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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-CA-2016-08-17CITY ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Regular Meeting 6:00 p.m. August 17, 2016 PRESENT: Alderperson Mohlenhoff – Chair Alderpersons (4): Gearhart, Fleming, McGonigal, Smith OTHERS PRESENT: Manager of Organizational Development – Moskowitz GIAC Director – McBean-Clairborne Director of Code Enforcement – Niechwiadowicz Chief of Staff – Cogan Director of Engineering Services – Logue Director of Planning – Cornish Controller - Thayer Deputy Controller – Andrew 1. Call to Order 1.1 Agenda Review: Chairperson Mohlenhoff requested that the following items be moved up on the agenda and be for discussion only: HR – Amendment to the Anti-Discrimination Policy and HR – Amendment to the Human Rights Ordinance. 1.2 Review/Approval of Minutes: Alderperson Gearhart made a motion to approve the minutes from the July 20, 2016 meeting of the City Administration Committee. Seconded by Alderperson Fleming. Motion carried unanimously. 1.3 Statements from the Public. None. 1.4 Statements from Employees. None. 1.5 Council Response. None. 2. Consent Agenda Items 2.1 PB&ED – Amendment to 2016 Budget Moved by Alderperson Smith. Seconded by Alderperson Fleming. WHEREAS, the City has adopted a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050, and nearly three quarters of Ithaca community GHG emissions come from residential and commercial buildings; and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca Comprehensive Plan suggests “Enact more stringent local energy codes based on standards for new and existing buildings and voluntary certification programs” and The City’s Energy Action Plan recommends “Encourage sustainable and energy efficient development (and re- development) through green building policies and implementation of advanced energy codes” and City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 2 “Consider regulatory tools to encourage/require higher energy efficiency standards for rental housing;” and WHEREAS, the City has been awarded grant funding for a project entitled “Building for Energy Efficiency: Developing New Construction Standards for Ithaca,” to conduct a comprehensive, collaborative examination of policy tools that Ithaca can use to incentivize or mandate green building standards for new construction; and WHEREAS, the grant funding will cover all cash project expenses, which will be used for hiring a consultant(s) to provide the various project deliverables; and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca will administer the grant, and the Town of Ithaca has committed staff time to collaborate on this inter-municipal project; and WHEREAS, the City received in July the full grant award, from two different sources: Park Foundation provided a check for $51,970 and the Funders Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities provided a check for $51,970; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That Common Council approves an amendment of the 2016 City of Ithaca budget to accommodate the increase in revenue collected and the related consultant expenses as follows: Increase Revenue: A8020-2705 Planning Department Gifts & Donations $103,940 Increase Expenditures: A8020-5435 Planning Department Contracts $103,940 A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 2.2 AOC Recommendations for 2016/2017 Budget Moved by Alderperson Smith. Seconded by Alderperson Fleming. 2016/2017 Budget - Upgrade Studio from Standard Definition to Digital High Definition $50,000.00 Description: The current equipment of the PEGASYS Studio is standard definition (SD), 720x480 pixels, analog equipment that dates from 1989 -1995. Almost none of it can be fixed or replaced any more. This budget includes new equipment that will upgrade the Studio to digital high definition (HD), 1280x720 pixels or higher. The new equipment includes HD Cameras, Camera Remote Controls, Video Switching and Titling Equipment, Monitors, Digital Recording and Media Playback. WHEREAS, Section 15.12 of the Franchise Agreement between the City of Ithaca and Time Warner Entertainment-Advance/Newhouse Partnership (TWC) of January 2003 requires the participating municipalities (City of Ithaca, Town of Ithaca, Village of Cayuga Heights) to provide TWC with an annual budget for Public, Educational and Governmental access operations by June 30 of each calendar year, and City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 3 WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca's Ordinance #2003-17, Par 18-4-G, requires the Access Oversight Committee (AOC) to provide the Participating Municipalities with a recommended annual budget by May 31 of each calendar year, and WHEREAS, not all budgets from previous years were fully expended and in particular the full amount of the 2016 Budget approved in June of 2015 remains available, and WHEREAS, the AOC recommended that the unused funds of previous years and the full amount of the 2016 Budget become part of the 2017 Budget making it the “2016/2017 Budget”, and WHEREAS, the AOC accepted the 2016/2017 Budget in the amount of $50,000.00 at their regular meeting of May 31, 2016; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That Common Council accepts the Access Oversight Committee budget recommendation of $50,000.00 in order to meet the obligation to provide TWC with an annual budget for Public, Educational and Governmental access operations, which is due June 30 of each calendar year. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 3. City Administration, Human Resources, and Policy 3.1&2 HR – Amendment to Anti-Discrimination Policy & HR – Amendment to Human Rights Ordinance These two items were moved up on the agenda and are for discussion only. Manager of Organizational Development Leslie Moskowitz and LGBT Director Luca Maurer joined in the discussion. At the Common Council meeting in July 2016, a proclamation was passed that was sent to Orlando, FL to express their sentiments on the shooting. In this proclamation, outdated language regarding gender was included that was taken directly from the Ordinance. This language, which was politically incorrect, generated a discussion about updating the language in the Ordinance. Chairperson Mohlenhoff stated that she did a quick search of the Code Book and found, at least, 27 other places where the language needed to be changed. Ms. Mohlenhoff suggested that instead of changing the language in just the two documents on tonight’s agenda that all the language be updated in the Code Book. Once all of the language regarding gender has been updated in the Code Book, a resolution to approve these changes would be brought before the City Administration Committee. Alderperson McGonigal asked what the difference was between gender identity and gender expression. Mr. Maurer explained that gender identity refers to the gender at birth and gender expression refers to the way a persons expresses themselves to the world. The Committee thanked Leslie Moskowitz and Luca Maurer. 3.3 PB&ED – Amendment to Personnel Roster Moved by Alderperson Fleming. Seconded by Alderperson McGonigal. City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 4 WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca’s Building Division, under the guidance of Housing and Land Use Supervisor, has been building a Property Management Database in the City’s Building Division for the past several years, and WHEREAS, it is the intent of the Planning Division to add to this database and create digital property files while also automating redundant tasks to free up staff time, and WHEREAS, the Housing and Land Use Supervisor has taken on this task, while maintaining his role as the City’s Housing and Land Use Supervisor, and WHEREAS, it has become apparent that these two roles are too much for one person, and WHEREAS, Housing Inspector Gary Checksfield has been with the City for the past 10 years and has increased his knowledge through experience and has proven his ability to take on greater responsibilities, and WHEREAS, no additional funding is needed in the 2016 approved budget; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby amends the 2016 authorized roster as follows: Add: One (1) Housing Code Supervisor at 40 hours per week Delete: One (1) Housing Inspector at 40 hours per week and be it further RESOLVED, That the position of Housing Code Supervisor be assigned to CSEA Administrative Unit Salary Grade 16, and be it further RESOLVED, That the sole purpose of determining days worked reportable to the New York State and Local Employees’ Retirement System, the standard workday for this position shall be established at eight (8) hours per day, forty (40) hours per week. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 3.4 PB&ED – Amendment to Personnel Roster Moved by Alderperson Gearhart. Seconded by Alderperson Fleming. WHEREAS, Code Inspector Mary Brenner has been with the City of Ithaca since December of 2009, and WHEREAS, Ms. Brenner has shown exceptional knowledge and professionalism in her role as a Code Inspector and is performing work at the level of a Senior Code Inspector, and City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 5 WHEREAS, no additional funding is needed in the 2016 approved budget, now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby amends the 2016 authorized roster as follows: Add: One (1) Senior Code Inspector at 40 hours per week Delete: One (1) Code Inspector at 40 hours per week, and be it further RESOLVED, That no additional funding is needed in the 2016 approved budget. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 4. Finance, Budget and Appropriations 4.1 DPW – Elmira Road Overlay & Signal Replacement Moved by Alderperson McGonigal. Seconded by Alderperson Gearhart. A resolution authorizing implementation and funding in the first instance 100% of the federal aid- eligible costs and State “Marchiselli” program-aid eligible costs, of a transportation federal-aid project, and appropriating funds therefore. WHEREAS, a Project for the Elmira Road Overlay and Signal Replacement, P.I.N. 375592 (the “Project”) is eligible for funding under Title 23 U.S. Code, as amended, that calls for the apportionment of the costs of such program to be borne at the ratio of 80% Federal funds and 20% non-federal funds, and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca desires to advance the Project by making a commitment of 100% of the non-federal share of the costs of Preliminary Engineering/Design; and WHEREAS, preliminary engineering and design are exempt from further environmental review as Type II actions, now, therefore, the Common Council; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the Common Council hereby approves the above-subject project, subject to further environmental review of construction; and it is hereby further RESOLVED, That the Common Council hereby authorizes the City of Ithaca to pay in the first instance 100% of the federal and non-federal share of the cost of Preliminary Engineering/Design work for the Project or portions thereof, and it is further RESOLVED, That the sum of $210,600 is hereby appropriated from the issuance of serial bonds and made available to cover the cost of participation in the above phase of the Project, and it is further City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 6 RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby creates Capital Project # 832, Elmira Road Overlay and Signal Replacement, to include the Project costs of $210,600, and it is further RESOLVED, That in the event the full federal and non-federal share costs of the project exceeds the amount appropriated above, the Common Council of the City of Ithaca shall convene as soon as possible to appropriate said excess amount immediately upon the notification by the NYSDOT thereof, and it is further RESOLVED, That the Mayor of the City of Ithaca be and is hereby authorized to execute all necessary Agreements, and the Superintendent of Public Works is hereby authorized to execute all necessary certifications or reimbursement requests for Federal Aid on behalf of the City of Ithaca with the New York State Department of Transportation in connection with the advancement or approval of the Project and providing for the administration of the Project and the municipality’s first instance funding of Project costs and permanent funding of the local share of federal-aid and state-aid eligible Project costs and all Project costs within appropriations therefore that are not so eligible, and it is further RESOLVED, That this project be undertaken with the understanding that the final cost of the Project to the City of Ithaca will be roughly 12% of said portion, currently estimated at $24,420 of the $210,600 authorized for this portion of the project, in monies and in-kind services as managed by the Superintendent of Public Works and monitored by the City Controller, and be it further RESOLVED, That a certified copy of this resolution be filed with the New York State Commissioner of Transportation by attaching it to any necessary Agreement in connection with the Project, and it is further RESOLVED, This Resolution shall take effect immediately. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 4.2 DPW – State Street Retaining Wall Moved by Alderperson Smith. Seconded by Alderperson Fleming. A resolution authorizing implementation and funding in the first instance 100% of the federal aid- eligible costs and State “Marchiselli” program-aid eligible costs, of a transportation federal-aid project, and appropriating funds therefore. WHEREAS, a Project for the State Street Retaining Wall, P.I.N. 375616 (the “Project”) is eligible for funding under Title 23 U.S. Code, as amended, that calls for the apportionment of the costs of such program to be borne at the ratio of 80% Federal funds and 20% non-federal funds, and WHEREAS, the City of Ithaca desires to advance the Project by making a commitment of 100% of the non-federal share of the costs of Preliminary Engineering/Design; and WHEREAS, preliminary engineering and design are exempt from further environmental review as Type II actions, now, therefore, the Common Council; now, therefore, be it City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 7 RESOLVED, That the Common Council hereby approves the above-subject project, subject to further environmental review of construction; and it is hereby further RESOLVED, That the Common Council hereby authorizes the City of Ithaca to pay in the first instance 100% of the federal and non-federal share of the cost of Preliminary Engineering/Design work for the Project or portions thereof, and it is further RESOLVED, That the sum of $816,400 is hereby appropriated from the issuance of serial bonds and made available to cover the cost of participation in the above phase of the Project, and it is further RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby creates Capital Project # 833, State Street Retaining Wall, to include the Project costs of $816,400, and it is further RESOLVED, That in the event the full federal and non-federal share costs of the project exceeds the amount appropriated above, the Common Council of the City of Ithaca shall convene as soon as possible to appropriate said excess amount immediately upon the notification by the NYSDOT thereof, and it is further RESOLVED, That the Mayor of the City of Ithaca be and is hereby authorized to execute all necessary Agreements, and the Superintendent of Public Works is hereby authorized to execute all necessary certifications or reimbursement requests for Federal Aid on behalf of the City of Ithaca with the New York State Department of Transportation in connection with the advancement or approval of the Project and providing for the administration of the Project and the municipality’s first instance funding of Project costs and permanent funding of the local share of federal-aid and state-aid eligible Project costs and all Project costs within appropriations therefore that are not so eligible, and it is further RESOLVED, That this project be undertaken with the understanding that the final cost of the Project to the City of Ithaca will be roughly 5% of said portion, currently estimated at $40,960 of the $816,400 authorized for this portion of the project, in monies and in-kind services as managed by the Superintendent of Public Works and monitored by the City Controller, and be it further RESOLVED, That a certified copy of this resolution be filed with the New York State Commissioner of Transportation by attaching it to any necessary Agreement in connection with the Project, and it is further RESOLVED, This Resolution shall take effect immediately. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 4.3 DPW - Request to Establish CP for Expansion of the Alex Haley Municipal Wading Pool Moved by Alderperson Fleming. Seconded by Alderperson Smith. WHEREAS, GIAC staff have identified a need to expand the wading pool at the Alex Haley Municipal Pool to accommodate more people, and City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 8 WHERAS, GIAC, Inc. has been awarded $185,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds from the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency, and has received $95,000 in private donations, and WHEREAS, Common Council is desirous of progressing this reimbursement project; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That Common Council hereby establishes Capital Project # 834, Alex Haley Municipal Wading Pool Expansion in the amount not to exceed $305,000 for the purposes of designing and constructing such improvements, and be it further RESOLVED, That funding for said Capital Project shall be derived from the issuance of Serial Bonds with the understanding that $185,000 of eligible expenses will be reimbursed by the Community Development Block Grant program as administered by the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency and $95,000 will be reimbursed by GIAC, Inc. based on a private donations, and be it further RESOLVED, That this project be undertaken with the understanding that the final cost of the Project to the City of Ithaca will be roughly 8% of said portion, currently estimated at $25,000 of the $305,000 authorized for this portion of the project, in monies and in-kind services as managed by the Superintendent of Public Works and monitored by the City Controller. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Passed unanimously. 5. Committee Working Group The Committee Working Group will map the existing committees to the themes in the Comprehensive Plan. They discussed getting feedback from Senior Staff on the public input process and on the on-line survey. 6. Budget Process 6.1 Discussion There will be a Committee of the Whole (COW) meeting on Wednesday – September 28, 2016. The two items, currently, on the agenda are Capital Projects and Parking Expenses/Revenues. Council members are to let the Chairperson know what they want Staff to present. When giving the presentation on Parking, what Council wants to know about the pay machines: Installation: name of vendor from where the machines were purchased, the cost of the machines; date(s) machines were installed, location of machines, challenges to installation and operation; Performance: how well are the machines working, types of complaints made since installation of machines; City Administration Committee Meeting August 17, 2016 Page 9 Revenue/Fees: parking rates and the total to date of revenue collected, what parking fees are associated with the machines and the amount of fees collected to date (some of the fees are an unreasonable amount; would the City be willing to absorb the cost?); Alderperson Fleming asked that Staff provide a list of unfunded mandates that will have a large financial impact on the City. The Committee discussed what they wanted to receive in their budget packet (the Mayor’s narrative, what each department submitted, what was approved or not approved and why), the time scheduled at the meetings for departments to defend their budget and the communication that the Chief of Staff will have with departments after each budget meeting. 7. Meeting Wrap-up 7.1 Announcements Block Party: The Spencer Road Block Party, sponsored by Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services (INHS) and the neighbors, was held on August 7, 2016. The purpose of the party was to bring the neighborhood together. Kids Day: The Ithaca Fire Department is hosting Kids Day at Stewart Park on Saturday – August 20, 2016. 7.2 Next Meeting Date: September 21, 2016. 7.3 Review, Agenda Items for Next Meeting. None. 7.4 Adjourn: With no further business and on a motion by Alderperson Smith, the meeting was adjourned at 7:31 p.m.