JAIL REBUILD COULD HAPPEN IN TWO YEARS
The Board is looking at making a deal with the New York State Commission
of Corrections that commits the County to a construction project at the
County jail in 2004. Temporary variances at the Warren Road facility have
allowed the County to house more than the legal capacity. A contingent
from the County will go to Albany on March 19 to request a two-year extension
of the variances, in return for the County’s commitment to remodel or expand
the jail at the end of that time period. In two years, the County should
be able to measure the success of its various Alternatives to Incarceration
programs, while simultaneously studying design changes at the jail, said
Board Chair Tim Joseph. The variances – which date from 1996 and 1998 and
have been renewed several times – have allowed the County to exceed the
legal capacity of 72 inmates to a maximum of 103. Contact: Board of Representatives
Chair Tim Joseph, 274-5434, 277-2519.
BOARD WELCOMES TOWN SUPERVISOR
Ithaca Town Supervisor Cathy Valentino was the first in what may be
a long line of municipal leaders who have been invited to address the Board
of Representatives as a regular part of the agenda. Board Chair Tim Joseph
said he hoped that other supervisors and mayors will take advantage of
the Board’s invitation. He thanked Valentino for gathering approval from
her colleagues in other towns and villages. “For our part, we promise to
respond to any issues municipal officials bring to us,” said Joseph. Valentino
brought the Board a eucalyptus branch (the florist didn’t have an olive
branch, she said), tied with a yellow ribbon symbolizing friendship. Valentino
focused on planning as an area of mutual interest, and she proposed a temporary
intermunicipal committee to investigate what a more permanent group might
be able to accomplish. She also proposed starting talks about possibly
shifting some highway responsibilities from the County to the towns, and
examining the role of town representatives on County advisory boards. Contact:
Board of Representatives Chair Tim Joseph, 274- 5434, 277-2519; Ithaca
Town Supervisor Cathy Valentino, 273-1721, 272-5214.
COUNTY RATIFIES RECREATION PARTNERSHIP
The Board agreed unanimously to share in the annual cost of youth recreation
programs sponsored by the Recreation Partnership. The Partnership’s 2002
budget of $190,550 will be paid one-quarter by the County, one-quarter
by the City of Ithaca, and one-quarter by the Town of Ithaca. The remainder
of the cost is shared among the other participating municipalities, which
are the Towns of Caroline, Danby, Dryden, Enfield, Groton, Lansing, Newfield
and Ulysses, and the Village of Lansing. Contact: Daniel Winch, Chair,
Health and Human Services Committee, 564-7813, Nancy Zahler, County Youth
Bureau, 274-5310.
HEARING SET FOR TRIPHAMMER ROAD RIGHT-OF- WAY PURCHASES
A hearing will be held at 5:30 p.m., February 19, at the Board Chambers
in the County Courthouse regarding the possible acquisition by eminent
domain of about ten small parcels of land along North Triphammer Road.
A total of 88 narrow strips of land are needed as rights-of-way in order
to proceed with a planned project to widen and improve the road. Public
Works Committee Chair Barbara Blanchard explained that the County may have
to acquire the last few parcels through its right of eminent domain, a
last resort used only when negotiations with landowners fail. Most of the
North Triphammer landowners have agreed to sell their easements, Blanchard
added, at a total cost to the County of almost $100,000. Under eminent
domain, sellers are given fair market value for their property. Contact:
Barbara Blanchard, Chair, Public Works Committee, 277-1374.
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