City Council

City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 12, 2006 CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING CITY COUNCIL ROOM WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12, 2006 1:00 P.M. PRESENT: Valerie Keehn, Mayor Commissioner John Franck, Accounts Commissioner Ron Kim, DPS Commissioner Matthew McCabe, Finance Commissioner Thomas McTygue, DPW SUPERVISORS: Cheryl Keyrouse STAFF PRESENT: Lynn Bachner, Deputy Commissioner Finance Michele Boxley, Deputy Commissioner Accounts Nancy Ohlin, Deputy Mayor Michael Englert, City Attorney OTHERS PRESENT: John Behan, Behan Associates Rick Lederer-Barnes, Behan Associates Geoff Borneman, City Planner CALL TO ORDER Mayor Valerie Keehn called the workshop meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. MAYOR’S OFFICE Waterfront Property (06-78) Rick Lederer-Barnes said that there were a few items to be discussed before closing on this parcel. He then displayed a drawing of the area. He said the boundary line adjustment would be formalized when the contract was signed and will be filed the day of the closing. The City needs to perform an inspection of the property before closing. Matters such as manmade debris need to be addressed before closing. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would work with the City Engineer’s office and to do that inspection. Rick Lederer-Barnes said the closing date had not yet been scheduled. Michael Englert said the closing should be within the next two weeks or so. Rick Lederer-Barnes said the Council needs to address a few matters on the use of the parcel. He said there are three levels to this parcel. The upper level has five structures and that level will be used for parking. The smaller second level could have a picnic area, parking and playground. The third level is the lake level which could have a gazebo, parking area, restaurant/concession and water access. There are steep slopes between the levels. He said there are many conceptual ideas for the three levels. There could be parking on the upper level. Currently there is parking for 40 cars and it would be likely that would need to be increased. He said the entire upper level could be parking, however, that would require a lot of clearing and that was probably not desirable. The second level could have some clearing to allow for a picnic area, playground and additional parking. The lower level currently has parking for about 40 vehicles, however, that could be doubled. It might be better to not pave that area. The 1 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 12, 2006 restaurant building will remain and there are many possibilities for that building. It could be a restaurant or a small concession stand. He said the County owns the driveway near the pump house and perhaps there could be an agreement worked out for overflow parking. He said the only structures that the Council might want to maintain are the restaurant, gazebo, greenhouse and bathhouse. The probable uses for this year would be more passive with a picnic area, kayak and maybe swimming. He pointed out that swimming brings on another whole set of liability issues, i.e., lifeguards, etc. Swimming could also present a parking problem. He reminded everyone that there is an open space meeting scheduled for April 27 and there will be a lot of discussions on the possibilities for this site. He noted that the road leading down to the lake may need some alignment. He informed Council members that the sellers house will remain and he will remain living there. Commissioner John Franck asked if the road was wide enough for two cars. Rick Lederer-Barnes said it is just wide enough. He said there could be some thought given to moving the entrance road or possibly a one way in and out of the site. Rick Lederer-Barnes said the use of the restaurant could take some time to figure out. Commissioner Ron Kim asked about the need for parking attendants, user fees, lifeguards, etc. He said charging a user fee for residential stickers could offset the cost of an attendant. Commissioner Thomas McTygue suggested that might be a topic of discussion for another meeting. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said there should be a committee established to simply look at the user fee matter. There should be some thought given to a self-sustaining site. He also agreed that the restaurant use be looked at separately. There is a lot of potential with the restaurant use and he wanted to be sure that the area remains family friendly. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked when closing might occur. Michael Englert said within the next two weeks or so. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said the inspection would be scheduled for one day next week. He asked that Commissioner Matthew McCabe set up some line items that he can draw down on for the clean up of the site. Demolition and cleaning of the site will need some funding. He said this whole project should not become complicated. Mayor Valerie Keehn asked how long it would take to demolish the structures. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that would depend on the asbestos removal. He estimated that the cost to remove the asbestos could be as high as $10,000. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said demolition and clean up could be done now, however, the use of the lake was a larger issue. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said user fees would be a topic of discussion for the Council. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said perhaps there might be some grant funding. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he wanted to keep this simple and to move slowly. Commissioner Ron Kim said that assuming there are no major issues, what were the possible uses for this summer. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he thought it would be passive uses only. He said he liked the idea of a restaurant, however, that was a topic for more detailed discussions later in this process. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said that it would be good if there was some limited access to the lake this summer. Cheryl Keyrouse suggested that some thought be given to allowing discounts on residential passes if bought early in the season or for next year. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that 2 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 12, 2006 was a good idea, however, the City does not yet know what the uses might be, thereby, making it difficult to charge a fee. Mayor Valerie Keehn asked about the asbestos removal. Rick Lederer-Ba5rnes said that he anticipated a report from CA Smith any day now. He said there was not much asbestos on this site and general is was the roofing materials and some other small location. CA Smith could provide an estimate to remove the estimate. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that he would rather not go out to bid for this removal because of the time delay. John Behan said that the user fee program fits into the management plan. Water access also fits in the management plan. He said that with swimming, three is more liability. The key issue is the management of the facility. The Council needs to ask itself what kind of experience do that wants residents to have at this location. He said that it was reasonable to phase the plan. John Behan said there is also a grant application available for park acquisition and development that the City could apply for which would supplement some of the City’s costs. He said Behan could prepare those documents on behalf of the City. John Behan said there would be a deed restriction that comes along with the grant though. Rick Lederer-Barnes said the grants would allow user fees to be charged. Those fees could be different for resident versus non-resident. If applying for the park improvement grant though, no work would be able to be done now. The grant does not allow for reimbursement of work already completed. Mayor Valerie Keehn asked what was the grant deadline. Rick Lederer-Barnes said it was May 26 for both grants. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked what it might cost for Behan to complete the grant application. John Behan said about $3,500. He said they are currently about half drawn down on the existing contract. Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Commissioner Ron Kim seconded to direct Behan Associates, on behalf of the City, to make application for both the parks acquisition and parks improvements grants at a cost not to exceed $3,500. Ayes all. Commissioner Ron Kim asked about traffic issues. John Behan said there will be additional traffic at peak times, however, he believed the general traffic flow could be handled by itself. John Behan suggested that an advisory group be established and charged with reviewing the possible uses for this site. It was agreed that there should be representatives from the eastern plateau, business management background, recreation background, landscape background, marketing background, City Planner, DPW and maybe someone from Saratoga Rowing. Commissioners will submit two names to the Mayor’s Office. It was further agreed that the committee would look at both the short and long term goals. The committee will be formed either before or after the April 27 meeting. Brust Parcel Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he is considering using a small portion of this parcel to dump clean material which will then raise the site. He said they are applying for a DEC permit to fill in approximately three acres to raise it to the level of the shoulder of the road. The remainder of the land will be left wild. Mayor Valerie Keehn asked how long it takes for DEC to process a permit. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said not longer than a month or two. John Behan said one of his concerns was the perception of what was being done at this site. He said people are always concerned when fill is brought in, especially whether it would be clean fill. He said public perception could be problematic. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there is a problem with disposing of clean material. He said that he could spend $50,000 or more to 3 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 12, 2006 dispose of material throughout the year. He informed everyone that the state is disposing of their clean fill in the center median areas. They then seed the area once filled. Commissioner Ron Kim asked if DEC would come to the site. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said they may not come to the site, however, there are strict guidelines to follow when the permit is issued. Mayor Valerie Keehn said this could also be a topic of discussion for the April 27 meeting. Geoff Bornemann said there needed to be some discussion on the proposed uses for the parcel. He said the public needs to know what the plans are for this parcel. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there are no plans at this time, he just wanted to bring in fill. He just wanted to clean the area and then leave it until there were plans. Commissioner Ron Kim suggested screening the area while dumping. John Behan said it’s all about perception. Council members agreed that there needs to be some thought given to what the uses for the parcel might be. Commissioner Thomas McTygue suggested that some thought be given to erecting a small gazebo in this area. Also a sign located at the parcel depicting the plans. Geoff Bornemann said that the DEC permit is concerned with soil and sediment control. The City will need to stay away from the wetlands. John Behan said there is an old railroad right of way across the street and perhaps that could be used for fill. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said filling in this area could take as along as three years. He said the fill would consist of concrete, street sweeping soil from digging ditches, etc. Mayor Valerie Keehn agreed though that perception will be an issue. Commissioner Thomas McTygue again suggested the gazebo concept. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said there may be some traffic concerns with adding another curb cut. It was agreed that this parcel would be discussed at the April 27 meeting. Behan Associates will bring a large map of the area to the meeting. Getty Station Commissioner Thomas McTygue said the City is interested in purchasing this parcel. The state is currently taking a 14 foot wide strip. Barton & Loguidice is working on an appraisal of the parcel. The estimated value of the 14 foot strip is about $127,000. The City initially offered to purchase the entire parcel for $250,000 but that offer was rejected. It was agreed that the negotiable issues should be addressed in executive session. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said the City needs to find ways to leverage the remaining open space funds. Mayor Valerie Keehn said whatever happens on this parcel, traffic issues need to be addressed. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said he was somewhat concerned that after the state takes the 14 foot wide strip that it might no longer be a viable piece of property. Geoff Bornemann said there was some interest expressed by the surrounding property owners in purchasing the parcel. He said there were also other aspects to look at when developing pocket parks. At this particular intersection there is air quality, noise and other environmental issues that need to be considered. He said there were some concerns on whether a park with benches might be the best use. He said sometimes these types of parks in these types of locations do not work. John Behan suggested a park that simply had some visual relief with water features might be a good use. Commissioner Ron Kim said that in some cities they have “heroes” parks and maybe that would be a good use. 4 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 12, 2006 Bingham Street Parcel Commissioner Thomas McTygue said the residents in this area would be approaching the Council on this particular parcel. Other Commissioner Ron Kim asked if there would be an opportunity at the April 27 meeting for the public to bring up other potential sites. Mayor Valerie Keehn said yes. John Behan said it was his intention to discuss the waterfront parcel, do some brainstorming and then discuss other potential locations. He said maps would be brought to the meeting showing the agricultural lands, trail systems, etc. It was agreed there would be no action on the Getty Station site until there is value on the parcel. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Commissioner Matthew McCabe seconded to adjourn the meeting at 2:05 p.m. Ayes all. There being no further business, Mayor Valerie Keehn adjourned the meeting at 2:05 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy Moran Clerk Approved: 5