may be issued upon completion of the work. The Board of Public Works must approve the assessment for the work, in both cases, before a bill can be issued to the owner. The resulting delays in performing required repairs subject the City to risk should someone become injured 2 because of the sidewalk defects. In addition, the delays in billing have caused the City to expunge fees due to changes in property ownership that would have otherwise been collectable. She further recommended leaving the public hearing requirements for the construction of new sidewalks, but deleting the public hearing requirements for the repair of sidewalks and the creation of bills for either the construction or repair of sidewalks. If these changes are approved, bills relating to sidewalk construction and repair would be like other bills issued to property owners, while leaving the public hearing and approval requirements for new sidewalk construction. Special Event Parking- Mayor Peterson explained that the City is interested in pursuing special event parking fees to help cover city costs incurred by the Department of Public Works, Police and Fire Departments to provide services to the events. Asst. Supt. of Streets and Facilities Ferrel recommended that if a special event parking system is adopted it should be a simple one that does not require changes to the automated parking equipment. He further stated that he would suggest charging for special event parking at the bigger events that are held in the City such as the Ithaca Festival, Apple Harvest Festival, and Chili Cook-Off. Commissioner Tripp stated that she does not support this idea, as everyone assumes that there is free parking in the City on the weekends because the City wants to encourage visitors to the downtown. She voiced concern that parking fees may deter many people from coming to these special events. Extensive discussion followed on the floor regarding the use of the new parking garage equipment and some of the problems that the City has encountered. Supt. Gray and City Chamberlain Parsons reported that they are working with the vendor to resolve these issues. Further discussion followed regarding the use of free metered spaces and parking in the residential neighborhoods that may encourage people to utilize on- street spaces during these special events to avoid paying the fee for parking. City Clerk Holcomb explained to the Board that the City has created a Special Events Team that meets monthly to review permit applications for the larger events that organizers are requesting to hold in the City. The team discussed a special event fee to off-set City costs, but the event organizers have said that they would not be able to pay additional fees as most of them are not-for-profit organizations and don’t have the excess funding. She further reported that currently the cost for city staff overtime for 2007 is $150,000 over budget, in part because departments do not budget staffing hours to cover special events. She further explained that most people who attend large- scale events expect to pay for parking, so she feels that most people would continue to attend the events and pay a small fee. Mayor Peterson noted that some event organizers, such as the Ithaca Festival Board, support a fee for parking during their event and even included that information in their brochure for this year’s festival. Mayor Peterson left the meeting at 5:45 p.m. and designated Commissioner Dotson as Chair in her absence. The Board agreed to form a sub-committee consisting of Commissioners Schlather and Dotson to work with City Clerk Holcomb to work on establishing recommendations to the Board to implement a special event parking fee and report back to the Board. Notification of Defect Policy Related to Prior Written Notice Requirement This item will be placed on the next agenda for discussion, as time would not permit it to be discussed during this meeting. Request to Waive Stewart Park Pavilion Fee for City of Ithaca Employee Recognition Day The Board agreed to place this item on the agenda for approval at the August 8, 2007 meeting of the Board. 3 July 18, 2007 TCAT Wayfinding Signage – Deputy Director of Planning & Development Cornish addressed the Board to explain the request from the Wayfinding Committee regarding signage on the Commons. She stated that the proposed placement of the four signs around the Commons was decided as follows with the help of Asst. Supt. of Streets & Facilities Ferrel: 1. State/Cayuga Street, next to the clock turret 2. State/Aurora Street, next to the clock turret 3. Tioga/Seneca Street, on top of the bench planter 4. Home Dairy Alley/Green Street – TBD when construction if finished She further explained that TCAT is investing in new shelters in the Ithaca downtown area with funding coming from an approved Federal grant. This money includes signage to direct pedestrians to local landmarks and bus stops. She stated that directional landmark signage is needed now more than ever with the increased business traffic from new businesses and hotels in the area. The Committee needs the permission of the Board to proceed with the project and would like to also solicit input from the Board on the proposed signage. TCAT will purchase and place the signs and then would like the City to take ownership of the signs and any required maintenance. The Ithaca Downtown Partnership has offered to update the signage information as needed. This proposal is also going before the Commons Advisory Board at their meeting on July 20, 2007 for their input as well. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the type of sign pole that will be used, the design of the signs, ADA requirements, and safety concerns for pedestrians and children walking near the signs. Commissioner Schlather inquired whether the signage would include landmarks such as the Sagan Walk, and the future MLK Walkway. Deputy Director of Planning and Development stated that the signs would not be fabricated until suggestions from the Board and the Commons Advisory Board can be incorporated into the design. She stated that she would return to the Board with any additional information that might be pertinent to the installation of the signs. Update –Sidewalk Construction Crew Activity Asst. Supt. of Streets and Facilities Ferrel reported that the City’s new sidewalk crew has put together an inspection, notification, and determinations system that outlines what work the property owners could do and what work the City would do to repair/replace deteriorated sidewalks. Most of the work in 2007 has been targeted for the downtown and East Hill areas of the City. Discussion followed on the floor about property owner’s responsibilities for sidewalks, and the removal and replacement of trees in some of the affected areas. Common Council Liaison Coles reported that there has been some discrepancies reported to her that property owners have encountered regarding requests to property owners to repair/replace their sidewalks in the areas where NYSEG has completed work. The residents of those areas were expecting the City to complete the re-paving of the road, which does not have curb cuts yet, before the necessary sidewalk work was completed. The residents are concerned that the City could damage the new sidewalks when it repaves the road. Asst. Supt. of Streets and Facilities Ferrel stated that the City is working to resolve this issue, but the work is not on the schedule for this year. Further discussion followed on the floor regarding the liability that could be incurred by the City and/or property owners if the sidewalks are not repaired or replaced. 4 July 18, 2007 Carsharing Parking – Proposal to Update City Code Commissioner Dotson recused herself from this discussion, as she is an employee of Ithaca Carshare. Commissioner Jenkins assumed the position of Chair for this topic. Fernando deAragon, Ithaca-Tompkins County Transportation Council, addressed the Board to present Ithaca Carshare’s request to implement a car sharing program in the City of Ithaca and amend the City Code §346 entitled “Vehicles and Traffic” to reflect the definition of “car sharing” and to add the following language in §346-3(M): “M. Bus stops and taxicab stands. (1) The City Traffic Engineer is hereby authorized and required to establish bus stops, and taxicab stands, locations for carsharing vehicles and stands for other passenger common carrier motor vehicles on such public streets in such places and in such number, as he/she shall determine to be of the greatest benefit and convenience to the public. The Board of Public Works shall be the body for appeals to the City Traffic Engineer’s decisions.” Mr. deAragon explained what carsharing is and how it would benefit the City and residents of the area. He explained that Carsharing is a membership-based service that offers per-hour usage of a variety of well-maintained cars conveniently located in downtowns, neighborhoods, and on campuses. Drivers reserve online or by phone and pay for their use only, while gas, insurance, and maintenance are taken care of by the carsharing organization. When not in use, each car has a designated parking spot convenient to as many members as possible. Carsharing is available in about 50 cities across North America, and is common in Europe. National research shows that each carsharing vehicle replaces roughly 15 private vehicles. Also, carsharing reduces significantly the “sunk” costs of access to a vehicle, from over $400 per month according to AAA to less than $30 for most carshare memberships. This code change is being proposed to Council via the Environment & Neighborhood Services Committee and presented to the BPW for information at this time. Ithaca Carshare was first envisioned at a Carsharing Summit in January 2006. Since then, a steering committee, then board, has been undertaking preparations to get carshare rolling locally. Key partners represented on the Ithaca Carshare board are Cornell University, Ithaca College, the City of Ithaca, EcoVillage at Ithaca, and the Ithaca-Tompkins County Transportation Council. It incorporated as a nonprofit late in 2006 and anticipated beginning service in early 2007, but ran into difficulties with New York State's auto insurance regulations. A few months later, they began discussing the potential of a partnership with Flexcar, a national carsharing company, where they would provide back office services and Ithaca Carshare would retain our independence as a local nonprofit. (Flexcar has an existing partnership with a nonprofit in Chicago, I-GO Carsharing.) Two major benefits of this partnership are the ability for Ithaca Carshare members to access the Flexcar national network in 12 other metropolitan areas and the ability to work with members as young as 18. Ithaca Carshare is now planning to launch as soon as possible, ideally near the beginning of fall semester to best reach the college markets. In addition to college campuses, they plan, initially, to place cars in Ithaca's downtown and at EcoVillage. As membership and usage grows, they plan to add cars and locations. For any carshare to be successful, members need to be able to predict where the car they've reserved is parked. Most carshares across the US establish consistent, reserved parking for their vehicles, either on street, in garages or lots. Ithaca Carshare would like to use on street parking for their vehicles, at least initially, because of the high convenience and visibility to members and potential members. 5 July 18, 2007 Tim Logue, City Traffic Engineer and Mr. deAragon have worked with City Attorney Hoffman to come up with a straightforward method to allocate on street parking spaces to carsharing. The proposed amendment to the City code was written to cover vehicles provided by any carsharing program (as defined in the code) and not just Ithaca Carshare. Also, Ithaca Carshare is aware that Traffic Engineer Logue has a conflict of interest in this matter because as his position of Traffic Engineer for the City is named in the proposed code change, and he also serves on Ithaca Carshare's Board. Mayor Peterson returned to the meeting at 6:35 p.m. Extensive discussion followed on the floor regarding the cost to the City for providing the parking spaces, the location of spaces, the determination of the value of the parking spaces in order to provide the City’s required “in-kind” contribution to help Ithaca Carshare acquire the necessary funds to implement the program, and the suggested updates to the City Code. City Attorney Hoffman noted that further research into this issue is needed before a decision is made by the Board. ADJOURNMENT On a motion the meeting adjourned at 7:00 p.m. Sarah L. Myers Carolyn K. Peterson Information Management Specialist Mayor