April 5, 2012

Fatal accident on Pinckney Road

I'm not sure what it is about the area near the Lower Creek / Pinckney Road intersection, but it seems to get more than its share of accidents. The most recent, Tuesday night, killed a Freeville man and injured four...

Posted by simon at 9:00 AM

March 23, 2012

Ticks advancing

Last year was a terrible year for ticks here. This year looks likely to be much worse. Update: That earned an Upstate 2050 story, though I know that for now we're not in the "red zone"....

Posted by simon at 6:46 AM

October 24, 2009

Seasonal flu clinic in Varna Wednesday

An earlier clinic was canceled because of lack of vaccine, but they seem to have it again: Tompkins County Health Department received a new supply of seasonal flu vaccine. They have scheduled a vaccination clinic for next Wed. (Oct 28)...

Posted by simon at 12:56 PM

October 12, 2009

Paying for natural gas regulation

While I suspect that the gas drillers would ultimately prefer that no one regulate them, thereby avoiding all regulatory costs, the exemption the Bush administration gave them from the Clean Water Act doesn't end the conversation. New York State is...

Posted by simon at 8:40 PM

September 28, 2009

Varna, Bethel Grove flu clinics cancelled

The Tompkins County Health Department had scheduled a flu vaccination clinic at the Varna Community Center for this Wednesday the 30th and another at Bethel Grove Family Center, but they've been cancelled because of a vaccine shortage....

Posted by simon at 2:06 PM

August 18, 2007

Storm dims lights

I came home last night to find my house without power, and apparently a lot of other people had similar problems with the weather. The night before last we'd watched a dead tree topple into our yard, so it's been...

Posted by simon at 12:15 PM

June 22, 2007

School, legislative sessions come to an end

For some reason, New York State's legislature comes to an end just as schools are getting out. Students finish with finals and a wave of celebrations; the legislature ends with negotiations and last-minute votes. The Journal reports on the achievements...

Posted by simon at 10:05 AM

October 5, 2006

Hattery on Empire Zone board

Tompkins County Legislator Michael Hattery was appointed to the Tompkins County Empire Zone board Tuesday night. The zone includes a few Dryden parcels at the 13/366 intersection and north of the Village of Dryden. (One thing that frustrates me is...

Posted by simon at 8:31 AM

September 5, 2006

Manufacturing declines; affordable housing needed

There was lots of news about the county and region over the holiday weekend. Neighboring Cortland County lost 51.7% of its manufacturing jobs between 1990 and 2005. Tompkins only lost 9%, but we had a lot less to start with....

Posted by simon at 8:35 AM

May 30, 2006

No trash-burning citations issued

It's been a quiet Memorial Day weekend for Dryden in the Ithaca Journal. At the county level, the news is also quiet: no citations issued for trash burning since the new rules banning most burning went into effect. On the...

Posted by simon at 8:02 AM

May 24, 2006

Asphalt prices to determine road paving

This morning's Ithaca Journal looks at the challenge of paving roads on a fixed budget when asphalt prices keep climbing: As major consumers of oil, which is used to create asphalt, highway departments have been heavily hit by increasing prices...

Posted by simon at 7:35 AM

May 5, 2006

Tick warning

I don't normally use my own medical adventures for this site, but today seems like a worthy exception. It's apparently an excellent year for ticks. I removed a tick from my dog Spring a couple of weeks ago, and was...

Posted by simon at 4:25 PM

March 20, 2005

School report cards, freedom of information

Yesterday's online edition of the Ithaca Journal was late, and it looks like I got caught up in other stories, so it's time to catch up with yesterday's paper. The Journal starts a six-part series on school report cards with...

Posted by simon at 8:32 AM

January 20, 2005

ICSD in TC IDA?

County Legislator Mike Lane is quoted in an article on the Ithaca City School District's interest in a seat on the Tompkins County Industrial Development Agency board, noting that because the IDA grants tax abatements, "We are directly affected by...

Posted by simon at 12:34 PM

January 15, 2005

Gay marriage suit, prescription cards

Freeville residents Terri Niedzialek and Nancy Chapman attended a State Supreme Court hearing on the suit by 25 same-sex couples that seeks to remove New York State's limitation of marriage to a man and a woman. Hospital issues motivated them:...

Posted by simon at 9:59 AM

January 14, 2005

Town buys land for town hall, possibly recreation

This morning's Journal follows up yesterday's articles on reasons to buy land for a new Town Hall with a report that the Town Board voted last night to approve it. I'll have more detail on the conversation about this issue...

Posted by simon at 4:08 AM

November 23, 2004

Suspect returned to Dryden

There's lots of news about Dryden in today's Journal. As they alluded on Saturday, the Journal reports that robbery suspect Mao Sheng Lin has been returned from Houston to Ithaca to face trial for a November 2003 robbery at the...

Posted by simon at 8:38 AM

November 22, 2004

Boxes of Joy

Today's Ithaca Journal has a picture of children packing gifts at the Bethel Grove Bible Church for the Operation Christmas Child program of Samaritan's Purse. An Etna resident, Susan Morse, and her dogs Kiss and Whisper, are noted in K-9...

Posted by simon at 7:53 AM

November 20, 2004

Thanks for flu clinic; suspect returned; inspiration

There are two Laurels in today's Journal about the flu clinic that Tompkins County held at the Hanshaw Road Armory on November 10th. Joan Hogan of Trumansburg thanks Alice Cole of the county health department for the clinic, while Cole...

Posted by simon at 8:25 AM