HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-20-14 City Administration Committee Meeting AgendaCA Meeting
City Administration Committee
DATE: August 20, 2014
TIME: 6:00 pm
LOCATION: 3rd Floor,
City Hall, Council Chambers
AGENDA ITEMS
Item Voting
Item?
Presenter(s) Time
Allotted
Chair, Deb Mohlenhoff
1.Call To Order *Note: We will review the number of 15 Min*
1.1 Agenda Review No cards received at the beginning of each
1.2 Review and Approval of Minutes Yes meeting and adjust time if needed.
Approval of July 2014 Minutes
1.3 Statements from the Public No
1.4 Statements from Employees No
1.5 Council Response No
(6:15 p.m.)
2.Standing Sub-Committee and Staff Reports
3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
3.1 IURA - Hotel, Authorize Disposition of City Yes Tom West, Director of Engineering 10 Min
- Owned Property at 120 E. Green Street
3.2 YB – Request to Amend 2014 Personnel Roster Yes Liz Vance, Director 5 Min
3.3 P, B & ED – Request to Amend 2014 Personnel Yes Joann Cornish, Director 10 Min
Roster
3.4 Attorney - Sale of City-Owned Property and Yes Ari Lavine, Attorney 5 Min
the Granting of an Easement over City-Owned
Property – Negative Declaration
3.5 Attorney - Sale of City-Owned Property and Yes Ari Lavine, Attorney 5 Min
the Granting of an Easement over City-Owned
Property – Declaration of Lead Agency
3.6 Attorney - Ordinance Approving a Sale of Yes Ari Lavine, Attorney 5 Min
City-Owned Property and the Granting of an
Easement over City-Owned Property
3.7 Attorney - Conditional Consent to Transfer Yes Ari Lavine, Attorney 20 Min
of Control (7:15 p.m.)
4.Finance, Budget, and Appropriations
4.1 IPD – Request to Amend 2014 Budget Yes IPD Staff 5 Min.
4.2 IPD – Request to Amend 2014 Budget Yes IPD Staff 5 Min.
(7:25 p.m.)
5.Performance Measures No Kevin Sutherland, Chief of Staff 5 Min
(7:30 p.m.)
6.GPA Transition No Deb Mohlenhoff
6.1 NONE
(7:30 p.m.)
If you have a disability that will require special arrangements to be made in order for you to fully participate in the meeting,
please contact the City Controller’s Office at 607-274-6576 at least 48 hours before the meeting.
CA MEETING
AGENDA
August 20, 2014
Continued
7.2015 Budget Process
7.1 Budget Forums and Process Preparation No All 20 Min
(7:45 p.m.)
8.Meeting Wrap-up All 5 Min
8.1 Announcements No
8.2 Review Agenda Items for next meeting No
8.3 Adjourn Yes
(7:50 p.m.)
Committee Charge: The CA committee will:
Review financial and administrative issues pertaining to the City, along with items relating to the City of Ithaca workforce environment,
intergovernmental relations and human resource
If you have a disability that will require special arrangements to be made in order for you to fully participate in the meeting,
please contact the City Controller’s Office at 607-274-6576 at least 48 hours before the meeting.
3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.1 Marriott Hotel, Authorize Disposition of City - Owned Property at 120 E. Green Street
WHEREAS, Hotel Ithaca LLC (Marriott Hotel) is the developer of a proposed 159-key Marriott
hotel at 120 S. Aurora Street, Ithaca, NY, and
WHEREAS, on June 4, 2014, the Common Council authorized a parking agreement with the
Marriott Hotel but deferred decision making regarding a proposed option agreement authorizing
the Marriott Hotel to acquire air rights to a portion of the Green Street Garage should it be
decommissioned in the future, as a potential property conveyance requires publication of a series
of public notices before it can be considered for action by the Common Council, and
WHEREAS, the majority of parking to be made available for hotel guests at the Marriott Hotel
per the authorized parking agreement is located in the Green Street Garage, and
WHEREAS, the eastern section of the Green Street Garage, constructed in 1973 above a portion
of the Rothschild building, is anticipated to have a remaining useful life of approximately 15
years before requiring major new investment, and
WHEREAS, the Marriot Hotel seeks a means to provide parking for hotel guests should the City
decommission the eastern section of the Green Street Garage in the future, and
WHEREAS, the City will incur a substantial expense to demolish and remove the portion of
parking structure should it be decommissioned, and
WHEREAS, on June 4, 2014, the Common Council for the City of Ithaca, acting as the lead
agency, conducted environmental review in accordance with the City Environmental Quality
Review Ordinance and issued a negative declaration that the proposed action will result in no
significant impact on the environment; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Common Council for the City of Ithaca hereby authorizes an option
agreement with Hotel Ithaca LLC, developer of the Marriott Hotel to be located at 120 S. Aurora
Street, to acquire air rights to the eastern section of the Green Street Parking Garage located
above the Rothschild Building along with access easement over the central section of the Green
Street Garage to provide access to and from Green Street, for $1 for use as private parking, and
be it further
RESOLVED, That the option agreement shall include provisions that the option agreement
cannot be exercised unless and until the City decommissions the eastern section of the Green
Street Garage and the Common Council declares the subject property surplus municipal
property, and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Mayor, subject to advice of the City Attorney, is hereby authorized to
execute an agreement to implement this resolution.
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Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency
Customer #330780
108 East Green Street
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607)-274-6550
Contact Person: Nels Bohn
July XX, 2014
Legal Advertising Department
The Ithaca Journal
Sent via e-mail:cnylegals@gannett.com
LEGAL NOTICE
Please publish the following public notice once each week for three consecutive weeks in the
Legals section of the Ithaca Journal with the first notice to be published on July 20, 2014
Public Notice
Proposed Option Agreement to Sell City-Owned Real Estate
City of Ithaca
Eastern Portion of the Green Street Parking Garage
As part of parking negotiations with Hotel Ithaca LLC, developer of the 159-room Ithaca Marriott Hotel to be
constructed at 120 S. Aurora Street, the City is considering an agreement to allow Hotel Ithaca, LLC to
exercise an option to acquire the eastern section of the Green Street Parking Garage adjacent to the hotel
only if it is both decommissioned for public parking and declared as surplus municipal property by the City
of Ithaca Common Council. The City has no plans to decommission any section of the parking garage at this
time.
The eastern section of the Green Street Parking Garage contains two decks of parking constructed on air
rights located over portions of the so-called Rothschild Building located at 205 E. State Street and contains
approximately 150 parking spaces. Per the proposed agreement, Hotel Ithaca LLC may exercise an option to
acquire for $1.00 the decommissioned and surplus eastern section of garage along with an access easement
over the central section to provide access to and from Green Street for use as a private parking. The eastern
section was constructed in 1973. The central section was reconstructed in 2010.
Section C-36(40) of the City Charter requires notice of a proposed sale of City-owned land to be published at
least once each week for three weeks, the first such notice being published no less than 30 days prior to the
approval vote. At least a ¾ vote of the full Common Council is needed to approve sale of City-owned real
estate, which sale is subject further to permissive referendum. The petition must be submitted to the City
Clerk prior to Common Council action to authorize the sale. The Common Council will not consider this
matter prior to their September 3, 2014 meeting.
Written comments may be sent to Common Council, c/o City Clerk, City of Ithaca, 108 E. Green Street,
Ithaca, NY 14850. For more information contact Nels Bohn at (607) 274-6547 or at nelsb@cityofithaca.org
CA Item #3.1
Please verify receipt of this order upon receipt to nelsb@cityofithaca.org. Please do not send an
affidavit of publication. Send the bill to the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency.
Respectfully,
Nels Bohn
Nels Bohn
Cc (email): City Clerk
CA Item #3.1
CA Item #3.1
3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.2 Youth Bureau – Amendment to the 2014 Personnel Roster
WHEREAS, the Youth Program Assistant position was created in 2005 as a training position to
allow promising job recruits an opportunity to grow into a Youth Program Leader position, and
WHEREAS, an employee has done an exemplary job as a Youth Program Assistant and has
successfully passed the promotional civil service exam, and
WHEREAS, the Youth Bureau would like to promote this employee to Youth Program Leader, a
position which better fits her job duties, and
WHEREAS, the Youth Bureau has an unfunded Youth Program Leader (35 hours per week) on
the roster, and
WHEREAS, this amendment requires no budget increase, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby amends the 2014 Youth Bureau Personnel Roster
as follows:
Delete: One (1) Youth Program Assistant (35 hours per week)
Add: One (1) Youth Program Leader (35 hours per week)
J:\DRedsicker\AGENDAS \City Admin Comm\2014\8-20 CA Agenda.docx 8/20/14
3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.3 P,B and ED - Request to Amend Personnel Roster
WHEREAS, the Historic Preservation and Neighborhood Planner position in the City’s Planning
Division has been vacant since June of 2014, and
WHEREAS, the position requires a unique combination of skills and knowledge not commonly
found in candidates, and
WHEREAS, in 2011, due to budget cuts, the position was reduced to 20 hours per week making
it even more difficult to fill, and
WHEREAS, with the reduction in hours, the neighborhood planning responsibilities were
removed from the position so that its sole focus is now on historic preservation planning, and
WHEREAS, with guidance from the City’s Human Resources Department, it was agreed that the
best plan of action would be to create a new position entitled Historic Preservation Planner and,
WHEREAS, it was also agreed that the position of Historic Preservation and Neighborhood
Planner should be preserved for future use should the position ever be restored to full-time and
neighborhood planning duties reinstated, and
WHEREAS, the new position is scheduled for adoption at the September 3, 2014, Civil Service
Commission meeting; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Personnel Roster for the Department of Planning, Building, Zoning, and
Economic Development is amended as follows:
Add: One (1) Historic Preservation Planner, Grade 15, at twenty (20) Hours per week
Delete: One (1) Historic Preservation and Neighborhood Planner, Grade 16, at twenty
(20) hours per week,
and be it further
RESOLVED, That the position of Historic Preservation Planner shall be assigned to the CSEA
Administrative Unit at a salary grade 15, and be it further
RESOLVED, That for the sole purpose of determining days worked reportable to New York
State and Local Employees’ Retirement System, the standard workday for this position shall be
established at seven (7) hours per day, thirty-five (35) hours per week.
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3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.4 Sale of City-Owned Property and the Granting of an Easement over City-Owned
Property – Negative Declaration
WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca Common Council is considering the sale of the property located
at 601 First Street, Ithaca, NY (tax parcel #25.-2-1.2) pursuant to a 1993 lease, and the granting
of an easement over an adjacent portion of City-owned land, to the Sciencenter Discovery
Museum, and
WHEREAS, on September 3, 2014, the City of Ithaca Common Council declared itself Lead
Agency for the environmental review of this proposed action, and
WHEREAS, such proposed action for the transfer or sale of less than 2.5 contiguous acres of
land is an Unlisted Action under the City of Ithaca Environmental Quality Review Ordinance
(“CEQR”) and an Unlisted Action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act
(“SEQR”), both of which require environmental review, and
WHEREAS, the Short Environmental Assessment Form (“SEAF”) and supporting information
has been provided to the City of Ithaca Conservation Advisory Council for review of the
proposed action and no comments have been received to date, and
WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca Common Council, acting as Lead Agency for the environmental
review, has reviewed and accepted as adequate a Short Environmental Assessment Form, Part 1
and Part 2, both prepared by City staff; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the City of Ithaca Common Council hereby determines that the proposed
transfer of tax parcel #25.-2-1.2 pursuant to the 1993 lease and the granting of an easement over
an adjacent portion of City-owned land will result in no significant impact on the environment
and that a Negative Declaration for purposes of Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation
Law be filed in accordance with the provisions of Part 617 of the State Environmental Quality
Review Act.
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M E M O R A N D U M
To: City Administration Committee
From: Jared Pittman, Assistant City Attorney
Date: August 8, 2014
Subject: Conveyance of City Land to Sciencenter Pursuant to 1993 Lease
and Grant of Easement on Adjacent City Land
_________________________________________________________________
On August 6, 1993, the City entered into a twenty-year lease with the organization now known as
Sciencenter Discovery Museum (“Sciencenter”) for the parcel of land located at 601 First Street,
on which the Sciencenter building was subsequently built. The Sciencenter now seeks to exercise
the option to buy the parcel granted to it in the lease, and also requests that the City grant the
Sciencenter an easement for the portion of the City land bordering the parcel on the east, onto
which the Sciencenter’s miniature golf course has extended for some time.
With regard to the exercise of the option under the 1993 lease, the lease required that the
Sciencenter make certain rental payments to the City that would also reduce the cost of the
purchase option. The City Controller has confirmed that all payments due under the lease have
been made, and the City is required to transfer the land to the Sciencenter for no additional cost.
The easement sought by the Sciencenter is approximately twelve feet wide and 230 feet long, as
reflected on the attached survey. The easement is non-transferable without the City’s consent,
and the Sciencenter has agreed to indemnify the City for any claims arising from its use of the
land and to maintain liability insurance adequate to protect the City’s interests. The Sciencenter
has previously installed and maintained improvements on City land (such as installation and
operation of lighting, benches, trash and dog waste receptacles in the area alongside Cascadilla
Creek), the value of which exceeds the net present value of the license fees that the City would
charge to grant a license to use the area in question. Accordingly, there is a reasonable basis to
conclude that the City has received fair value in exchange for granting the easement. On July 28,
2014, BPW approved a resolution finding that the area that would be subject to the easement is
surplus for municipal purposes.
The bargain sale and deed would both convey the parcel of land subject to the lease still owned
by the City, and also grant the easement described above. This is an Unlisted action and requires
environmental review.
CITY OF ITHACA
108 East Green Street Ithaca, New York 14850-6590
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
Aaron O. Lavine, City Attorney Telephone: 607/274-6504
Robert A. Sarachan, Assistant City Attorney Fax: 607/274-6507
Krin Flaherty, Assistant City Attorney
Jared Pittman, Assistant City Attorney
Jody Andrew, Executive Assistant
CA Item #3.4
CA Item #3.4
CA Item #3.4
BARGAIN & SALE DEED
with Covenant Against Grantor’s Acts
THIS INDENTURE is made the ______ day of _____________, in the year Two Thousand Fourteen,
between
City of Ithaca, a municipal corporation existing under the laws of the State of New York, with offices
at 108 East Green Street, Ithaca, New York 14850,the Grantor, and
Sciencenter Discovery Museum, an education corporation duly chartered and validly existing
pursuant to the laws of the State of New York, with offices at 601 First Street, Ithaca, New York
14850,the Grantee.
WITNESSETH, that the Grantor, in consideration of One Dollar ($1.00), lawful money of the United States,
and other good and valuable consideration paid by the Grantee, does hereby remise, release and quitclaim
unto the Grantee, its successors and assigns forever,
ALL THAT PARCEL OF LAND DESCRIBED IN THE ATTACHED SCHEDULE A
TOGETHER with the appurtenances and all the estate and rights of the Grantor in and to said premises.
TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the premises herein granted unto the Grantee and its successors and assigns
forever.
AND the Grantor COVENANTS that the Grantor has not done or suffered anything whereby the said property
has been encumbered in any way whatsoever, except as aforesaid.
AND the Grantor, in compliance with Section 13 of the Lien Law, COVENANTS that the Grantor will
receive the consideration as a trust fund to be applied first for the purpose of paying the costs of the
improvement and will apply the same first to the payment of the cost of the improvement before using any
part of the total of the same for any other purpose.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Grantor has duly executed this deed the day and year first written above.
City of Ithaca
IN PRESENCE OF By:L.S.
Svante L. Myrick, Mayor
STATE OF NEW YORK)
COUNTY OF TOMPKINS) ss.:
On the ______ day of __________________, in the year 2014, before me, the undersigned, a Notary
Public in and for said State, personally appeared Svante L. Myrick, personally known to me or proved to
me on the basis of satisfactory evidence to be the individual whose name is subscribed to the within
instrument, and acknowledged to me that he executed the same in his capacity, and that by his signature on
the instrument, the individual, or the person on behalf of whom the individual acted, executed the instrument.
_______________________________
Notary Public
- Page 1 -RE\Sciencenter-City 0FirstSt BS.ded 6/27/14
CA Item #3.4
SCHEDULE A
ALL THAT TRACT OR PARCEL OF LAND situate in the City of Ithaca, County of Tompkins and State
of New York, bounded and described as follows:
BEGINNING at the intersection of the northerly line of Franklin Street with the easterly line of First Street;
thence North 30 degrees 59 minutes 17 seconds West along the easterly line of First Street a distance
of 242.71 feet to a point marked by an iron pin with cap in the southerly line of New York State Route 13;
thence North 41 degrees 40 minutes 00 seconds East along the southerly line of New York State Route
13 a distance of 194.61 feet to a point;
thence South 48 degrees 20 minutes 00 seconds East along a westerly boundary of premises reputedly
now or formerly of Sciencenter Discovery Museum (formerly known as Sciencenter, Inc.), hereinafter
referred to as “Sciencenter” (788/5) a distance of 62.01 feet to a point;
thence South 41 degrees 40 minutes 00 seconds West along a northerly boundary of said Sciencenter
premises a distance of 76.10 feet to a point;
thence South 30 degrees 45 minutes 00 seconds East along a westerly boundary of said Sciencenter
premises a distance of 218.62 feet to a point in the northerly line of Franklin Street;
thence South 58 degrees 54 minutes 43 seconds West along the northerly line of Franklin Street a
distance of 130.70 feet to the point of beginning, containing 0.887 acre of land.
SUBJECT TO and TOGETHER WITH rights of ingress and egress in common with the aforementioned
Sciencenter parcel (adjoining the above-described premises on the east) for vehicular and pedestrian traffic
and parking.
TOGETHER WITH an easement in gross hereby granted by the grantor to the grantee, said easement to be
non-transferable and non-assignable without the grantor’s written consent, and subject to the grantee’s
agreement to (i) indemnify and hold the grantor harmless from any claims, damages, or judgments arising
from the grantee’s use of the land, and (ii) carry adequate liability insurance to protect the grantor’s interests,
for the operation of a mini-golf course and other activities related to the grantee’s purposes, over and across
the following tract or parcel of land as shown in cross-hatching on the below-referenced survey map:
Beginning at a point in the southerly highway line of New York State Route 13, which point is located
the following courses and distances from the intersection of the easterly line of First Street with the
northerly line of Franklin Street:
thence North 30 degrees 59 minutes 17 seconds West along the easterly line of First Street a
distance of 242.71 feet to a point marked by an iron pin with cap in the southerly line of New
York State Route 13;
thence North 41 degrees 40 minutes 00 seconds East along the southerly line of New York
State Route 13 a distance of 194.61 feet to a point;
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CA Item #3.4
thence North 41 degrees 40 minutes 00 seconds East along the southerly line of New York
State Route 13 a distance of 90.38 feet to a point;
thence North 41 degrees 40 minutes 00 seconds East along the southerly line of New York State
Route 13 a distance of 12.59 feet to a point;
thence South 30 degrees 45 minutes 17 seconds East a distance of 232.20 feet to a point;
thence South 59 degrees 14 minutes 43 seconds West a distance of 12.00 feet to a point in the easterly
boundary of aforementioned premises reputedly now or formerly of Sciencenter (788/5);
thence North 30 degrees 45 minutes 17 seconds West along said easterly boundary of said Sciencenter
premises a distance of 228.40 feet to the point of beginning of this easement area, containing 2,744
square feet of land.
SUBJECT TO:
1.Utility easements and rights-of-way of record.
2.A permanent easement hereby granted to the City of Ithaca for purposes of construction and
maintenance of a sewer line and water main, said easement being located southerly of New York State
Route 13 and measuring forty (40) feet in width from the southerly street line of New York State
Route 13. The grantee shall not locate buildings or extensive site development features such as
sidewalks, mounded tree lawns, or rock gardens over the location of this permanent easement.
3.The following restrictions:
a.If, during a period of fifty (50) years from January 1, 1992, the grantee intends to sell the
above-described premises, the grantee shall first offer the premises to the City of Ithaca for
the then-appraised value of the premises, including improvements located thereon. The
procedure for this shall be that the grantee would notify the City of its intention to sell the
property. The City would then have the right, within a period of forty-five (45) days after
receiving such notification, to notify the grantee that it wished to have the premises appraised.
The grantee and the City would agree on an appraiser to appraise the premises. In the event
that the parties were unable to agree on such an appraiser, that issue would be resolved by
arbitration. The cost of the appraisal shall be split equally between the grantee and the City.
Within forty-five (45) days after the appraisal is completed, the City would have the option
of purchasing the premises for the then-appraised value. If the City notified the grantee that
it wished to exercise such option, the parties would immediately enter into an agreement for
the City to purchase the property at that price, with the closing to take place within three (3)
months after the signing of the contract. If the City notified the grantee that it wished to have
such an appraisal done but did not exercise its option to purchase the premises for the then-
appraised value, and the grantee thereafter received a bona fide offer to purchase the premises
which the grantee intended to accept, the City would have the right of first refusal to acquire
the property under the terms of that offer. The City would have forty-five (45) days after
receipt by it of a copy of said bona fide offer and notice that the grantee intended to accept
said offer to exercise its right of first refusal. If the grantee advised the City that it intended
to sell the premises and the city chose not to have the premises appraised (with the City being
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CA Item #3.4
responsible for one-half of the cost of the appraisal), the City’s right of first refusal would
automatically be deemed waived.
b.If, during a period of fifty (50) years from January 1, 1992, the grantee sold the premises and
did not within one (1) year from the date of sale open a new, comparable science center at some
other location within the City, the City would have the option of purchasing the premises at the
then-appraised value of the land alone, excluding any improvements placed on the premises.
The value of the land would be determined by an appraisal as provided above. In determining
whether the new science center was a comparable science center, the following factors would
be considered:
i.The comparative sizes of the Sciencenter on the subject premises and the new science
center;
ii.The comparative scope of activity of the Sciencenter on the subject premises and the
new science center;
iii.The activities actually undertaken by the Sciencenter on the subject premises and the
new science center;
iv.The value of the improvements on the subject premises and the value of the
improvements to be used for the new science center; and
v.Whether the new science center was the primary location of the Sciencenter as opposed
to a satellite science center.
c.Any buildings constructed on the subject premises shall not exceed forty (40) feet in height as
such terms are currently defined in Section 325-3 of the City of Ithaca Municipal Code, “Height
of Buildings” (previously Section 30.3(b)(47) of the prior City of Ithaca Municipal Code).
d.If, during a period of fifty (50) years from January 1, 1992, at any time after the construction
of the Sciencenter on the premises, there should be any significant exterior renovations to the
buildings on the premises, the plans for such exterior renovations shall be subject to the
approval of the City of Ithaca.
The above-described premises were previously leased to the grantee by the grantor pursuant to a Lease dated
August 6, 1993, which lease contained an option for the grantee to purchase the premises. That option was
exercised, with the grantee having paid all rent and the full purchase price specified under said option, resulting
in this deed.
The above-described premises are SHOWN on a survey map entitled “Survey Map No. 0 First Street City of
Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York,” prepared by T.G. Miller Associates, P.C., Engineers and Surveyors,
dated June 18, 2013, which map is incorporated herein by reference and intended to be filed concurrently
herewith.
BEING a portion of the same premises conveyed to the City of Ithaca by Warranty Deed of Mary E. Turner,
Samuel B. Turner and Ebenezer T. Turner dated June 28, 1895 and recorded in said Clerk’s Office on July 5,
1895 in Liber 144 of Deeds at page 316.
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CA Item #3.4
Said premises are located on First Street, Ithaca, New York 14850 and are currently designated as City of Ithaca
tax parcel number 25.-2-1.2.
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CA Iteam #3.4
CA Item #3.4
3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.5 Sale of City-Owned Property and the Granting of an Easement over City-Owned
Property – Declaration of Lead Agency
WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca Common Council is considering the sale of tax parcel #25.-2-1.2,
located at 601 First Street, pursuant to a 1993 lease, and the granting of an easement over an
adjacent portion of City-owned land, to the Sciencenter Discovery Museum, and
WHEREAS, the proposed transfer of approximately 35,500 sq. ft. of land is an Unlisted action
under the City Environmental Quality Review Ordinance (CEQRO), and
WHEREAS, State Law and Section 176.6 of CEQRO require that a Lead Agency be established
for conducting environmental review of proposed actions in accordance with local and state
environmental law, and
WHEREAS, State Law specifies that for actions governed by local environmental review the
Lead Agency shall be that local agency which has primary responsibility for approving and
funding or carrying out the action, and
WHEREAS, no other agency has jurisdiction to fund, approve or undertake the proposed action;
now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the City of Ithaca Common Council does hereby declare itself Lead Agency
for the environmental review of the proposed transfer to the Sciencenter Discovery Museum of
the above listed real property.
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3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.6 Ordinance Approving a Sale of City-Owned Property and the Granting of an Easement
over City-Owned Property
ORDINANCE __-2014
An Ordinance Approving a Sale of City-Owned Property and the Granting of an Easement over
City-Owned Property
WHEREAS the City entered into a lease with the organization now known as Sciencenter
Discovery Museum (“Sciencenter”) on February 6, 1993 (“Lease”), under which the Sciencenter
had use of the property known as 601 First Street (“Property”) to construct the Sciencenter
science museum, and
WHEREAS the Lease granted the Sciencenter an option to purchase the Property, and the City
Controller has confirmed that the Sciencenter has made all necessary payments to exercise the
option, thus requiring the City to sell the property, and
WHEREAS the Sciencenter has requested an easement for a portion of City-owned land
bordering the Property on the east (“Proposed Easement Area”), which land is the right of way
for a portion of Lake Avenue that no longer exists, onto which the Sciencenter’s miniature golf
course has extended for a number of years, and
WHEREAS the Sciencenter is investing additional funds to renovate the miniature golf course
area, and desires to formalize its use of City-owned land, and
WHEREAS the Sciencenter previously installed and maintained improvements on City land
(such as installation and operation of lighting, benches, trash and dog waste receptacles in the
area alongside Cascadilla Creek), the value of which exceeds the net present value of the license
fees that the City would charge to grant a license to use the area in question, and
WHEREAS the Board of Public Works has determined that the land for which an easement is
sought is surplus for municipal purposes, and
WHEREAS, the City Charter requires approval by three-fourths of the Common Council to
authorize sale of real property, and
WHEREAS, the City Charter further requires notice of a proposed sale to be published no less
than once each week for three weeks, the first such notice being published no less than 30 days
prior to the approval vote, and such notices have been published; now, therefore,
BE IT ORDAINED AND ENACTED by the Common Council of the City of Ithaca as follows:
Section 1. Legislative Intent and Purpose. The Common Council makes the following findings
of fact:
A. The Property and the Proposed Easement Area are surplus for municipal
purposes.
J:\DRedsicker\AGENDAS \City Admin Comm\2014\8-20 CA Agenda.docx 8/20/14
B. The Sciencenter has made all necessary payments and taken all other necessary
actions to entitle the Sciencenter to exercise its option to purchase the Property
under the Lease.
C. The value of the improvements installed on City land and maintained by the
Sciencenter are equal to or greater than the net present value of the license fees
that the City would charge to grant a license to use the Proposed Easement Area.
Section 2. Approval and Execution of Deed. The Common Council authorizes and directs the
Mayor, on the advice of the City Attorney, to execute documents as needed to effect these
transactions.
Section 3. Effective Date. This ordinance shall take effect immediately.
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3.City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy
.7 Conditional Consent to Transfer of Control
WHEREAS, Time Warner Cable Northeast LLC (“Franchisee”) is the duly authorized holder of
a franchise, the term of which has expired and is pending renewal, as amended to date (the
“Franchise”), authorizing Franchisee to serve the City of Ithaca, NY (the “Franchise Authority”
or the “City”) and to operate and maintain a cable television system therein (the “System”); and
WHEREAS, Time Warner Cable Inc. (“Time Warner Cable”) is the ultimate parent company of
Franchisee; and
WHEREAS, on February 12, 2014, Time Warner Cable, Comcast Corporation (“Comcast”) and
Tango Acquisition Sub, Inc. (“Tango”), entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the
“Agreement”), pursuant to which Time Warner Cable will merge with Tango, a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Comcast, with Time Warner Cable as the surviving company, and Time Warner
Cable will thereby become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Comcast (the “Transaction”); and
WHEREAS, Franchisee now seeks approval of the Transaction and has filed an FCC Form 394
with the Franchise Authority with respect thereto; and
WHEREAS, the Franchise Authority has considered and [denies approval/approves] of the
Transaction.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE FRANCHISE AUTHORITY AS
FOLLOWS:
1.The foregoing recitals are approved and incorporated herein by reference.
2.The Franchise Authority [does not consent/consents] to the Transaction, subject to
each of the following express conditions, the satisfaction of which shall constitute a
condition precedent to the effectiveness of the Franchise Authority’s consent:
a.Franchisee’s provision of, and commitment to hereafter provide on thirty
days’ notice from the City, financial accounting for the PEG Access
operations within the City, known as PEGASYS, including revenue
receivables such as the PEG fees collected by the Franchisee within the
franchise area, and including staff and equipment expenditures at the PEG
facility in the franchise area.
b.Franchisee’s commitment to maintain open PEG studio time with appropriate
staff present of not less than 24 hours per week, including during the vacation
and other authorized absences of the regular staff member at the PEG studio.
c.Provision at no charge to all subscribers in the franchise area, in satisfaction of
section 15.1 of the existing Franchise Agreement, of
i.informational materials regarding subscriber ability to access PEG
channels (13, 15, and 16) using digital adapters, and
ii.fully functional digital adapters permitting older television sets to
access said PEG channels, with such functionality to be determined by
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the City’s testing of 20 such adaptors, obtained at random, at least 19
of which must perform with full functionality on initial test.
d.Maintenance of picture quality equal to or better than the quality provided by
Franchisee immediately prior to the transition from analog to digital
transmission in this area.
e.Provision of equipment for the PEG studio purchased using a given budget-
year’s funds within 60 days of the Franchise Authority’s Request for the
purchase of same.
3.The Franchise Authority confirms that the Franchise is expired but remains in
force pending negotiation of a renewed Franchise. No certification is made as to defaults under
the Franchise, and any defaults that may at this time exist are not waived by this Resolution, and
may be raised by any legal means, including in further negotiations related to renewal of the
Franchise. Subject to compliance with the terms of this Resolution, all action necessary to
approve the transfer of control of the Franchisee to Comcast has been duly and validly taken.
4.Comcast or the Franchisee may [not] (a) assign or transfer its assets, including the
Franchise, provided that such assignment or transfer is to an entity directly or indirectly
controlling, controlled by or under common control with Comcast; (b) restructure debt or change
the ownership interests among existing equity participants in Comcast; (c) pledge or grant a
security interest to any lender(s) of Comcast’s assets, including, but not limited to, the Franchise,
or of interest in Comcast, for purposes of securing any indebtedness; and (d) sell equity interests
in Comcast or any of Comcast’s affiliates.
5.Upon closing of the Transaction, the Franchisee shall remain bound by the lawful
terms and conditions of the Franchise.
6.This Resolution shall be deemed effective upon adoption.
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CA Item #3.7
CA Item #3.7
CA Item #3.7
CA Item #3.7
VIA E-MAIL AND OVERNIGHT DELIVERY
May 9, 2014
Mr. Aaron O. Lavine, Esq.
City Attorney, City of Ithaca
City Attorney’s Office
108 East Green Street
Ithaca, New York 14850-5690
Re: Time Warner Cable/Comcast Corporation Transaction
Dear Mr. Lavine:
We are writing in response to the letter we received on May 1, 2014 in connection with the FCC
Form 394 (“Application for Franchise Authority Consent to Assignment or Transfer of Control
of Cable Television Franchise”) that was filed with the City of Ithaca (“City”) for consent to the
transfer of control of the City’s cable system franchisee pursuant to the merger (the
“Transaction”) of Time Warner Cable Inc. (“TWC”) and Comcast Corporation (“Comcast”).
We understand the importance of the City’s review process, and it is our goal that the process be
an efficient and cooperative one. We also appreciate the information you provided regarding the
ongoing renewal process with TWC and recognize the complexity of such renewal discussions.
We firmly believe, however, that the franchise renewal and our request for consent to the transfer
of control of the Franchisee are unrelated. Each is subject to a separate process established by
federal laws and regulations. Because each process involves different procedural rules as well as
substantive criteria, it would be inappropriate to combine them. In addition, it is neither required
nor anticipated that the transfer will impact any ongoing franchise renewal negotiations with the
City. At this time, TWC continues to operate independently, and Comcast is generally limited
by antitrust laws from involvement in renewal negotiations related to TWC franchises.
Accordingly, the Transaction will not impact any renewal negotiations with TWC. Moreover,
the Transaction is a parent company merger which will not have any effect on the obligations of
the Franchisee under the current franchise or any renewed franchise. After the Transaction, the
Franchisee will remain obligated to comply with the terms and conditions of the franchise or any
renewed franchise in the same manner as before the Transaction. Thus, if the franchise is not
renewed at the time of the Transaction, we fully intend to continue to work with the City toward
renewal of the franchise.
CA Item #3.7
Mr. Aaron O. Lavine, Esq.
City Attorney, City of Ithaca
May 9, 2014
Page 2
Without waiving the foregoing, TWC will respond separately to your request to initiate renewal
negotiations with the City.
We would be happy to meet with you to answer any questions that we can and to facilitate
positive dialogue. We will contact you soon to discuss potential dates for such a meeting.
All of us at Comcast are excited about the opportunity to serve your community and we look
forward to working with you toward a successful Application review process. As always, please
feel free to contact me at (215) 286-5585, send an email to klay_fennell@comcast.com, or send a
facsimile to (215) 286-8408.
Sincerely,
Klayton F. Fennell
Vice President, Government Affairs
CA Item #37
CA Item #3.7
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7
4.Finance, Budget, and Appropriations
.1 Ithaca Police Department – Request to Amend 2014 IPD Budget
WHEREAS, the Ithaca Police Department has received funds through the recycling of brass shell
casings recovered from the IPD shooting range, and
WHEREAS, the Ithaca Police Department has also received funds through drug seizures, and
WHEREAS, the Ithaca Police Department is desirous of utilizing some of these funds ($21,000)
to purchase a training structure for the shooting range; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby amends the 2014 Ithaca Police Department Budget
as follows:
Increase revenue account:
A 3120-2770-5017 Miscellaneous Revenue $ 6,000
A 3120-4320-5017 Federal Aid – Crime Control $15,000
Increase expenses:
A 3120-5225-5017 Building Other Equipment $21,000
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4.Finance, Budget, and Appropriations
.2 Ithaca Police Department – Request to Amend 2014 IPD Budget
WHEREAS, the Ithaca Police Department (IPD) has had problems with gaps in radio coverage
on the first floor of the Ithaca Police Department building, and
WHEREAS, these gaps in radio coverage could make it difficult, if not impossible, to make a
call to the Dispatch Center in the event of a critical and dangerous situation, and
WHEREAS, members of IPD have contacted a radio equipment vendor and a workable solution
has been developed that will eliminate these gaps in radio coverage, and
WHEREAS, the cost to implement the developed solution is $8,372 which includes the purchase
of 4 Radios and the associated installation of said radios; now therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby authorizes the Controller to transfer an amount not
to exceed $8,372 from account A1990 unrestricted contingency to account A3120-5225-5014
Police Department – Communications Equipment for the purposes of funding said purchase.
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CA Item #7.1
2015 Budget
Budget Review Narrative (please limit response to 2 pages only)
Department:
Prepared by:
Key Financial Metrics:
FY13
Actual
FY14
Approved
FY 15
Mayor’s
Budget
$ change
from 2014
to 2015
%
Change
from
2014 to
2015
Summary of Revenue Sources
Summary of Expenditures
Departmental
FTE
Discussion of how proposed departmental budget supports Strategic Themes:
Discussion of how any proposed staffing changes will affect your Department (+/‐):
Discussion of how proposed Equipment/Administrative and Program changes affect
department(+/‐)
Discussion of requested changes/alternatives to Mayor’s Proposed 2015 Budget (if
any):
Appendix A CA Item #7.1
Mayor's Office
2014
Modified
2013
Actual
2015 Mayor ' s
Budget
$
Change
%
Change
Expenditures
Salary and Wages 108,008175,209175,209 0 %0.00
Fringe Benefits 58,48278,68378,683 0 %0.00
Travel and Training 3,2923,5003,500 0 %0.00
Mainentance and Parts 0 0 0 0 %0.00
Utilities and Fuel 1,8682,3002,025-275 %-0.12
Other 11,30112,16010,560-1,600 %-0.13
Contracts 0 900 900 0 %0.00
Debt Service 2,2762,2022,202 0 %0.00
185,227 274,954 273,079Total Expenditures -1,875 %-0.01
185,227274,954273,079-1,875 %-0.01
9
Appendix B CA Item #7.1
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Appendix C CA Item #7.1
CITY OF ITHACA
108 East Green Street, Ithaca, New York 14850-5690
2015 Budget Schedule
Wednesday, October 1st October Council Meeting
6:00 p.m. Mayor - presentation
Council Q&A
Review of Process
Thursday, October 9th General staff input session
7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. Council discussion of budget priorities vs. Mayor’s
proposal and discussion of potential amendments
Discussion: Government Services
Includes: Attorney’s Office, Public Information and
Technology, Finance (Chamberlain/Controller),
Human Resources, Traffic Violations, Mayor, Council
Wednesday, October 15th Public Hearing
6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Discussion: Public Safety
Includes: Fire and Police Departments
Thursday, October 16th Discussion: Youth Bureau, GIAC, Community Services
7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. (Southside Community Center, HSC, TCAD, CSI)
Planning, Building and Economic Development
Monday, October 20th Discussion: DPW, Infrastructure and Transit
6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Includes: Engineering, Streets & Facilities,
Water and Sewer, Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment
Facility, Solid Waste, Sidewalks, Stormwater
Wednesday, October 29th Public Hearing
6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Discussion: Capital Budget
Council discussion and vote on proposed amendments
Council motion to move budget to 11/13
Wednesday, November 5th Public Hearing
6:00 p.m. Common Council Meeting
Thursday, November 13th Final Vote
6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Special Council Meeting
Additional budget discussion, if needed
SPT/dr 8/15/14
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