Archive: News

The final route for the sewer trunk line through the Village of Lansing is now in the State's hands. Now that the Village has chosen Route 34 as its preferred route, the choice hinges on affordability for the Town. If the State Department of Transportation (DOT) does not agree to close the road for the approximately three months it will take to lay the sewer lines, State regulations will add a million dollars to the project. Town officials have stated they will choose a route along Cayuga Heights Road if that happens.

It may be an uphill battle. Village Mayor Don Hartill and Town Supervisor Steve Farkas were scheduled to meet with the DOT's Acting Regional Manager Carl Ford in Syracuse yesterday (01/12). The purpose of the meeting was to pitch the road closing by offering a viable alternative route along Triphammer Road as a detour during the construction.

The Town Sewer Committee is ready to accept Route 34, but only if the DOT waives rules that require them to keep the road open, including traffic management. The rules also curtail work hours and require removal of construction equipment each day. The Committee, facing the prospect of losing State money if they do not proceed with the project, hopes to get a quick answer from the State agency. If the DOT doesn't make a determination by February 1 the Committee will recommend Cayuga Heights Road to the Town Board. That isn't much time to get a ruling from a State agency.

Meanwhile the Sewer Committee continued discussions of funding. Mary Chappell, of Allardice & Associates, a capital project funding specialist company, made a presentation that laid out the advantages and disadvantages to splitting the plan into two or more separate projects. The State grants hardship funding for projects that are $10,000,000 or less. Splitting the project into one for the trunk line and one or more for the collection system could make the parts of the sewer eligible for this funding.

There are plenty of "ifs" that factor into this approach. For example the Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) scores the projects to see if they qualify. If both projects don't score above the funding line there may be no advantage to splitting it. The cost to sewer district residents would also have to be above $645 per year in order to qualify for this kind of funding. That cost has yet to be determined, in part because the project can't be priced until its scope is known, and that can't be known until the trunk line route is finally determined.

Meanwhile the committee continues to seek alternative funding from private and public donors. County Legislator Mike Sigler was present to learn as much as he could about the sewer project, as the Town hopes to convince the County to help out, based on environment concerns about Cayuga Lake.

A lot depends on the DOT's determination. If they are not willing to waive their regulations there may be discord between Town and Village as they plot the next step. It is possible the Village would oppose the Cayuga Heights route, though they may have no choice but to accept it.

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