Newsline

N ews line

CITY ADMIN Gov. restructure: Will mayor be part-time or full-time?

As city officials continue their work to restructure city government, they’re eyeing 2024 as the timeline for the city manager role to take effect. In a discussion at the City Administration Committee meeting on Aug. 25, committee chair Deb Mohlenhoff said it makes more sense for the changes to start at the end of the current mayor’s term.

“I know this is a substantive change for the city, so if it passed referendum we’d need to figure out structure, staffing changes,” she said. “We’re thinking about this as a phased transition so it isn’t an abrupt change in how it’s all done.”

Residents would get the chance to approve or deny the change to the city charter which would create a city manager position in a councilmanager form of government. The plan also maintains the mayor’s position and he or she would remain the presiding member of Common Council, but the leader of the executive branch of the city would be the city manager.

During the discussion at City Administration, it was clear the committee members were still not 100% clear on which executive responsibilities will switch to the city manager and which will remain with the mayor.

“At some point in this process it’s going to be important to summarize this in columns,” committee member Graham Kerslick said. “What’s not [clear] from this is what the role of the mayor is. It’s very difficult to see that and that’s what people I think are going to be asking.”

Groton Olde Home Days this past Saturday. Featuring a performance by Dialed Action Sports, a BMX stunt show. (Photo: Casey Martin)

T a k e N o t e

▶ Airport food- Tompkins County has issued a request for proposals (RFP) seeking a new vendor to operate the café, bar, and gift shop at the Ithaca Tompkins International Airport. Proposals will be accepted through 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 22. Responses to this RFP and any other required documents shall be submitted online through the Tompkins County website at: http://www. tompkinscountyny.gov/purchase. Once on the website, select ‘Open Solicitations,’ which will take you to BidNetDirect where the RFP information is posted for the public. Bidders who do not have, or cannot obtain, internet access must contact the Purchasing Division, via email (preferred), purchase@tompkinsco.org or by telephone, (607) 274-5500 for further proposal submission instructions. A mandatory site visit is scheduled for all potential bidders at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 7 at the Ithaca Tompkins International Airport.

VOL.XLII / NO. 2 / September 1, 2021 Serving 47,125 readers weekly

FEATURES

Vax Facts������������������������������������������8

Cornell junior Jordan Tralins uses TikTok and Instagram to fight vaccine misinformation on college campuses across the country. Personal Health ...................................20 A voyage worth taking��������������21 “An Odyssey” sees the collaboration of the Hangar and The Cherry to create a modernized, relevant version of the classic tale Newsline ..................................................3-5 Opinion ........................................................6 Letters ........................................................7

ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT

Film .............................................................23 Times Table ..............................................24 Classifieds ...............................................26 On the Cover: Student Survival Guide. starts on page 11. Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash)

ON THE WEB

Visit our website at www.ithaca.com for more news, arts, sports and photos. Call us at 607-277-7000

Tanner H arding , M anaging E ditor , x1224 E ditor @ i thacatim E s . com J aime Cone , E ditor , x1232 s outh r E port E r @ flcn . org C asey m ar T in , Staff P hotogra P h E r p hotograph E r @ i thacatim E s . com C H ris i ber T, C al E ndar E ditor , x1217 a rts @ i thacatim E s . com a ndrew s ullivan , S P ort S E ditor , x1227 s ports @ flcn . org sT eve l awren C e , S P ort S Colu M ni S t st E v E s ports d ud E @ gmail . com m ars H all H opkins , P rodu C tion d ir EC tor /d ES ign E r , x1216 p roduction @ i thacatim E s . com Fai TH Fis H er , i nt E rn , x1217 ff ish E r @ i thacatim E s . com

s H aron d avis , d i S tribution front

J im b ilinski , P ubli S h E r , x1210 jbilinski @ i thacatim E s . com l arry H o CH berger , a SS o C iat E P ubli S h E r , x1214 larry@ i thacatim E s . com F reelancers : Barbara Adams, Rick Blaisell, Steve Burke, Deirdre Cunningham, Jane Dieckmann, Amber Donofrio, Karen Gadiel, Charley Githler, Linda B. Glaser, Warren Greenwood, Ross Haarstad, Peggy Haine, Gay Huddle, Austin Lamb, Steve Lawrence, Marjorie Olds, Lori Sonken, Henry Stark, Dave Sit, Bryan VanCampen, and Arthur Whitman THE ENTIRE CONTENTS OF THE ITHACA TIMES ARE COPYRIGHT © 2021, BY NEWSKI INC. All rights reserved. Events are listed free of charge in TimesTable. All copy must be received by Friday at noon. The Ithaca Times is available free of charge from various locations around Ithaca. Additional copies may be purchased from the Ithaca Times offices for $1. SUBSCRIPTIONS: $89 one year. Include check or money order and mail to the Ithaca Times, PO Box 27, Ithaca, NY 14851. ADVERTISING: Deadlines are Monday 5 p.m. for display, Tuesday at noon for classified. Advertisers should check their ad on publication. The Ithaca Times will not be liable for failure to publish an ad, for typographical error, or errors in publication except to the extent of the cost of the space in which the actual error appeared in the first insertion. The publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising for any reason and to alter advertising copy or graphics deemed unacceptable for publication. The Ithaca Times is published weekly Wednesday mornings. Offices are located at 109 N. Cayuga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 607-277-7000, FAX 607-277-1012, MAILING ADDRESS is PO Box 27, Ithaca, NY 14851. The Ithaca Times was preceded by the Ithaca New Times (1972-1978) and The Good Times Gazette (1973-1978), combined in 1978. F ounder G ood Times G aze TT e : Tom Newton

INQUIRING PHOTOGRAPHER

By Casey Martin

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU’RE ALWAYS WILLING TO PAY THE EXTRA PRICE FOR?

“GUAC!”

-Chloe Z & Maddie J.

“Resold Jordans.”

-Lincoln T.

“French Fries. GOOD French Fries.”

-James P.

“Oat Milk.”

-Julia H.

“If there is coffee around, I’ll spend the money.” -Victoria N.

SCHOOLS Superintendent: There are no good options this school year

The Ithaca City School District Board of Education hears you — and they’re worried about COVID too. At the Aug. 24 meeting, members of the board empathized with worried parents who have myriad concerns about returning to school amid a surge in COVID cases in Tompkins County.

Parent Kady Balich, who has two children at Beverly J Martin Elementary School, noted that the school district is planning on following the guidelines from the CDC and American Academy of Pediatrics, but that the Greater Ithaca Activities Center (GIAC) is following those same protocols and had 17 positive cases in children recently.

“So how will those [guidelines] keep our kids from catching COVID inside?” Balich asked. “You mentioned we don’t have enough teachers for in-person learning, so how will we keep our kids safe in classes ever bigger than before if we’re jamming more students into classrooms?”

Balich urged the board to think about the best way to bring students back to school this year, and said they need to provide remote options for students who can’t be vaccinated. Her partner, Stephanie Nawrocki, also spoke and said she feels like the district is not prepared for the new school year.

“The past two weeks have been filled with rage, fear, disappointment and anxiety,” she said. “I’m unsure how to keep our boys safe […] The district is unprepared for the trials ahead.”

Nawrocki specifically pointed out the shortages in teachers, custodians and nurses at the school level, and she asked the board to provide a list of vacant positions by school, as well as the list of medical professionals who are reviewing and approving remote learning applications.

Kathryn Cernera, the vice president of the Ithaca Teachers Association, also expressed concern regarding the sustainability of equity of the current proposed plan. At the last meeting, the board explained that remote options would only be available for a limited number of students who met specific medical criteria. Elementary students would have virtual learning with designated teachers, while secondary students will receive assignments via the online learning platform Canvas.

Cernera said some of the questions teachers had brought to her about the upcoming school year include: How will students receive instructions? How will all students attend class if a teacher is sick or quarantined? How will students struggling while learning remotely work with teachers if there are not designated office hours? How will remote students with individualized education programs get accommodations?

Corinna Loeckenhoff said she has a high schooler who is vaccinated and a middle schooler who is not, and said she’s particularly worried about middle school students. The middle schools comprise some students who are old enough to be vaccinated, and some who aren’t, creating a unique challenge.

“The delta variant is at least twice as contagious, and we’re going to bring back twice as many students with half the space,” she said. “Symptomatic testing is not enough […] The last line of defense is grouping students, it will be critical for limiting spread. We need to implement a system of grouping students in middle school to keep them safe.”

After being confronted with perceived flaws in the back to school plan and just general concerns from parents worried about their children, board members took the time to share their own thoughts — including the impossible decisions they’ve been forced to make.

“I spent every day thinking about how our actions could impact the health and well-being of these small people who do not have the choice of being vaccinated,” board member Patricia Wasyliw said. “Every day my heart breaks for what our children are losing and what our families fear. We don’t have good choices and we can’t solve this problem. We thought this year would be better — delta upended this.”

Wasyliw also noted that last year the board received vast criticism from parents regarding remote instruction and heard from a majority of teachers who did remote or hybrid instruction that they would rather leave their jobs than have to do it for another year.

Board member Erin Croyle said she felt the same fears and concerns as the rest of the parents, but assured them that the district was taking many precautions.

“I don’t want to sound like I’m making excuses for anyone, but between masking, testing and surveillance, ICSD is doing far more than most other places,” she said. “Nothing is going to be good enough anywhere. There is no good answer for any of this. I think nothing is perfect but we are doing what we can — we are exploring every option.”

Kelly Evans, new to the board, said she is living the same fear as other parents and encouraged people to continue approaching the board with concerns and ideas.

“We’re terrified sitting on this stage, our teachers are terrified walking into the classroom, our parents are terrified when they send their kids to school and terrified when they come home because they don’t know what they’re bringing back,” she said. “We discuss suggestions and take them very seriously […] Bringing your suggestions to us is key. There are things we may not think about […] We’re in this with you, nobody up here is against you.”

Across the board, members agreed on two main points: they’re worried too, and there’s no simple solution. Superintendent Dr. Luvelle Brown said he doesn’t feel like the district has gotten to make a good choice in a year and a half.

“Our leadership has been informed by data, science and decision,” he said. “That’s been the case for the last 18 months now. But I can’t think of the last time I made a good decision. Most of the decisions we’re making are choosing between bad and worse. To require everyone to wear masks isn’t a good decision — it’s a decision. But we made it. Offering virtual opportunity for the medically fragile was a decision — not a good one. We’re making decisions every day and it’s been tough.”

Deputy Superintendent Lily Talcott addressed the concerns about cohorting in middle school and said they are planning on having “teams” as much as possible, but it’s impossible to have perfectly isolated cohorts.

“At DeWitt I may be on Team A, but that doesn’t apply to things like P.E. or practical arts,” she said. “We only have one art teacher at DeWitt, so all the students will engage with that one art teacher.”

Talcott also clarified that all district vacancies are listed on ICSD’s website. -Tanner Harding

Ups There’s new life in the city as college students return and classes start. Is it a little crowded? Sure, but it’s good for the economy.

Downs 130 new COVID cases were reported Tuesday, Aug. 31 alone. Yikes. Get vaccinated if you haven’t and wear your masks anytime you’re indoors with others.

PLANNING

Proposed building for 401 East State St.

E State St apartments delayed after lack of board consensus

After receiving preliminary site plan approval at the July 27 Planning Board meeting, the 401 E State St. project stalled when it failed to receive final site plan approval at the Aug. 24 meeting.

The project, being built by McKinley Development Company, was aiming to receive approval from the Board of Zoning Appeals for a height variance this summer. Back in June, McKinley presented a 340,000 square-foot apartment building which included 267 parking spaces and 353 residential units. The developers were seeking a height variance for nine feet, hoping to build a 71-structure rather than the 62 allowed by zoning laws. At the time, engineer Brian Bouchard told the Board of Zoning Appeals that the variance was justified because of the site’s challenging topography and the improvements it will be making to the Six Mile Creek trail.

However, between vacancies on the Board of Zoning Appeals, the inability to attain a quorum for meetings and staunch disapproval from at least two of the board members, developers decided to forego the height variance.

At the Aug. 24 Planning Board meeting, developer Jeff Githens presented a significantly altered plan, which reduced the building by a full story. This consequently reduced the number of units from 353 to 321, and the number of parking spaces from 267 to 235. However, 130 of the spaces will still be allocated to the Gateway Center’s residents and office tenants, with the remainder dedicated to the new development’s residents. Githens said the footprint has not changed in any way, and that to achieve the reduction they converted portions of parking levels into residential units.

Githens also presented new public access to the stairs and elevator in one portion of the building to allow ADA accessibility to the planned Alpha Phi Alpha memorial that is set to be built adjacent to the property. Githens said they decided to go that route because there was an electrical transformer nearby that couldn’t, or wouldn’t, be moved by Frost Travis, who will be developing the memorial.

“It’s not our property, so we can’t control the decisions,” Githens said. “In discussions with Frost [Travis] and Alpha Phi Alpha, there is no desire to relocate those facilities because there’s a question on where they would go.”

Board member Mitch Glass was disappointed and asked if there was any room to change that, but Githens reiterated he’s done all he can do.

“I can only exert so much influence over our neighbors,” he said.

Overall, though, Glass said he was supportive of the changes and the building and wanted to vote to approve it that night.

“It reduces the mass which we’ve been talking about for over a year,” he said. “It’s a handsome building […] So I’m ready to move forward with this.”

Board member Garrick Blalock pointed out that the board, which is composed of seven members, only had four members present that night, so it would require a unanimous vote to move the project forward. However, it became clear that wasn’t in the cards.

Elisabete Godden has been vocal with her concerns for the building throughout the process and said she didn’t feel as though all of them had been addressed.

“I think I’ve made it pretty clear, and so have other members, what mitigations we’ve been looking for and I don’t see a significant change in the look of the gardens in the back or any other mitigations that came from you and not as a requirement of code or zoning,” she said.

She added that she hadn’t had enough time to take in all the new changes to feel comfortable voting.

“You just provided this last information at 4:30 p.m. today when the meeting started at 6 p.m.,” she said. “So yeah, we need to look at this further, the building department needs to look at it further. I’d like to see some of the same things I’ve said before.”

Glass was pushing for a vote, but Blalock recognized that it would not pass unanimously, which would ultimately squash the project.

“There are four votes needed to proceed, but I don’t want to call a vote that won’t

HEARD&SEEN

Heard The Health Department is hiring drivers, nurses and project assistants to help with the COVID response. Visit https:// www.tompkinscivilservice.org/civilservice/ vacancies for more information. Seen Two men threatened a taxi driver with a rifle before stealing the cab and later abandoning it in Schuyler County. If you saw anything, call IPD.

IF YOU CARE TO RESPOND to something in this column, or suggest your own grievances or praise, write news@ithacatimes.com, with a subject head “U&D.”

QUESTION OF THE WEEK Are you ready for fall?

5.0% Pumpkin spice is life. 10.0% Pumpkin spice flavored vaccines! Problem solved. 5.0% You had me at pumpkin spice.

80.0% No.

Next Week’s QuestioN: What was your favorite part of college?

Visit ithaca.com to submit your response.