Archive: News

The Village of Lansing Board of Trustees Monday voted to set a public hearing time on a proposed amendment to the Lansing Meadows PDA (Planned Development Area). The amendment represents a compromise between the Trustees and the Village Planning Board that, if passed May 1st, will mean that senior housing at the Ithaca Mall will finally become a reality after six years of delays.

"I sat in on the Planning Board meeting a week ago," Mayor Donald hartill told the Trustees. "We now have a consensus so we can go forward. "

	Read County Legislator Martha Robertson (who chairs the EEDTF) response by clicking here. "Tompkins County is committed to all our residents and all our towns, villages, and school districts," she says.

LaVigne says Lansing is going it alone in the wake of power plant devaluation

Lansing Town Supervisor Ed LaVigne gave an impassioned speech Wednesday on the impact of a new reduction of assessed value in the new Cayuga Power Plant PILOT (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) agreement, recently negotiated between plant officials and the Tompkins County IDA (Industrial Development Agency).  LaVigne told the Town Board that the negotiated plant value, most recently at $60 million has been reduced to $35 million.  LaVigne said it will decrease to $25 million next year, then to $20 million in the third year, and added that there is no certainty that it will maintain its $20 million value beyond that time.  LaVigne said that the reality of the plant closing will impact Lansing property taxpayers.

"All those people who wanted to have a dead power plant, you've got it," he said.  "If that's the case, good luck with your taxes, because you know what?  Five years ago that power plant was $150 million dollars.  What other community can keep the level of our schools and our town and take a whack like that?  So Michael (Lansing Planning Consultant Michael Long) and I went to the PSC, and you've got one pissed off supervisor on your hands now."

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Governor Andrew M. Cuomo Wednesday announced $112.2 million in funding has been awarded to 81 projects that support bicycle and pedestrian enhancements and improve air quality across New York. Funding supports projects that include multi-use bicycle and pedestrian facilities, new accessible sidewalks that adhere to regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, improved access to public transportation, and enhanced roadway safety.

"This funding is critical to enhancing our infrastructure and paving the way for both pedestrian and bicycle travel," Governor Cuomo said. "By improving roadway safety and increasing access to healthy transportation alternatives, we are providing both residents and visitors a chance to experience the state's natural beauty like never before, while supporting a cleaner, greener New York for generations to come."

The Lansing Town Board Wednesday approved a Memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Villages of Lansing and Cayuga Heights that will bring sewer infrastructure as far north as Asbury Road.  The memorandum basically agrees that Town Sewer District #1 will transport its effluent to the Cayuga Heights Sewer treatment plant via Village of Lansing sewer pipes.  Lansing Supervisor Ed LaVigne said the non-binding agreement is an 'agreement to agree on agreeing to agree' on services that will initially allow a new sewer on North Triphammer Road to service two new developments and the RINK/the FIELD.  But LaVigne says that only people or businesses that want sewer will pay for it, and it should have no impact on homeowners who don't want to hook up.

"If a pipe goes by your house there will be no increase of assessed value," he said.  "I got that directly from (Tompkins County Assessment Office Director) Jay Franklin.  So your taxes will not go up because of increased assessed value if you have a sewer pipe by your house.  If you have access to sewer, you would basically buy into it."

Tompkins County is committed to all our residents and all our towns, villages, and school districts. We completely understand the disruption from the downturn in tax base caused by forces outside our control – that is, changes in the global energy market – and support New York State's proposal to assist communities impacted by this kind of disruption. In fact, I've already talked with staff in the offices of Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton and Senator Pam Helming about this and will be setting up a conference call. That program needs to be set in motion.

In the meantime there are important local efforts in place and in the works: Some years ago the IDA created a tax abatement program to spur development of the Lansing Town Center area. It has not been used yet but it is available. The IDA will provide extra incentives for development using renewable energy, as we did for Lansing's Computing Center in support of its heat pump system and solar panels.

Patricia O'Rourke began her tenure as a Village of Lansing Trustee when she was appointed to fill out Larry Fresinski's term when he moved out of state.  Since then she has won two elections, first as a Community Party candidate, and the second in a write-in campaign.

O'Rourke has lived in the Village for 32 years.  Her travel agency was also located in the Village for 22 years.  Now she is a substitute teacher in the Ithaca school district.  O'Rourke and her husband Thomas have one grown daughter.

John A. LaVine is the chairman of the Village of Lansing Preservation Party, registered with the NYS Board of Elections on January 6th.  LaVine is also running for one of the two Trustee seats on the Village Board.  He has lived in the Village of Lansing on and off for fifteen years.  LaVine is a state certified general real estate appraiser.  His grown daughter lives in Washington, DC.

For 20 years LaVine was a committeeman in the 17th ward in the City of Syracuse.  Several years ago he ran for County Legislator in Onondaga County.  Originally his fiancé Tatyana Duval was to run for Village Trustee, on a platform of creating harmony in new developments to be achieved 'with consideration and support of the Village of Lansing community so our village would only flourish'.  LaVine replaced her on the ticket after she fell ill.

Ronny Hardaway is completing his first term as Village of Lansing Trustee, and is running for a second.  He and his wife Deborah Dawson moved to the Village in April of 2009 after Hardaway retired from a career as a software engineer at Texas Instruments.  They have two children and one grandchild.  He still does Web site development.  Hardaway chairs the Village Greenway Committee and has been instrumental in the development of the new village park on Northwoods Road.

Most years the Village of Lansing elections have been uncontroversial, with Community Party candidates running uncontested and going on to do the business of the Village.  This year a disagreement about rezoning a plot of land on Bomax Road set off the nearby neighborhood (see article links below) sparked the formation of the Village of Lansing Preservation Party, which got enough signatures to get its three candidates on the ballot.

All six candidates graciously agreed to talk to the Lansing Star, each answering more or less the same ten questions.  Click on a candidate's picture to read the interviews to read about how their answers on important Village issues differ (Mayoral interviews will be published next week, so check out the Trustee candidates now.  All six will be live in the Star next week).

Community Party	Preservation Party

Gregory Eells is the Director of Counseling and Psychological Services at Cornell University.  He and his wife Michelle have lived in the Village for just over 13 years.  He has a daughter in college and two sons in the Ithaca School District.  While he has run for boards in professional organizations, this is his first run for public office.

Washington, D.C.- Congressman Tom Reed applauds the disbursement of grant funding to Randolph Regional EMS Corporation in Cattaraugus County. The grant was awarded through the Department of Homeland Security's Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFG).

"I care deeply that individuals throughout our region have dependable and reliable EMS services. This grant aides in making sure our rural communities have the equipment they need for emergency services," said Reed.

The Lansing Board of Education Monday unanimously approved a $29,152,000 budget for the 2017-18 school year. The budget represents a 3.94% rise over the current school year budget. The bad news for homeowners is that revenue from PILOTs (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) will be down a whopping 27.58% in large part because of a new devaluation of the Cayuga Power Plant. That revenue loss will have to be made up either by property taxpayers, appropriated funds from the school coffers, or a combination of the two.

"I was able to use the property tax cap levy based on the reduction in the (power plant) PILOT," explained School Business Administrator Mary June King. "That's a reduction from $60 million to $35 million, a $25 million reduction in the value of the power plant down the road. The property tax cap holds you harmless for that reduction so you are able to bring in those dollars in the form of taxes without requiring a super-majority of your (voter) population."