Archive: News

Tompkins County officials have reviewed and support Cornell University's and Ithaca College’s phased return to campus plan for the fall 2020 semester. Officials from the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and Tompkins County Health Department (TCHD) are in ongoing communication with University officials and have been participating in planning efforts.

Frank Kruppa, Tompkins County Public Health Director and EOC Operations Chief stated, "Cornell has shown a careful approach to putting protocols in place to stop the spread of COVID-19. Their plans reflect their commitment to their campus community and Tompkins County residents." Kruppa continued, "The plan is thorough, including a robust testing program, a coordinated approach to isolation, quarantine, and contact tracing, and significant modifications to campus life. Ithaca College is making careful considerations in planning to reopen their campus, including moving in students over a four-week period ending on Oct 5. We have been in active communication with members of their reopening task force and they are committed to the health of their campus community and the wider public in Tompkins County."

US Congressman Tom Reed delivered $3,624,165 in aviation funding Tuesday from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for airports across the district. $957,500 of the money is allotted to the Ithaca Tompkins International Airport. The federal aid will support infrastructure revitalization projects ranging from reconstruction, taxiway lighting, and fire and safety equipment. A portion of the grant funding for these projects comes from the CARES Act.

“We care about making sure our region and its airports have the latest infrastructure in place to grow the economy, support local jobs, and keep our facilities up-to-date,” said Tom. “We will continue to advocate for smart investments in our nation’s infrastructure because they provide direct, tangible economic benefits to the community at large.”

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced Tuesday that eight additional states meet the metrics to qualify for the travel advisory requiring individuals who have traveled to New York from those states, all of which have significant community spread, to quarantine for 14 days. The newly-added states are California, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada and Tennessee. The quarantine applies to any person arriving from a state with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or a state with a 10% or higher positivity rate over a 7-day rolling average.

"As an increasing number of states around the country fight significant community spread, New York is taking action to maintain the precarious safety of its phased, data-driven reopening," Governor Cuomo said. "We've set metrics for community spread just as we've set metrics for everything the state does to fight COVID-19, and eight more states have reached the level of spread required to qualify for New York's travel advisory, meaning we will now require individuals traveling to New York from those states to quarantine for 14 days."

Senator Pam Helming today announced that she is co-sponsoring legislation that establishes an independent, bi-partisan commission to fully investigate the deaths of the New Yorkers who died from COVID-19 in state-regulated nursing homes.

"From the beginning of this pandemic, the Governor and Commissioner of Health acknowledged nursing homes as Ground Zero for COVID-19. Yet, little still has been done to protect the vulnerable residents living in these facilities or the staff who care for these residents. An independent investigation needs to be conducted so we may understand where the state went wrong in order to prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future," Senator Helming said.

Congressman Tom Reed was proud to announce Wednesday that the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement has officially gone in to effect. Reed served as an integral member of Republican leadership's USMCA team, and fiercely advocated for the agreement because of its many positive benefits for NY-23 workers and farmers. The Problem Solvers Caucus, which Reed co-chairs, also contributed to the deal's swift passage.

"Today marks an important milestone for our country and economy. After years of hard work, we are implementing a modernized free trade agreement with our Northern and Southern neighbors that creates fair market opportunities for American farmers, eliminates foreign governments' unfair trading practices, and delivers relief to our domestic manufacturers," said Reed.

With state requirements for lockdown and reopening changing daily, planned Town of Lansing activities are open... or closed... depending on Albany's requirements and guidance by the Tompkins County Health Department at any given time.  This will be felt especially tomorrow, because the Lansing Fireworks and Lansing Lions Club's annual 4th of July Chicken Barbecue, a Lansing staple, has been cancelled.  The good news is that Dave Hatfield, Lansing's king of barbecued chicken, will be hosting a chicken barbecue tomorrow at the Lansing Town Hall.  And swimming at the Myers Park beach is open between 10:30AM and 8:00PM. The bad news is that several events have been cancelled, including the annual Thursday night Music In The Park series.

"Due to Covid-19 and the public gathering size limit of 50 we are unable to have our Music in the Park series. This is just as frustrating for us as it is to you but we have to abide by the rules and regulations set forth by the State and the Tompkins County Health Department. We hope to re-schedule all the bands for 2021 as this was one of the best line ups we have ever had," says a statement from the Town Parks & Recreatioon Department.

In response to increased rates of COVID-19 transmission in certain U.S. states, New York has joined with New Jersey and Connecticut to issue a travel advisory for anyone returning from states that have significant community spread.

The Tompkins County Health Department is discouraging all non-essential travel to affected states by Tompkins County residents. Public Health Director Frank Kruppa stated, "COVID-19 is still an ongoing pandemic, and while New York State has curbed the spread of the disease, we're seeing it increase across the nation at unprecedented rates. Traveling to states with increasing spread is not advised, we need to continue to be vigilant to prevent future outbreaks of the disease."

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced Wednesday that the reopening of New York City indoor dining, originally part of the city's expected entry into Phase Three on July 6, will be postponed as states across the country that previously reopened indoor dining are experiencing upticks in COVID-19 cases.

The governor also announced that New York State will expand its testing criteria to all New Yorkers statewide. New York conducts more tests per capita than any big country in the world and now has the capacity to expand the testing criteria.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that the New York State Police and local law enforcement agencies will increase patrols to crack down on drunk and drugged driving and other traffic infractions during the 4th of July holiday, beginning Saturday, Friday July 3 and running through Sunday, July 5. State Troopers will conduct sobriety checkpoints and target reckless and aggressive driving statewide in an effort to keep New York highways safe during one of the busiest summer holidays for travel.

"While the July Fourth weekend is a time to celebrate and spend time with family and friends, too often drinking leads to poor decisions when it is time to go home. To ensure safety on our roads this holiday, State Police and local law enforcement will be cracking down on impaired driving of any kind," Cuomo said. "I urge all New Yorkers to act responsibly and make arrangements to find a safe way home - never drink and drive."

The fate of the Lansing Residential Center (LRC), colloquially called 'the Girl's School', is tied to a rosier future for Lansing's Town Center according to an update to the Planning Board Monday by Lansing Town Director of Planning C.J. Randall. Randall said that the Town is in the early stages of deciding whether it would be prudent to take over a sewage treatment (package) plant that currently serves LRC and Finger Lakes Residential Center (FLRC - also known as the 'boy's school'). She said that exploration by some parties of taking over the LRC may bring other benefits to the Town and other interested parties.

"We've been speaking with the New York State Office of General Services about the potential for the Town to take ownership of the waste water treatment facility that is at the Lansing Residential Center, as well as the possible conveyance of the Lansing Residential Center to TST BOCES, which has a lot of interest in that as a possible new campus for them. We're trying to help facilitate that and get a sense of what the full buildout could be if the (Town Center) area could be sewered," Randall said.

In a first for NY State utility rate cases, grassroots environmental groups successfully negotiated with their utilities for zero net growth in gas use over the course of the three year rate plan, while keeping gas rate increases low. After months of negotiations, NYSEG and RG&E agreed to a slate of gas reduction strategies, retracted $128 million for gas infrastructure including pipelines, and funded $1.5 million for renewable heating systems for low-income residents.

While signing the gas settlement agreement, most environmental groups oppose the utilities' electric proposal that was supported by state regulators, and some other parties. The groups criticized the companies for callously raising electric rates by double digits during a historic health emergency and economic crisis, while failing to prepare the grid for a renewable future.

The day before Tuesday's Democratic primary Assembly District 125 election a flap between retiring NYS Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton and Anna Kelles, one of several candidates running for her seat. The flap erupted over a statement Kelles had issued after an ithaca.com story reported she had returned $4,500 in campaign donations due to ethics questions surrounding a letter supporting the City Harbor project that she sent to the Department of Transportation.

Kelles, considered the frontrunner, issued a statement denying unethical behavior, claiming that one of her opponents had maliciously released a copy of her letter and misconstrued its meaning.

"I was disturbed to learn that an email I sent to the regional Department of Transportation (DOT) in support of the developments along the Cayuga Inlet has been deliberately misconstrued. One of my opponents chose to share this email with the local press as an effort to disparage me. I want to share the facts," she wrote.