Common Council meets 6pm Wednesday, June 5 at Ithaca City Hall on the 3rd floor. You should visit us in person! Or watch us on channel 15 on Spectrum cable or online at ithacany.viebit.com. I also live-tweet meetings under username @duc2ndward.
You can read the agenda here. Lots of big items. Some of the major things we’ll be discussing are:
- Consolidated plan for 2019-2023 HUD (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) grant funding (Community Development Block Grant and HOME Investment Partnerships Program) that sets the following as priorities for HUD money:
- Improve and expand affordable housing
- Develop economic and employment opportunities
- Remove barriers to opportunity
- Strengthen neighborhoods
- Meet essential needs for food, shelter, and safety
- Affirmatively further fair housing
- Related, the 2019 City of Ithaca Action Plan for allocating 2019 HUD funds:
- INHS rehabilitation and small repair programs, Immaculate Conception School redevelopment
- The Learning Web’s Housing Scholarship Program
- Catholic Charities’ Security Deposit Assistance for Vulnerable Households, Night/Weekend Support for Women in Transition programs, and Immigrant Services Program
- Finger Lakes ReUse Job Skills Training and Ithaca ReUse Center expansion
- Historic Ithaca Work Preserve Job Training
- GIAC’s Hospitality Employment Training Program
- IURA Economic Development Loan Fund
- Community Arts Partnership Black Girl Alchemists Public Art Mosaic
- BJM Elementary School Housing for School Success Program (case manager to assist 26-30 homeless students)
- Human Services Coalition 2-1-1 information and referral program
- Conditional approval for Cayuga Medical Center (Carpenter Circle) Planned Unit Development (read about it at The Ithaca Voice)
- An e-scooter pilot program until November (read about this and the next item at The Ithaca Times)
- Resolution asking the New York State legislature to expand the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974 (modest rent stabilization measures) to municipalities outside the NYC area
- Ithaca Green New Deal, which sets goals to:
- Meet city government electricity needs with 100% renewable electricity by 2025
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- Reduce city vehicle fleet emissions by 50% by 2025
- Carbon neutrality across the city by 2030
- Create a climate action plan by 2020 to provide details on how to achieve these goals
- Adopt a Green Building Policy for new buildings in 2019
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- Adopt a Green Building Policy for existing buildings by 2021
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- Assign additional staff as needed to implement any plans
- Approving a salary for Acting Police Chief Dennis Nayor (the current Deputy Chief of Professional Standards)
- Resolution asserting the City of Ithaca’s Common Council’s support for reproductive rights
I hope to see you at the meeting or receive your feedback on any the issues we’re discussing: council@cityofithaca.org