TompkinsWeekly: March 2015

Sunday, March 29, 2015

TompkinsWeekly for the week of March 30th

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State Budget Plan Draws Ire
This week Upstate New York residents will watch as state legislators vote on Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s highly controversial take-it-orleave- it budget proposal, which has created a firestorm in defense of public education and has unified angry communities across the state.

Recycling Efforts Get High Marks
Tompkins County’s recycling efforts received high marks in a recently released audit from the New York State Comptroller’s Office.

Strategic plan focuses on the county’s older residents page 2
The Tompkins County Office for the Aging has compiled its 2015 Strategic Plan for Aging in Tompkins County, offering information about local aging-related issues. The data will be used to inform decision making on aging services, not only by the Office for the Aging, but by public and private entities, and community groups.

New zoning regulations would benefit town’s farmers page 3
Spot Hollow Farm, in the Town of Ulysses, boasts about 70 sheep and several goats and calves. Prior to receiving a variance, the farm was in violation of the town’s zoning laws, which permit only one animal or 50 chickens per half-acre in a rural residence district.

Ithaca, Cornell and Tompkins County to extend affordable Housing program page 5
Cornell University, Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca have committed to continue the Tompkins County Housing Fund, a successful joint initiative to assist in the development of local housing units that will remain affordable for low- to moderate-income households. The program, established in 2009, will continue for another six years, through 2021.

Solo play festival kicks off with an inspired look at motherhood page 8
Kitchen Theatre Solo Play Festival: “Mami Confessions” written and performed by Lorraine Rodriguez-Reyes; “Black Sheep” by Darian Dauchan (April 1-5); “Mother Land” by Michelle Courtney Berry and “June 16” by Ryan Hope Travis (April 8-12). Kitchen Theatre, 272- 0403, www.kitchentheatre.org.

These vampires live all too ordinary lives page 9
The undeniably clever “What We Do in the Shadows,” a vampire comedy currently playing at Cinemapolis, has received high praise from most critics. Yet something’s lacking in its bite.

Cancer Resource Center plays a pivotal role in our community’s resiliency page 10
The Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes (CRC) is a local nonprofit serving people living with or affected by cancer in Tompkins and surrounding counties. We provide a number of services to help preserve the energy and resources of individuals going through and following cancer treatment and those who care for them including one to one assistance at our offices on State Street in Ithaca and at Cayuga Medical Center. Other programs include support groups, wellness activities such as gentle yoga, caregiver support, and a free boutique offering wigs, head scarfs, hats, prostheses, bras, etc.

Sunday, March 22, 2015

TompkinsWeekly for the week of March 23rd

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Broadband Hits Speed Bump
While plans to provide universal access to high-speed Internet in Tompkins County are moving forward, there is one corner of the county that, because of topography and demography, presents problems in completing the project.

Sheriff Reports on Danby Incident
Tompkins County Sheriff Ken Lansing and Undersheriff Brian Robison on March 16 presented to the county legislature’s Public Safety Committee the detailed After-Action Report on the Barricading Incident at 127 Hornbrook Road in Danby—a twoand- a-half-day standoff that began the evening of Dec. 30, when sheriff ’s deputies attempted to serve a warrant on David Cady, and ended the morning of Jan. 2, when officers entered the home after Cady died of a selfinflicted gunshot wound.

Celebrating Women’s Works and the songs of whales page 2
The group Women’s Works of Ithaca will perform a celebration of music written by women for, from and about our environment on Sunday at 4 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church of Ithaca. The concert will include works by Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Shulamit Ran and winners of the Women’s Works 2015 Young Composer Competition, and humpback whale songs.

People’s Choice Sustainability Poll Announced page 3
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the Greenest of them all? That is the question local nonprofit Sustainable Tompkins wants you to answer in its new People’s Choice Signs of Sustainability Awards. Actually, the organization would like you to describe several of your favorite groups and projects that made a contribution to making our community more resilient, healthy and fair.

Legislature approves work for Pine Tree Road paths page 5
The Tompkins County Legislature took action at its March 17 meeting to preserve the Pine Tree Road Bike and Pedestrian Paths Project in the Town of Ithaca. By a vote of 11-2, legislators voted to amend the capital program to increase the project cost to $1,865,000 and appropriate more than $196,000 from the Highway Fund Balance to support the project.

Publication provides a forum for airing mental health issue page 8
The Mental Health Association in Tompkins County (MHATC) is accepting submissions from the community for the next issue of its literary and arts magazine “States of Mind,” produced to further the organization’s broader advocacy efforts.

Examining a life unraveling page 9
“The art of losing isn’t hard to master…” This quote from Elizabeth Bishop’s poem “One Art” arrives a little past the midpoint of the astonishing “Still Alice,” for which Julianne Moore won a deserved Oscar for her portrayal of Alice Howland, a woman in the prime of her life facing early-onset Alzheimer’s.

Downtown Ithaca Alliance presents annual awards page 10
The Downtown Ithaca Alliance (DIA) on March 17 honored several individuals and institutions that have made a special impact in our community in the last year.

Sunday, March 15, 2015

TompkinsWeekly for the week of March 16th

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Fracking Impacts Still in Play
Three months ago, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a ban on highvolume hydraulic fracturing in the state of New York. While contamination from active drilling is off the table, at least for now, there are other ways that hydrofracking puts local water resources at risk.

Forum to Focus on Education
A local community forum, “Because We Care,” will be held at Lansing Middle School on Thursday, March 19, at 6:30 p.m. Several local legislators are expected to attend, including Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton (D/WF-125th District) and Rep. Tom Reed’s (R-23rd District) representative, Joseph Sempolinski. Attendees from the Ithaca, Lansing, Dryden, Groton and TST BOCES school districts have already volunteered to speak on the effects of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s proposed budget on education.

Police and community members work to improve communications page 2
While the turmoil Ferguson, Mo., may seem like a problem that doesn’t exist in Tompkins County, issues of racism, distrust and division were topics of discussion last week among community members and Ithaca Police Department officers.

Town’s plans to protect source water includes a survey page 3
There’s a lot of popular slogans, but one that rings true regardless of your political leanings is that “Water if Life.” The human body is more than 60 percent water. Seventy percent of the Earth is covered with water, yet only 2.5% percent of that is fresh water—and that 2.5 percent is getting scarcer and harder to distribute equally.

New bowling alley has an old-school atmosphere page 5
Atlas Bowl, located on Main Street in Trumansburg, is more than just a bowling alley, according to coowner Todd Parlato. It’s first and foremost a restaurant and bar. But since the closest bowling alleys, according to Google Maps, are in Ithaca and Watkins Glen, the vintage lanes at Atlas Bowl should be a unique draw among area bowlers.

CSMA exhibit features local sculptors page 8
The Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA) announces the opening of Inherent Structure, a new show of large and small-scale works by contemporary sculptors Ann Reichlin and Chris Oliver. The exhibition will run through April 24.

Writer’s latest novel is getting transfered to film page 9
Last year Cara Hoffmann, an expat Ithacan, learned that her latest novel “Be Safe I Love You” was on the filmmaking market. In January, the 2015 Sundance Institute’s Global Filmmaking Awards presented grants to five emerging filmmakers. One of the winning directors was Haifaa Al Mansour of Saudi Arabia for her “Be Safe I Love You” film project.

Sunday, March 8, 2015

TompkinsWeekly for the week of March 9th

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City Plans Solar Energy Array
February set an all-time record for lowest average temperature in Ithaca, breaking the 1979 record of 11.3 degrees with a 10.1 average recorded at the Game Farm Rd weather station. Despite a severe lack of sun this winter, or maybe because of it, the City of Ithaca is thinking solar.

Comprehensive Plan Approved
The Tompkins County Legislature adopted the 2015 Tompkins County Comprehensive Plan on March 3, representing the first full update of the plan since it was first approved by the legislature 11 years ago

PTA team captures A\adult spelling beepage 2
More than 300 members of the community of all ages gathered for the Ithaca Public Education Initiative (IPEI) Adult Spelling Bee on March 1 in the Ithaca High School Wellness Center Gym.

Cornell education program gives ex-cons a new lease on life page 3
Richard Gleason was a criminal and an addict nearly all of his life. As an inmate at Auburn Correctional Facility, he enrolled in journalism and creative writing classes through the Cornell Prison Education Program, (CPEP) and his life began to veer in a new direction. Now out of prison, he owns his own business and is sober.

Ithaca studies revisions to industrial zone reguloations page 5
An amendment to the I-1 Zoning District in the City of Ithaca has recently been proposed in a memo written by the city’s Senior Economic Development Planner, Jennifer Kusznir. The amendment, if passed, would require that all new commercial construction projects built in Industrial Zones be two or more stories.

On KDT trips, half the fun is getting there page 9
Kids Discover the Trail! Ithaca (KDT) provides all Ithaca City School District (ICSD) students with unique learning experiences with the world-class Discovery Trail, and some of these happen in an unlikely place, outside the classrooms and field trip sites: on the bus.

Youth find a voice to express personal issues with race page 10
This a continuation of a story (Tompkins Weekly, Feb. 9) from youth and children. This article talks about bi-racial youth and children, and about both internal and external turmoil because of the first acknowledgement of skin color.

TC3 president provides a progress report with State of the College address page 11
Delivering his annual “State of the College” message to the Tompkins County Legislature on March 3, Tompkins Cortland Community College President Carl Haynes characterized the past year as one of notable accomplishments in the context of financial challenges.

Sunday, March 1, 2015

TompkinsWeekly for the week of March 2nd

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Road Salt Supplies Shrinking
Drivers beware. On Feb. 20, the Town of Ithaca announced that it is rationing the use of road salt for the rest of the snow season. To spread out what salt is left after last year’s severe winter and recent harsh weather, salt will mainly be applied on intersections and hills. The focus is on places where drivers require control for maneuvering, according to Jim Weber, highway superintendent of the town.

Meeting Airs Energy Alternatives
Creating a thriving economy through residential and small business expansion is important to any community that wants to see its area prosper. The environmental impact of growth and economic expansion is a big factor for local communities to consider as well. This was the subject of a presentation at the Dryden Town Hall on Feb. 19.

County receives a grant to fund food waste prevention page 2
The Tompkins County Solid Waste Division has received a nearly $15,000 waste reduction grant from the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I).

Youth get involved in farming and food supply initiatives page 3
A group of some 60 youth and adults came together on Feb. 24 at GIAC to share food and discuss ways to empower youth to be more active in farming and the food production system. Brainstorming in smaller groups evolved into a roomwide sharing of frustrations, ideas and hopes for the future.

EMTs come to the rescue in a most unusual fashion page 5
On Feb. 16, Evie Weinstein of Brooktondale, an EMT with Slaterville Ambulance, was aroused from sleep by her ambulance chief ’s voice: “Hey, Evie, we got a bird call!”

At the Kitchen, memories are lost and found page 9
The Kitchen Theatre’s latest production, “A Body of Water,” written by Lee Blessing and directed by Michele Minnick, is best compared to a Rubik’s Cube. It’s an enigma that’s seemingly impossible to find the correct solution to. You can’t put it down, but neither can you solve the puzzle, no matter how many different ways you manipulate the various components.

Despite common perceptions, China offers lessons in sustainable living page 10
Perception is a dangerous thing. It’s dangerous because too often perception is misperception, and misperception can distort reality, stifle the imagination and close doors to solutions.

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