Temporary Hearing Panel Members

The Tompkins County Legislature is looking for interested qualified applicants to serve on the 2012 Temporary Hearing Panels. Panel Members hear and evaluate property owners’ complaints regarding the assessed value of their property, and then make a recommendation based on the information presented about the accuracy of that value. Panel members receive training and a $250 stipend.

There are six vacancies—2 members to serve on each of the following specialized Hearing Panels:

• Suburban Residential
• Rural Residential
• Commercial/Agricultural.

Qualifications?

• Knowledge of the local real estate market.
• Active listening and interviewing skills to clarify issues and make points easier to understand.
• Ability to use data to assess both sides of a complaint and make a determination based upon the best information available.
• Ability to be open‐minded, considering all dimensions of a situation.
• Able to work through negativity quickly, yet with prudent patience and diplomacy.
• All members must be 18 years old, a United States citizen, and a resident of Tompkins.

The study, which provides municipal officials, community members, and business leaders an assessment of how high volume hydraulic fracturing of the Marcellus Shale might impact Tompkins County, was prepared by GREENPLAN, Inc. under contract with TCCOG, and incorporates work done by TCCOG’S Gas Drilling Task Force and the Tompkins County Planning Department.

Art Pearce, who chaired the Impact Assessment Steering Committee, says the study provides local leaders with a much needed resource. “Discussion on this topic has become so polarized that it is hard to find a reasoned summary of the pros and cons of HVHF,” Pearce states. “We believe this report, and the source documents cited, provide a fair assessment of HVHF’s potential impact on the community. The findings indicate that there would be some benefits to the region from HVHF, but they are more than offset by the expected negative impacts on the economy, community character, and environment.”

The Impact Assessment contains a checklist of recommends questions for a community to consider when assessing HVHF and discusses the array of municipal actions that can be considered—including zoning regulations, site plan regulations, Critical Environmental Areas, stormwater management, and road use regulations. Three categories of HVHF impacts are examined in the report: economic, community, and environmental.

The 130-page report includes over 200 hyperlinks to studies and reports that were used in development of the report. The full report and a 14-page Executive Summary are available for viewing and download at the TCCOG website.

Click here to learn more and take the survey.

While it may not be your favorite thing, Town & County Tax bills are out!

The Town of Dryden volunteer boards consist of resident volunteers which provide assistance to town officials and staff on many aspects of local planning and decision making.

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Varna Fire Company

W.B. Strong Fire Department (Freeville Fire Department)

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Varna, Slaterville and McLean first responders joined others from Tompkins County Sunday afternoon to provide Mutual Aid in the seriously flooded Cobbleskill area.
	Varna Chief Roy Rizzo and Ashley Young responded with brush truck #1941. The truck designed to access narrow roads inaccessible by larger trucks, serves as a utility vehicle and personnel carrier for flooding, trees or wires down, and other activities.
They are expected to return on Thursday.

A huge thank you to Nicholas Totman and Kenneth Carr of the McLean Crew; to Carl Campbell and Tim Welsh of the Slaterville Crew and to Roy Rizzo and Ashley Young of the Varna Crew and to all of the other volunteer fire personnel who help us in SO many ways when we have need.

The Town of Dryden Conservation Board (CB) is a body of resident volunteers which provides assistance to town officials and staff on environmental aspects of local planning and decision making. The CB recently completed an Open Space Inventory for the town, and continues to be involved in activities related to protection of water resources, unique natural areas, biodiversity, and local agriculture. In addition, the CB also helps with environmental review of larger development projects in the town.

The Dryden Conservation Board is currently seeking an additional member. Interested residents with relevant experience and enthusiasm for working on local environmental issues are encouraged to contact Jane Nicholson, Town Planner, at 607-844-8888 x213. Appointment is for a three year term and applicants must be over the age of 16, residing in the Town of Dryden, Village of Dryden, or Village of Freeville. CB meetings are open to the public and are held at 7:30 p.m. on the last Tuesday of the month in the Dryden Town Hall. More information about the CB is available on the town website.

This position was created in response to a declared need by the towns of a dedicated individual who possessed the skills and training necessary to coordinate and manage energy projects which the municipalities did not have the time or expertise to manage themselves.

A Conference for Municipal Officials, Planners, Trail Activists, Business and Tourism Leaders, Volunteers, and Trail Users

Conference save the date

We created this walk through to guide you through the process of creating your account.

Below is an example of the comment system.

|| For more information on the draft Sound Performance Standards, go to the Proposed Zoning page of our site.
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|| Cooperative Extension and Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services are rolling out a program to help cut heating bills. See their brochure for more information.
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|| Are you a Bolton Point customer? If so, they have a new way for you to enter meter readings and update your account information via their website. Go to their website and see what they have to offer you. You can also call them with meter reads and updates at (607) 277-0660.
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|| The NYS DEC released a draft of the SGEIS. Press Release.
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|| Town of Dryden Partners with Alternatives Federal Credit Union
to Bring Individual Development Account Program to Dryden -
Read Press Release.
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|| Information on PASSPORTS
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|| Are you looking for tax map information?
Go to Tompkins County’s website and click on Maps.
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|| See the Town of Dryden OFFICIAL MAP
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|| A Brief History of the Town of Dryden
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|| Town Information
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|| FIRE DEPARTMENTS
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|| The Town Clerk’s Office now accepts payments with credit cards, debit cards and e-checks for all fees paid in person at the Town Clerk’s Office.

You can only pay Town and County Taxes at the Town Clerk’s office during the months of January, February, and March. Please DO NOT pay your Village or School taxes here. They will be returned to you, minus the service charge as that is not collected by us.

Please note that you will be charged a service fee when using a credit card, debit card or e-check. This is because the Town cannot discount fees that are mandated by law nor can we increase these fees to cover the cost of accepting credit/debit cards. We have therefore contracted with a third party who will handle our credit/debit card and e-check transactions as well as guarantee that all of our over-the-counter and on-line transactions remain secure.

PAY TOWN FEES ONLINE