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The Town of Ithaca and the City of Ithaca have been working jointly since 2017 on a Green Building Policy, now known as the Ithaca Energy Code Supplement (IECS) which contains code requirements for new buildings and major renovations. These requirements are above and beyond the New York State Energy Conservation Construction Code. The objective is to substantially reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while emphasizing affordability. An earlier draft was made available for comment in September 2019 and presented at a number of public events. Some of you may have attended some of those sessions.

Public comments on the new draft are requested by February 17, 2021 at noon. There will be a public hearing on the draft at the City of Ithaca Planning and Economic Development Committee (PEDC) meeting on February 17, 2021 (probably at 6pm). See the message from the Town below for details of where to find the draft code, how to submit comments and where to look for information about the PEDC meeting closer to the date. Although this is a City of Ithaca public hearing and Forest Home is in the Town of Ithaca, the Town is encouraging its residents to participate.

==== message distributed by Town of Ithaca =====
Date: January 28, 2021
To: Town of Ithaca IECS Review Committee
From: Nick Goldsmith, Sustainability Planner
Re: Public Comment Period for Ithaca Energy Code Supplement

The Town of Ithaca and the City of Ithaca have been working since 2017 on the Ithaca Energy Code Supplement (IECS, previously the Green Building Policy), which contains code requirements for new buildings and major renovations that will substantially reduce GHG emissions while emphasizing affordability.

The Town Board and the City Common Council have provided guidance and approval of previous drafts of the IECS, which have also undergone significant public review. Over the last several months, City and Town of Ithaca Planning and Codes staff, attorneys, and elected officials have contributed to the development of the IECS and the IECS Ordinance. The goal is to maintain common regulations that will be adopted by both the Town and the City.

The January 28, 2021 drafts of the Ithaca Energy Code Supplement (IECS) and the IECS Ordinance are now being circulated for public comment. Your comments are respectfully requested prior to February 17, 2021 at noon. Written comments may be emailed to ngoldsmith@town.ithaca.ny.us or mailed to the Town of Ithaca at 215 N. Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850. Oral comments may be presented at the City of Ithaca public hearing, which will occur at the February 17, 2021 Planning and Economic Development Committee (PEDC) meeting. Directions for watching the hearing and submitting oral comments will be described in the PEDC meeting notice, which will be released February 12 on the PEDC webpage: http://www.cityofithaca.org/359/Planning-Economic-Development-Committee. A Town of Ithaca public hearing will be scheduled at a later date.

You will find the following IECS documents and additional project information at http://www.ithacagreenbuilding.com .

Ithaca Energy Code Supplement: A local energy code supplement with requirements above and beyond the New York State Energy Conservation Code.
IECS Ordinance: IECS-enabling legislation for the City of Ithaca that enacts the IECS as the regulatory document containing requirements for compliance. The Town of Ithaca will not be adopting an ordinance, but will be incorporating similar language into the IECS.
IECS Short Environmental Assessment form part I and II for the City of Ithaca
A document summarizing comments and responses relating to the previous IECS draft (08-08-19), which informed the current draft, will be posted on the website soon.
An IECS Reference Manual, which contains non-essential information to help understand and use the IECS, will be completed and posted at a future date.

The FHIA Holiday Party Planning committee is proposing the following events to celebrate the holiday season together in lieu of our usual holiday party in a neighbor’s home:

Holiday Treat Exchange
Saturday, December 5 from 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Forest Home Park

We will explore safe ways for people to share cookies and similar holiday treats. We will also explore the possibility of making contact-less delivery of treat bags to neighbors who may wish to avoid being in even an outdoor, masked, and socially-distanced group.

Swag Making
Saturday, December 5 from 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Forest Home Park

Those in the community interested in making an evergreen swag would receive materials (greens, wire, ribbon, decorative berries and the like) and some instruction on how to put together a simple, but lovely swag. We could post photos on the website of swags displayed inside or outside people’s homes.

Community Zoom Get-Together with Seasonal Readings and Performances
Friday, December 11, 7:00-7:30

The general idea is to invite neighbors to join and share a brief reading of seasonal content or a solo performance of a favorite seasonal song or tune.

More details and an opportunity to sign up will follow.

FHIA Holiday Party Planning Committee

Constance Stirling-Engman

Michael Bend

The Tompkins County Highway Department will be closing the Downstream Forest Home Bridge in the Town of Ithaca, on November 6, 2020 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm for bridge inspection. This bridge will be closed to all through traffic and a detour will be in place. Please contact the Highway Department, at (607) 274-0300, with questions or concerns.

The FHIA Annual Meeting will be on Wednesday October 21 at 7pm, by ZOOM. This is the meeting at which officers for the coming year are voted on. We hope to see you there. The President and Treasurer will present reports for the year ending September 30 and Forest Home resident (and FHIA past president) Jon Miller will tell us about his experience with a heat pump installation.

More details, including ZOOM link to follow.

Participants in the first annual FHIA Scavenger Hunt, held this past Saturday, September 12, from 3:00 – 5:00pm enjoyed socially-distanced good fun as they hunted for the answers to clues around the neighborhood. The Forest Home Park served as an important waypoint where hunters could stop to chat with others and guess the number of chocolates in a jar. This may become a new FHIA tradition along with the fall picnic (missed this year due to COVID-19) in years to come.

 

Forest Home residents who did not complete the original survey can still join the hunt.  Please email us with your name, address, and the number of participants from your household by Thursday, Sept. 10 OR  just show up in the park on the day of the hunt at 3:00pm.

Everyone participating MUST follow social distancing guidelines, including maintaining appropriate distances and wearing masks. At the same time, we encourage you to interact with your neighbors along the way. We hope that this event serves as an opportunity for us to come together safely, to learn a bit about our community, and to have fun.

Those who expressed interest (on the survey) in “hunting” will receive a packet with a map of the neighborhood divided into 4 zones, and a list of clues (in the form of questions to be answered) to look for by zone. This packet will be hand-delivered to your door around 2:00pm the day of the hunt. Be prepared to write clue answers on a handout in the packet.

There will only be one crew working so it may take a few days to get to you. All brush and yard waste must be at the roadside by 7 a.m. on the 20th. Leaves and non-brush yard waste must be in biodegradable paper bags. There will be no call-backs.
See http://www.town.ithaca.ny.us/Quick-News/2020springbrushandleafpickup for more details.

Forest Home Spring Cleanup is self-directed this year. Thank you to everyone who has been out there picking up trash. Send email to foresthomenews@gmail.com if you know of a problem area or want to see if there’s an area you can help with.