HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2008-02-20BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS PROCEEDINGS
CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK
Committee of the Whole Meeting 4:45 p.m. February 20, 2008
PRESENT:
Mayor Peterson
Commissioners (5) - Jenkins, Chapman, Schlather, Tripp, Wykstra
OTHERS PRESENT:
City Attorney - Hoffman
Superintendent of Public Works - Gray
Assistant Superintendent of Streets and Facilities - Ferrel
Information Management Specialist - Myers
Environmental Engineer – Gibson
EXCUSED:
Assistant Superintendent of Water and Sewer – Whitney
Common Council Liaison – Coles
DAC Liaison – Roberts
Johnson Controls Water Meter Project:
Supt. Gray explained that at the last meeting questions came up about the contract with
Johnson Controls. He distributed a draft contract document for the Board to review. He
stated that the contract is similar to the one the City had with Johnson Controls for the
energy efficiency project. He hopes this contract will go to next week’s City
Administration Committee meeting then back to the Board for approval at the March
voting meeting.
Cold Storage Building:
Environmental Engineer Scott Gibson, gave a presentation on the results of the bids
that the City received for the construction of a new cold storage building to be located
near the present Water and Sewer facility. He reviewed the elements that were
included in the bid. Gudabri, Inc. from Savannah, Georgia, was the lowest bidder for the
project. He explained various “add-on” items that could be included in the bid as well.
He stated that the bids have come in at about $20,000 over what was budgeted for the
project.
Supt. Gray explained that this information was for the Board’s information only today
and that a decision does need to be made at some point. He needs to meet with Asst.
Supt. Whitney and other staff to review the information. He stated that the City has
never done work with Gudabri, Inc. and that references would need to be obtained
before the award of bid. He further stated that the City might consider increasing the
cost of the project by hiring contractors for project management so that city staff can
keep up with day-to-day work priorities and other projects that need to be completed
this year.
University Avenue – Discussion
Supt. Gray reported that there is no new material available. City staff and the
subcommittee will be working to clarify the specifics needed to create a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) and the agreement. Draft documents should be available in
March for Board and Council review. Eventually this will lead to a public hearing
regarding the discontinuance of the street followed by a vote of the Board, probably in
May and June 2008 respectively. State Highway law will also be reviewed before this
item returns.
Commissioner Schlather stated that the timeline the Board established for the
Memorandum of Understanding item was that a presentation, discussion, and vote
would be done at the March 12, 2008 meeting or possible Power to Act at the March 19,
2008 meeting. He will not be able to attend the March 19th meeting so he requested
that the discussion and vote on this item be at a meeting he can attend. He further
stated that he is opposed to giving up a public right-of-way and asked that a long-term
lease be considered as an alternative.
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February 20, 2008
City Attorney Hoffman stated that the earliest possible date that this item could come
back to the Board would be March 5th..
Engineering Office Staffing – Power to Act
Supt. Gray reported that this item was not ready for discussion at today’s meeting. He
forwarded the recommendations to the Human Resources Department for review. There
is at least one standing Civil Service List for these positions that needs to be reviewed,
as well as individual qualifications to hold the positions recommended. The Civil Service
Commission would have to adopt or create titles for any positions not currently active,
and the Human Resources department would want to review New Position Duty
Statements and job descriptions to make a salary recommendation.
2008 Work Program
Commissioner Schlather stated that one item that he would like to see as a priority
would be to repair the time and temperature displays on the three clock towers on The
Commons. He further stated that by not displaying the time and temperature it appears
to the public that The Commons is shut down.
Asst. Supt. Ferrel stated that due to the age of the clock towers, it is no longer possible
for the City to get parts to repair them.
Mayor Peterson stated that there is a committee that has been meeting to talk about the
re-design of The Commons, including some of the infrastructure and that work could
include replacing the old clock towers.
Supt. Gray stated that the cost to replace the clock towers would be approximately
$5,000 to $8,000 each. He further stated that he has tried in the past to do something
about them, but was put off because of the proposed Commons improvement project. If
the Board agrees that this is an immediate need, it needs to pursue funding for the
project.
Special Event Parking Fees: The Board would like to see this item come back to them
in March for approval. Before that can happen, the sub-committee will need to meet.
The staff in the Superintendent’s office will work to coordinate this meeting as soon as
possible.
Outdoor dining (other than The Commons): The Superintendent’s office has received a
request from “Gimme Coffee” to allow them to have outdoor dining. Supt. Gray thought
that his office would follow the same procedure as they did in 2007 since the policy on
agreements/licenses for use of city property has not been finalized.
Commissioner Schlather stated that this had been discussed by that committee and
agreed that staff should follow the same procedures as they did in 2007. The hope is
that the policy will be in place by 2009. There would be one set of rules for The
Commons which would be regulated by the Commons Advisory Board and one set of
rules for the rest of the City regulated by the Board.
Extensive discussion followed on the work items for 2008 including current status, staff
assignments, and what needs to be done in order to complete the projects. Executive
Assistant Myers will prepare a spread sheet to track each project’s progress. Further
discussion followed on the floor regarding the handicap accessibility violation letter
received from the Department of Justice and the response back from the City including
a request for a revised timeline to finish some of the items when the good weather
arrives.
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February 20, 2008
The Board requested the following items to be placed on March agendas for their
discussion, review, and consideration:
Johnson Controls Water Meter Contract
Cold Storage Building Award of Bid
University Avenue Item
Timeline from Traffic Engineer Logue on the mini traffic circle removal project.
Sidewalk appeals
Water Bill appeal from Cornell
North Aurora Street request for handicap parking spot (recommendation and
resolution needed)
Recommendation needed from Traffic Engineer Logue on the triangle at Spencer
Road.
Invite Walter Hang to do a presentation on dredging and funding opportunities.
Recycling Violation at 109 N. Cayuga Street
Supt. Gray explained that recycling violations were issued for recycling left out on three
wrong dates. The County sets the recycling pick up dates for bi-weekly pickup in
conjunction with trash pickup dates. The property owner has appealed the violation to
the Board for their review and determination.
This item was not discussed at today’s meeting.
Uniform Drug and Alcohol Testing Program
Asst. Supt. Ferrell explained that the City is a member of the Tompkins County Drug
and Alcohol testing consortium. The consortium has recommended a uniform policy for
all its members to replace individual policies. He recommended that the City consider
an addendum to insert items or information that is tailored to the City. The bulk of the
policy is taken from federal law so the individual policies are all very similar. A resolution
will be prepared for discussion and consideration at the March voting meeting.
ADJOURNMENT
On a motion the meeting adjourned at 7:10 p.m.
Sarah L. Myers Carolyn K. Peterson
Information Management Specialist Mayor