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Committee approves staff recommendations on tax-foreclosure list, with deed restrictions to protect streams
Summary
The Government Operations Committee approved staff recommendations to take title to one parcel (Irish Settlement Road), withhold several parcels from auction for further coordination, and sell four parcels subject to deed restrictions to protect waterways; the committee adjusted two buffer widths to 50 feet to improve sale viability.
Tompkins County planning staff presented recommendations on June 9 for handling properties on the county’s tax-foreclosure list and the committee approved a package of actions addressing public-safety, conservation and transferability.
Darby Kylie, planning and sustainability staff, explained the county’s land-transactions review process and said the list had been pared to 33 parcels. Staff recommended taking title to a small parcel at 114 Irish Settlement Road that was carved out during a Farm Service Agency foreclosure so the land can later be resold to preserve contiguity with the larger farm parcel.
Darby also flagged a roughly six-acre parcel on Enfield Falls Road that abuts Robert H. Treman State Park. State Parks has expressed interest and staff recommended withholding that parcel from auction while county staff coordinate with state parks and the town of Enfield on cleanup of two trailers and transfer options. Committee members noted that if the county took title it would assume liability and discussed asking the town, the state Department of Transportation and State Parks to assess road/safety cleanup needs.
Staff recommended withholding two stormwater parcels in Newfield from auction because developer obligations were never conveyed to homeowners and the town is unwilling to assume maintenance; taking them would create long-term county maintenance responsibilities.
For four residential parcels near streams or floodplains (a Midall Road parcel on Six Mile Creek, a Danby Road parcel near Buttermilk Creek, a Ringwood Road tributary to Cascadilla Creek parcel, and a Salmon Creek Road parcel), staff proposed selling with deed restrictions to protect streams and flood-prone areas. After committee discussion, members agreed to reduce the buffer on two of those properties (Midall Road and Danby Road) from 100 feet to 50 feet to improve marketability while retaining protective covenants on the stream-adjacent land.
The committee moved a consolidated recommendation reflecting those changes, the motion was seconded and approved by the committee.
What happens next: the county will take title to the Irish Settlement Road parcel and withhold several parcels from auction while coordinating with the town and state partners; four parcels will be listed for sale with deed restrictions as specified. Staff will seek additional input from Enfield and arrange on-site assessments (facilities/highway/DOT) where needed.
