The Town Board is dealing with some big issues as the busy summer season begins — a proposed affordable housing law, major public works projects on Ram Island roadways and a shrinking drinking water supply. In addition to these headline grabbers, board member discussions at recent work sessions have hit on a range of other issues.
Geothermal system impacts
On May 13, Councilman Peter
Reich reported on a meeting with Drew Bennett, a South Fork hydrologist contracted by the town to review geothermal systems and their potential impacts on the Island's aquifer.
Residential geothermal systems use groundwater as a source of warmth or cooling for heating and air conditioning systems. By pumping the groundwater through the system, heat exchange allows thermally conductive fluids to be warmed in the winter and cooled in the summer.
The problem is that the water pumped for the geothermal systems is taken from the Island's sole source drinking water aquifer.
A typical 5,000-square-foot house would use 39 gallons per minute for air conditioning in an open loop system, the kind commonly used on the East End, Mr. Reich explained. That amount of water would fill and empty a large swimming pool in 14 hours.
To service a 10,000-square-foot house, like that proposed for the Crocker residence on Little Ram, geothermal pumping would fill the pool in four hours. That's “the equivalent of a fire pump,” Mr. Reich said. That high pumping rate is matched by an equivalent release back into the aquifer, which could result in “up-coning” — the water may not percolate back into the aquifer at the release rate.
Mr. Bennett's “gut” feeling, Mr. Reich said, was to avoid open loop systems in sensitive areas. “We've predefined our sensitive areas” by creating the Near Shore and Peninsular Overlay District, Mr. Reich added.
Mr. Bennett listed potential issues as wetlands impacts, consumptive use, up-coning, construction methods and abandonment.
“I think geothermal installations are going to increase” with increasing fossil fuel prices, Mr. Reich commented.
Quarterly budget review
Supervisor Dougherty qualified his first quarter budget report on May 13 as good news and bad news. The good news: there are no significant negative variances as revenues are always high in the first quarter. The bad news: that makes a quarterly review somewhat meaningless.
Mr. Dougherty met with Town Attorney Laury Dowd, financial consultant Eileen Touhey and the town auditors, Albrecht, Viggiano, Zureck & Co. of Hauppauge. Ms. Toughey, who consults with several municipalities on their accounting, said “everything is fine,” according to Mr. Dougherty.
The town is a “kind of a seasonal business,” Mr. Dougherty commented. We “shouldn't pat ourselves on the back that the first quarter looks good” as there aren't many demands yet.
He said that the town is gearing up to meet GASB 45, which requires planning, disclosure and eventually funding of all post-employment benefits. Disclosure begins in 2009 and the town is looking to contract an actuary to develop a plan, he added.
The only auditing issue, Mr. Dougherty said, is the need for more “checks and balances” and separation of functions, which is difficult with a small staff. “We can fiddle with that a little bit but we have more limitations because we don't have the head count to spread it around.”
Two-percent fund amendments
The year 2008 is the 10th anniversary of the two percent law that taxes real estate transactions to fund open space purchases on the East End of Long Island.
To review the effectiveness of the law, Assemblyman Fred Thiele “put together a task force and I was the Shelter Island member,” Mr. Dougherty, former chairman of the town's Two Percent Committee, stated. He reported on the state legislative effort to address any needed amendments in the law.
Unfortunately, Mr. Dougherty reported, deliberations were “overshadowed by some doings in East Hampton” where the government adopted an “aggressive interpretation” in the use of two percent monies to cover town operating costs.
The town has now received a “home rule” request to authorize the amended law drafted by state Senator Kenneth LaValle and assemblymen Marc Alessi and Mr. Thiele.
“Unfortunately the East Hampton issues have turned this into a political issue instead of an environmental” one and the bill “ignored the task force recommendations,” Mr. Dougherty said. The task force included representatives from the Nature Conservancy, the Peconic Land Trust, Group for the East End and other organizations.
One provision would require a town supervisor to certify funds to cover debts when borrowed money is used for open space purchases, an over-reaction that Mr. Dougherty described as “one of those Mel Brooks' institute for the very, very nervous kind of ideas.” They also suggested each town hire an auditor dedicated to two percent funds.
Councilwoman Chris Lewis suggested that rather than creating new bureaucracies in each town, that an “oversight body” be established “to make sure no one abuses the funds.”
“A lot of work” is needed, Mr. Dougherty said. “This is just the opening gun on the bill.”
Wades Beach, highway equipment
In addition to updating the board on federal and state agency review of major highway projects on the first and second causeways to the Ram Islands, Highway Superintendent Mark Ketcham reported on improvements to Recycling Center equipment and to recreational facilities at Wades Beach during the May 13 work session.
The Cardinal truck scale has never been scheduled for routine maintenance. That's resulted in a “knee-jerk response” every time the scale malfunctions, Mr. Ketcham explained.
Money from capital reserves will fund the overhaul of the scale. Mr. Ketcham told concerned board members that a subcontractor could be hired to maintain the scale on a set schedule.
Mr. Ketcham assured the board that improvements to Wades Beach will be completed by June 1. Approximately 68 inches of sand was recently deposited in a new beach volleyball court area.
Bathrooms will be upgraded with new sinks and benches once the outside work is done, he said.
During the May 20 work session, Mr. Ketcham reported on new recycling initiatives planned after he, Teresa Montant and Conservation Advisory Council Chairman Ed Bausman attended the Solid Waste Association of North America meeting upstate.
Phone outage
The Police Department, Town Hall and several Center households lost telephone service at 8 a.m. on Friday, May 16. That probably wouldn't have made news except, as telephone consultant Arthur Bloom reported to the board on Tuesday, Verizon didn't fix the problem until Saturday night.
Supervisor Dougherty said that 911 service was never interrupted and Mr. Bloom said he was able to get the SIPD non-emergency number, 749-0600, patched through to the Southold dispatcher.
Verizon responded on Friday but left the Island that afternoon with reports that the problem was fixed. “It was still dead,” Mr. Bloom said. It was “evident” that Verizon “did not share the level of priority” warranted by police communications, Mr. Bloom commented.
The Verizon crews returned Saturday morning and stayed until 10:30 p.m. Mr. Bloom later learned that the problem originated in Greenport, causing some outages there, and required reprogramming of all of the phone lines.
Mr. Bloom noted that technology improvements mean fewer processors but “more eggs in one basket.”
“I highly recommend having someone from Verizon come in and give their analysis of what happened,” Mr. Bloom suggested. “We are a government.” Supervisor Dougherty agreed.
Wetlands permits
At both of the last two work sessions, the board reviewed the Crocker special exception and wetland permit applications for a 3-plus acre property on Little Ram Island. Attorney Valerie Martin and architect Oliver Cope told the board Tuesday that the Crockers would install a cistern filled with off-Island water for all outdoor watering needs and would not install lights on the tennis courts.
But Ms. Martin pressed the point that the house could be built without the special exception permit — only by finishing the basement and adding accessory quarters to garages does the residence exceed the 8,500-square-foot threshold requiring a special exception permit.
A discussion of the intent of the law and the extent of the Town Board's authority followed, with Ms. Martin emphasizing that the house is “permitted if the conditions are met.”
“You're not suggesting that we cannot deny the permit?” Mr. Dougherty queried. Ms. Martin responded, “I don't mean to be telling you that your hands are tied” but the town did not encode a prohibition to large houses, only a permit process, she indicated.
The problem isn't the size of the house, Mr. Dougherty explained, but the impacts on the aquifer at a time when groundwater levels are declining. The aquifer is particularly fragile in shoreline areas where overdrawing freshwater results in saltwater incursion.
Most people, “95 percent, don't want to salt their own well,” Councilwoman Chris Lewis commented.
“But I can see the Crockers coming out here” and not knowing about it, Councilman Glenn Waddington said, adding that just such an incident happened in Silver Beach and impacted a neighbor's well.
Two other special exception permits for houses over 8,500 square feet are working their way through the town pipeline, Mr. Reich noted.
Helicopters
Mr. Dougherty reported that Senator Charles Schumer has worked out a voluntary program to restrict helicopter corridors over Long Island. Helicopter pilots are agreeing to fly above 2,500 feet over Long Island but “the transit points” where the choppers cross over to the Hamptons “haven't been disclosed,” Mr. Dougherty said. “I'm concerned they will be right over Shelter Island.” Congressman Tim Bishop is pushing for federal legislation to address the issue.
A “1-800” helicopter hotline for complaints is still in the works. In the meantime, the board suggested that citizens call complaints in to (845) 353-6050.
Mr. Waddington expressed frustration over a hearing on the issue held on the North Fork earlier this year. “We asked them why they would fly over land instead of water.” The answer was that it's safer to crash over land, he said, at least for the pilots.
Cablevision questions
Joan Gilroy of Cablevision will return to the Island to answer any public questions or concerns about the transition to digital broadcasting. She will be in Town Hall today, Thursday, May 22 at 1 p.m.