Archive: News

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo reminded school officials across the state Monday that today is the deadline for submitting a detailed reopening plan if they want their schools to be allowed to open for in-person classroom learning.He added that school districts must post their remote learning plan online as well as their plan for testing and tracing students and teachers. Schools must also have three to five public meetings prior to August 21 with parents - who will be allowed to participate remotely - as well as one meeting with teachers to go through their reopening plan.

Lansing School Superintendent Chris Pettograsso gave a rundown of plans to inform families about school reopening and how it will work at Monday's Board of Education meeting.  That was followed this week by 'community conversations' Tuesday and Thursday that she said would provide more detail for families of Lansing students.

Tompkins County officials are sharing details on the planned public safety response to reported gatherings that violate New York State executive orders on mask-wearing, social distancing, and density.

The Tompkins County Sheriff's Office, in coordination with other agencies and public safety officials from local higher education institutions will respond to reports initially with an education-based approach. The Sheriff's Office will be the primary response agency throughout Tompkins County, including the city of Ithaca on all calls related to gatherings.

The Tompkins County Health Department (TCHD) is in ongoing communication with Cornell University officials following recent announcements on their plans to reopen campus, and continues to maintain capacity for contact tracing investigations and ensuring successful quarantine and isolation.

In response to an increase in public inquiries related to the announcements, Tompkins County Public Health Director Frank Kruppa stated, "The nature of COVID-19 crisis is evolving, and it's important that we're patient and responsive as plans made by our community partners evolve. We continue to communicate closely with our partners at Cornell and Cornell Health to provide feedback on their plans and share guidance on how to best stop the spread of the disease in Tompkins County. The New York State travel advisory was an unexpected policy shift, requiring all of us to adapt quickly and focus on how we can effectively quarantine individuals coming from impacted states."

Congressman Tom Reed defeated challenger Tracy Mitrano in the last NYS-23rd Congressional District election. While Mitrano won 74.52% of the votes in generally liberal Tompkins County, the 23rd district is largely conservative. Reed, who has represented the district in Washington since 2010, won 53.78%, with Mitrano's getting 43.99% of the votes. Mitrano never stopped campaigning, issuing weekly statements slamming Reed's positions and voting record. The Reed campaign was silent until a week and a half ago, when the gloves came off.

Reed Campaign spokesman Matt Coker sent a press release August 5th accusing Mitrano when his campaign accused Mitrano of "pocketing campaign funds."

A public auction will be held on September 15, for state-owned land soon to be vacated by the Department of Transportation, located at 683 Third Street on Cayuga Lake Inlet in Ithaca, Tompkins County. Originally announced by the Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in May 2018, the move of the DOT maintenance facility from the waterfront to a new, 15-acre location adjacent to the Ithaca Tompkins International Airport will not only enhance agency operations, but will open up prime waterfront property for development in Ithaca.

The sale of the property also complements the recently completed $34.8 million expansion and modernization of Ithaca Tompkins International Airport, which features a larger terminal with new passenger terminal gates and boarding bridges, and enhanced security measures, all designed to ease travel and promote economic growth for the Southern Tier.

The Lansing Board of Education approved the current tax role Monday and authorized the $20,368,192 tax levy for the 2020-21 school year.  The tax rate for the upcoming school tax bill is $21.22 per $1,000 of assessed property value.  Lansing School Business Administrator Kate Heath said that a higher than anticipated district assessment will mean a slightly lower tax rate than was anticipated when the budget was passed.  For property taxpayers that will mean $23.23 more than last year on a $100,000 house, or $46.46 more on a $200,000 house, assuming your assessment has not changed.

"Our original projections in May where the projected tax levy of $20,368,192, and that was with projected assessed values at $960,000,000" she said. "That gave us a projected tax rate of $21.22 per thousand. So we got the actual, final assessed rolls with their final values today. Our assessed values were a little bit higher than anticipated at $964,661,000. And that adjusts our tax rate to $21.11574 per thousand. So the tax rate is a little bit less than we were anticipating."

Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton (D-125th AD) announced yesterday that she's introduced a bill in the Assembly to establish a searchable public database providing information about eviction proceedings in New York State.

"Tens of thousands of evictions occur every year in our state, but there is no easy, centralized way to access those records, and information is often scant at the municipal level, at any rate. Understanding trends in eviction rates -- where, why, and when evictions are happening -- may help us prevent some evictions by shedding useful light on this important issue and, ultimately, I hope, keep more people in their homes and businesses," said Lifton.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced yesterday a new social media campaign to raise awareness of human trafficking and help dispel common misconceptions about the crime and its victims. Starting this month, the Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking will begin sharing a series of graphics aimed at correcting these misconceptions along with information about how to report trafficking cases.

"There is a deeply troubling and prevailing misconception that human trafficking only happens in the shadows and in faraway nations, when in reality it's a heinous crime that often happens in plain sight and in our own communities," Cuomo said. "By raising awareness and dispelling the myths surrounding it, more New Yorkers will be able to recognize the signs of human trafficking and report it, to help put an end to this insidious violation of human rights."

Congressman Tom Reed voiced concern Thursday over national reports and constituent outreach regarding delays in United States Postal Service (USPS) deliveries, substantial USPS operational changes, and staffing reductions. Reed called on Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to provide Congress and the public with specific details on:

• What changes or pilot programs the USPS has enacted
• What steps are being taken to ensure these changes do not delay the delivery of mail or the Post Office's capacity to perform essential services
• How these new policies will impact customers and postal workers

On 08/13/20 at 4:23 PM, the Sheriff's Office received a fraud complaint.

It was learned that a Tompkins County resident received a phone call appearing to be from the Tompkins County Sheriff's Office. It is believed that the Sheriff's Office phone number was "ghosted" making it appear that it was actually from the Sheriff's Office.

The suspect claimed to be a member of the Tompkins County Sheriff's Office and conned the victim into shipping $20,000 in cash to Chicago to settle a supposed arrest warrant.

The Sheriff's Office is actively investigating this incident. It's important to know that the Sheriff's Office would never ask someone to mail money in this fashion.

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The Tompkins County Democratic Committee announced they are endorsing a full slate of regional Democratic candidates at its July 30th meeting.

• Leslie Danks-Burke- NYS Senate 58thDistrict
• Jim Barber- NYS Senate 52st District
• Anna Kelles- 125thDistrict NYS Assembly
• Matt Van Houten- Tompkins County District Attorney
• Seth Peacock- City of Ithaca Judge

Community members needing to complete their 2020 U.S. Census will have access to computers at the Tompkins County Public Library starting August 11th. The computer stations dedicated to filling out the census will be available from 10am to 1pm and 3pm to 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursday and from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm on Saturdays. Community members do not need a library card to complete their census form, and library staff will be available to direct individuals to the computer stations.

The library’s reopening plan requires separate entrances and exits for staff and patrons. Community members will be asked to enter the building on the south side, through the door just beyond the Ezra Cornell mural on Cayuga St. Please note that masks and six feet of social distancing are required to enter the building and must remain in place for the entire visit. Census takers will disinfect the computer equipment used before and after each use. Sanitizing wipes are at each station.