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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2009-10-07BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS PROCEEDINGS CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Committee of the Whole Meeting 4:50 p.m. October 7, 2009 PRESENT: Mayor Peterson Commissioners (5) - Jenkins, Brock, Schlather, Tripp, Wykstra OTHERS PRESENT: City Attorney - Hoffman Superintendent of Public Works - Gray Acting Assistant Superintendent of Streets and Facilities - Benjamin Assistant Superintendent of Water and Sewer – Whitney Common Council Liaison – Zumoff Executive Assistant – Gehring Traffic Engineer – Logue EXCUSED: DAC Liaison – Roberts ADMINISTRATION AND COMMUNICATIONS: Supt. Gray announced a joint meeting of the Board of Public Works and Common Council on October 21, 2009, at 6:30 p.m. for a presentation by Sasaki Associates on the Commons Redesign Project. Commissioner Schlather arrived at 4:56 p.m. Commissioner Jenkins arrived at 4:58 p.m. Approval of the Minutes of the July 8, 2009, Board of Public Works Meeting Minutes – Resolution By Commissioner Tripp: Seconded by Commissioner Wykstra RESOLVED, That the Minutes of the July 8, 2009, Board of Public Works meeting be approved with noted corrections. Carried Unanimously Approval of Commons Clock Tower – Resolution WHEREAS, the Commons Clock Towers have not had a functioning time and temperature readout since 2004 resulting in a lot of public comment and concerns expressed by the downtown merchant community, and WHEREAS, in an effort to resolve this issue and restore this service to the community, in light of the city’s reluctance to incur this expense due to the impending Commons Rehabilitation/Redesign Project, the Downtown Ithaca Alliance put out a request for private sponsors, and WHEREAS, one proposal for sponsorship was received from the Tompkins Trust Company in a letter dated August 28, 2009, signed by Gregory Hartz, President and CEO, in the amount of $20,000 (estimated cost for three units and nine faces) and outlining certain considerations, and WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works is interested in restoring the operation of the clock towers for both the community in general, and for the community of downtown merchants in particular, now therefore be it RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works directs the Superintendent and the City Attorney to work with the Downtown Ithaca Alliance and Tompkins Trust Company to develop a mutually acceptable agreement based on the previously-mentioned documents and proposals, and authorizes the Mayor to sign the agreement provided that it conforms with the understanding outlined above. City Attorney Hoffman distributed a memorandum to the Board regarding this topic and suggested that they read it prior to their discussion. Commissioner Schlather requested that the discussion and consideration of this item be postponed until the October 14, 2009, meeting. Board of Public Works Page 2 October 7, 2009 Committee of the Whole Home Depot Traffic Signal – Report Traffic Engineer Logue joined the Board for the discussion. City Attorney Hoffman explained that responsibility for maintenance of the traffic signal lies with the adjacent property owner, who was informed that the signal was malfunctioning on multiple occasions. Discussion followed on the floor regarding allowing the property owner to further develop the same property without repairing the traffic signal. Further discussion followed on the floor regarding the City repairing the traffic signal and adding the cost of the repairs to the property tax bill. Supt. Gray stated that action could be accomplished with proper notice, and then the traffic signal could be repaired within a month. The Board expressed their approval for Supt. Gray to move forward with that course of action. Appeal of Water Bill for 318-320 W. Seneca Street, Illegal Connection – Discussion Commissioner Schlather recused himself from any discussion of this item. Peter Penniman, Property Manager for PPM Homes, joined the Board for the discussion. Supt. Gray explained that Mr. Penniman was surprised that there had been an illegal and dangerous connection for the water service made at the above address. Supt. Gray requested direction from the Board on how to proceed, as far as back billing, and any future similar situations that may arise. Asst. Supt. Whitney explained that the amount for the period of August 2006 through July 2008 was $3,293.44. Mr. Penniman stated that when the problem was discovered, the bill was $3,300, and that was when he requested an appeal. He further explained that it was not his intent to steal water from the City, that he feels no water was stolen, agrees that a penalty should be charged, but that the amount charged was too much. Asst. Supt. Whitney explained that all of the City meters at this location had been cut away from the water main and bypassed. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the amount the City should receive, the amount of water actually used over the past three years, and whether the City could charge a penalty for the illegal connection. Mayor Peterson suggested that Supt. Gray, Asst. Supt. Whitney and Mr. Penniman meet prior to the next Board meeting. The Board requested that this item be placed on the agenda for the October 14, 2009, meeting. School District Curb Cut Request – Discussion Superintendent of Ithaca City School District Pastel and Traffic Engineer Logue joined the Board for the discussion. Supt. Pastel explained that the school district was working to make health and safety changes inside and outside of their schools. She further explained that there isn’t enough land around Beverly J. Martin Elementary School to make the necessary changes outside, and that work on the boiler room caused them to consider alternate entrances for supplies. She explained how the curb cut would be used so trucks could access the doors, and explained the deliveries and pick ups as: one hot meal delivery per day at 7:15 a.m.; two cold food deliveries per week at 7:15-7:30 a.m.; one milk delivery per week; one to two recycling pick ups per week; and three gym equipment deliveries per year. She further stated that all deliveries and pickups would take less than thirty minutes, that no truck would be allowed to idle, that the sidewalk would not be blocked, and there are no weekend deliveries unless required for an emergency. She explained that the only reason a vehicle would be parked for longer than thirty minutes in the driveway would be for maintenance repairs. Supt. Pastel further explained that the school district wants to make a safe environment for the children and the community. She stated that each delivery or pick up requires two people as one person remains with the truck at all times. She further stated that they plan to install removable bollards so vehicles could not park in the curb cut without authorization. Traffic Engineer Logue explained the reason the City denied the school district’s request. He stated that City staff believe that deliveries could be completed from the Board of Public Works Page 3 October 7, 2009 Committee of the Whole street. He further stated that the City is concerned about pedestrian safety, and the large trucks turning into the narrow driveway. Sheryl Swink, resident of Albany Street, addressed the Board and expressed her appreciation for the school district’s responses to some of the concerns presented by residents of the neighborhood. She expressed her concern about control and her belief that once the driveway apron was installed, it would be used as all other driveways along the street, meaning that anyone could use it as a parking area. She further expressed concern about the removable bollards and how they would be “policed.” Discussion followed on the floor regarding alternate entrance locations to the school, the necessary width of the driveway from the sidewalk, the turning radius that would be required for large trucks to drive onto Albany Street, and plans that were presented from 2008 that eliminated the curb cut. Mayor Peterson left the meeting at 6:05 p.m. Further discussion followed on the floor regarding the curb cut, the location of the bollards, the possible use of the no parking area between two driveways for backing into the curb cut, and the possibility of creating a pull-off area along side the street for the trucks to make deliveries. Discussion followed on the floor regarding scheduling a field trip for Board members to observe how a large truck utilizes the existing driveway. Further discussion followed on the floor regarding the preparation of a resolution, and the need to add this item to the agenda for the October 14, 2009, meeting. Leaking Water Service, 235 Hector Street – Discussion Supt. Gray explained that the property owner believes the City caused the leak. He stated that the owner does not feel he should be charged for that cost. Discussion followed on the floor regarding when property owners were required to change water lines from lead and copper and whether those residences that still have those lines should be required to incur the costs of replacement. The Board requested that this item be added to the agenda for the October 21, 2009, Committee of the Whole meeting. Administrative Communication Commissioner Tripp requested an update on the reconstruction of the 300 block of East State Street/Martin Luther King Jr. Street. Supt. Gray reported that the expected completion date is October 14, 2009. BPW Meeting Schedule for November 2009 The Board agreed that the voting meeting would be the held on November 18, 2009, since City offices would be closed on November 11, 2009, for Veteran’s Day. ADJOURNMENT On a motion the meeting adjourned at 6:40 p.m. Kathrin D. Gehring Carolyn K. Peterson Executive Assistant Mayor