Archive: News

Responding to a state comptroller's audit that accused the Lansing Fire district of overtaxing, Commissioners passed a resolution to limit their unappropriated fund balance to 15% of appropriations during budget planning.  Auditors accused the district of collecting taxes they were not using, but district officials countered that delays in major capital projects made it appear they had collected too much money while the reality was the money was being used for a major renovation of Central Station, and a new fire station that just began service in the Village of Lansing.  Even so, Treasurer George Gesslein says the district currently has about $2.6 million in cash, including $1.6 million in reserves. 

"That leaves a million dollars," Gesslein explained.  "I've got expenses for the rest of the year that I think will be about $160,000.  We're allowed a balance of $180,000.  I think we need to look at putting the remaining $500,000 to $600,000 in the apparatus reserve to fund future trucks as we go along."

Lansing Town Board members expressed concern about hunting on Salt Point when Councilwoman Katrina Binkewicz reported Wednesday on improvements to the property including future plans.  The Town of Lansing manages the park for the DEC (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation), which owns the property.  Part of that agreement provides for the Town to accomodate hunting and fishing.  Town officials say they want the DEC to rethink that requirement.

"I want to get to the point where it's not allowed," Binkewicz said.  "The property is not suitable for that.  Hunting is allowed on the point.  Especially if you are walking during hunting season you should know that.  I expressed concern about it to the DEC.  They have to decide that it's unreasonable and unsafe.  I will chase it down this week and get back to you with that information."

Sale of Biggs Parcel Authorized for Cayuga Townhomes Project
The County Legislature, after nearly three hours of thoughtful discussion, approved three resolutions that pave the way for potential sale of the last County-owned parcel on the former Biggs Complex land on West Hill and development of 60 units of affordable housing in what is currently known as the Cayuga Townhomes project.  In three separate actions, the Legislature determined that there remains no public use for the nearly 26 acres of County-owned undeveloped land, that the action does not carry adverse environmental impact, and authorizing a sales agreement with NRP Properties, LLC, of Cleveland, OH, in conjunction with Better Housing for Tompkins County, for development of the property, subject to certain conditions.  The authorization gives NRP site plan control so that it can begin the necessary site plan approval process with the Town of Ithaca, and to move toward seeking financing for the project.  The Legislature’s action does not mean the project is yet approved; the Town of Ithaca has authority over land use for such projects.

The sale authorization ultimately passed by an 11-4 vote, with Legislators Peter Stein, Pam Mackesey, Kathy Luz Herrera, and Dooley Kiefer voting no.  Both Luz Herrera and Kiefer indicated they support the initiative in general, but thought the action should be delayed to provide more time to consider input from West Hill residents.  Ms. Kiefer had unsuccessfully proposed to delay consideration until the Legislature’s next meeting.

Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton (D/WF-125th AD) announced Monday that her bill (A826) to establish certification for clinical nurse specialists (CNS) was signed by the Governor on Friday.

“Research shows that clinical nurse specialists, as experts in specialized areas of nursing practice, provide benefits to patients and hospitals, including reduced hospital costs and length of stay, reduced frequency of emergency room visits, improved pain management practices, increased patient satisfaction with nursing care, and reduced medical complications in hospitalized patients,” Lifton explained.

Rep. Tom Reed introduced the End Special Treatment for Congress CR Monday to end the special treatment Members of Congress, congressional staff and the President receive under the President’s health care law.

“If Harry Reid and the President continue to refuse to negotiate to avoid a government shutdown, I present a simple request to them: end the special treatment under Obamacare that Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and the President support,” Reed said. “Even if the Senate fails to do any work today, like it failed to do over the weekend, I will be here working to find a solution, working to avoid a shutdown. Ending the special treatment for Congress is a basic minimum to ask for.”

The Legislature’s Government Operations Committee has recommended that the Legislature accept, but not adopt, recommendations of a County work group following a four-month study of how the County’s decade-old Livable Wage Policy should apply to County contracts.  The committee’s decision would give the County Administrator time to apply procedural guidance established by the work group as part of that report before taking a more formal action to either adopt or amend the work group’s several recommendations.

The work group report recommends the 2003 policy remain in place without modification, as a statement of the Legislature’s aspirational goals, with procedures put in place to ensure consistent interpretation and application of the policy, and to establish accountability for performance.  It  recommends, in part, that the policy apply only to service contracts involving over $50,000 per year in County funds, that certain types of employees and positions be exempted, with criteria used to determine whether it is “reasonable and practical” to incorporate the living wage standard into a contract.

Legislators acting as an Expanded Budget Committee tonight began review of County Administrator Joe Mareane’s recommended 2014 County Budget, hearing their first six presentations from County departments.  The committee is scheduled to meet nine times between now and the end of October.

The 2014 Recommended Budget supports total expenditures of $170.2 million, with local dollar spending of $81.6 million (an increase of 1.6%).  The recommended 3.54% tax levy increase is below the 2014 target set by the Legislature and above the State’s 2.3% property tax cap.  County property taxes would rise by $21 for the owner of an average $163,000 home.

Construction of a wireless broadband Internet access system is beginning now.  By the time it is completed 96% of currently unserved areas of Lansing will have access to a wifi system being built out by Cayuga Heights Internet Service Provider (ISP) Clarity Connect.  Tompkins County Broadband Committee Chairwoman Pat Pryor says that lansing is one of three communities that will get wifi broadband first.

"One of the reasons that Lansing is one of the first communities to be built out is that so many people responded to the request to let Clarity Connect know of their interest," says Pryor.  "Danby and Genoa will also be built out first."

Fourteen local governments, including Rockland, Suffolk, Nassau and Erie counties, have been designated as fiscally stressed in the latest update of State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System. The update was issued in conjunction with a report highlighting the similarities among localities listed in fiscal stress.

“The increased number of municipalities in fiscal stress underscores the seriousness of the challenges facing local governments,” said DiNapoli. “By shining a light on the financial issues confronting our municipalities, we can jumpstart discussions at the state and local levels about fiscal stress so that corrective actions can be taken. There is a continued need for better long-range planning and honest conversations about how local governments operate when their regional economies, demographics and traditional revenue sources change.”

While school was able to open on time after this summer's $3,033,054 Building Core Reconstruction (BCR) capital project, the Lansing High School swimming pool is still closed and likely to be closed for up to an additional week beyond the anticipated October 3rd reopening date.  Project Manager James Slavetskas told the Board Of Education Monday that delays in getting a subcontractor to start work on the pool on time pushed back the opening date. 

"The pool has been difficult to get completed," he said.  "Lack of manpower in there was probably one of the biggest items associated with getting that work done.  They just couldn't get those people to come to the site.  In the pool area they had no people working there for seven business days.  That put us behind schedule."

Walker ReynoldsLansing School Superintendent Chris Pettograsso told the school board Monday that the resignation of board member Walker Reynolds has left a gap in the Board Of Education that they may choose to fill.  The board informally decided to solicit candidates and appoint the one they deem most qualified.  Reynolds was elected to fill the remaining time in Betsy Galvin's term, which has less than a year left in it.  Board members said they hope more than one community member will step forward so they have a field of candidates to choose from.

"In a healthy process we would have many more candidates than positions," said board member Tom Robinson.  "This would be a real opportunity for somebody to try it out.  It would be a short duration if they want to try it.  It's a good way to do a test run as a school board member."

Paper or plastic?  The question may soon be just 'Paper?' -- or 'Reusable?' -- if a law proposed by the Tompkins County Environmental Management Council (EMC) is enacted.  The council held a public workshop Wednesday to collect public input on the impact a ban on grocery store plastic bags might have to segments of the local community.

"Having talked to people in other communities, it has gotten a very favorable rating," said EMC Vice-Chair Brian Eden.  There is very little resistance or conflict with this program in these other communities.  It's just a matter of working through the issues that people are concerned about and coming up with something that meets the needs of our community.  I think we can do it."