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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-PDB-1972-01-23 PLANNING BOARD MINUTES City of Ithaca ,1 ­`- no January 23, 1972 7:30 PiM, Ch -hm. Shaw, Messrs. Doney, Vice Schmidt, Stein, and Au s t- 1 n Conley, X-rector Meigs, Junior Planner Latvrence, 141�Iil`_1001cs oi the PlanninQ and Redevelopment Committee of Council A. Jones, J. Spencer, D. Slattery; 2. Dick.- C . Cant-ell, S. Schneewei ss, R. I—Weiner, M. E. on, K. ChOU-tdler, R. M.,.Pherson, R. IAP nt-tives of the press and YadU.,_-19F CU) (W_YCB) j Messrs. 3urns aT,d E2- n i c', It- was 1%10,12D by Mr. Austin, seconded by 14r. Shaw, and CARRIED the minutes or the last ar meeting of the Board, December '9"l, be a-n.ro­,rcd. a) .-I.-m Anpo- Chai an Doney introduced all the Boat_­d t".ae me,,;.,Lbc_-s of --,he Planning and Develo_-Tror� and then a4,'nounced his committee assign- which are as follows: '1V E & LIAISC'T - Doney (Chm, ) , Shaw, Stein Y04U m PDE T,,' -QT - B -t.-ns (Ch Schmidt, Austin -IFY E T -�-JRAL P_A" c' CAPI 1'AL 114P ROVEIVIENTS Shaw (Chm. Schmidt, _k�, F N 0,0D.EZ, MD �.!,-inNICEES - Austin (Chm,, Stein, Schmidt T -t'--7 5 -,7 t Burns, Doney, S--,.-,V ICES Stein i n (Chm. P, -n_a,'_-i.b--n c-r regular ineet, na date - it was MOVED by 5, F",­ccnd�.(­d G., and CAR= "that the regular C'I Y; n a S cif -kj1 P*�,..(_ .' 1_ .­­ntze to be scheduled for the fourth A..n u at` r.a c.h month a-"- PJ a- ) Relort of meets nq of Tom�!­ ns County 'Plannina Board IhAieigs read the report su'-n_ ltted by ?Vtc. Raymond Hemming, Mayor y P 1:7,nning Board !,a copy the CounLl F,�3oo; ntee to of which is -i�f-a a T)1 e in the Plannincg Boa,_--d s The meeting dealt primar- Y , a 5 f. unty B organ­z.a icn P..,nd by-lws. Mir. Stein I.-j — 1, h`- C a quest-lon zil- n2tu?.-2o of the Ci-ty? s representation S. + * tl,e coutnt-Y Bo,"rCA" sucaesti.­­, that add-1tional representation miailit, b(� cal"ed for, so that i.r.,put migh-tbe given the County directly fA ..n +h-a City Planning Board, 0.". Doney said that he would look into t I .I,- mat--ter wltth Mr. Meigs , Yiayo-.- Conley, and the County Planning 6L_,_Cto:r Liguori. �^) Sale of City P go er-y 4 Mr. Meigs read a letter from the City Clerk in reference to the Mayor' s request for Planning Board review and recommendation on a third-party request to purchase a triangular parcel of City property at E. Spencer and E. Clinton Streets, presumably for parking. This subject had first arisen last March and Airil, when the Planning Board noted a City policy that the Board revieivv all such suggested sales in light of long-range planning goals. At that time, Common Council requested the Board of Public Works to compile a list of all City properties, so that recommendations could be made concerning all City properties. The list has not yet been completed, and may'Aake some time. It was MOV-D by Mr. Stein and s-conded by Mr. Schmidt 'that the Planning Board recommends to the CC~­'mcn Council that the Council defer consideration of the sale until such time as more information concerning City properties can be e ssem?�led , '' CARRIE'D. Since the BPW compilation is not expected at somo early Nate, Mr. Meics -,vas directed to assemble information on the p-cperty in question and surrounding properties, and to recommend some action for discussion of the Board' s Community Facilities and Service Committee, and that the Committee report to the Hoard at its February meeting. c) Trash Receptacles - Mr. Meigs read a letter from the City Clerk in reference to a request of the Board of Public Works that the Planning Hoard consider and recommend on a proposal to install and maintain trash receptacles free of charge by a commercial concern. After some discussion, Nir. Schmidt MOVED "that the Planning Boaid recommends against the proposal. " Seconded by Mr. Stein. CARRIED. It was the consensus that the present receptacles do the job well, and are not objectionable or obtrusive. d) Consulta,*t' s Invoice - Mr. Meigs presented a bill from Raymond, Parish, and Pine, Inc . , in the amount of $9,006.00 (4')'0/,480 less 5 ; witheld, in accordance with contract terms) , for work performed on the second stage of the CRP Study. 'He assured the Board that the work to date had been satisfactory, and that, overall, he felt that it is a bit ahead of schedule. It was MOVED by Mr. Austin,' and seconded by Mr. Shaw, "that the bill from Raymond, Parish and Pine, inc. , for consultant' s services be approved for payment. " CARRIED. e) Deoartme_nt of Transportation - Mr. Meigs read a memo from the Super�7nttendent of Public Works, stating that the New York State D,,n-,rtment of Transportation was requesting a statement of the sig- Plif .cance from the Planning Board in regard to the taking of City park lands for highway purposes in connection with the relocation of Routes 13 and 96, as part of DOT' s Environmental Impact determination. idi,^. Meigs review past and present proposals for these routes, and showed a map of the-.-current corridor locations proposed by DOT, and their infringement on: lands designated as public park lands by virtue of their purchase with funds from the Federal Bureau of Out- door Recreation. He said that it had always been understood that the location for the new Route 96 would necessarily involve portions of some of those parcels, but that the Route 13 corridor' s impingement was a ne-vv idea, and could well negate the usefulness of the parcel North of Buffalo Street and West of Taughannock Boulevard for park development and disrupt the great potential of that area for marine commercial development. Mr. Stein felt that the .Board was beinc asked to deal with two questions, one of the significance of the taking of park lands, thereby depleting the City' s park land stock, and another of the specific corridor locations , He teen MO`E3, "that the taking of park lands for such highway purposes would not be aamajor impair- ment to the City' s park land stock, but that agreement on this princi- ple is not intended in anyway as approval of the corridor locations, and that tihe Planning Board wishes to continue to participate with the State in decisions on those locations. " Seconded by INIr. Schmidt. The motion was carried. It was suggested that Mr. Cutia of the Youth Bureau !^)e asked for his input into this matter, that more consideration should be given to the Planning Board' s 1968 proposal for the Route 13 relocation, and that development possibilities in the Island be safeguarded. Mr. Stein was concerned also about the possibl6loffect of the highway on the old Lehigh Valley Railroad Station, since the building is a well-known landmark. He sucoested that a covering letter accompaning this resolution should strongly emphasize that the resolution pertains solely to the principle of the taking of e.ands in this area , and does in no wiray approve the corridor locations ; and also that a meeting should be arranc+ed with DOT to discuss the matter. C01WV,,ITT.:E REPORTS a) Housing_ and Pedevel.opment - Mr. Meigs reported that, due to scheduling problems, the committee had not met, and therefore could no recommend action on the application of Dr. Edward C. King for , approval of his subdivision plans. Mr. Robert Williamson, attorney for Mr. King, reviewed his client' s plans. Mr. Meigs described the applicable subdivision regulations, and said that Dr. King' s plans appear to meet all requirements . It was I%OVED by Thr. Shaw, seconded by Mr. Schmidt, "that preliminary approval be granted for Dr. King' s subdivis:son. " GAPaT ED. y At this point in the meeting, Mr. Doney suggested that since -the hour was growing late, those items on the agenda to which persons present wished:,to speak should be taken next. N !Af US' .NESS a) Ithaca College Quarry Comdex Project - Dr. Steven Schnee- wC ss , Director oo ss � Hee th Services Program at Ithaca College and Chairman of the .Board of Ithacare, Inc. , presented a joint I.C./ I.th{acare proposal for the use of the Quarry Street dormitory com- plex as a domiciliary care facility for the elderly. The complex would be completely renovated inside, and special treatment given the crounds, to provide the gest environment for elderly residents. The facilities would be operated by the non-profit Ithacare, Inc. , in conjunction with the health case program of instruction at the College. Dr. Schneeweiss said that .1"thacare' s background study clearly indicated a need for such a facility in the area, and said that the project offered a unique opportunity for high duality geriatric care and the education and t-raining of people in the field. He distributed copies of a condensed for,.,-,i of the feasibility study for the facility to Board members , a copy of which is available in the Plannina Board files. He asked the Board for its assurance that the proposed use is acceptable in view of planning and zoning con- siderations. Mr. Ross McPherson, President of the East Hill Civic Ass6cia- tion, said that a poll of many members of the Association showed (4) strong support for the proposal. Ise submitted a letter to that effect, a copy of which is also in the files. NIr. Meigs said that the use °vias appropriate for the zone in which it is located (R-3) . Mr. Stein asked about the effect of this project on the neigh- borhood traffic flow, and whether Dr. Schnee,.veiss expected any net increase in necessary city services to the complex. Dr. Schnee- weiss said that, in all probability, traffic to and from the complex would decrease, because of the nature of the tenants occupying the space. He forsaw only minor increases in necessary services (traffic light, bus stop) , if there were any at all. It was MOVED by Mr. Schmidt "that, in view of the: presentation of Dr. Schneaweiss, the Manning Board accepts and endorses the pro- posal of Ithaca College and Ithacare, Inc . , as an appropriate use of the Quarry Street property in vievi of the long-ranee planning; coals of the City. " Seconded by I��r. Stein. - k1r, Shai;t i,ras concerned with the long-range implications of this decision, and suggested that tha Board endorse the proposal "in principle. " Dr. Sc':zneeweiss said that, considerinc the fragile nature of the project as it faces FHA review, he would be more confident in its final approval if "no one hedged any bets. " Mr. Shaw withdrew his amendment to the motion, and the original motion was CAV.-,IED unanimously. COMMITTEE REPORTS (cont. ) b) Executive and Liaison - Mr. Meigs reported that the Com- mittee and Wilcox Press had been unable. to meet to discuss their bill .for the printing of the General Plan. He expected that a meeting would be set up soon. c) Codes and Ordinances - Mr. Meigs had been unable to set up this meeting intended for discussion of the Zoning Ordinance defini- tion of "fa-mily" , again due to scheduling problems . He directed the Board' s attention to Mr. Hemming' s proposed definition reported in tha minutes of last month' s meeting. This definition was accepted by the Town of Ithaca , and.. Mir. Hamming felt it would I G vlise to use the.. same for the City, but the former City Attorney had, according to iMr. Meigs, questioned its wording;. Mr. Austin MOVED "that the matter be taken up by the Codes and Ordinances Committee of the Board. " Seconded by Mr. Stein. During the discussion which followed, 1+iir. Austin withdrew his motion, feeling that the definition lavas adequate and could be voted on by-. the 3oard, but Messrs. Stein and Schmidt felt uncertain about the °Yording and recommended that it remain with the committee. The committee was asked to report at the Board' s next meeting. OLD BUSINESS: a Un'viWsit Avonue Sttdv' - Mr. -Meil gs reported than Mi. . Ste,tem P :ter€oxo had submitted the written report of his University Avenue Study.'bef ore the--Bo' ard' s deadline'.. The Board direoted .ter-: Meigs to notify; the City Attorney and the City Controller of the Vap© t!s` submission. �' . . . l7) At this point in t'':'�' mcatin(, Dy. uu'?+�'il �. ReiiZ�r asked t0 'J@ heard. He saic', that he had been assured that the matter of his plans for his property in the South,vest arca of the City would lze on the agenda under Near Business. He suggested that, in deference to his associates from Elmira and the lateness of the hour, he -e allowed to make his presentation. !Ur. Meics said that it had been an oversicht not to include this on the agenda , and Chairman Doney called a recess to allovii Mr. i4einer to set up his maps for presentation. P�1�T.,r 31.?SIIdESS o b) Dr. l!"Ifei.ner Proposal (not on agenda) - Dr. ,Veiner pointed to the need Lar -moderate-income housing in the area, and the sus- cepti`Oili.tr of the South<<vest area to such development. He proposed a mo')i le home development for his 75 acres of land bet-veen Clinton Street and E-I.mira Road. He felt that such homes would }provide attractive living spaces primarily for t°ovo croups of o�.opleo middle- aged couples and younger couples, especially oraduate stuldents. He emphasised that a prime concern was to foster pride in owning and maintaining, one' s home in an attractive environment, supported in his plans by several recreation areas and yards on each 3,500 square foot lot. Each mobile home , owned 'by its tenants , would be taken off its wheels and set on the site. Each site would be rented from Dr. Weiner. There '..vould be a central business building for sales , rentals , storage , and a laundry. Access to the site would be from Clinton Street , with the possibility of a sea:ndary access from Elmira Road. He felt that such a development would foster business growth, and, since homes would be taxed as real estate, would increase City tax revenues. He read letters of support from the Superintendent of T=,ublic ':corks,- the Assistant Superintendent, the City Engineer, the 3uildinr Commissioner, and the Executive Vice- President of the Chamber of Commerce. Mir. Doney said that he was concerned with 1) whether or not it °.,vas a subs ivision and what reculations the Board could apply to a development of this type, 2� access to the area by fire vehi- cles , 3) whether enough parkland had been provided, and 4) where children in the development would attend schools. Dr. Weiner said that it was not a subdivision, since the land would remain in his name, but that other legal Questions , including ,whether rezoning the area from commercial and industrial to R-3, he could not answer..Mr. Gabrielson, of Keiler Associates, who had been working with >>r. Neiner on the project, thought that a special Planned Development District, rather than a simple chance to t®3, should be considered. Dr. ',tUEiner thought that -fire vehicle acFess would be no problem, that adecuate parklands had '.")een incorporated in his plans , and that typically fekjer children resic'c in a mo'Oilehome park than in a new subdivision. Mir. Austin felt that a. mobilehome park -,vas a locical use for the land, which he thought had limited possibilities for development, and that in light of Dr. Rciner' s presentation, the Board should approve the project. Mr. Stein disagreed, saying_; that there were too many cyuestions raised by such a ne 1 idea , that until tha 3oard decided what regulations ,vLre, applicable , and under ''jhat fram&xork the 3oard could judge it, the lioard could not approve or deny th` proposal. It was i`aiV'_i by Nr. Sham ''that the Planning Board reacts positively to the proposal, and refers it to the Housinc and redevelopment Committee fox study. 0° (6 ) Seconded by 1vir. Schmidt. VOTE: :ayes s 3 m 5ha..V,, Schmidt, Austin- Hoes: - 1 v Doney: I'vir. Stein abstai nine. I`votion passed: OLD r;USIFESS (cont .+�_ Workahle Procram - Mr. Nieigs reported that several meeting's had been held wi:h FLD officials and, City Officials in regard to the Worka':.:1 e Proc:ram ^.ecerti l cation. 1-FUD has some minor reservations concerning tie amity' s codes and ordinances . Ha :vas confident that continued to l';s and :vork on the codes would bring approval soon, c) N. Neadovv Street Rezoning o Mr. Mieics reported that the Common Council has requested the 1:3oard and/or its General Plan and Capital (Emprovements Committee provide more background considerations for the. Board' s recommendation, which was mage at its December meetinc. Mr. Austin asked .vhy the :Soard had. to consider this again. Mr. Meigs said that Council wanted more information from the :3oard. Mr. Shaw IMOV.73 "'that the matter be referred to the General Flan and Capital Improvements Committee for its consideration, and that Mr. Austin and Mr. Stein be invited to attend also. " Seconded by tVir. Schmidt. CA1`1RI1;D. d) Nirs. Jones, Chairman of the Capital Improvements Review Committee, urae(, the Doar& to have its Genera). '.":Ilan ani:.'•. Capital Imorovements Committee review the projects and ,priorities recom- mendC'C by $f13 O,).1^d for ).�,72, an.^.'t pass its roafirmed Or revised recommendations to the URC as soon as possible, as per the Soard' s action at its iecamber '71_ meetinc. MISC -ELLANEOUS a) 'Zoning 1Rpeals: )_) LR2� � 970 o I ecruest � Donald Grover for an' Excerption to Section 7, Cols. 1, 18, and 11 of the Conine Ordinance at 206 East J St. , in an Pm3��district.�Proposed construction of an addition to the Grover Fress would increase the percentage or lot coverage to approximately 50j'. The existing: building; is a non-conforming use. Mr. Shaw I OV:ED "that the case be referred to the Codes and Ordinances Committee °V-!i th power to recommenc.1 to the BZA." Seconded by bir. Schmidt. CA1:L3IED. Mayor Conley addressed the Board Itriefly, calling the Board' s attention to the editorial in the Ithaca JournalofTuesday, January 23, 1072, concerning the need for action in the Southside area. He said that meetings between 'City officials-, architect ,:arid Southside people Wbre being: held, with the purpose of exploring the possibilities of housing and rehabilitation programs there. In a second matter, Nir. Conley asked if the Board uvould be willing to meet Uvith other City Boards and the Development Committee of Coun- cil to determine if Boards and staff could be more closely located in City Hall for better cooperation and sharing of their services. The Board agreed to explora the question, and asked Chairman Doney to appoint two members to attend a general meeting with other Board' s representatives . (7) 0 I,i-ELTING .- DJOJi •i-I'D 11030 P . h-i Respectfully su'^mitted9 Jonathan C. Meics l/ 0/72 P l anniyng Director i