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Even though Lansing's town sewer project was killed town officials have been trying to recoup some or all of the money spent, and to keep the $4.2 million of state bond act money available for future sewer projects.  But with New York State $6.4 billion in the hole, Lansing's ability to use the money allotted to the town may be in jeopardy.  A week ago last Tuesday Town Supervisor Scott Pinney received a letter from the NY Department of Environmental Concervation (DEC) that effectively said, 'Use it or lose it.'

Town Councilman Bud Shattuck, who chaired the town sewer committee and has been shepherding the Warren Road sewer project to fruition, wants the town to be reimbursed for the engineering and incidental costs garnered by the sewer project.  He alsowants to recoup the money the Village of Lansing spent on the Kline Road bypass.  " We're looking to recoup as much as we can," he says.  "This Warren Road project could not have happened without the Kline Road bypass.  We'll looking to get the money that was expended by the Village of Lansing to pay that off and to recoup some of our engineering costs for all of the work that we did before."

Further, Shattuck says he would like to see future projects, as long as they are inexpensive and affordable.  "we want to move forward wherever we can," he says.  "If it means a temporary stand-alone plant some place off of Myers or elsewhere on the lake, we are willing to do that.  If it means a permanent one we'll want to do that.  A lot of this is back to the DEC to see if we can do this."

Historically Lansing wanted a standalone plant for sewer, but the DEC insisted on a shared municipal solution, which meant that the town would be forced to use the existing Cayuga Heights treatment plant.  Fierce opposition by town residents to the cost, and Village residents to having a trunk line installed through the Village were some of the main reasons the projects failed.

Since then town officials have asked the DEC whether it would allow a temporary standalone plant, or even a permanent one to process effluent where sewer is most needed in the town.  Such a project is estimated to cost much less than the shared project would, and could bring sewer to the town's business district and to areas like Ladoga Park that sorely need it.

The DEC's Jack McKeon's letter laid out steps that must be followed to keep the money in play for Lansing.  He gave Pinney 45 days to submit the status of a number of items, including securing funding for the local share of the project, completing the project work plan, necessary institutional agreements, environmental permits and other approvals, and certification that all required elements of the project will be ready to allow construction to begin by June 30, 2009.

"That puts us in a little bit of a conundrum," Shattuck says.  "We need some of that money just for the Warren Road  project.  We need to recoup costs for the engineering that we had done before (on the larger Town sewer project), and we'd still like to move forward.  We are still very much interested in sewering the south part of Lansing.  We understand that while not everyone agrees, it is an environmental issue.  Along with that, there is commercial value to having sewer.  It's good for our economy to sewer part of the community that allows for growth in businesses  and residential areas.  It can densify certain areas that we designate and allow us to have more mixed use homes closer together that we're not able to do now with septic systems."

Shattuck concedes that the town sewer project was doomed once the costs were estimated.  But he says there was value in completing the study, because it can be used to craft a better, more affordable project.  "The larger sewer system we talked about last year was clearly going to be way too expensive," he says.  "We ran it to the end, because we needed to have those numbers to set us up for if we ever do it again.  What is the number we have to get to?  Here is what it would have cost with escalating costs, and it's gotten even worse because lots of things are petroleum based: your ductile pipe and fuel."

Meanwhile the town has the much smaller Warren Road sewer project that town officials say should qualify for some of the state money.  Initiated when Transonic Systems told the town it needed sewer in order to expand their plant in the Warren Road Business Park or it would have to relocate.  Since then the company spent $10,000 on the engineering study, and other companies and landowners have signed onto the project.  Everyone included in this project is there because they want to be, and despite high costs they have agreed to pay for it.

Another potential smaller project would bring sewer to a townhouse project that is planned for Triphammer Road between Michaleen's florists and Asbury Road.  That developer has told town officials that having sewer would make or break the project because more units can be built in a sewered property than on a property reliant on septic systems.  Theoretically the developer would take on the cost of the project.


The Town Board will almost certainly vote to form the sewer district at their regular August meeting.  Because annual costs to propertyowners are so high, the town has to satisfy the State Comptroller that the property owners really want to pay them.  In the 30 days allotted for property owners to ask for a referendum, not one challenged the project.  But Shattuck worries it will be held up in the Comptroller's office because the costs are much higher than the $600 threshold.

"I talked to (former Town of Ithaca Supervisor) Noel Desch and he told me that when things like this got stuck at the Comptroller's office sometimes they could languish there for months or even a year," Shattuck says.  "We talked about strategies to get someone to the Comptroller's office, maybe Senator Nozzolio or Assemblywoman Lifton to say this is a project that is really important, not just to the Town of Lansing, but to businesses in Tompkins County.  Businesses means jobs, and jobs certainly is the big push in all of upstate New York.  I always hate to be penalized for doing something well."

Even if the project is held up, it is certain that it will be approved and constructed.  Transonic Systems' COO Bruce Kilmartin has said that he wants to be able to hook up to the sewer by the end of next year's construction season, which allows a little wiggle room for getting the Ts crossed and the Is dotted.

But the future of sewer in Lansing may be on the brink.  If the DEC continues to insist on a shared municipal solution, and if it withdraws the bond act monies the chances of a town sewer project are virtually nil.  And it would mean the town is out the money it spent in good faith to meet DEC's requirements.

"We had a project," says Shattuck.  "We had it on the table.  Just because it didn't pass muster because of cost doesn't mean we didn't do the work and shouldn't get some sort of compensation out of that, in my opinion."

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