Archive: News

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and all 31 members of the Senate Democratic Conference led by Andrea Stewart-Cousins called on Senate Republicans Monday to return to Albany to vote to codify Roe v. Wade into State law and show New Yorkers where they stand. Following Governor Cuomo's and Democratic Leader Stewart-Cousins's joint Op-Ed calling for a vote, the unified Senate Democratic Conference has pledged to provide 31 votes and only need one Republican to vote to codify Roe v. Wade into State law.

Cuomo says Senate Republicans have repeatedly blocked efforts to update New York's nearly 50-year old abortion laws to ensure that women in New York maintain their rights under Roe v. Wade despite any potential action by the Supreme Court. The nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, creating a conservative majority on the Court, has heightened the risk of Roe v. Wade being overturned.

Local Lansing attorney Maura Kennedy-Smith is the Democratic candidate for Lansing Town Justice. With nineteen years experience in the law, Kennedy-Smith currently serves as the Principal Court Attorney to the Honorable Joseph R. Cassidy, Tompkins County Court Judge and Acting Supreme Court Justice. She has handled cases in family law, housing law, criminal law, and other practice areas.

"Though I have experience in many areas of the law, I have always focused on giving back to my community. Making a difference is what motivated me to go into law. I look forward to sharing my knowledge and experience with my community as Lansing Town Justice," she enthusiastically stated.

A Tompkins County delegation was in Albany Wednesday in response to a letter from New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG) to the NYS Dept of Public Service Commission (PSC) saying the company had reversed its stance on the necessity of compressors designed to provide safe, reliable delivery of natural gas in the Town and Village of Lansing, particularly to the Lansing schools.  The decision is the latest in a controversial plan that includes an indefinite moratorium on new natural gas capacity from NYSEG in the Village and Town of Lansing.  Tompkins County Legislator Deborah Dawson (Villages of Lansing and Cayuga Heights) was part of the delegation.

"The occasion for the meeting was NYSEG's recent letter to the PSC, stating its determination that the mini-compressors it had proposed in 2017 would not be necessary to address reliability issues in Lansing, at least not for the winter of 2018-2019," she says. "This decision appears to have been based in part upon the gas delivery system's performance over the very cold and protracted winter of 2017-2018:  despite the fact that gas pressure at the schools fell to around 27 psi, they experienced no reliability problems.  That experience, and NYSEG's most recent models for gas delivery, lead NYSEG to conclude that 25 psi and above is a safe level of gas pressure."

The Lansing Town Board officially approved Sewer District #1 Wednesday in a unanimous vote.  After a public hearing last month a required waiting period allowed time for opponents within the district to petition for a vote, requiring the Town Board to wait to vote until Wednesday's meeting.

"The permissive referendum period is over," said Town Supervisor Ed LaVigne. "There has been no pushback on this.  There has been no counter-petition.  We are now moving forward."

Tweaks continue to be made to the Lansing High School graduation. Two years ago a parent complained to the Board of Education that the awards section of the ceremony was too long, taking the focus away from the 'taking away from the joy of the achievement of graduating from high school, especially for those graduates who did not receive awards'. This year a change was made to the awards section, with the people granting the awards still making their presentations, but without actually presenting checks to graduates.

"We had our scholarships awarded at the ceremony itself, but the students receiving the scholarships stood and sat down," Superintendent of Schools Chris Pettograsso told the Board of Education Monday. "It still took a significant chunk of time -- it was about an hour. Because of the rain our Principal wasn't able to give a speech, so it became solely about scholarships."

American Airlines has announced that it will offer a direct flight from the Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport (ITH) to American's hub at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport (CLT).  The new service is slated to begin Saturday, December 22nd, according to Airport Director Mike Hall.

"It's important to note the new service will start with just one Saturday flight a week, and current service through Philadelphia will not change," said Hall. "Further Charlotte service could be considered in the future if the new flight demonstrates sufficient passenger demand."

Among the jewels of the Town of Lansing are its parks and its recreation department.  Steve Colt has been Lansing's Recreation Director for about 30 years, and Park Superintendent for almost that long.  The parks are gorgeous and used by thousands of people for all kinds of activities.  The vast scope of recreation programs should, in any sensible world, be impossible for a department that only has three full time employees.  Colt will leave some very big shoes to fill when he steps down from the Park and Recreation Department on July 31st.

"I commend Steve Colt for doing such a great job," says Lansing Town Supervisor Ed LaVigne. "People don't realize when they first started the Rec Department was located in the Highway Barn on a gravel floor.  Lansing has come a long way, and Steve leaves it in very good shape."

In anticipation of Steve Colt's pending retirement from the Lansing Parks and Recreation Department at the end of this month, Town Board members discussed changes Monday to the department structure that could lead to a new Department of Public Works (DPW).  The new structure would create a DPW that would become an umbrella department that would manage water, sewer, highway, parks, and building and grounds maintenance.  Officials noted that cross-training employees from existing departments has been a first step in what would eventually be a single consolidated department.

"That consolidation has already started to happen," said Town Attorney Guy Krogh. "Working in cross-purposes, having people being cross-trained, and sharing services across departments has always been part of this town's avenue of success.  There have been three prior plans for DPWs.  They've all been loosely sketched.  Pretty much all of them foresaw consolidating all of the public works into a Public Works Department.  You create a DPW by local law.  It has an organizational structure that would consolidate multiple disparate functions into a single department.  For it's size Lansing is probably one of the few municipalities in this area that doesn't have one."

Albany, NY - A controversial liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage project proposed for Seneca Lake will not go forward as planned. Citing concerns about community character of the Finger Lakes, cavern stability, and risks to the agri-tourism economy, the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) denied a draft permit for the project, presenting a likely insurmountable hurdle for proponents.

Citing threats to public safety and the growing local tourism economy, opponents of the project have pressed state leaders to deny the permit to Finger Lakes LPG, which had sought to store 88.2 million gallons of LPG in abandoned salt caverns alongside Seneca Lake.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo yesterday announced 10 transformational projects for Cortland as part of the $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award. The strategic investments in downtown Cortland will reimagine the city's infrastructure and main street while harnessing technology and talent to improve the city's quality of life. The investments are part of the Governor's ongoing efforts to revitalize the upstate economy and create more opportunities for Central New York.

"As a gateway to the heart of the state, Cortland is strategically located to benefit from a talented workforce driven by the nearby hub of higher education institutions," Governor Cuomo said. "These targeted investments will help to make downtown Cortland a sought-after destination for young talent seeking a community where they can work, enjoy the arts, and gather with family and friends all in one neighborhood."

The amount of unpaid tolls has risen since the expansion of cashless tolling by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA) and it is likely to increase. Even when uncollected tolls can be billed, law firms hired to collect outstanding tolls and fees have not been effective, an auditreleased today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli found.

"More needs to be done to ensure that those using our bridges and tunnels are paying the required tolls and that the TBTA is collecting the money it is owed, especially by the worst offenders, who persistently refuse to pay," said DiNapoli. "This audit identifies several ways to improve the collection of unpaid tolls, which is needed to help maintain and repair New York City's bridges, tunnels and transit system."

Washington - Congressman Tom Reed (R-NY) highlighted efforts Wednesday to spur economic growth through deregulation.

"I care about those struggling with over burdensome and unfair regulations placed upon them by out of touch Washington bureaucrats," said Rep. Reed. "From the lack of new infrastructure due to ridiculous permitting review times, to not being able to get a loan for your small business, these unreasonable regulations affect all of us in one way or another.  We recognize the importance of reasonable regulations such as worker protections, clean air, and water. Those should remain. However, it is important to eliminate the ever-growing web of unreasonable regulations, rules, restrictions that have hurt our jobs, pocketbooks and people."