Wednesday, December 13, 2006 1-3PM
You are invited! Join us for a delicious array of refreshments as you enjoy entertainment from the Beverly J. Martin’s Singers, Diamonds in the Rough, and the Senior Theatre Troupe.
Door prizes are provided by the Service League Shop.
Lifelong will be sponoring a special AARP Defensive Driving Course on Saturday, December 2nd & 9th. Participants are eligible for a 10% discount on their basic auto insurance and a waiver of up to four points on their license. In order to qualify, you must attend both days and be present the entire 8 hours of each session. While the course is designed for people over fifty, it is open to drivers of all ages. The fee is $10 which goes directly to AARP.
The class will be held from 1-5PM at Lifelong (119 West Court Street) with Instructor Dave Bandler. Call to register (607) 273-1511, class size is limited to 35. This will be the last class until April'07.
The Ithaca Alternative Gift Fair is returning for its third year in a row. The Fair offers holiday shoppers a way to honor friends and family while supporting charities and non-profit organizations in a festive atmosphere. This year, 30 organizations are participating. Each organization earns money by providing holiday shoppers with meaningful alternatives to crowded malls and "more stuff" – alternatives such as funding for cancer support groups, humanitarian supplies, music programs for kids, and safe, healthy day care. Gift prices start at $5 and are tax deductible. Shoppers may also choose to donate general support to organizations whose values align with theirs. For each donation, the giver receives a holiday card with a description of the organization and the gift. All funds collected at the event go directly to the participating organizations. Last year, over $14,000 was donated in just five hours. The 2006 Ithaca Alternative Gift Fair will be held on Saturday, December 2, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the parish hall of St. John’s Episcopal Church, 210 North Cayuga Street. Gifts may be previewed at www.ithacaaltgiftfair.org. Visit the Lifelong booth for great holiday gift ideas!
The Ithaca Alternative Gift Fair is sponsored by CRESP and Tompkins Community Action and is organized by an all-volunteer team. The Fair’s mission statement is: "To provide our community with a meaningful alternative to holiday gift-giving – one which celebrates personal charity, community health and well being, and the preservation of the planet." Organizations in the 2006 Ithaca Alternative Gift Fair: Better Housing for Tompkins County Catholic Charities of Tompkins County Cayuga Lake Watershed Network Cayuga Nature Center CRESP Center for Transformative Action Day Care & Child Development Council Family & Children’s Services Educate the Children Family Reading Partnership Finger Lakes Independence Center Foodnet/Meals on Wheels Heart’s Cry Hospicare and Palliative Services of Tompkins County Ithaca Breast Cancer Alliance Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services Ithaca Public Education Initiative Lehman Alternative Community School/Akwesasne School Learning Web Lifelong Light in Winter Loaves & Fishes Shared Journeys Social Justice Council, Unitarian Church Suicide Prevention & Crisis Services Sustainable Tompkins Tompkins Community Action Tompkins County Mental Health Association Village at Ithaca Women’s Community Building Women’s Opportunity Center
(Written by Marcia E. Lynch, Tompkins County Public Information Officer)
Only two people spoke at tonight's public hearing on Tompkins County's proposed 2007 budget. The hearing lasted only eight minutes, but produced the first publicly voiced taxpayer sentiment opposing the plan.
Speaking to legislators, Ithaca Town resident Clayton Moore criticized the tax increases contained in the proposal as excessive and claimed the Legislature has misled the public by proposing a budget that would raise taxes after having set a goal of no tax rate increase in 2007.
The 2007 tentative budget, as amended by the Legislature last month, would increase the tax rate by 2.6 percent and the total tax levy (the amount of county property tax collected) by just over 5 percent. In September, County Administrator Stephen Whicher presented a tentative budget that met the Legislature's zero-percent tax rate increase goal, but made it clear that he did not recommend its passage because of the drastic nature of the cuts needed to achieve that goal. The Legislature subsequently restored some of those reductions, producing the amended budget that is currently the focus of budget deliberations.
Mr. Moore maintained the County Administrator's opinion was given too much weight and urged legislators to constrain spending and pay attention to the needs of taxpayers.
City resident George Eberhardt called for reversal of budget reductions for the Tompkins County Public Library, whose budget would be cut by $88,000 in the tentative budget. He told legislators that budget cuts over the past several years have made it almost impossible to operate the library.
The Legislature can further amend the budget before final passage, and Legislature Chair Tim Joseph indicated that three proposed amendments have been filed so far.
Budget adoption is scheduled to take place at the Legislature's next meeting on Tuesday, November 21. That meeting begins at 5:30 p.m. at Legislative Chambers, 320 North Tioga Street in Ithaca.
Contact: Tim Joseph, Chair of the Legislature, 277-2519; Michael Koplinka-Loehr, Chair, Budget and Capital Committee, 257-2329
November 14, 2006 Public Hearing at 7PM at the County Courthouse
Tompkins County residents have a chance to tell the County Legislature what they think about the countys proposed 2007 budget at a public budget hearing to be held Tuesday evening, one week before the Legislature is scheduled to adopt the 2007 county budget.
The public hearing will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the County Legislative Chambers, located on the second floor of the Tompkins County Courthouse, 320 North Tioga Street, Ithaca.
The 2007 tentative budget, as amended by the Legislature last month, would increase the tax rate by 2.6 percent and the total tax levy by just over 5 percent. As currently proposed, the tax rate would increase in 2007 by .17, to $6.76 per $1,000 assessed valuation.
County legislators heard volumes of citizen input while we crafted the budget in October, notes Michael Koplinka-Loehr, who chairs the Legislatures Budget and Capital Committee. Very little has been heard since a tentative tax rate, levy and public service levels were set on October 17. Since silence is heard as assent by elected officials, the importance of making your voice heard NOW cannot be underestimated, since some adjustments will surely be made before a final vote occurs.
As a basis for budget deliberations, County Administrator Stephen Whicher had delivered to the Legislature a proposed 2007 budget which met the Legislatures goal of holding the tax rate steady in 2007. During budget review, Legislators made a number of changes, which included restoration of funding to a number of human services programs, which produced the package currently under review.
Tuesdays public hearing is the official opportunity during the budget process for the public to provide input on the budget. Legislators listened to public sentiment at a September Community Budget Forum, before budget review began, and during numerous budget committee and Legislature meetings over the past two months.
The final budget adoption vote is scheduled to take place at the Legislatures next meeting November 21.
We'd like to welcome Alice Heise, our new Watercolor Instructor who started in September. Watercolor classes are held on Tuesdays from 9AM -12Noon and 1-4PM. Alice has her BFA in Graphic Design & Illustration from Cornish College of the Arts and a MFA from The Union Institute. In addition to teaching watercolor she is a local illustrator. You can see more of her work by visiting www.AliceHeise.com. Brody Burroughs accepted a position in August at Ithaca College. Best of luck Brody!
