ဟံၣ်My WebLinkဘၣ်ဃးဒီး2017-09-27 PABMinutes1 PLANNING ADVISORY BOARD Wednesday, September 27, 2017 HUMAN SERVICES BUILDING CONFERENCE ROOM 320 W. Martin Luther King, Jr./State Street DRAFT MEETING MINUTES Members Attending: Guests: None Call to Order: Chair David Kay called the meeting to order at 9:06 am. Agenda Review/Changes: There were no changes to the agenda. Capital Reserve Fund Project Consideration – Scott Doyle & Andy Zepp (via conf. call) Andy introduced the Black Diamond Trail Buffer-Reynolds Protection Project. The Finger Lakes Land Trust is requesting assistance from the Tompkins County Capital Reserve Fund for Natural, Scenic and Recreational Resource Protection to purchase a 12-acre portion of a larger farm parcel from the Reynolds family in the Town of Ulysses to ensure the long-term protection of woodlands bordering the Black Diamond Trail (BDT). Acquisition of the property will ensure the protection of mature hardwood forest located in close proximity to Cayuga Lake within the EMC-designated Glenwood Ravine & Lake Slopes Unique Natural Area (UNA-91). This property is further located within the County-designated Lakeshore Natural Features Focus Area (NFFA). $5,000 from the Capital Reserve Fund will help the Land Trust acquire the property for $90,000 with long term plans to sell at a reduced rate to New York State’s Office of Parks Recreation & Historic Preservation to serve as a buffer to the BDT. The project fulfills each of the eligibility requirements of the Capital Reserve Fund and further satisfies the priority criteria for that fund as it “protects land on an existing or potential intermunicipal trail corridor.” David K. asked what State Parks’ long-range plan was for land acquisition along the BDT and Andy explained that they did not want to acquire land all along the trail, but rather at targeted locations that provide optimal value and also pursue conservation easements where possible. Katie Borgella pointed out that the parcel also has frontage along the Cayuga Lake Scenic Byway (State Route 89). Name Representation Name Representation Martha Armstrong E Econ. Development Monika Roth A Agriculture Joe Bowes E Housing Leslie Schill P Education Sue Cosentini E Business Kathy Schlather P Human Services Fernando de Aragon P Transportation Rob Steuteville A Built Environment Design David Herrick P Facilities/Infrastructure Andy Zepp E Land Pres/Public Land Mgmt Rod Howe P Historical/Cultural Resources Dooley Kiefer E Associate Member David Kay P Local Planning (urban) Others Present Darby Kiley P Local Planning (non-urban) Katie Borgella P Interim Commissioner Susan Mann P Energy Scott Doyle P Associate Planner Gay Nicholson E At-Large Joan Jurkowich P Planning Administrator Martha Robertson P Planning Committee Kristin McCarthy P Administrative Assistant 2 Leslie Schill wondered how State Parks will manage the land it doesn’t own contiguous areas. Who’s responsible for maintenance? The response was that State Parks knows that they will need to maintain and manage the property. David K. asked about opportunity costs – Is there anything we can’t do if we allocate $5,000 to this project? Scott replied that the Fund currently has a balance of just over $50,000 and this seems like an excellent project. Action: Recommend the use of $5,000 in Capital Reserve Funds to support this acquisition. Martha Robertson moved, Darby Kiley seconded, Approved unanimously by members present. Andy Zepp abstained via phone. The second request Andy introduced is for the West Hill Wildway-Babcock Protection Project that buffers Coy Glen. The Land Trust seeks a grant for $15,000 from the Tompkins County Capital Reserve Fund for Natural, Scenic and Recreational Resource Protection to cover some of the costs associated with the project. Located on Culver Road, this 70-acre property owned by the Babcock family is a key link between Cornell’s holdings at Coy Glen and Town of Ithaca conservation lands located on Culver Road. The property serves to connect two EMC-designated Unique Natural Areas (UNAs): Coy Glen (UNA-139) and the Culver Creek Ravine & Woods (UNA-140). Coy Glen is also the only New York State designated Critical Environmental Area (CEA) within Tompkins County. The property falls within the County-designated Gorges Natural Features Focus Area (NFFA). The Land Trust has secured a contract to purchase the property for its estimated fair market value of $180,000. Based on conversations with representatives of the Town of Ithaca, the Land Trust proposes to sell the more pristine western half of the property to the Town of Ithaca as an addition to its adjacent conservation lands. The Land Trust intends to sell the eastern portion of the property to a private buyer subject to a perpetual conservation easement that will limit development to a single residence and prohibit subdivision. The project meets all of the project eligibility requirements of the Capital Reserve Fund and fulfills the fund’s project priority criteria in that it “protects land that is adjacent to permanently protected open space, including both natural and agricultural lands”. Rod Howe explained that he’s a Town of Ithaca Town Board member and said that the Town of Ithaca is supportive of the project and mindful of costs, so they are happy with this partnership and division of lands. Scott and Andy emphasized that the western half of the property is much less disturbed so has higher ecological value. David K. raised same question about opportunity costs and why the County would want to give $15,000 to the project. Scott replied that the project easily meets the objectives of the Capital Reserve Fund and Andy added that the Land Trust is aware of the County’s funding resources and the need to not spend it on just one area of the County. Martha R. said that although she appreciates all that the Land Trust does, most Legislators would also like to see other funding actions associated with this funding stream. Action: Recommend the use of $15,000 in Capital Reserve Funds to support this acquisition. Martha Robertson moved and Rod Howe seconded. Approved unanimously by members present. Andy Zepp abstained via phone. Introduction of new Energy representative Susan Mann – Katie Borgella Katie introduced Susan to the group and talked a little about her professional background. Susan most recently worked with Avangrid as the program manager for their Energy Smart Community initiative. Before 3 that she served as vice president of operations for Performance Systems Development and as a senior associate for PricewaterhouseCoopers. Susan thanked everyone for the warm welcome and opportunity to serve on the Board, and the rest of the members and staff briefly introduced themselves to her. Approval of the July Minutes Action: Kathy Schlather moved approval of the July 26th minutes. Fernando de Aragón seconded. The motion carried unanimously. Draft Map of Known and Potential Housing Development Sites – Joan Jurkowich Joan introduced this project to geographically locate, quantify and track housing development in the County, both within County designated Development Focus Area “nodes” and outside of those areas. She reviewed an interactive draft map with the group and explained that the next steps were to review closely with municipal planners to ensure accuracy, and then to start to identify vacant or underutilized potential housing or economic development infill sites, again in close collaboration with local planners. It was requested that we document what data sources were used to develop this map so it’s easy to explain how these sites were identified. It was further suggested to try to show building footprints more clearly. The group discussed whether or not to show lands that have been subdivided, but are not part of an active development proposal. Members suggested that we reach out to Realtors to review this map and discuss the viability of subdivided lands to actually turn into developed housing subdivisions. Members also suggested that we ask town officials whether or not the subdivisions in their municipality are likely to actually develop. Group suggested that we focus on the nodes and the opportunities for subdivisions near nodes. Interim Commissioner’s Report Katie said that the NYS enabling legislation for Property Assessed Clean Energy was amended recently, improving many aspects of the law that will make it a much more robust tool for commercial building to access for energy-saving and renewable energy projects. She said that the County Legislature passed a resolution in support of NYSEG’s petition to the Public Service Commission to authorize moving forward with a compressor solution to provide safe and reliable natural gas service to Lansing. Katie said that the County is in the process of contracting with a wind consultant for services to evaluate sites for medium-scale wind in the County. Contracting is also taking place now for a forestry expert to provide forest evaluation services and oversight of a timber harvest in Newfield, as recommended by the County Forest Management Plan. Finally, Katie reported that Planning and Sustainability staff members are examining departmental procedures for conducting 239 reviews to improve efficiency and effectiveness. Kristin McCarthy will create a Doodle poll to schedule the November/December PAB meeting. Announcements Dooley Kiefer announced an upcoming conference on building sustainable community. Martha R. provided additional information on NYSEG’s compressor solution and a petition submitted by the Alliance for Non-pipe Alternatives in support of the proposal. Leslie said they are hard at work housing on the 2,000 beds proposed for North Campus. The focus now is on building new, and then will focus on renovating existing housing. Members asked Leslie to present on Cornell housing plans at a future PAB meeting. Adjournment: Chair David Kay declared the meeting adjourned at 10:34 am.