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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-SJC-2010-11-10 SJC MEETING November 10, 2010 SJC Members Staff Wade Wykstra, Chair Supervisor Herb Engman Mayor Carolyn Peterson Supervisor MaryAnn Sumner Joel Zumoff Pat Leary Rich DePaolo Ellen McCollister Eric Whitney Bill Gray Scott Gibson Dan Ramer Steve Thayer Absent Guests Joe Solomon, Dryden Representative Wade called the meeting to order at 12:35PM. Introductions were made around the table to Joe Solomon of the Town of Dryden, who will fill in for MaryAnn when needed. MaryAnn moved to accept the October minutes. Seconded by Joel, the motion carried 7-0 with Rich abstaining, and one correction noted by Carolyn regarding the solicitation of bids for the sale of chlorine pumps. Financial Report – Steve Thayer The current financial reports were distributed and also the finalized adopted 2011 budget. Steve noted that the septage revenues have exceeded budget projections. Fourth quarter payments have been received by all owners. Unclassified revenues are invoices to partners in October for their share of debt service and offset by an expense line in the budget. Overall expenses are currently running under budget. We are currently $914,327 revenues over expenditures. Some of this will be used to pay end of year expenses such as employee benefit budget lines. The Professional Fees line includes payments for the First Energy lawsuit. There was an expense of $1,100 for the Flow Meter Upgrade project in the past month. Operator/Engineering Report – Dan Ramer, Scott Gibson The Energy Performance contract for JCI is being reviewed and prepared for voting at each municipality. The Town of Ithaca has voted and passed a resolution in support. 1 The five year NYSDEC inspection for registration of the Chemical Bulk Storage tanks is now due. We are currently soliciting quotes from several vendors and anticipate a possible cost of $12,000 for this service. A meeting has been scheduled between staff and the Information Technology Department to discuss concerns regarding pending policies for the purchase and use of various computer and software equipment. Staff attended the Fall NYWEA Meeting on October 29th at the American Legion in Ithaca. There was an excellent discussion regarding hydrofracking and the impacts that it has on the environment. Amendments 7 & 8 for Stearns & Wheler have been approved for the Misc. Plant Improvement projects. The second Unwanted Household Pharmaceuticals collection day was held on October 16, 2010. Over 400 customers were served and over 700 pounds of material was collected and disposed of. Dan Ramer and Mayor Carolyn Peterson participated as walkers. Dan Hoffman submitted a proposed resolution for the Approval of SJC Funding of Proposed Settlement of First Energy v City of Ithaca (attached). MaryAnn moved to discuss the First Energy litigation in executive session. Rich seconded the motion. Entered Executive Session 1:25PM Back in Session 1:37PM MaryAnn moved to accept the settlement proposed in the resolution. Herb seconded the motion. The members voted unanimously to accept the resolution as written to pay First Energy $200,000 with no interest, to be paid in 10 annual payments of $20,000 beginning in 2011 with funds coming from the existing budget per Bill and Steve. The portion of the Cayuga Waterfront Trail affecting the plant property line has been completed and the landscaping has begun. On a motion, the meeting adjourned. The next meeting is scheduled for December 8, 2010. Proposed SJC Resolution (11/10/10) 2 Approval of SJC Funding of Proposed Settlement of First Energy v. City of Ithaca WHEREAS, in 2009, the City of Ithaca was named as a third-party defendant in a lawsuit in federal court initially involving First Energy Corp. and New York State Electric & Gas Corp. (NYSEG), regarding liability for the cost of remediation of contamination at the site of the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility (IAWTF), which site is referred to therein as “the First Street Site;” and WHEREAS, in that lawsuit as against the City (as title owner of the site), First Energy seeks contribution from the City, under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Recovery Act (CERCLA) for any financial liability First Energy may be found by the Court to have, for said contamination and remediation; and WHEREAS, the site in question was the location, from approximately 1929 until 1934, of a manufactured gas plant operated by NYSEG and/or First Energy, and a by-product of such gas manufacture is coal tar, now known to be a hazardous substance; and WHEREAS, the City obtained the site in question from NYSEG in 1959, and, in the 1980s, in partnership with the Towns of Ithaca and Dryden, and under the auspices of the group now known as the Special Joint Committee (SJC), constructed the IAWTF there; and WHEREAS, during excavation for said construction, large quantities of coal tar and coal tar- contaminated soil were discovered below the ground, and were treated in accordance with instructions from NYSEG and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, including storage on-site for over 10 years prior to removal and disposal by NYSEG; and WHEREAS, as a result of the lawsuit, the municipal members of the SJC decided to share in the legal costs associated with the City’s defense, and in the cost of any award against the City (or of a settlement endorsed by all of the partners), according to the terms of an “Agreement As to Legal Defense Costs and Damages (if any) Associated with a Lawsuit Against the City of Ithaca Regarding the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility Site” (dated 12/29/09); and WHEREAS, the City retained special counsel to provide a defense in this matter, namely, the law office of Menter, Rudin & Trivelpiece, of Syracuse, New York; and WHEREAS, a motion for summary judgment dismissing the case as against the City was recently denied by the United States District Court, on the grounds that there were questions of fact as to whether the construction of the IAWTF and the treatment of the contamination discovered during that process in some way exacerbated the contamination, thus requiring a trial of the matter; and WHEREAS, special counsel, in consultation with the Mayor and Supervisors and municipal counsel, has negotiated a proposed settlement of this matter, which settlement is recommended by special counsel and the attorneys for the City and the Towns, in order to limit the partners’ legal costs and to avoid the risks and unknowns of trial (and potential appeals); and WHEREAS, the Common Council of the City of Ithaca and the Town Boards of Ithaca and Dryden have all endorsed the proposed settlement; now therefore be it RESOLVED, that the Special Joint Committee hereby approves of the allocation of funds from the appropriate SJC account(s), for the purpose of implementing a settlement of the case of First Energy v. the City of Ithaca, et al, as against the City, provided such settlement shall include the following terms: (1) payment of $200,000 to First Energy, in 10 equal, annual payments of $20,000 each (i.e., with no interest), in accord with the terms of the above-referenced “Agreement As 3 4 to Legal Defense Costs and Damages (if any) Associated with a Lawsuit Against the City of Ithaca Regarding the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility Site;” and (2) a release by First Energy of the City of Ithaca and the Towns of Ithaca and Dryden from any and all liability for the contamination or remediation of the First Street Site.