The Ithaca Journal loves to publish on municipal consolidation, and today's push looks at Cortland, Candor, and Ithaca. They also have a list of the number of special districts in Tompkins County, many of which are in Dryden:
| District Type | # in Tompkins | # in Dryden | Which |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lighting Districts | 20 | 3 | Varna, Etna, Meadow/Leisure |
| Municipal Districts | 17 | 3 | Town of Dryden, Villages of Dryden and Freeville |
| Water Districts | 17 | 6 | Varna, Snyder Hill, Monkey Run, Turkey Hill, Hall Road, Royal Road |
| School Districts | 15 | 5 | Dryden, Ithaca, Lansing, Groton, Cortland |
| Fire Protection Districts | 12 | 2 | Dryden (4 departments), McLean |
| Sewer Districts | 10 | 7 | Varna, Cortland Road, Monkey Run, Turkey Hill, Peregrine Hollow, Royal Road, Sapsucker Woods Road |
| Drainage Districts | 3 | Don't know of any | |
| Ambulance Districts | 1 | Dryden Ambulance is townwide | |
| Business Development Districts | 1 | Dryden does have an Industrial Development Agency | |
| Solid Waste Districts | 1 | Think this is the whole county. |
This also reminds me that the Town stuck a lamppost at the intersection of 79 and Brooktondale Roads without forming a district a few years ago. I believe the lighting along the 13/366 overlap belongs to the state, as well.
There's also a blog piece on the history of school district consolidation that leaves me thinking we'd be wise to be cautious about running ahead into consolidations generally.
The health violations list is out.
Crossing from the county level to the state, Tompkins County Legislature Chair Martha Robertson was named to serve on the New York State Association of Counties' Presidential Commission on the State Takeover of Medicaid.
Posted by simon at August 7, 2010 5:41 AM in Ithaca Journal , public finance , water and sewer
The Dryden IDA is not a Business Development District. The only one in Tompkins County is the Ithaca Downtown Business Development District (the Commons and surrounding properties). Properties in that district receive a special tax which is used to promote the district.
A number of years ago the Village of Dryden adopted the necessary local law to permit Business Development Districts to be formed there. To date, Village businesses have not shown any interest in forming such a district.
The Town of Dryden does light certain intersections at Town expense even though there are no lighting districts at those locations. I suspect these include include the streetlights at the intersections of NYS Route 13 with Irish Settlement, Yellow Barn, and Ringwood Roads. Another example from a number of years ago was when the Town put a light at the intersection of NYS Route 38 and Springhouse Road after a bad accident there.