MINUTES
of a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the
PRESENT:
Mayor Donald Hartill; Trustees
Mayor
Donald Hartill called the meeting to order at 7:38P.M. He opened the public
comment period. Joan Lovejoy was present representing the Community Party. Ivar
Jonson was also present. Larry asked Ivar what he thought of the whole Lansing
Trails situation. Ivar explained that he feels the Village has a great
opportunity to connect
Motion-To Close the Public
Comment Period
Trustee Fresinski moved to close the public comment
period. Trustee
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
The
Mayor formally welcomed John O’Neill as a new trustee. Don indicated that he
looks forward to working with him on infrastructure ventures.
The
Board continued its discussion on the cluster subdivision in Lansing Trails.
The Mayor indicated that it was discussed at the last meeting, but since two
Board members were not present at that meeting, it was felt that this issue was
too important to vote on until there was a full Board.
The
Mayor gave the following summary: The present zoning for Lansing Trails I &
II is medium density residential and would permit 194 housing units. Lansing
Trails I is made up of single family and two family units totaling 75 housing
units. Previously, based upon a subdivision plat that was never finalized, 172
housing units were permitted. The current proposal is to change the footprint
of Lansing Trails II to a clustering arrangement with the total number of
housing units for Lansing Trails I and II being 175 with much more open space
and a new roadway system that is a much better approach to traffic calming than
the previous plat. This proposal is significantly less than the permitted
housing density on the other previously approved preliminary plat. We are not
being asked to change the density, only to rearrange it. The proposed road
configuration involves taking part of the previously dedicated parkland in
Lansing Trails I to provide a third traffic path through the development to
spread traffic. This is built in traffic calming. With the way the road is
configured and the raised intersections, it is more likely that drivers heading
from the north on
John
stated that many residents who just bought houses up in Lansing Trails claimed
that they had no idea that there would be a connector road. Don stated that a
resident from Lansing Trails sent him a PDF file that had been given to all
residents as they arrived in the neighborhood. It was acknowledged that the
concept of having a third connection road go around the edge of the
neighborhood, which would involve the alienation of a portion of the current
parkland, was objected to at the last meeting by certain Lansing Trails
residents. Ivar expressed some concern with alienating the parkland because the
people that bought next to that land bought because of the parkland being
nearby. John stated that this only affects two residents and he is more in
favor of this approach.
Ned
feels that residents are so focused on the traffic that they are not seeing the
benefits that they are getting from this clustering. There will be
approximately 5.5 acres of open space and 5 acres of parkland and a great trail
system. One must look at the whole design and not just traffic.
Frank
asked Ivar what kind of people he thought would buy these housing units. Ivar
stated that from his experience it is hard to say. The housing units he will be
building are upscale 2 story Mediterranean style homes with 1800 sq. ft of
living space, a garage and three bathrooms. They will be 1st class
homes that sell for $170-180,000 each. He is even considering installing
elevators in these homes. The living spaces will be on the second floor so that
they can get the higher ceilings. There would be a homeowners association. Lynn
has heard concerns from residents that this would be student housing but now it
sounds too upscale for that. It was acknowledged that you can’t discriminate
about who buys these homes and you may have some students in the neighborhood.
David Dubow added that the homeowners association documentation would have to
be approved at the beginning of development as part of the subdivision approval
and also filed in Albany.
It
was discussed that an advantage of clustering is that there are less roads and
water and sewer lines because the housing units are close together which in
turn means there will be less maintenance expense in the future. Ivar expressed
that he feels strongly that the Lansing Trails I and II developments need to be
connected. John disagrees. John personally likes the idea of the road going
around the development. A complete survey needs to be done in the community to
see how everyone feels, not just those that are most vociferous.
Don
reminded the Trustees that what they are deciding is if the clustering concept
makes sense. They are not doing the Planning Board’s job. If they agree that it
does make sense, then there can also be conditions and requirements set as to
the clustering authorization
Larry
stated that the positive aspects of all this are the open space and efficiency
of utilities. He feels there is no reason not to cluster. John stated that he is not against
clustering, but asked what kind of transition there will be between Lansing
Trails I & II. Ned explained that a buffer has been built into the design
by way of single family homes, parkland and open space.
David
reminded the Board that this is just the sketch plan stage and that it is more
of a conceptual approval. He also
emphasized that the Planning Board will have the opportunity and obligation to
complete the required environmental review and thereafter review and act upon
the preliminary and final subdivision plats with public hearings to be
involved.
Lynn feels that there needs to be sidewalks in this
development. She realizes that in the past the Board has done wide shoulders
for pedestrians to walk on, but she feels they need sidewalks, at least on one
side that are separated from the road. She feels that sidewalks should be a
condition of this approval. The Board discussed concrete versus blacktop
sidewalks. Sidewalks would be a good topic for next Monday’s joint meeting with
the Planning Board. It was acknowledged
that the sidewalk question is both a Planning Board matter as to planning and
design issues, and a Board of Trustees matter as to cost and maintenance
issues.
Lynn was also concerned with a road dividing the
park. It was pointed out that there would be parkland on both sides of the road
and more than likely residents would use the park area on their side of the
road. A park committee needs to be formed to determine what the wants and needs
are for this area.
Larry stated that he was struggling with this
because it seems the Board is trying to micro manage this development. Ivar
will have another sketch plan done with the addition of sidewalks and have it
to the Village by May 10th. Ivar stated that this would be the 8th
sketch plan he has submitted for this project.
The Mayor made the following motion:
RESOLUTION #4043-Authorize
Planning Board to Proceed with Cluster
Subdivision for
Lansing Trails II Subject to the
Following Two
Conditions:
1. The Planning Board will
review a new sketch plan to be submitted by the developer with sidewalks and
submit it to the Board of Trustees for its further review; and
2. If the Planning Board
approves a preliminary plat with the third connection road through the
previously dedicated parkland in Lansing Trails I, the Village Attorney will
thereupon be authorized to initiate the procedures and efforts involved with
New York State legislative approval of the alienation of such parkland and its
replacement with the substitute parkland provided for in Lansing Trails II.
Trustee Moore moved to accept this resolution. Trustee Fresinski seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John
O’Neill-Abstain
The next item on the agenda was the approval of
minutes. The Mayor had not had a chance to review the minutes and asked that
approval be put off until the May 17th Board meeting. The approval
of the March31st, April 14th and 19th minutes were
therefore postponed until May 17th.
The next item on the agenda was to discuss
Navigational Laws. The Mayor explained that the current County activity with
local watercraft regulations started with Tompkins County coming forward with
what he considers to be an unworkable plan to control watercraft on Cayuga
Lake. There are now many different regulations adopted by local municipalities
around the area that have been written by people who are unfamiliar with
boating. The Mayor would like the Village to endorse the application of the
existing restrictions and regulations under the New York State Navigational
Laws as the laws to be applied to the Village of Lansing. The Village has about
a mile of water frontage. It was acknowledged that enforcement of the current
State legislation as well as local legislation is often difficult, if not
impossible. The Mayor is expecting that the various municipalities with lake
frontage will get together to discuss this issue and hopefully will come to a
mutual agreement.
RESOLUTION # 4044-To Endorse the Application of the New York State Navigational Law as the Laws applied to the Village of Lansing
Trustee Leopold moved this resolution. Trustee Fresinski seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
The
next item on the agenda was the annual organizational meeting.
2004 Organizational Meeting
Trustee Leopold moved to appoint
Carol Klepack to the Planning Board.
Trustee Fresinski seconded the
motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Leopold moved to appoint John Piscopo as an
alternate to the Planning Board. Trustee
Fresinski seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Moore moved to appoint Donald Eckrich to the
Board of Zoning Appeals. Trustee Fresinski seconded the motion. A vote was
taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to appoint John Dennis as an
alternate to the Board of Zoning Appeals. Trustee Leopold seconded the motion.
A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to establish the Ithaca
Journal as the Village’s official newspaper. Trustee Moore seconded the motion.
A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Official
Holidays for 2004-05 are Sept 6th Labor Day, Jan 21st
Martin Luther King Day and Feb 21st Presidents Day.
Trustee Fresinski moved to establish the meeting
days. Trustee Leopold seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to adopt Roberts Rules of
Order as the procedural guidelines for Village meetings. Trustee Moore seconded
the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Municipal
Law 77-b, authorizes municipal officials and employees to attend schools,
conferences, seminars, etc. Conducted for the benefit of the local government.
However, such attendance is not authorized, nor can reimbursement be applied
for, unless prior approval of the Board of Trustees is obtained. It would be
appropriate at the organizational meeting to adopt a resolution authorizing
certain individuals, by position, to attend meetings.
Be it Resolved, that the Board of Trustees hereby
grants permission for the Clerk/Treasurer, Jodi Dake, to attend the NYCOM Fall
Training School at the Nevele in September 2004.
Trustee Fresinski moved to have the clerk/treasurer
attend the NYCOM Conference. Trustee O’Neill seconded the motion. A vote was
taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Be it Resolved, that the Board of Trustees hereby
grants permission for the Code & Zoning Officer to attend the following
three conferences:
International
Codes Conference-Salt Lake City in October
Planning Federation in
September
NYSBOC in the Village of
Lansing
Trustee Fresinski moved to have the Code &
Zoning Officer to attend the three listed Conference. Trustee Leopold seconded
the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
WHEREAS all such claims shall be
presented at the next regular meeting of audit,
Trustee Leopold moved to authorize the
Clerk/Treasurer to pay the above stated bills prior to audit by the Board of
Trustees. Trustee Fresinski seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to establish the salaries
for the Board members at $3,500 and for the Mayor at $9,000. Trustee Moore
seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to set the compensation rate
for the Planning Board at $5,000 for the chairman and $2,500 for each member.
Trustee Leopold seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee
John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to appoint Donald Hartill as
the elected S.C.L.I.W.C representative. Trustee Leopold seconded the motion. A
vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Trustee Fresinski moved to appoint Michael Newman as
the non-elected S.C.L.I.W.C representative. Trustee Leopold seconded the
motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
The
Mayor added that Michael Newman is currently the Chairman of the SCLIWC Board
and doing an excellent job. With him he brings his engineering and software
control expertise.
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
The
Mayor stated that last year we raised the limit to $500 and asked if the Village
should raise it even higher. Larry commented that Cornell just raised theirs to
$5,000. Jodi stated that as we continue to comply with GASB 34 we will want to
look into new values.
WHEREAS, Section 104-b of the General Municipal Law
requires the governing body of every municipality to adopt a procurement policy
for all goods and services which are not required by law to be publicly bid,
and
WHEREAS, the Villages procurement policy which was
approved on January 7, 1992 states that there will be an annual review of the
policy, therefore
Trustee Leopold moved to adopt the Procurement
Policy. Trustee Fresinski seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
The Board discussed the fact that we only have two
banks listed as depositories. These are the only two we use at the time and an
additional bank can be added at any time.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:
Section 1. That the Board of Trustees does hereby designate the following institutions as depositories of all moneys received by the village treasurer, clerk, and receiver of taxes.
Tompkins Trust Company
M&T Bank
Section 2. That this resolution
shall take effect immediately.
Trustee Fresinski moved to adopt this resolution.
Trustee Moore seconded the motion. A vote was taken:
Mayor Donald Hartill-
Aye Trustee Frank Moore-
Aye Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
Next
on the agenda were the Mayor’s comments. He stated that we still have four more
easement issues with the N. Triphammer Road Project. There was a potential ROW
issue meeting with NYSDOT that was not needed. We are about one week away from
submitting the final design for approval.
On
the sewer front, the Mayor is hopeful that the plans for the Kline Road Bypass
are in the hands of the Village of Cayuga Heights. They will then go to John
Andersson and to Steve Eidt at NYSDEC for final approval. This would put the
project out to bid in approximately one month.
During
general discussion Frank stated that he has walked the new trail that was put
in last year and is concerned with maintenance issues. He feels the highway
department is not meeting its responsibilities. There is also a tree down
across the trail. Don asked Frank if he has reported any of this to Dennis.
Frank has not because Dennis doesn’t take orders from him. Don will speak with
Dennis. Frank wondered if the specifications for the new trail were ever met.
The trail surface is ok but the border looks unfinished. Frank feels we need
follow up or finishing.
John
recalled that a year or so ago the Board had discussed having the
Superintendent of Public Works come up with a maintenance plan or check list.
Frank stated that with the priority list the problem is they never get off
number 1 to do 2,3 or 4.
Lynn
stated that ITCTC is having a public meeting tomorrow to discuss the 2025
Long-Range Transportation Plan. It’s at the Tompkins County Library but she
will not be able to attend.
John
commented on how the buses in the Village just stop in the middle of the road to
load & unload. The Mayor informed him that this will be different with the
redesign of N. Triphammer Road. The Mayor encouraged John to look at the N.
Triphammer Road plans.
Motion- To Adjourn
Trustee Fresinski moved adjournment. Trustee Leopold
seconded the motion.
Mayor Donald Hartill-Aye Trustee Frank Moore- Aye
Trustee
Trustee John O’Neill-Aye
The
meeting adjourned at 10:00pm.
Jodi
Dake
Village
Clerk/Treasurer