Archive: News

The Lansing Town Board was briefed on the sewer project Wednesday, and learned that it would not be practical to hold a vote on the sewer in September as Sewer Committee members have hoped.  Town Attorney Guy Krogh laid out the steps needed before the district can officially be formed.

The Town would have to have to have a final map plan and report that meets all the requirements and regulations of State statutes.  Krogh said the last draft of the map plan submitted by Hunt Engineers he saw was missing about a half dozen items necessary to meet those requirements.

One that is submitted the Town will need between ten and twenty days notice of a public hearing.  Then an environmental review must be conducted after 14 days notice. 

"Lets say you do that, you have all your data, you conduct your public hearing and issue a conditional order... then there is a 30 day waiting period for a permissive referendum," Krogh said.. " During that time you also submit your Comptroller's application.  That process will take between two and six months."

If a qualified petition is submitted to conduct a permissive referendum, it must be held not less than 60 but not more than 70 days after receiving the petition.  Supervisor Kathy Miller has favored simply conducting a vote to give district landowners a voice without waiting for the permissive referendum process to go through.  But Krogh said that it would be worth taking a straw poll of potential district residents.  He said if a straw poll shows 80% want sewer a permissive referendum is a better choice, because there may not be a petition, and if there is it would be sure to pass.

Part of the benefit to that approach is the cost to the Town of the vote.  It cannot be held on election day in November, and the County Board of Elections does not handle it for the Town, because it only includes landowners within the proposed sewer district.

Councilwoman Ruth Hopkins said that a calculation of town risk per 1K of assessment should be calculated and shown at a public information session set for next week.  Councilman Ed LaVigne said it should be illustrated at that meeting why if the Town doesn't do anything it's going to cost everybody.

Deputy Supervisor Robert Cree expressed a concern that public will not feel it has had input to this town center plan.  he acknowledged that many townspeople had input into the work done by the Town Center Committee a few years ago, but that no solid plan came from that effort.  He said similar meetings should be held now to solicit public input now that the Town Center may become a reality.

The first of a series of public information meetings is set for Tuesday, August 7, 2012 at 7pm at the Town Hall.  The Sewer Committee also plans to have a booth all day at the Lansing Harbor Festival in Myers Park on August 11th, as well as a presence at the Lansing Farmer's Market.

v8i30