City Operations

CITY OPERATIONS Tuesday, February 17, 2026 – 7:05 p.m. Council Chambers – Olean Municipal Building Present: Members: Chairman Bennion, Vice Chairman Anastasia, Alderman Keary, Alderman Crawford, and Alderman McCall. Others: Alderman Forney; Alderman Robinson; Mayor Amy Sherburne; Lens Martial, City Clerk; Keri Kerper, Community Development Program Coordinator; James Sprague, Director of Public Works, and Tiffany Taylor, Managerial Confidential Administrative Secretary. 1. Roll Call Alderman Bennion called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. and asked that the record show that all committee members were present. 2. Approval of Minutes of the Previous Committee Meeting (Tuesday, February 3, 2026) A motion to approve the minutes of the February 3, 2026 committee meeting was made by Alderman Bennion, seconded by Alderman Anastasia. Voice vote, ayes all. Motion carried. 3. Unfinished Business None 4. New Referrals for Consideration a. 405 S. 4th Street – Vacant Lot Alderman Forney explained she received an email from the resident next door to this lot, and this has been discussed for more than a year. She explained they have maintained the lot for the past four years. She explained during the summer she had to contact Code Enforcement because it was overgrown and people were throwing junk and trash there. She explained she worked with Codes to get this cleaned up, and now the neighbor would like to see about taking ownership of the property. She explained she tried to have this conversation with the prior administration and it went nowhere. Alderman Bennion asked if this is a City-owned lot and Alderman Forney explained it is. Alderman Bennion explained the Council discussed previously getting rid of vacant lots and he doesn’t know why we are holding onto them. He explained we should come up with a plan for them, and Ms. Taylor explained the Council enacted Local Law #01-2016 in 2016 that allows the Council to transfer ownership of these lots that were obtained from the County after tax foreclosure. She explained the Council can pass a resolution declaring the property is not needed for municipal purposes and allowing the transfer to a private entity. She noted there is a thirty day period after the resolution passes to allow the sale to be grieved prior to the transfer of the deed, and noted all transfer costs are the responsibility of the purchaser. Alderman Bennion explained we need to see if there are issues with easements on that property and Alderman Crawford explained he believes it might be used for overflow parking for Franchot Park. He explained the resident should be told to offer fair market value for the empty lot, and if the Council has the four votes, the resolution passes. He explained in the meantime, we need to see if there is a need for the City to hold onto the other vacant lots, and asked the Mayor to look into this. b. Amend Zoning Code – Animal Grooming, Boarding, Daycare, Kennel Facilities Alderman Bennion explained this will be handled during the upcoming Zoning Code Update. Ms. Kerper noted RFP responses are due this Friday and seeing this on the agenda puts her office on notice that this is something that needs to be looked into when updating the Zoning Code. 5. Committee Reports None 6. Adjournment A motion to adjourn was made by Alderman Bennion, seconded by Alderman Crawford. Voice vote, ayes all. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at approximately 7:15 p.m.