911 CENTER MOVING TOWARD CONSTRUCTION
County Administrator Stephen Whicher narrated a presentation of the
design and location of the County’s proposed new Public Safety Communications
Center and accompanying radio tower. If approved, the 12,608-square-foot
building will be located on Brown Road south of the Ithaca Tompkins Regional
Airport. The final cost of construction has not been established, but the
project design firm, Egner Architectural Associates, estimates it at less
than $2.3 million. The one-story building will have a masonry exterior
and will house the integrated 911 emergency dispatcher center and the County’s
Department of Emergency Response. Whicher also outlined three options for
emergency communications tower locations: a short tower that would relay
a signal to an existing site on Mount Pleasant; a 125-foot tower located
near the new building; and a higher tower located to the north, near Snyder
and Etna Roads. The County has had ongoing discussions about the proposed
center with the Village of Lansing, which does not oppose the project.
Contacts: County Administrator Stephen Whicher, 274-5551; Communications
Capital Projects Committee Chair Barbara Blanchard, 277-1374.
BOARD APPROVES TC-3 BUDGET
The Board unanimously (13-0; Reps. Leslyn McBean and Nancy Schuler
were absent) approved the 2002-2003 Operating Budget for Tompkins-Cortland
Community College. The $20.5 million dollar budget, while 11.3 percent
higher than last year, does not increase the support provided by Tompkins
and Cortland counties. Tompkins' share of the college’s budget is estimated
to be $2,127,375 while Cortland's estimated share is $1,303,875. The Board
did not require TC-3 to reduce its County funding by 20 percent, as it
has directed most funded programs, because the college would lose more
than $1 million in state education aid if the counties were to decrease
their funding. Contact: Peter Penniman, Chair, Budget & Capital Committee,
387-5897.
COUNTY TO REVIEW PLANS FOR AN EXPANDED JAIL
The Board unanimously (13-0; Reps. Leslyn McBean and Nancy Schuler
were absent) agreed that the Public Safety Building Space Planning Committee
will review design proposals for more cells at the County jail. The committee
has determined that the jail should be able to accommodate up to 135 inmates.
The current capacity of 103 is dependent on temporary variances from the
New York State Corrections Commission, which has ordered Tompkins County
to build a larger jail. Contact: Tim Joseph, Chair, Public Safety Building
Space Planning Committee, 277-2519.
HEARING SET FOR CHANGE TO VACANCY RULES FOR BOARD
The Board set 5:30 p.m., August 6, in the County Courthouse, for a
hearing on a proposed change to the County charter that would require a
special election to fill a Board of Representatives vacancy that occurs
in the middle of a term. The proposed change would replace the current
policy of requiring the local elected body (town board or Common Council)
to appoint a Representative for that district. If approved by the Board
on August 6, the measure would go before the electorate in the general
election on November 5, 2002. The vote to set the hearing was 10 – 3 (Reps.
Richard Booth, Frank Proto and Thomas Todd voted no; Reps. Leslyn McBean
and Nancy Schuler were absent). Contact: Charter Review Committee Chairman
Michael Lane, 844-8440.
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