Archive: News

New York State Senator Pam Helming (R,C,I-54th District) has been named to the Senates Task Force on Workforce Development. The task force is charged with improving employee readiness, meeting the workforce needs of private sector employers, connecting job seekers with potential employers, retraining for those that have lost jobs, and helping to make New York State's overall economy more robust, dynamic, and resilient.

"I am grateful to be a part of this Task Force," said Helming. "This appointment gives me a great platform to represent the business owners and job seekers in our district and in Upstate New York as a whole. Education, training, and cultivating the skills of job seekers is imperative to meeting the needs of a 21st century global economy."

Village of Lansing Mayor Donald Hartill says he will volunteer to join the Tompkins County Energy and Economic Development Task Force (EEDTF) to 'try to bring some sense' to its plan that would extend Lansing's moratorium on natural gas indefinitely in order to force developers to use sustainable energy solutions.  Hartill said that a proposed plant that would have brought 100 good jobs to the Village is now being located in Massachusetts because natural gas is not available for new projects in the Cornell Business and Technology Park.

"Macom was planning on building another building in the Cornell Business and Technology Park to add a second line," Hartill told the Village of Lansing Board of Trustees Monday.  "When they came up against the natural gas moratorium they decided to build that second line in Massachusetts instead.  It's entirely because of the natural gas moratorium.  They will keep the current production line here in Ithaca but the second line would have added 100 jobs here.  That means 100 good paying jobs that we could have had are not going to be here.  That has motivated me to volunteer myself to get involved with this crazy county energy committee, to try to bring some sense into that."

Washington, DC- Congressman Tom Reed, as part of the House Republican Deputy Whip Team, was invited to the East Room of the White House Monday to discuss coordinated efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare.  Reed says Obamacare is a failed attempt to try to reform health care, and that choice is disappearing and costs are skyrocketing. Reed and his colleagues are making efforts to make sure the promises he made to repeal the law are held up. They say it will be replaced with a system that enhances choice, increases access, and reduces cost.

"I deeply care about making sure those who need health care coverage not only have access to it, but also have the option to choose a plan that fits their needs and budget. This is a plan that will benefit people across the country. " Reed stated.

Following two bargaining sessions with the Ithaca College administration this week, the MachanoffIthaca College Contingent Faculty Union/Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Local 200United, announced that members will walk out on a two-day strike on March 28th and 29th, if a tentative agreement was not reached beforehand. Last month, part-time lecturers and non-tenure-track term faculty members of the IC Contingent Faculty voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike if a fair first contract was not reached, with 88% voting to authorize the strike.

The announcement comes the day after the International Women's Strike, a nationwide day of action led and organized by women. At colleges and universities across Upstate New York and nationwide, a majority of contingent faculty members are women while their tenured and tenure-track colleagues are men.

One of the Village of Lansing's conditions for approving the commercial lot that is now BJ's Wholesale Club was that a rental senior housing development to be called 'Lansing Meadows' would be built between BJ's and Oakcrest Road that would help create a gradual transition from commercial to residential areas of the Village.  That was in 2011, and early in 2012 BJ's opened.  But Lansing Meadows is still am empty field.  After years of holdups, largely attributed to negotiations on how to handle wetlands on the property, the project may finally be ready to go forward.  And Village trustees were excited about the prospect of a coffee shop on a small piece of the parcel.

"The project has been held up for years due to negotiations with the Army Corps of Engineers on the issue of wetlands on the property," explained Village of Lansing Mayor Donald Hartill Monday.  "The head of TCAT was very pleased this morning when I told her that good progress was being made, and I expect a shovel to go into the ground, hopefully, this construction season.  I hope that will be the case."

President Haynes Delivers Final "'State of the College' Report
Tompkins Cortland Community College President Dr. Carl Haynes provided a sobering report to the Tompkins County Legislature, as he delivered his final "State of the College" message, the final annual briefing that he will provide the Legislature before his retirement at the end of this academic year. While the College is facing challenges, President Haynes assured that the Community College is fully aware and, through reasoned strategic planning, is responding to meet these new realities.

President Haynes said the College is addressing "brutal facts" affecting the College—among them, declining State support for community colleges (with a per-FTE base aid just $22 higher than nine years ago); limited County Sponsor support; and enrollment decline (a nearly 12% decline in total enrollment and 30% decrease in core enrollment over the past five years, with the College experiencing its largest one-year decline this year.) Driving the enrollment decline, he said, are "a perfect storm of concerns," including restrictions on financial aid, increased competition from four-year State schools, effects from an improving economy, and media coverage questioning the value of higher education. Other pressures include the increased outside demand for accountability and assessment, as well as the needs for increased use of technology and for curriculum changes to respond to student interest and employment needs.

The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) announced that it is launching a pilot program to test lead in drinking water. The program is available to residents that are served by either a private well or public water system. The program is free of charge to residents, allowing everyone to have access to lead testing if they choose. The program began in February 2017 and will continue as long as funds are available.

Residents who are interested in testing their tap water are encouraged to sign up on the NYSDOH website or by calling the Bureau of Water Supply Protection at 518-402-7650. Individuals who request testing will choose a participating laboratory that will provide containers and directions to draw two samples. The samples will be mailed to the lab where they will be processed and the results will be sent directly to the residents.

In, at times, a heated discussion the Lansing Board of Education further considered a PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) that is estimated to save the school district about a half million dollars over the 25 year life of the contract.  RER Energy Group's President Jim Kurtz and Solar Project Developer Michael Roach attended to give a presentation and answer questions for the board.  But the meeting became contentious at times, when School Board President Christine Iacobucci expressed concerns, especially noting that school attorney Brian Smith had not recommended signing the contract.

"We could generate energy savings," said School Business Administrator Mary June King.  "We could spend money on something other than electricity.  We could spend money on kids.  That's why we started this process.  Jim was critical in helping me to understand the process."

Lansing Supervisor Ed LaVigne said he is outraged at anti-Semitic graffiti found carved into playground equipment in Ludlowville Park.  Councilwoman Katrina Binkewicz alerted LaVigne to the vandalism Wednesday after seeing a post from a Ludlowville resident on an online chat board.  She obtained a picture of the damage, and asked the Parks and Recreation Department to investigate.  The graffiti was immediately removed as soon as it was located.

"When you insult one religion you insult all religions," LaVigne said Wednesday. "Anybody who is a religious person should take offense at this. There's no way that Lansing condones this. If anything, we are an accepting, loving, inclusive community."

According to Congressman Tom Reed the ACA (Affordable Care Act) has hurt many hard working Americans across the nation. As Congress begins to address repealing and replacing the flawed Affordable Care Act, Reed outlined the areas the new legislation will address.

"We care about ensuring access to quality, affordable healthcare so working families across America will no longer have to deal with the failed health care policies forced upon them," Reed stated. "This is a plan that empowers individuals with choice. Having the freedom to choose what type of insurance you are provided is a cornerstone of this plan."

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli issued a report detailing regional trends in education funding, enrollment and conditions across the state. The report analyzes school district financial and demographic information from nine separate regions outside of New York City.

"Investments in New York's public schools are vital at both the state and local level," DiNapoli said. "By examining regional comparisons and trends in school district revenues, expenditures and student demographics, we can better inform the decisions of state lawmakers, education stakeholders and taxpayers."

The Finger Lakes Library System (FLLS) and its 33 member libraries in Cayuga, Cortland, Seneca, Tioga and Tompkins County stand to lose 4.3 percent of library aid under Governor Cuomo’s proposed 2017-2018 budgets. The Governor also eliminated $136,080 local libraries receive in construction aid to do much needed renovations or expansions to aging library buildings.

While all 33 libraries will see funding cuts unless library aid is restored, the biggest cut will be sustained by the Finger Lakes Library System. The System helps local libraries better serve their communities through cooperation, sharing resources, and by offering cost-effective services. For example, in 2016, Finger Lakes Library system sent and received 391,564 items for interlibrary loan, helping smaller libraries offer more collections to their patrons. 57,063 eBooks and 36,094 eAudiobooks were downloaded throughout its five counties and FLLS was able to offer a new streaming service, hoopla, that added streaming music and movies for free downloads.