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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BPW-2016-02-08BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS PROCEEDINGS CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Regular Meeting 4:45 p.m. February 8, 2016 PRESENT: Vice-Chair - Jenkins Commissioners (3) – Goldsmith, Greene, Warden OTHERS PRESENT: City Attorney – Lavine Superintendent of Public Works – Thorne Assistant Superintendent of Water and Sewer – Whitney Assistant Superintendent of Streets and Facilities – Benjamin Director of Engineering Services – Logue Director of Parking – Nagy Common Council Liaison – Fleming Executive Assistant – Servoss EXCUSED: Mayor Myrick Commissioner Darling DAC Liaison – Roberts ADDITIONS OR DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA: Supt. Thorne requested the modification of 12A from a non-voting item to a voting item. He further requested the addition of Item 11A, titled “Declaration to Act as Lead Agency for the Environmental Review of Brindley Street Bridge Replacement Project – Resolution.” No Board member objected. MAYOR’S COMMUNICATIONS: Mayor Myrick was not present. COMMUNICATIONS AND HEARINGS FROM PERSONS BEFORE THE BO ARD: No members of the public appeared to address the Board. RESPONSE TO THE PUBLIC No response was necessary. REPORTS Superintendent and Staff Dir. of Eng. Logue reported the following:  Asbestos work in City Hall was scheduled for the next weekend,  Cass Park Rink Roof Project was out to bid,  The City released the proposal for design services for four projects,  Two public meetings were scheduled this week for proposed sidewalk projects and the Martin Luther King Jr. Street Enhancement Project, and  Staff was working with ITCTC on an update to the Transportation Improvement Plan. Asst. Supt. Benjamin reported that crews were patching potholes and other miscellaneous other items, repairing catch basins and assisting with looking for the source of the water draining under Forest Home Drive. He further reported that the tree crew was trimming trees, not taking trees down unless it was necessary. Asst. Supt. Whitney reported that staff had moved out of the old water plant, the asbestos remediation under way, two new membrane filters had been delivered, the bypass to the Cornell Street Water Tower was started, and the Wastewater Treatment Plant was beginning its final phase of renovations to the influent building. Dir. of Parking Nagy reported the following:  897 tickets were issued in January for $4,000 in revenue,  4,492 transactions on the pay machines resulted in $8,000 in revenue, and Board of Public Works Page 2 February 8, 2016 Regular Meeting  2 new committees had begun to determine the placement of the new pay stations and marketing downtown parking to the senior community. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the decrease in ticket appeals and educating the senior community on using the pay stations and Parkmobile. Supt. Thorne reported that a tour of the new water plant would be scheduled for Monday March 7, 2016, in the late afternoon during the board meeting, and staff was still coordinating with developers on the Dryden Rd Streetscape Project. CREEKS, BRIDGES, AND PARKS: Declaration to Act as Lead Agency for the Environmental Review of Brindley Street Bridge Replacement Project – Resolution By Commissioner Goldsmith: Seconded by Commissioner W arden WHEREAS, State law and regulations and Section 176.6 of the City Code of the City of Ithaca require that a lead agency be established for conducting environmental review of certain proposed actions, in accordance with applicable law, and WHEREAS, State regulations and the City Code specify that the lead agency shall be that agency which has primary responsibility for undertaking, approving or fundin g the action, and WHEREAS, the existing Brindley Street Bridge (“the Bridge”) is a single span, single lane multiple steel girder bridge carrying Brindley Street over the Cayuga Inlet, and WHEREAS, the Bridge has been posted for a 20 ton weight limit an d has a condition rating of 3.9 out of 7,and WHEREAS, the project involves the replacement of the Brindley Street Bridge with two lane structure with additional accommodations for bicyclists and pedestrians including necessary approach and intersection improvement, and WHEREAS, two possible design alternatives for the replacement of this bridge are being considered: Bridge Alternative 1,which includes replacement of the bridge in its existing alignment and Bridge Alternative 2,which would include the construction of new roadway and bridge on a relocated horizontal alignment that would connect Taber Street with the West State Street/Taughnnock Boulevard intersection, and WHEREAS, on January 25, 2016, the Board of Public Works concurred with the prelimin ary project scope as presented by the consultant during the meeting, and WHEREAS, in addition to the Board of Public Works, Common Council, Planning and Development Board, New York State Department of Transportation, New York State Department of Environmental Protection, Army Corps of Engineers, Disablity Advisory Coucil, Conservation Advisory Council, and the Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Council are involved or interested agencies for this project; now therefore be it RESOLVED, That the City of Ithaca Board of Public Works does hereby declare its intention to act as lead agency for the environmental review of the proposed replacement of the Brindley Street Bridge focused on Design Alternative 2 (which would include the construction of new roadway and bridge on a relocated horizontal alignment that would connect Taber Street with the West State Street/Taughnnock Boulevard intersection), and requests that staff provide notice of the same to all involved and interested agencies. Carried Unanimously WATER AND SEWER: Authorization to Resend the Water Bill for the Correct Amount for 113 Dryden Road Water Billing – Resolution By Commissioner Goldsmith: Seconded by Commissioner Warden WHEREAS, on October 16, 2008 the City replaced a manual -read Badger 4-inch dual body compound water meter (Badger) with a new radio-read capable Master Meter 4-inch dual body compound water meter (Master Meter), and WHEREAS, on June 22, 2015 City Water Meter Technicians replaced the Master Meter due to consistent readings well below the historical range for this account, and upon examination of the Master Meter, it was discovered that the radio reading transmitted from the high flow Board of Public Works Page 3 February 8, 2016 Regular Meeting register was incorrect by a factor of 10 {i.e. meter head mechanical register read 17,857-HCF, radio read picked up 1,785-HCF}, and WHEREAS, based on the actual reads from the mechanical registers (less the previous billings) a bill for an additional 13,020-HCF {$120,695.40} was prepared and sent 7/2/2015, and WHEREAS, upon request by the Owner of 113 Dryden Road, the account history was reviewed by the Assistant Superintendent of Public Works for Water and Sewer, the Superintendent of Public Works, and a member of the Board of Public Works, and upon review, it was discovered that in addition to the decimal point error on the high flow readings, the high flow register stopped working in the 3rd or 4th quarter of 2012, and WHEREAS, the Department of Public Works has prepared an adjusted consumption and billing schedule which accounts for the decimal point error on the high flow register, and assumes a minimum quarterly consumption for the billing periods for which the high flow register was not working, and WHEREAS, the prior bill sent on 7/2/2015 in the amount of $120,695.40 is incorrect because it did not account for the period of time that the high flow register was not working and also included billing periods prior to the 6-year statute of limitation, and WHEREAS, the adjusted consumption and billing analysis properly accounts for the non - functioning meter and 6-year statute of limitations, and the revised billing amount is $154,817.96, now therefore be it RESOLVED, That the City of Ithaca expunges the $120,695.40 billed on 7/2/2015, and be it further RESOLVED, That the City of Ithaca issue a new bill for the quarter ending 1/5/2010 through the quarter ending 4/3/2015 in the amount of $154,817.96. Supt. Thorne introduced the topic stating that some correspondence was submitted after the initial resolution was passed by the Board. He further stated that because the correspondence had not been provided to the Board, it seemed appropriate to provide the information to the Board and request another vote. Discussion followed on the floor regarding how promptly the appellant received the information he requested. Supt. Thorne responded that the information was provided and adjustments were made to the outstanding water bill due to additional errors that were found. He further stated that City Attorney Lavine and he met with the appellant twice to discuss the water bill since the last Board meeting. A Vote on the Resolution Resulted as Follows: Carried Unanimously DISCUSSION ITEMS: Six Mile Creek Watershed Protection Project – Proposed Resolution WHEREAS, a conservation easement is a set of legal restrictions that a property owner can voluntarily place on her or his own land, limiting use and development of the land forevermore, and; WHEREAS, the City is currently constructing at substantial expense a new water filtration plant which is fed by a creek, and; WHEREAS, the quality of the water fed by said creek is substantially dependent on the quality of water provided upstream of the plant by the creek’s watershed, predominantly outside City limits, and; WHEREAS, overdevelopment of the watershed in t he long term would increase the risk of water quality issues that could prove costly to remedy at the plant itself, and; WHEREAS, the Common Council favors natural conservation efforts [anybody have a more specific reference, maybe to an existing City policy on environmental conservation, that we might reference here?]; Board of Public Works Page 4 February 8, 2016 Regular Meeting WHEREAS, the Common Council included in the Fiscal Year 2015 budget $20,000 in support of the initiative detailed in this resolution, and; WHEREAS, the Common Council desires to establish via this resolution more specific procedures and guidelines for the disbursement of these funds and any future funds similarly budgeted for the purpose of watershed conservation easements; now therefore be it RESOLVED, That as part of the annual budget proposal of the Department of Public Works for the Water and Sewer Division, the Superintendent of Public Works, on consultation with the Director of Planning and Development, make a recommendation as to what amount, if any, is recommended for inclusion in their annual budget for purposes of this program; and be it further RESOLVED, That any funds so budgeted be evaluated for expenditure on transaction costs necessary to the creation of conservation easements according to the procedures and requirements set out in this resolution, and such other procedures and requirements not in conflict with this resolution established by the Director of Planning and Development and the Superintendent of Public Works; and be it further RESOLVED, That applications for expenditure of these funds on particular conservation easement projects may be submitted by any member of the public, though most commonly by the Finger Lakes Land Trust, to the Director of Planning and Development or her/his designee; and be it further RESOLVED, That the Director of Planning and Development or her/his designee shall evaluate each application according to the minimum criteria specified in this resolution, among others, and if said minimum criteria are satisfied, shall circulate the applicatio n to the Superintendent of Public Works or his/her designee (expected generally to include either or both of the City Watershed Coordinator and the City Environmental Engineer), who in turn shall:  add the application to an upcoming agenda of the Board of Public Works occurring not sooner than 30 days in the future, and  email or mail notice of the application to all members of the City’s Common Council and to the Clerk of the Town or Village in which the contemplated conservation easement would be created; and be it further RESOLVED, That the Director of Planning and Development, the Superintendent of Public Works, and/or each of their designees make a recommendation to the Board of Public Works as to their recommended action on the application under consid eration; and be it further RESOLVED, That the Board of Public Works deliberate upon, and thereafter approve or deny, each application for funding of transaction costs of a conservation easement, and if approved specify the dollar amount, not to exceed $15 ,000 per application, authorized for use on the application-specific project to be drawn from the Council-budgeted funds available to this program at that time, abiding the following minimum criteria, all of which must be satisfied in support of any approved application: 1. The property owner(s) of the property impacted by the pending application is/are willing participant(s) in the project. 2. An outside funding match to City's contribution to the application-specific project is preferred, but not required. 3. Another party will be responsible for property management and stewardship of any conservation easement created under this program. 4. The project is located in the City watershed and the conservation of the project is deemed by the Board of Public Works, on the advice of relevant City staff, to be beneficial to long-term water quality for the City's water supply. and be it further RESOLVED, That applications may be submitted seeking funding support of this program for fee-title purchases (rather than easements) in support of conservation of the City watershed, Board of Public Works Page 5 February 8, 2016 Regular Meeting but that such applications shall, after being considered by the Board of Public Works as specified in this resolution, require a vote of the Common Council before any approval of the application shall be effective. Commissioner Goldsmith expressed his full support of the proposal. Supt. Thorne noted that staff was in support as well, and the final resolution would be provided for the next board meeting. City Attorney Lavine explained that $20,000 per year for two years was deposited into a watershed conservation fund for the conservation of land. The authorizing resolution from Common Council for the fund indicated two categories of transactions: conservation easements and fee title purchases of land. The Board of Public Works was authorized to approve conservation easements up to $15,000. The Finger Lakes Land Trust would purchase this land with Common Council approval on behalf of the city. Andy Zepp stated that the Land Trust already protected about 1,000 acres of watershed. The unique attributes of this property includes being incredibly pristine, has 11,000 feet of water frontage along different creeks, and it has two natural areas. He stated that the Finger Lakes Land Trust was dedicated to raising the funds for the land purchase because of the unique quality of the property. He is simultaneously looking for a grant from Tompkins County reserve fund and then private funding. The Board expressed enthusiastic support for the purchase of this land for the purpose of conservation. Request for an Encroachment Agreement from Rulloff’s in Collegetown at 411 College Avenue Supt. Thorne explained the request for benches in the pedestrian right of way on the sidewalk in front of Rulloff’s in Collegetown. He stated that several complaints had been submitted to the City regarding the benches, with most of the complaints were regarding the narrow sidewalk and the benches being “unsightly.” Alderperson Fleming stated she did not know the intent of the benches as there weren’t any tables, most people would not bring food out of the restaurant, and alcohol was not allowed on the sidewalk at that location. She expressed agreement with Alderperson Kerslick’s opinion that the benches were unsightly and suggested that the aesthetics of the benches be reviewed. Discussion followed on the floor regarding how other requests were handled, particularly from restaurants on Aurora Street which were designed for outdoor dining. Dir. of Eng. Logue responded that the restaurants on Aurora Street pay for outdoor dining permit s. Commissioner Warden expressed his discontent with the benches being at that location due to the limited space and the unattractiveness of the benches. Commissioner Goldsmith requested input from the Planning Department. Dir. of Eng. Logue responded that staff could request more information and input, and stated that the Board could be interested in the concept but wanted another design. He explained that the City had a bench in the same location years ago, but did not replace the bench when it was removed. Commissioner Greene stated that he wouldn’t mind allowing benches in the city’s right of way, but he disliked the design and also would like input from the Planning Department. Commissioner Warden noted that any agreement for the benches would have to include specific guidelines on maintenance and upkeep. The Board agreed to request a recommendation from Planning Department staff , and would discuss the request further at a future Board meeting. Cascadilla Creekway Project Addisu Gebre, Bridge Systems Engineer, joined the Board for the discussion of this item and explained the public comments that were received and requested the Board’s direction. He stated that concerns expressed by the public were addressed in the design alternatives that were before the Board today. Alderperson Fleming expressed support for Alternative 4, stating that deferring maintenance or replacement of the pedestrian bridge was justified, that it was not a pri ority. Dir. of Eng. Logue Board of Public Works Page 6 February 8, 2016 Regular Meeting responded that the general objections expressed in public comment was due to the cost to the city. He suggested replacing the railing and concrete on top of the wall to keep project costs low. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the total project cost was about $1 million, with the intersection portion of the project estimated at $35,000. Further discussion followed regarding applying for additional funding and whether NYSDOT would allow the city to not include the replacement of the pedestrian bridge in the project in order to save money, though the replacement was in the federal aid grant application submitted by the City. Dir. of Eng. Logue noted that the Board did not need to make any decisions today and there would be time for them to think about the project. Commissioner Goldsmith expressed his support for keeping the replacement of the pedestrian bridge in the project, and maybe staff could negotiate with NYSDOT to approve the project. The Board agreed that staff would work with NYDOT on approvals and would provide the Board with an update once a decision was made. Commissioner Goldsmith left the meeting at 5:55 p.m. Tioga Street and the Bicycle Boulevard Plan Dir. of Eng. Logue explained the proposal to build new bicycle lanes on the 300-400 blocks of North Tioga Street. He requested direction from the Board and whether the Board would entertain public comment. He stated that direct mail would be sent to property owners on the affected blocks, staff would work with Downtown Ithaca Alliance to contact businesses, and staff would obtain parking data for the area, and would hold a public information meeting at a Board of Public Works meeting in March. Commissioner Jenkins stated she would prefer providing the outreach to the public. The Board agreed. Dir. of Eng. Logue stated that staff would continue with reaching out to the public regarding this project. Request for Street Name Change for Sisson Place Dir. of Eng. Logue explained that a request from Cornell University was submitted asking to change the name of the portion of Sisson Place that was within the City’s boundaries. He stated that the Village of Cayuga Heights had already changed the name of the portion within the village to Northcross Road. Commissioner Jenkins stated that it would be very confusing for drivers traveling along the road if it changed names a couple of times. The Board generally agreed. Supt. Thorne stated that a resolution would be provided for the next Board meeting. ADJOURNMENT: On a motion, the meeting adjourned at 6:04 p.m. Kathrin D. Servoss Claudia Jenkins Executive Assistant Vice-Chair