Board of Trustees

Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 65 THREE THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED FIRST REGULAR MEETING Rutherford Hall Village Hall March 11, 2014 A regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Scarsdale was held in Rutherford Hall in Village Hall on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 at 8:00 P.M. Present were Mayor Steves, Trustees Brodsky, Eisenman, Lee, Mark, Martin, and Stern. Also present were Acting Village Manager Pappalardo, Village Attorney Esannason, Village Treasurer McClure, Village Clerk Conkling, Assistants to the Village Manager Azrelyant and Goodwin, and Administrative Intern Schnabel. ******** The minutes of the Board of Trustees Regular Meeting of February 25, 2014 were approved on a motion entered by Trustee Mark, seconded by Trustee Brodsky, and carried unanimously. ******** Bills & Payroll Trustee Martin reported that he had audited the Abstract of Claims dated March 11, 2014 in the amount of $994,352.37 which includes $17,151.88 in Library Claims previously audited by a Trustee of the Library Board which were found to be in order and he moved that such payment be ratified. Upon motion duly made by Trustee Martin and seconded by Trustee Brodsky, the following resolution was adopted unanimously: RESOLVED, that the Abstract of Claims dated March 11, 2014 in the amount of $994,352.37 is hereby approved. Trustee Martin further reported that he had examined the payment of bills made in advance of a Board of Trustees audit totaling $101,110.82 were found to be in order and she moved that such payment be ratified. Upon motion duly made by Trustee Martin and seconded by Trustee Eisenman, the following resolution was adopted unanimously: Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 66 RESOLVED, that payment of claims made in advance of a Board of Trustees audit totaling $101,110.82 is hereby ratified. ******** Mayors Comments Mayor Steves advised the community that on March 20th the proposed budget for the next Fiscal Year will be submitted to the Clerk, which is the next formal step and at that point will be available at the Library and on the website, www.scarsdale.com. The Board encourages the community to review the budget. There will be ample time for community input. This is a major step in a process that started back in December and before that for the staff. He again encouraged the community to go to the Village’s website or the Library to view the budget. Any comments about the budget can be made to the Board; there will be time for public comment. ******** Managers Comments None. ******** Public Comment Deborah McCarthy, 144 Bradley Road, stated that she wanted to speak to the Board about a situation that is occurring on her block. She encouraged the Board to get copies of the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) meeting minutes from last evening to get a flavor of what is taking place. She explained that directly across the street from her home is a 10,000 sq. ft. lot which has been sold to a developer. The developer has subdivided the lot into two pieces, 5,000 sq. ft. apiece, and is proposing to two homes – one on each lot. The homes that are being proposed for those lots are huge. The BAR noted the size of these homes at their meeting last night. Ms. McCarthy continued, stating that even though there are four floors of livable space in each of these homes, two of those floors are not calculated into the Floor Area Ratio (FAR). The basement has a bedroom, bath and playroom that is not counted. There is a walk-up attic that is finished with either a full or half bath and a closet. This area could easily be used as a bedroom. The homes as currently proposed have five bedrooms and if you start to include the attic space which is not classified as a bedroom, you could have six or seven bedrooms in those homes. This is completely out of character with the street and the surrounding streets as noted by members of the BAR at their meeting. She noted that the developer took the position at the BAR meeting that a home is not livable unless it is at least 2100 sq. ft. Her home is under 1800 sq. ft. Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 67 She stated that what is happening here is a function of the FAR. The FAR is well intended but there are exclusions and loopholes which don’t seem to make much sense in how it’s administered today. Developers are finding new and different ways to circumvent the FAR. She suggested a FAR for the building and in addition, a FAR for the impervious surfaces surrounding the building. The setbacks in the area are not the problem, although she is in the middle of a dispute with the Village over what the rear yard setback is. She feels that there has been an absolute misinterpretation under the plain language under Section 310-43 and this will be resolved. That aside, the real issue is the FAR. How could the attic not be counted? The developer has cleverly not placed dormers in the attic. Aside from the aesthetic effect, this has an effect on the Village’s infrastructure. Five or six bathrooms in a house has an effect – if everyone on the block had five or six bathrooms, it has an effect on the water, sewers and parking. The streets are very narrow; making it difficult to not only park on the streets, but even to back in and out of driveways. Ms. McCarthy asked the Board to undertake a new review of the FAR because what has been demonstrated in at least this application, there are clearly problems here that need to be addressed. Mayor Steves thanked Ms. McCarthy for her comments and stated that the Board is looking at all the areas of development, including the role of the BAR, and the concept of community character. It is a priority for this Board. He would like to follow up on Ms. McCarthy’s insight on the BAR and asked her to leave contact information. He noted that this is a very difficult issue; we have privacy issues, property rights issues to deal with. Debbie Henneberry, 143 Bradley Road, former Assistant Village Manager, stated that she would like to follow up on Ms. McCarthy’s comments. She stated that she lives across the street from her and next door to the proposed homes. She noted that she and Ms. McCarthy attended the BAR meeting last evening and shared their concerns with them. The BAR encouraged them to speak to the Village Board this evening. Ms. Henneberry noted that she was an employee with the Village when the Board looked at the FAR issue 12 years ago. At the time they looked at it very carefully and it was a very detailed look at the issue and everything was very well thought out. At the time the Board came up with a figure that worked; however, one size may not fit all in some situations. Most of the homes in this area have either been there for close to 100 years or more than 100 years so they are not in the 2100 sq. ft. FAR range but are significantly smaller. The developer has stated that this is an area that is in transition. She respectfully disagrees with that statement. She has lived there for 26 years and does not see this as an area in transition. She encouraged the Board to take another look at the FAR. She noted that Scarsdale has always been referred to as a ‘Village in a Park’ – are Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 68 we going to stay that way or be a ‘Village built to spec’? She would prefer to see Scarsdale as a Village in a Park. Mayor Steves stated that he appreciated the comments and this is an issue that the Board is taking seriously. As there were no further comments, the public comments portion of the meeting was closed. ******** Municipal Services Committee Upon motion entered by Trustee Eisenman, and seconded by Trustee Lee, the following resolution regarding the Award of VM Contract #1170 – Electrical Contracting Service was adopted by the vote indicated below: WHEREAS, the Village’s current contract for electrical services for all Village facilities recently expired and as such Village staff prepared bid specifications for VM Contract #1158, providing for electrical services on a time and materials basis for a two-year term, with an option to renew for three additional one-year periods, at the sole option of the Village; and WHEREAS, on June 28, 2013, the Village advertised for the receipt of bids under VM Contract #1158 – Electrical Contracting Services and on the bid opening date of July 23, 2013, four bids were received with the apparent lowest bid received by Nick’s Electrical Services Inc., 774 Post Road, Scarsdale, NY 10583; and WHEREAS, during the bid opening it was discovered that three of the four bids received, including the bid from Nick’s Electrical Services Inc., did not include the required bid deposit in accordance with the contract documents; and WHEREAS, upon further review of the contract and bids, staff determined that the specifications regarding the bid deposit requirement, hourly rate submittal form and contract award methodology were somewhat ambiguous which was confirmed through discussions with the bidders; and WHEREAS, at their September 10, 2013 meeting, the Village Board rejected all bids for VM Contract #1158 – Electrical Contracting Services (resolution attached), and authorized the re-bid for electrical services subsequent to redrafting the aforementioned sections of Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 69 the specifications for clarity and rebid the contract as otherwise unchanged; and WHEREAS, Village staff redrafted the bid specifications and on January 31, 2014 advertised for the receipt of bids under VM Contract #1170 – Electrical Contracting Services and notified four electrical contractors; and WHEREAS, on the bid opening date of February 25, 2014, one bid was received from Nick’s Electrical Services Inc., 774 Post Road, Scarsdale, NY 10583, itemized as follows: Mechanic Standard hourly rate $97.15, Helper hourly rate $75.20, 25 ft. Bucket Truck hourly rate $30.00, 40 ft. Bucket Truck hourly rate $45.00; and WHEREAS, Nick’s Electrical Services, Inc. has provided these electrical contracting services through our previous VM Contract and the Village has found them to be timely and professional; now therefore be it RESOLVED, that VM Contract #1170 – Electrical Contracting Services be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder Nick’s Electrical Services Inc., 774 Post Road, Scarsdale, NY 10583, at the hourly rates specified in their bid; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village Manager is hereby authorized to execute VM Contract #1170 – Electrical Contracting Services on behalf of the Village with Nick’s Electrical Services Inc.; and be it further RESOLVED, that the costs of VM Contract #1170 be charged to the appropriate budget accounts, as determined by the Village Treasurer and subject to adequate budget appropriations; and be it further RESOLVED, that this contract may be extended annually by the Village Manager for three additional one-year periods subject to the availability of adequate budget appropriations and in accordance with the provision in the contract for adjusted rates based on certain federal and state indices and provided that all other contract terms and conditions remain unchanged. AYES NAYS ABSENT Trustee Brodsky None None Trustee Eisenman Trustee Lee Trustee Mark Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 70 Trustee Martin Trustee Stern Mayor Steves ******** Police Commissioner Upon motion entered by Trustee Eisenman, and seconded by Trustee Mark, the following resolution regarding Acceptance of a Gift from the Fenway Golf Club was adopted by a unanimous vote: WHEREAS, the Fenway Golf Club has offered to donate $5,000 to the Scarsdale Police Department for the purchase of breathable moisture-wicking rayon blend base shirts and rayon blend armor skins to carry bulletproof plates; and WHEREAS, the combination of the above two garments gives the neat and professional appearance of a Class A uniform shirt, offers the advantage of quick-dry comfort, body temperature regulation, added mobility and generally makes the wearing of bulletproof vests more comfortable; and WHEREAS, the Fenway Golf Club has also offered to donate $5,000 to the Scarsdale Fire Department (SFD) to help fund a joint effort by SFD and the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps to transform a retired school bus into a much-needed support vehicle for incidents involving multiple casualties, accidents, fires and other emergencies; and WHEREAS, SFD will use the donated funds to convert the interior and exterior of the bus to serve as a mobile support unit for on-scene treatment of citizens or firefighters suffering from dehydration, heat exhaustion, hypothermia or a variety of other ailments that may be encountered at large scale emergencies; and WHEREAS, pursuant to Policy #103 of the Village of Scarsdale Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual entitled, “Gifts to the Village of Scarsdale”, acceptance of all gifts valued at $500 or more must be approved by the Village Board of Trustees; and WHEREAS, the total of the proposed gifts is $10,000 and in excess of $500; now therefore be it Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 71 RESOLVED, that the Village Board of Trustees hereby accepts the gift of $10,000 from the Fenway Golf Club; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village Board of Trustees hereby extends its gratitude to the members of the Fenway Golf Club for their generosity to the community. ******** Land Use Committee Trustee Mark noted that he has two resolutions that each deal with the Subdivision Recreation Fees. One with respect to 80 Garden Road and one with respect to 147 Bradley Road. The Planning Board has proposed that the fee be in the amount equal to 5% of the guideline value for the respective Zoning Districts and he will propose modifying that recommendation so that the fee be calculated at the 6% level that is in the guidelines. Upon motion entered by Trustee Mark, and seconded by Trustee Eisenman, the following resolution regarding the Subdivision Recreation Fee: 80 Garden Road, 119 Cushman Road, 0, 1, 19 Woodland Road; Section 16, Block 1, Lots 6, 6B, 6C, 7, 8, and Section 16, Block 4, Lots 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 was adopted by a unanimous vote: WHEREAS: Section 7-730-4 of New York State Village law authorizes planning boards to reserve land in a subdivision for park, playground or other recreational purposes, and take money in lieu of land in cases where suitable park lands of adequate size cannot be properly located on a subdivision plat, the amount of said money to be established by the Village Board of Trustees; and WHEREAS: the Planning Board, on June 26, 2013, approved the six lot subdivision of the property at 80 Garden Road, 119 Cushman Road, 0, 1, 19 Woodland Road, identified on the Village Tax Map as Section 16, Block 1, Lots 6, 6B, 6C, 7, 8 and Section 16, Block 4, Lots 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 after finding the proposed subdivision would not have a significant negative environmental impact pursuant to SEQRA, creating a net of two new lots located in the A-2 zoning district; and WHEREAS: on February 26, 2014, the Planning Board recommended a payment in lieu of contribution of land as the dedication of land for park, playground or recreation purposes is not feasible in view of the small amount of land available in this two lot subdivision; and WHEREAS: the Village Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 72 provides a variety of facilities to meet the interests and needs of the community which includes parks, playgrounds, ball fields and an outdoor pool; and WHEREAS: the Village Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation has a Five Year Capital Plan that calls for the replacement of facilities and equipment as well as additional facilities that will be needed in the future; and WHEREAS: the residents of the new homes to be built on the lots will have many years of use of Village Services, including the parks and related facilities funded by the Village; now, therefore be it RESOLVED: that the Village Board of Trustees hereby modifies the recommendation of the Planning Board that the applicant, KOS Building Group, pay to the Village an amount equal to 6% of the Guideline Value for the A-2 Zoning District pursuant to the 2007 Subdivision Recreation Fee Schedule, or $81,000, in lieu of a contribution of land for park, playground or other recreational purposes for each of the two new lots resulting from the subdivision of property at 80 Garden Road, 119 Cushman Road, 0, 1, 19 Woodland Road, identified on the Village tax map as Section 16, Block 1, Lots 6, 6B, 6C, 7, 8 and Section 16, Block 4, Lots 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 for a total of $162,000. ******** Upon motion entered by Trustee Mark, and seconded by Trustee Eisenman, the following resolution regarding the Subdivision Recreation Fee: 147 Bradley Road; Section 9, Block 16, Lots 28.31 was adopted by a unanimous vote WHEREAS: Section 7-730-4 of New York State Village law authorizes planning boards to reserve land in a subdivision for park, playground or other recreational purposes, and take money in lieu of land in cases where suitable park lands of adequate size cannot be properly located on a subdivision plat, the amount of said money to be established by the Village Board of Trustees; and WHEREAS: the Planning Board, on January 22, 2014, approved the two lot subdivision of the property at 147 Bradley Road, identified on the Village Tax Map as Section 9, Block 16, Lot 28.31, after finding the proposed subdivision would not have a significant negative environmental impact pursuant to SEQRA, creating one new lot located in the A-5 zoning district; and Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 73 WHEREAS: on February 26, 2014, the Planning Board recommended a payment in lieu of contribution of land as the dedication of land for park, playground or recreation purposes is not feasible in view of the small amount of land available in this two lot subdivision; and WHEREAS: the Village Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation provides a variety of facilities to meet the interests and needs of the community which includes parks, playgrounds, ball fields and an outdoor pool; and WHEREAS: the Village Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation has a Five Year Capital Plan that calls for the replacement of facilities and equipment as well as additional facilities that will be needed in the future; and WHEREAS: residents of the new homes to be built on the lots will have many years of use of Village Services including the parks and related facilities funded by the Village; now therefore be it RESOLVED: that the Village Board of Trustees hereby modifies the recommendation of the Planning Board so that the applicant, 147 Bradley Road Corp., pay to the Village an amount equal to 6% of the Guideline Value for the A-5 Zoning District pursuant to the 2007 Subdivision Recreation Fee Schedule, or $30,000, in lieu of a contribution of land for park, playground or other recreational purposes for the one new lot resulting from the subdivision of property at 147 Bradley Road, identified on the tax map of the Village of Scarsdale as Section 9, Block 16, Lot 28.31. ******** Other Committee Reports None. ******** Liaison Reports None. ******** Village Board of Trustees 03-11-2014 P a g e | 74 Written Communications Village Clerk Conkling reported that one (1) written communication was received since the last meeting:  A letter from Cuddy and Feder, LLP on behalf of KOS Building Group LLC, Cushman Road LLC, Woodland Road LLC, 80 Garden Road LLC and Woodland II Associates concerning a request to de-map Woodland Road in connection with a subdivision project. ******** There being no further business to come before the Board, Mayor Steves entered a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:26 P.M. seconded by Trustee Mark and carried by a unanimous vote. Donna M. Conkling Village Clerk