City council changes BID agreement

By Jessica Soule / The Citizen

Friday, April 13, 2007 11:42 AM EDT

AUBURN - The Auburn City Council reached a formal arrangement that upgraded the city's gentleman's agreement with the Auburn Downtown Business Improvement District.
The contract will not have a large impact on the BID's maintenance worker, but simply relieve the city of any liability, City Manager Mark Palesh said. The document states the employee works for BID, but the city will continue to partially fund the position.

Council passed the measure 3-1, with Mayor Timothy Lattimore and councilors Thomas McNabb and Matt Smith approving it, and councilor David Dempsey voting no. Councilor William Graney was absent.

The city also will give an older truck in its fleet to the maintenance program. Currently, the employee drives a city-owned vehicle. BID also will provide automobile insurance instead of Auburn.

Palesh pointed to the importance of keeping downtown well-maintained for encouraging tourism and downtown commerce.

“We're basically giving them (BID) a grant to take care of business we would normally take care of ourselves,” Palesh said.

In other news:

€ The council set a public hearing about extending the Empire Zone to a manufacturing company in Ira. Residents are welcome to attend the hearing at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at city hall to share their views on the possibility of extending the city Empire Zone benefits to the former Increda-meal manufacturing facility on Route 34 with more than $635,000 in state tax breaks.

The law in concern is titled “A Local Law Designating a Regionally Significant Project within the City of Auburn, New York.”

- After council unanimously voted to make Park Place a street with parking allowed year-round, Lattimore suggested Palesh look into imposing alternating parking on city streets throughout the year. This arrangement may help with garbage curbside pick-up, street cleaning, and possibly public safety, they said. Currently, regulations make vehicles stay one side of the street through the winter months for snow removal.

- Council appointed Auburn resident Michael Moore to oversee the downtown improvement project, which council approved last week. Moore will inspect the project for an estimated $60,000.

“We were really excited to get a local person for this (job),” said Jennifer Haines, director of the Office of Planning and Economic Development. “This is the guy who will be on site full time to watch this project.”

Council also voted 3-1 to contract with Environmental Design and Research to prove engineering support. Lattimore, McNabb and Smith approved it, and Dempsey voted no. Graney was absent.

The $23,000 contract will include construction document development and final drawings.

Both these professional services are included in the estimate, Haines said The project will cost $140,000 annually for two decades and will be funded out of the city's Community Development Block Grant yearly allocation.

Staff writer Jessica Soule can be reached at 253-5311, ext 267 or jessica.soule@lee.net

The Citizens' Say

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There are 3 comment(s)

Mike wrote on Apr 13, 2007 3:23 PM:

" Good luck, Thats the dumbest crap i have ever heard! "

who wrote on Apr 13, 2007 3:08 PM:

" Alot of homes in this city do not have driveways because the homes are to close together, and not everyone is rich like others that can afford to put in a driveway, what was good enough years ago should also be good enough now... "

Good Luck Parkers wrote on Apr 13, 2007 1:06 PM:

" To have alternate parking on all city streets is 90% all right. It is that newcomer that will be at a lost of the new rule. The real solution is PARK YOUR AUTO'S IN DRIVEWAYS ONLY. If you have a one car garage, you are entitled to one car for that house. If you are a two auto family, fine, lay cement to sidewalk standards on your property. Build car ports if needed, BUT GET THAT AUTO OFF CITY STREETS. You do not own the streets, if you did, the city would not need plows. This in reality is a privledge to park in front of one's house. The streets are meant for business and to get from place to place, this is why you have parking meters downtown; because you are parking on a city street. I know that this is a hard line view, BUT IT STILL THE TRUTH. "

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