Archive: Around Town

The Lansing Democratic Committee held an informal party at Myers Park Saturday.  Lansing Floats was billed as a non-partisan fun event where people could get a root beer float or a balloon animal, register to vote, and meet the Democratic candidates for Tompkins County Legislature and Lansing Town Board.

"Lansing Floats is just a community event," said candidate Deborah Dawson.  "We wanted to get Democrats and other residents of Lansing to come out and meet the candidates for Town Board and the two Legislative candidates and have some ice cream, have some root beer, get a balloon, and have a good time.  It's a beautiful day on the lake."

Dawson is running unopposed for Tompkins County Legislature District 10, which includes the Villages of Cayuga Heights and Lansing, and is currently represented by retiring Dooley Kiefer.  Michael Koplinka Loehr is running against District 6 (Most of the Town of Lansing outside the Village) incumbent Mike Sigler.  Walaa Maharem-Horan and Joseph Wetmore are challenging incumbents Robert Cree (R) and Doug Dake (R) for their Town Board seats.  Dawson, Koplinka Loehr, and Maharem-Horan were at the park Saturday along with a number of other Lansing Democratic Party members.

"It's really a way to celebrate Lansing," Koplinka Loehr said.  "It's a fun, family event to help us appreciate all that we have here, in the park, it's a beautiful day.  It's celebrating all that's so good about Lansing, and it's a way to meet the candidates and register to vote if you haven't registered.  But mostly it's celebrating all the good things about what's great to be in Lansing."


Koplinka Loehr is the candidate behind the 'I (Heart) Lansing' signs that have popped up in yards all over town.  At first glance the sign is simply a valentine to the town, but if you look very closely there is a small check mark in one corner that symbolizes voting, the Lansing Lighthouse in another corner, and the Democratic Party donkey symbol to show who sponsored the signs.

"It's celebrating taking pride in Lansing, and that's it," Koplinka Loehr says.  " It has a little Democratic donkey in the lower left hand corner that shows yes, it is indeed sponsored by the Democrats; yes, Democrats are very proud to be Lansingites; and we hope that people will pay attention and take their vote seriously in the fall.  I'm so thrilled that people are taking it up and putting it in their front yards.  You have people from all across the political spectrum saying, 'I want one of those'."

The candidates had plenty of literature and yard signs on hand, but the event was low key, politically, at least.  Families could talk to the candidates, or just come for the floats and Vince Mehringer's (The Cayuga Twister) balloon animals and hats.

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