City Council

CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL MEETING CITY COUNCIL ROOM TUESDAY, JULY 16, 2002 7:00 P.M PRESENT: Commissioner Thomas Curley, DPS Kenneth Klotz, Mayor Commissioner Michael Lenz, Finance Commissioner Thomas McTygue, DPW Commissioner Stephen E. Towne, Accounts ALSO PRESENT: Phil Klein, Supervisor Anthony Scirocco, Supervisor STAFF PRESENT: Bruce Brown, Deputy Commissioner, DPW Christine Gillmett-Brown, Deputy Commissioner, Finance Deborah Harper, Deputy Commissioner, Accounts Bob King, Deputy Commissioner, DPS Hank Kuczynski, Deputy Mayor Jeff Wait, City Attorney CALL TO ORDER Mayor Kenneth Klotz called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. MAYOR=S OFFICE Appointments Mayor Kenneth Klotz withdrew this item from discussion. Urban Heritage Program Donation Mayor Kenneth Klotz moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to accept the donation from Fleet Bank in the amount of $2,500 for the Spa City Band Concerts. Ayes all. Solomon Northup Day Mayor Kenneth Klotz reminded everyone that Solomon Northup Day would be celebrated on July 20. He encouraged the community to attend this event. Appearance B Oakridge Zoning Amendment (02-182) Mayor Kenneth Klotz informed Council members that an amended petition from Oak Ridge Development LLC for a zoning map amendment that would change the designation of the petitioner=s property off of Dyer Switch Road from Rural Residential-1 district (single family home on two acre lots) to Suburban Residential-1 district (single family home on one acre lot). He said it was now up to the Council to decide if they wished to accept the petition for study and forward it to the Planning Board for an advisory opinion. Mike Toohey, attorney representing the petitioner, said the Council has seen this application before. He said they originally wanted rezoning for a higher density, however, the Planning Board rejected that request. He said they now wish to go back go the Planning Board and request review for one acre lots. Mike Toohey requested the Council to give the Planning Board some flexibility in their scope of review of the Page 1 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 proposal. He said the Planning Board should be allowed to review something between what the ordinance allows and what they are requesting. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said this was simply a request to accept the application for study and send to the Planning Board for an advisory opinion. Mike Toohey agreed but said he wanted the Planning Board to have some latitude in what they=re reviewing. He said in previous discussions with the Planning Board there were some constraints. Mayor Kenneth Klotz moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to accept the petition for study and to refer it to the Planning Board for an advisory opinion. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked what specifically were the constraints. Mike Toohey said in the previous application the applicant was considering 150 units. He said that it seemed that the Planning Board was not interested in 150 units but they would not consider a lesser number. He said he simply wanted more flexibility in the discussions with the Planning Board. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he was concerned about the amount of subdivisions being approved and how the City can accommodate those water needs. He said the Council was going to need to give some serious consideration to the water issue before continuing to approve subdivisions. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked if the applicant was looking for some fluid parameters and was this part of the motion. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said it was not part of the motion. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said this is a routine action on the Council=s part and the Council should not be setting parameters at this time. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the Council should be giving the Planning Board some parameters. Commissioner Michael Lenz asked why the Planning Board rejected this application. Mike Toohey said it was his understanding that the Planning Board liked the proposal, however, they felt that 1.5 units per acre was not appropriate. He said they were not willing to look at a number other than what was proposed. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked what was the guidance that the Council should be giving to the Planning Board. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the Planning Board should have the latitude to review the application in its entirety. Commissioner Michael Lenz asked if this needed to be part of the official motion. Geoff Bornemann said the specific criteria that the Planning Board is operating under is to issue an advisory opinion on two specific issues -- is it consistent with the comprehensive plan and the zoning ordinance. He said the Planning Board would review the application under that criteria. He said the Planning Board could add additional comments if they chose to do so. Commissioner Michael Lenz asked what was the problem with the first application. Geoff Bornemann said the Planning Board did not believe that it was consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the Planning Board should be looking at density when reviewing this proposal. Mayor Kenneth Klotz suggested that the Council=s discussion this evening could be carried back to the Planning Board by those Planning Board members in attendance this evening. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he simply wanted to avoid the inefficiency of the applicant coming back to the Council again. He said he wanted to be sure that the parameters were not too tight. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he believed that the Planning Board could make any recommendations that they saw fit when giving the advisory opinion to the Councils. Page 2 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 Commissioner Thomas Curley said he would like the understanding that the Planning Board review the proposal with a broader approach. Ayes all. West Avenue Change Order #6 (02-183) Paul Male, City Engineer, said this is change order is for the remaining outstanding issues. He share #1 would be paid from federal/state/city funds in the amount of $18,089.03 and share #2, because they are betterments, would be paid solely by the City at cost of $93,600.51. He said the only other outstanding issues were pipe size and rock quantity. He said there were some legal issues with those items though and it would be likely that they would be in court for the next several years. He said the construction company is in dispute with NYSDOT on the rock and pipe size. Paul Male said some of this cost to be paid by the City was for the pump station ($30,000) and test holes ($30,000). Paul Male said it would be necessary for the City to send a check to NYSDOT in the amount of $165,956.64 of which $54,267.10 would be reimbursed to the City. Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked if the City really had much of a choice with this change order. Paul Male said no. He said the contract was let by the state and they control much of the project. Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked what had been the City=s share of this project. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said approximately $1.3 million. Commissioner Michael Lenz asked when this project would be completed. Paul Male said it is essentially complete except for some minor details. He said there is some patch work going on and minor traffic striping and trees to be done. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he had some concern with the tree belt and who would maintain that area. He said there needs to be some code enforcement to see that the grass is cut. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the property owners have been notified. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said the City=s share would be split with the West Avenue SAD. Mayor Kenneth Klotz moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to approve change order #6 for the West Avenue NYSDOT project. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked from where the funding would come. Commissioner Michael Lenz said it would be funded through the bond resolution to be discussed later this evening. He said the City would fund the entire amount and the SAD would reimburse the City their share. Ayes all. Spring Run Trail B Lead Agency Status (02-184) Mayor Kenneth Klotz moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to establish the City Council as lead agency for the Spring Run Trail Project. Ayes all. Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked what was the next step. Paul Male said letters would be sent to the involved Page 3 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 agencies notifying them that the City wants to be lead agency. He said if there is no response within 30 days from those agencies, we assume they are not interested. He said at that point, the Council can make a determination of environmental significance. Paul Male said he has met with several involved and interested agencies and they all agree that the City should take the lead. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked who were the involved agencies. Paul Male said DEC for wetland issues and CDTC for funding. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked what was the significance of the City being lead agency. Paul Male said someone needs to make a determination on the SEQR and that is the responsibility of the lead agency. Paul Male said involved agencies are comfortable with the way the City is going on this issue. Public Forum -- Lillian=s Parking lot Mayor Kenneth Klotz announced that a public forum would be held on Wednesday, August 14 at 7:00 p.m. in the library on the Lillian=s Parking lot. Korean War Celebration (02-185) Mayor Kenneth Klotz said announced formation of Korean War Remembrance Committee. He said next year will be the 50 year anniversary. The committee will be co-chaired Hank Kuczynski & Lew Benton and members will include: Phil Klein, Joe Dalton, Martha Stonequist, Gene Corsale, Jerry Wells, John Edwards, Ed Lewis and Robert Toogood. Empire State Development Funding Opportunity Mayor Kenneth Klotz said there is an opportunity for funding from the Empire State Development Funding for various projects such as main street restoration, park improvements, preservation of historic structures, street lighting, etc. He said he would send this information to Council members for their review. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked if this was grant or loan. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said he believed it was grant money. He said the deadline is August 12. Commissioner Stephen Towne said it was his understanding that the City was eligible for the Empire Opportunity Program which has three components. He said it appears that the City falls under the tourism destination component. He said this was much like the Empire Zone Boundary Amendment application where a rapid response was necessary. He then suggested that former Mayor J. Michael O=Connell be appointed to take the lead on this matter. He said that because J. Michael O=Connell had previously dealt with such matters, perhaps the City=s proposal could be optimized with his expertise. He said J. Michael O=Connell could review this application process and come back to the next Council meeting with recommendations. Mayor Kenneth Klotz agreed. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like to have someone from his department attend the meetings with J. Michael O=Connell. Commissioner Stephen Towne said it was his understanding that there would be multiple rounds of consideration and like the Empire Zone Boundary Amendment process, there was a competitive edge in getting into the first round. Mike Ingersoll, from the audience, said many municipalities will be competing for this funding. He said if the City has specific projects in mind, than the more information that could be submitted should be done. He said it was his understanding that projects that are already approved could compete for this funding. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked if the Woodlawn Avenue parking lot would be eligible. He said that plan is already in place with the research already done. Mike Ingersoll suggested that the City consider rolling projects together and submitting the necessary documentation. ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT Spring Run Consent Order (02-186) Page 4 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 It was noted that at the last meeting, there was a lengthy discussion on the Spring Run Consent Order. Unfortunately a formal motion was overlooked and was now required. Mayor Kenneth Klotz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the Spring Run Consent Order as had been previously recommended by the City Attorney. Ayes all. Approve July 2, 2002, City Council Meeting Minutes Commissioner Stephen Towne moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the July 2 City Council meeting minutes as written. Ayes all. Appointment -- Commissioner of Deeds Commissioner Stephen Towne announced the appointment of Dan Cogan, Code Enforcement Officer, as a Commissioner of Deeds with a term of two years. Grievance Day B Update Commissioner Stephen Towne reported that Grievance Day was held on July 9 with only 14 complainants and 6 in person complainants. He said that is compared to 71 last year. He said of the 14 complainants 5 were lowered. He said the tentative assessment roll for 2002 is $41,200,000 which would generate a 5.75 percent increase of tax revenue at $237,000. He said that decisions would be mailed out in the near future. Commissioner Stephen Towne then thanked Joe Williams, Elaine Cogan, Doris Dyer of his staff; and Board of Assessment Review Members Jo-Ann White, John Goldberg, Ben Mirling and Mary Ann Macica. NYSEG/Select Energy B Update Commissioner Stephen Towne said he had scheduled a meeting with Salerni & Boyd after the last City Council meeting, however, that meeting was canceled. He said another had been scheduled for 7:30 a.m. on July18 and invited Council members to attend. He said he would return to the next Council meeting with a recommendation. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said it was his understanding that this was an automatic renewal. Commissioner Stephen Towne said upon the City Attorney=s review of the contract, it appeared that if there was no response from the City it would be renewed for two years. Authorize Mayor to Sign Acceptance of LGRMIF Grant(02-187) Commissioner Stephen Towne moved and Mayor Kenneth Klotz seconded to authorize the Mayor to sign the acceptance of the LGRMIF grant in the amount of $3,971 (non-matching). He said this grant is for an inventory project in the Police Department=s inactive records storage center. Ayes all. Risk Management Review Committee Commissioner Stephen Towne said that the first meeting of the Risk Management Committee was on July 9. He said that members of the community with a high level of expertise in the area had been asked to serve on this committee. He said the committee is headed by Harry Buccifero. He said matters discussed include the scope of the work, meetings and timetable, Risk Manager role, allocation of costs, etc. He said they may need access to materials and discussions with employees of City Hall and encouraged Council members to work with the committee. He said the next meeting would be held on July 23 at 7:30 a.m. Page 5 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 Confirmation of Previous Approval by Memo B Empire Zone (02-188) Commissioner Stephen Towne said at the last City Council meeting, the Council approved a motion, with amendments, that supported the identification of properties that could be considered under the Empire Zone program. He said a memo was then circulated on July 12 to secure Council approval for adjustments to that list. That memo removed the Spring Street parking lot and added Saratoga Dairy & Allerdice Glass. Commissioner Stephen Towne said this project clearly needed a rapid response and thanks to Debbie Harper, Deputy Commissioner and Shelby Schneider, SEDC, the application was completed and submitted. He said that getting in on the first round enhances the possibility of being successful. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the total parcels submitted for consideration was 27 which equaled about 31 acres. He said the Empire Zone Boundary Amendment Committee will meet on July 26 to review these requests. Commissioner Stephen Towne then moved and Commissioner Michael Lenz seconded to confirm the previous approval by memo to remove the Spring Street parking lot and add Saratoga Dairy & Allerdice Glass. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said he would not support this proposal because he believed there was no rationale for including these parcels. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked why existing projects were included. Commissioner Stephen Towne said it was an extension of parcels in the special development area. He explained that the Empire Zone funding can be used for existing businesses to encourage them to further their capital investments. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like to know what the existing business owners plans were. Commissioner Stephen Towne said because of the short time period in which to complete the application process, it was not possible to contact all business owners and ask them to submit their plans. He said it was determined that the special development areas were identified as the areas that would be appropriate. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked if the old ice rink was included. Commissioner Stephen Towne said yes. Commissioner Stephen Towne reminded Council members that there would be another round in September for any other additional parcels that the Council deemed appropriate. Ayes: four; Nays: one (Mayor Kenneth Klotz). Motion carried. Vendor Name Change Commissioner Stephen Towne informed Council members that at the September 18, 2001, City Council meeting, the Council awarded the City Center 2002 Elevator Maintenance contract to Millar Elevator of Latham. He said that Millar Elevator has since been bought by Schindler Elevator Corporation. He said the contract remains in effect under the same terms and conditions, however, there is simply a vendor name change. Saratoga County Water Commissioner Stephen Towne said he received a letter from the Saratoga County subcommittee on the water related issues. He said that he was unable to determine from that letter whether other Council members has gotten the same letter. He said it appears both the County Water and the Finance Committee had accepted the report from Clough Harbor and there was a meeting today by the full Board of Supervisors. He then asked Phil Klein & Skip Scirocco what happened at that meeting. Phil Klein said both he and Skip Scirocco were on the water committee which commissioned a study to look at alternative water source options for both the City and the County. He said the committee has met a number of times to discuss this matter and this report had been adopted unanimously. He said the full Board of Supervisors Page 6 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 heard this report today and with the exception of one vote, the report was adopted. He said the one supervisor who did not support this motion did so because he was unsure if any county funds would be used to fund this program. Phil Klein said this would be funded through the users. Phil Klein said there was a verbal commitment from Congressman Sweeney=s Office for $2,000,000 funding for five years. He said he also talked to Senator Bruno=s Office and they believed that the state would be able to fund $1,000,000 over a five year period also. Phil Klein said the water could be brought down from the Hudson via Route 9 or down the Northway then split and piped to the Towns of Milton & Malta and hopefully to the Tech Park in Malta. He said the tech park in Malta would be a 15 million gpd user. He said it appears as though DPW would draw between 5 and 6 million gpd. Commissioner Stephen Towne said when he placed the water study issue on his agenda he did not realize that the letter from the County had been sent to all Council members. He said this issue was of such importance that he believed a meeting should be set when the majority of Council members were available as well as the public. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he had already responded to the letter from the County and set a meeting. Commissioner Stephen Towne requested that July 22 or July 23 at 6:00 p.m. be considered. Commissioner Thomas McTygue suggested that Commissioner Stephen Towne take time off of his day job and attend this meeting. Commissioner Stephen Towne said this matter is of significant importance to the City and suggested that the meeting be held when the majority of members are available. Director of Public Works William McTygue said they received a letter requesting a date and time. He said they then scheduled that meeting. Mayor Kenneth Klotz then quoted from the charter that the Commissioner of Public Works= powers included: ATo manage, supervise control, construct and maintain the water supply, treatment and distribution system . . .@ Commissioner Michael Lenz said he understood that there was some confusion about setting up the meeting, however, the letter requested from July 15-19 or July 21-26. He said this is an issue where all Council members should be present. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said this matters falls under his purview. Commissioner Michael Lenz said that consideration should be given to those Council members and County Board of Supervisor members who have full time jobs during the day. Commissioner Stephen Towne said that a quick canvass of Council members available times should have been done. He said he was willing to work with Council members and their schedules. Commissioner Thomas Curley said he could make either the day or the evening meeting, but thought that the public should be accommodated. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said this was not meant to be a meeting for the public. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the point of this discussion was to schedule the meeting. He then suggested 6:00 p.m. on either July 22 or July 24. Phil Klein said he would talk to Ray Callanan to find out what dates they might be available. It was agreed that Commissioner Stephen Towne would work with the Council to find a couple of dates that worked and will then coordinate with Phil Klein and Skip Scirocco. City Council Agenda Commissioner Stephen Towne said when he placed this item on his agenda, he thought this letter had been sent Page 7 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 only to him. He said the Mayor Kenneth Klotz=s arbitrarily and unilaterally decided to remove it from his agenda because of what he believed was a duplicated matter. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he is accessible by telephone and Mayor Kenneth Klotz should have called him before removing this item from his agenda. He said the removal of this item from his agenda was appalling and he hoped it wouldn=t happen again. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said that there was no consideration given to the Commissioner of Public Works and his duties. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said he believed that it was up to him to preside over Council meetings and to maintain housekeeping activities when occasionally necessary. He said it is not without precedent that he took this action and he did inform Commissioner Stephen Towne=s office upon doing so. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he believed that each Commissioner was in charge of his/her own agenda. He said when he placed this item on his agenda, there was not another item on the agenda which lead him to believe that this was a duplicate. Mayor Kenneth Klotz said Commissioner Stephen Towne was out of order and this item should not be on the agenda this evening. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he was personally offended by Mayor Kenneth Klotz actions. FINANCE DEPARTMENT Approval -- Payrolls Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the payment of the following payrolls: July 5B $363,561.31 and July 12, B $350,806.24. Ayes all. Approval B Warrants Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Stephen Towne seconded to approve the payment of the following warrants: 1JUL02 - Warrant 2-25 General Fund $370,424.41 City Center Authority 5,604.59 Water Fund 5,737.26 Sewer Fund 2,945.59 Capital Project 3,749.71 Special Assessment District 200.00 West Avenue SAD -0- Trust Fund -0- Debt Service -0- Community Development 19,379.31 $408,040.87 MC020710 - Warrant 2-7 General Fund $ 137,468.70 City Center Authority 475.32 Water Fund 10,015.31 Sewer Fund 874.24 Capital Project -0- Special Assessment District -0- Page 8 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 West Avenue SAD -0- Trust Fund -0- Debt Service -0- Community Development 18.82 $ 148,852.39 Ayes all. Approval B Budget Transfers Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the budget transfers as presented (Attachment A). Ayes all. Approval Budget Amendments Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Stephen Towne seconded to approve the budget amendments as presented (Attachment B). Ayes all. Retirement Incentive B Update Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said there are two parts to the retirement program. She said Part A would need to be adopted by the City through a local law. She explained that Part A requires that positions be targeted. She further explained that employees who take part in this program would receive additional credit for years of service up to a maximum eligibility of three years. She said the City must show a savings in order for the City to participate. She said the NYS Retirement Office was not able to provide her with a ways to calculate the specifics on savings to the City though. She did note though that there are 78 employees eligible for this program and letters were sent to those eligible asking them to respond by July 26 on whether they are interested. To date, she had received seven responses. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett- Brown said after July 26, she will compile a list of eligible positions with cost savings and forward it to the Council for their review. She said Part A must be adopted by the Council by September 1. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said under the Part B retirement program, no local law or resolution is required. She said there are five people eligible under that program and letters have been sent to them notifying them of their eligibility. She said that under that program, those employees may retire between July 1 and September 30. Commissioner Michael Lenz said that they first need to do their review to determine what the cost savings might be under the Part A program. He said there is no savings to the City, we would not be able to move forward with the Part A program. He then proposed to set a public hearing for the next Council meeting on August 6 at 6:55 p.m. on this local law. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said that the state had forwarded to her a draft local law for adoption and she said she would forward it to the City Attorney for his review. Announcement B State Risk Assessment Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said she received a telephone call from state comptroller=s office last week informing her that an auditor would come to do a risk assessment. She said this was a brief review of finances, minutes, etc., to determine if there were any services that their office could offer the City. She said some of the services offered by the state comptrollers office include SMART review which the City has already had. She said the auditor would be here for between four and six weeks and she encouraged departments to assist in his needs. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked what was the benefit to the City. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett- Brown said there is the possibility that the state comptroller=s office has other programs that might assist the Page 9 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 City. Commissioner Stephen Towne pointed out that this risk assessment is from an operational rather than safety standpoint. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown agreed. Bond Resolution B Approve (02-189) Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the bond resolution as presented (Attachment C). Commissioner Michael Lenz noted that this bond resolution included the additional funding required for West Avenue construction improvements. Roll Call vote: Mayor Kenneth Klotz aye Commissioner Thomas Curley aye Commissioner Michael Lenz aye Commissioner Thomas McTygue aye Commissioner Stephen Towne aye Motion carried. June 2002 Quarterly Financial Report Commissioner Michael Lenz said as requested by Council members, his office will make efforts to get this information out to Council members before Council meetings. He noted that this report also included revenues as well as expenditures. He said the average for expenditures for June 30 was below 50 percent. He reminded Council members though that it is still important to monitor spending habits. He noted the revenue lines of the carousel, mortgage tax (higher) and utility tax (lower) than anticipated. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS Acceptance of Donations B Discussion Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to accept the following donations: Stone Industries for port-a-john at $528; Design & Son for $100 for tickets; Masie Center for brochure printing at $1,345; William J. Morris for top soil at carousel site and Michael Noonan Photography reduced his fee by $150. Ayes all. Parking Presentation Commissioner Thomas McTygue reported that the final payment of $125,000 from Senator Bruno was recently received in connection with the parking deck. He said the total amount received from Senator Bruno was $18,087.42. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked Mike Ingersoll, The LA Group, for a presentation on DPW conceptual plans for the Hub parking lot. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like to hold some public hearings on this matter. Mike Ingersoll said there are approximately 103 parking spaces available at that lot. He said the City Engineer=s Office has already done some test bores and they believe that this is a stable area. He said some survey work had also been done. He said at one time there was a flour mill located on this parcel as well as railroad tracks. He said the grade level change on this lot is about 15 feet. Mike Ingersoll said the conceptual plan would be to construct a parking deck which would increase parking by about 98 cars. However, giving more thought to the idea to preserve green space and perhaps develop the corner with some retail, he showed a conceptual drawing of a two story garage of about 10,000 square feet. He said this project could blend with this corner. Page 10 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked if the cost of the structure would be about $10,000 per space. Mike Ingersoll said he thought it might be closer to $15,000. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the City Center Task Force estimated between $12,000 and $14,000 per space. Mike Ingersoll said when constructing the parking deck on Putnam Street, there was not a bedrock problem; however, this area does have bedrock. Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked if the total cost might be close to $1.5 million. Mike Ingersoll said it could be more. Mike Ingersoll said, though, that perhaps a corner of the lot could be sold or leased. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it was important for the City to start working on this plan and have it ready when funding become available. He suggested that The LA Group be retained to assist the City in developing this plan. Commissioner Stephen Towne said perhaps this matter should be brought to J. Michael O=Connell=s attention in connection with the Empire Zone Development matters that he would be working on. Commissioner Thomas McTygue agreed. Commissioner Michael Lenz clarified that funding would come from the parking solution fund and the capital improvement fund for Woodlawn Avenue. Mike Ingersoll said he had spoken to some architects, engineers, and surveyors and the consensus was that about $15,000 would be enough seed money to develop the project. He said the assistance of the City Engineer=s Office would also be necessary. Commissioner Thomas McTygue suggested that perhaps a survey should be done. Mike Ingersoll said a topo map should also be done. Paul Male thought the boundary and topo maps could be done for between $3,000 and $4,000. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said if the Council was comfortable with this discussion, he would begin work on and RFP. He said The LA Group=s assistance would also be necessary. Mike Ingersoll said he was willing to work with the City Engineer=s department on this issue. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would send information to the Council as it becomes available. Commissioner Thomas McTygue then requested that a public hearing be set for August 6 at 6:15 p.m. on this parking facility at the Hub parking lot. Letter from County/Water B Discussion Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it was unfortunate that this letter from the County was not addressed to the Mayor and Acc@ to the rest of the Council members. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he had responded to this letter and scheduled a meeting for July 23 in the afternoon the City Council room. He said he also requested that representatives from Clough Harbor be brought to that meeting. He said though he was willing to go back and take a look at his calendar to see if Monday, July 22 or Wednesday, July 24 at 6:00 0p.m. was available. Mayor Kenneth Klotz reminded everyone that the Russian delegation would be visiting that week. Commissioner Stephen Towne suggested that perhaps the Russian delegation might be interested in coming to a Council meeting. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he was concerned with the amount of time being spent on this issue while the City=s water consumption rate continues to climb. He said the City has been pumping at record rates and further noted that the Bog Meadow lines were turned on July 8. He noted that Loughberry Lake is now at 9.5 inches below spill. He said there are some serious concerns to deal with and he said a lengthy DEIS for regional water supply for the County would simply be too long to wait. He also noted that the City continues to approve subdivisions which affects the water source. Commissioner Thomas McTygue reviewed water level records for previous years. He noted that on July 15, Page 11 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 2002 the City was pumping 4.8 million gpd and was 4 inches above spill; on July 15, 2001, the City was pumping 4.6 million gpd and on July 15, 2002, the City was pumping about 5 million gpd and was 9.5 inches below spill. He said the City=s water demand increased by one million gallons in one year. He pointed out that there were 9 separate days when the City=s demand was more than 5 million gpd while in 2000 we exceeded 5 million gpd only three times during the same time period. He said his department is in the process of preparing a release for the newspapers for water restrictions. He said once the track opens, we will be between 7 and 7.5 million gpd. Commissioner Michael Lenz asked if the water main break had anything to do with the rise of one million gallons. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said no. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said on July 1, the City was at the spill and now on July 15, we are 9.5 inches below. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked if this trend was similarly high in previous months. Commissioner Thomas McTygue noted that on June 30, the City was up 500,000 gpd; on June 28 we were down to 3.9 million gpd; on June 29 we were at 3.9 million gpd. He said it appears that the pumping was similar the year before. He said, though, there was a big jump in July. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked that if this information was readily available he would like to see more. Commissioner Thomas Curley asked Commissioner Thomas McTygue why did he think there was such an increase. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he believed it was related to the large subdivisions and their sprinkling systems. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there is a false sense of security here in the City when it comes to water. Commissioner Thomas Curley asked if the users had been contacted. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said they have contacted the large users and they will assist in conservation. He said he was also planning to ask the company that recently surveyed some of the City=s water pipes for leaks to come back and survey more. Code Enforcement B Discussion Commissioner Thomas McTygue said the City needs to take a serious look at code violators. He said specifically 2 Marjorie Drive was a serious violator. He said the City has been dealing with this property owner for more than 9 years and he wanted the City to come up with a way to take immediate action against the property owner when the violations occur. He suggested that perhaps the City should consider and elevated fine when it is the same violator with the same issues. Commissioner Thomas Curley said that first there needs to be a violation. He said this particular parcel is involved in the in-rem proceedings. He also noted that his office recently sent a letter to this property owner requesting permission to inspect the parcel. He said they will be in court on July 25 on this parcel. He said at the present time the only code violation on this parcel is that it is unkempt. He said this department has cut the grass and the property owner will be responsible for that cost. He said he believed there was approximately $27,000 in back taxes owed. Commissioner Michael Lenz said there are very specific procedures which must be followed during the in-rem process. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked if the property owner would pay interest on the back taxes. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said yes. Commissioner Michael Lenz said that he could ask the in-rem attorney to speed up the process on this particular parcel, however, because of the specific time issues, it might not be possible to speed it up any more quickly than it already is. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like to see this parcel auctioned. Commissioner Michael Lenz said that it was likely that an auction could not take place before the fall. Page 12 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that he was tired of dealing with the same properties and the same violations. He said it was time to get Tony Izzo, Assistant City Attorney, to put some teeth into the ordinance. He said he was tired of property owners going to court and judges allowing them more time. He noted that the City is quick to tow cars but when there are violations such as these, we are slow to move. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it was time to take care of this issue and he wanted action. Tony Izzo suggested that perhaps when bringing individuals to court, they could possibly be required to deposit funds into an escrow account to take care of maintenance issues on parcels. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he did not want an escrow account, he simply wanted to maintain their parcels and for the City to take quick and immediate action against those who don=t. Downtown Flower Vandalism B Discussion Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there has been a good deal of vandalism recently with flowers. He said that flowers have been trampled at Moriarity=s, N. Fox Jewelers, Bruegger=s Bagels, Union Avenue, Lillians, Crafters Gallery, UHA and several other places. He said they have been informed by the flower vendor that in about two weeks there will be no more flowers available to replace the damaged ones. He said recently there was an individual identified by a DPW worker as vandalizing the flowers, however, the police let that individual go. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the individual was released because the DPW employee could not positively identify him as the person vandalizing the flowers. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it was his understanding that the DPW worker could identify the individual. Commissioner Thomas Curley said because of a lack of positive identification and there being no further evidence the individual was released. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the Public Safety Department is working hard to catch these vandals and to prosecute them. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it was his intention to enlist the assistance of the taxi cab drivers so they could watch for vandalism. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that much of the damage occurs when the bars close. He said the police department needed to be more diligent in watching for this vandalism. Commissioner Thomas Curley said he had recently spoken to the Chief of Police and they will work with DPW. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Authorization for Mayor to sign Fire Protection Agreement with NYRA (02-190) Commissioner Thomas Curley moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to authorize the Mayor to sign the annual agreement with NYRA for fire protection services at the track in the amount of $42,934.51. He said this contract is the same as last year except for a price increase. Ayes all. 911 Commissioner Thomas Curley said that since we are coming upon the first anniversary of 9/11 he thought it would be appropriate to do a ceremony in recognition of that event. He said he anticipated asking the American Legion, VFW, various civic organizations to participate in recognizing the importance of emergency personnel. He said he did not antic9pate any cost to the City for this ceremony. ADJOURNMENT Page 13 of 14 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 16, 2002 Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to adjourn the meeting at 9:40 p.m. Ayes all. There being no further business, Mayor Kenneth Klotz adjourned the meeting at 9:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy Moran Clerk Approved: Page 14 of 14