July 24, 2012

Why does New York State lean so Democratic?

Sure, part of it is New York City, but even if you take out the four boroughs of NYC where Obama demolished McCain 82-18 (leaving in Staten Island), Obama still carried the rest of the state by nearly ten points....

Posted by simon at 5:49 AM

June 27, 2012

Sounds like a Shinagawa win

The Tompkins County Board of Elections reports unofficially that Nathan Shinagawa won the Democratic Congressional primary here in Tompkins County by a little more than a 3-2 margin, and it sounds like the rest of the 23rd Congressional District went...

Posted by simon at 12:12 AM

June 26, 2012

Democrats and Republicans can vote today

Both registered Democrats and registered Republicans (but no one else) can vote in primary elections today in Dryden. Democrats have a Congressional primary between Leslie Danks-Burke, Melissa Dobson, and Nate Shinagawa. The winner will go on to face incumbent Tom...

Posted by simon at 8:53 AM

May 9, 2012

Republicans revolt against their own

Via One of Nine, I see that Congressman Richard Hanna, who currently represents Dryden but whose district drops us in January, has a challenger, Mike Kicinski, who claims to be "The Real Republican and Conservative." Similarly, and more practically for...

Posted by simon at 8:47 AM

May 1, 2012

Congressional Candidates Forum video

If, like me, you missed the April 25th forum for the Democratic contenders for the 23rd Congressional District, a complete video is now available. It includes candidates Leslie Danks Burke, Melissa Dobson, and Nathan Shingawa. Meanwhile, Republican Congressman Tom Reed...

Posted by simon at 7:01 PM

April 24, 2012

Republicans can vote today

Yes, that's a weird headline, and I suspect I'll have a similar one for Democrats on June 26th, when there will be a Congressional primary. The Democratic primary for President had one candidate, so there won't be voting, but the...

Posted by simon at 12:05 PM

April 20, 2012

Dryden schools offer budget, lack candidates

Well, a 2.86% tax levy increase is lower than I would have expected, given the challenges of the past few years. Somehow, though, only three candidates have signed up to run for four school board seats. Dryden High School will...

Posted by simon at 6:35 AM

March 20, 2012

Welcome to the 23rd Congressional District

The final Congressional maps are in from the Special Master process, and Dryden (and all of Tompkins County) is now in a district that goes from here to the Pennsylvania border by Jamestown. Special Master's Congressional districts map, 23rd District....

Posted by simon at 12:45 PM

March 8, 2012

Special Master's maps

Sorry for the delay on these. They came out Tuesday (much earlier than expected!) and I've been sick. At least Upstate, the special master's proposals look more coherent to me than the various proposals from the legislature. Special Master's Congressional...

Posted by simon at 6:32 AM

February 22, 2012

Anchutz attorney blusters a lot

I didn't expect attorney and lobbyist Tom West to be happy about losing the first round of the Anschutz lawsuit, but I also didn't expect this in the New York Times: The Dryden case, however, is sure to prompt further...

Posted by simon at 12:10 PM

February 21, 2012

Dan Lamb for Congress

I'm delighted that Dryden resident Dan Lamb is running for Congress. No one knows what the district lines will look like, thanks to the New York State Legislature's chaos, but it would be great to see Dan in Washington. Dan...

Posted by simon at 6:33 AM

January 27, 2012

Because redistricting wasn't complicated enough

U.S. District Court Judge Gary Sharpe has ordered that New York State have a June 26th primary. Since we still don't even have congressional district maps, this will be complicated. (I think a June primary is a good idea generally,...

Posted by simon at 4:53 PM

January 17, 2012

Closed for SOPA and PIPA

Yes, this may seem far from Dryden, but if SOPA (H.R. 3261), PIPA (S. 968), or something similar passes, you may not be able to read the existing Living in Dryden site much longer, and I'd have to write anything...

Posted by simon at 7:00 PM

January 2, 2012

Hanna supports SOPA

Update: It could be worse. I could have called Senator Schumer. Even the added explanation in the update at the bottom there doesn't make this any better. A few weeks ago I called Congressman Richard Hanna's office to register my...

Posted by simon at 12:06 PM

November 23, 2011

Thankful for Dryden, and a few things left to work on

Successful Dryden Town Board candidate Linda Lavine wrote a thank-you letter in today's Ithaca Journal: Every workday, as I drive 12 miles through the back roads of Dryden, I give thanks for the beauty of this land. I pass homes,...

Posted by simon at 12:22 PM

November 18, 2011

Congressman Hanna coming to Varna Monday

Congressman Richard Hanna will be coming to the Varna Community Center, 943 Dryden Road, next Monday, November 21st, from noon to 1:30pm. This was canceled at one point, but a wave of robocalls suggests it's on again. From what I...

Posted by simon at 3:55 PM

November 12, 2011

Where the fracking conversation is now

Peter Mantius of the DC Bureau has an overview of where the fracking battles are after Friday's court hearing and Tuesday's elections....

Posted by simon at 8:07 AM

May 23, 2011

TC3 commencement Thursday

Tompkins-Cortland Community College will be celebrating commencement this Thursday at 6:00pm: According to the college, 291 of the graduates are residents of Tompkins County, 152 are residents of Cortland County and 48 are residents of Tioga County. In the Journal's...

Posted by simon at 6:08 AM

April 19, 2011

Close-ups and wide shots

[There is a Dryden hook to this story....] It seems like half the point of protesting these days is disputing which side had more people there. Yesterday saw a "Tax Day" protest in downtown Ithaca outside of Congressman Maurice Hinchey's...

Posted by simon at 6:58 AM

April 18, 2011

Hog heaven?

Lately, I've mostly worried about threats to Dryden that come with large wallets and bad ideas, but some problems have humbler origins. This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that feral hogs are moving into the area, and "breeding in three New...

Posted by simon at 12:04 PM

March 17, 2011

Congressman Hanna votes against defunding NPR

I just noticed that Richard Hanna was one of a very few Republican Congressional representatives to vote against defunding National Public Radio. The bill passed 228 to 192. Update: Contrasting reactions at Dryden Daily KAZ and One of Nine....

Posted by simon at 4:34 PM

March 16, 2011

Primary challenge for Congressman Hanna?

I think I've made a pretty strong reputation with my fellow Democrats for being cranky, unexcited about supporting candidates when I have doubts. I don't post signs for Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton. I lit into former Congressman Mike Arcuri at a...

Posted by simon at 7:19 AM

February 23, 2011

Political Patriot Plagiarism

I've been reasonably pleased (or at least much less annoyed than I expected to be) with our new Republican Congressman Richard Hanna. I was particularly happy he opposed extending provisions of the badly-misnamed PATRIOT Act recently. Unfortunately, it seems that...

Posted by simon at 7:45 AM

January 8, 2011

Violent rhetoric

All of sudden I'm flashing back to this cheerless quote from the July zoning meeting: "I'm not a developer, and I think our freedoms are being infringed upon here, okay? You guys want to have control, control, control, go someplace...

Posted by simon at 3:49 PM

October 29, 2010

More than just Republican signs at Clark's Food Mart

Republican Congressional candidate Richard Hanna and Assembly candidate Tom Reynolds were at Clark's yesterday too, the Journal reports....

Posted by simon at 6:12 AM

October 12, 2010

Dryden Fire Hall to host political events

It'll be a busy couple of weeks at 26 North Street, Dryden, though I can't make either of these events: The 912 Taxed Enough Already of Cortland and Tompkins County group will be sponsoring a ReValue America event Wednesday October...

Posted by simon at 12:28 PM

TIME Magazine looks at Arcuri/Hanna

The 24th Congressional District race gets a look from media that don't usually notice us....

Posted by simon at 9:25 AM

September 23, 2010

Cortland Produce coming to Dryden?

I'd just noticed the disappearance of Ithaca Produce, but now it looks like that building may soon be in use for its intended purpose once again. Cortland Produce is considering moving to that distribution facility, if they can sort through...

Posted by simon at 7:27 AM

September 21, 2010

Catching up with the Journal

Travel and work have put me behind, so here's a quick catching up with the last few days of the Ithaca Journal. Little of it is specific to Dryden, but it's all relevant. Dryden schools got dinged by the state,...

Posted by simon at 12:23 PM

September 14, 2010

Primary voting today

Democrats, Republicans, and Conservatives all have primary elections today. Polls will be open today from noon to 9:00pm. Remember that you can't campaign inside of the polling places, and that this includes things like T-shirts, signs, and buttons. Everyone is...

Posted by simon at 11:51 AM

September 3, 2010

Senator Gillibrand holds agriculture conversation

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand visited Jerry Dell Farm yesterday, looking for input on the 2012 farm bill. The crowd had lots of suggestions, from biofuels beyond ethanol to clearer and better-financed farmland protection to making the market for milk make some...

Posted by simon at 9:35 AM

September 1, 2010

Senator Gillibrand to visit Dryden Thursday

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand will be kicking off her statewide agricultural listening tour this Thursday in Dryden, at 1:00pm at the Jerry Dell Farm, 276 Simms Hill Road. Tonight, there's a forum for Sheriff candidates Peter Meskill and Ken Lansing, who...

Posted by simon at 7:24 AM

August 5, 2010

LaRouche supporters table in Freeville

When I first heard there were big "Impeach Obama" signs in Freeville, complete with the Hitler mustache on Obama, I was worried that the worst of Tea Party excesses had arrived in Dryden. When I got to Freeville, though, I...

Posted by simon at 3:26 PM

July 12, 2010

Fire in Etna connected to shooting in Ithaca?

Fire investigators will be working overtime to determine the cause of a fire early Sunday morning at the Etna house of Bryan Bangs, the Ithaca Police Sergeant recently cleared in the February Shawn Greenwood shooting. Officers were trying to arrest...

Posted by simon at 7:44 AM

July 9, 2010

Arcuri discusses gas regulation work in Dryden

Congressman Michael Arcuri came to Dryden Town Hall Tuesday to discuss oil and gas drilling stormwater regulations he'd seen through the House. Mike Arcuri discusses drilling regulation. My favorite point Arcuri made was that this isn't singling out oil and...

Posted by simon at 12:08 PM

June 14, 2010

Dairy Day Success; Reminder of Veterans' Highway

Dryden Dairy Day was definitely a hit this year - reasonable weather, large crowds, a busy parade and lots happening in Montgomery Park. Ralph, a standard poodle, will be honorary Mayor of Dryden until next year, when Kiwanis holds their...

Posted by simon at 7:32 AM

May 11, 2010

Ag policy needs teardown, rebuild

Every now and then the people who say that government is the problem are right, though perhaps not in the way they think. Two recent Ithaca Journal articles made clear just how strange our federal agriculture policy has become. The...

Posted by simon at 9:35 PM

April 22, 2010

Cortland County Dems on Arcuri, healthcare

It's a little to our east, but the Washington Post has a piece on Cortland County responses to the 'no' healthcare vote that Congressman Michael Arcuri cast last month....

Posted by simon at 10:30 AM

March 29, 2010

What Arcuri's "No" vote means for his future

It's kind of a horserace article, and it doesn't quite get as far west as Dryden, but I think this is a pretty clear portrait of the 24th Congressional District's current political state after Mike Arcuri's "no" vote on healthcare...

Posted by simon at 12:08 PM

March 3, 2010

Arcuri now a 'No' on healthcare?

Update: This sounds a bit more uncertain. Congressman Mike Arcuri won't be supporting healthcare reform in this round of votes: U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, said Tuesday he would vote against the Senate version of the health care bill that...

Posted by simon at 12:46 PM

January 2, 2010

Antiwar opponent for Arcuri?

It looks like Congressman Mike Arcuri may have an antiwar opponent. The surprise in that, though, is that Logan Bell would run as a Republican, although he's apparently a Constitution Party member. (Update: More here.) He's not merely against the...

Posted by simon at 8:17 PM

September 12, 2009

Arcuri Town Hall flows smoothly in Varna

Congressman Mike Arcuri came to Varna yesterday because he "wanted to come home and get beat up by my constituents - right, left and center." While it was definitely a very civil town hall event, without much beating up, we...

Posted by simon at 7:48 AM

September 10, 2009

Congressman Arcuri to speak in Varna tomorrow

Our Congressman, Mike Arcuri, will be holding a town hall meeting on healthcare at the Varna Community Center (map) tomorrow, September 11th, from noon to 1:30pm....

Posted by simon at 12:02 PM

November 5, 2008

3-2 or better, mostly, for Democrats so far

Last night's election results were astounding, though absentee ballots still will affect the final results. I seem to be too tired to do real math, but these are worth sharing. For President, Barack Obama received 3737 votes to John McCain's...

Posted by simon at 4:05 PM

November 3, 2008

Arcuri, Barber visit Dryden on last day of race

Congressman Michael Arcuri and State Senate candidate Don Barber both swung through Dryden on this final day before voting. Barber supporters held a rally at Time Square at Dryden's Four Corners intersection, while Arcuri visited Tompkins-Cortland Community College and the...

Posted by simon at 9:21 PM

June 3, 2008

Tompkins County and Hillary Clinton

The big political news of the moment here is Tompkins County Democratic Committee Chair Irene Stein's decision to endorse Hillary Clinton. Stein is a super-delegate to the Democratic National Convention, because the New York State Democratic Committee elected her to...

Posted by simon at 12:22 PM

May 13, 2008

Budgets, assessments, garbage trucks, decisions

This morning's Ithaca Journal is quiet on Dryden but has lots of regional and county news. In county budget news, the County took a step away from administering the WIC program directly with a committee vote. (The headline is misleading,...

Posted by simon at 8:37 AM

May 9, 2008

Yesterday in photos

I'm way behind on everything, but hopefully these photos will give you some idea of the past few days. Well, all of them are from yesterday, except for the obligatory (and fun) Sungiva photo. Sungiva stretches out. Peace march banner....

Posted by simon at 5:12 PM

April 7, 2008

More on missing convenience-store manager

This morning's Journal reported on Bethanie Dougherty's disappearance from her home in Killawog, talking with her co-workers at the Freeville Xtra Mart - that'd be the one on 13/366. There is as yet no sign of her, but her family...

Posted by simon at 10:03 PM

February 21, 2008

West Dryden boy doing better

The Journal has an update on Robbie Busby, reporting that his cancer is in remission. He'll be heading back to Freeville Elementary School after fighting off Burkitt's lymphoma and getting support from the community through a benefit concert earlier this...

Posted by simon at 12:26 PM

February 18, 2008

Dryden Republican primary details

The primary results for the Republicans are less regionally inflected. DistrictDescriptionPaulRomneyHuckabeeMcCain 1+5West Dryden, Etna9351348 2Freeville8352949 3+7East and North of Village of Dryden, to McLean6252152 4+9Varna to Ellis Hollow Road18271461 6Village of Dryden west of 13/3811382858 8Snyder Hill, Bethel Grove2221435 10Southeastern...

Posted by simon at 3:25 PM

Dryden Democratic primary details

I was curious what the district-by-district breakdown of election results was, given that Groton Democrats seemed unified in cheering on Hillary Clinton while Dryden Democrats were divided. The Board of Elections has posted final results, so I can take a...

Posted by simon at 1:14 PM

February 9, 2008

"Democracy broke out"

I have to love this AP story on the New York Primary: First there's the title: "Analysis: Despite bosses' plans, voters won in NY primary". Then, in the details, we get to remember why the primary moved up, and what...

Posted by simon at 1:30 PM

February 8, 2008

Manos convicted

Last night, the jury found Marie Manos guilty of the second-degree murder of her niece on May 15th. (I'd missed noting yesterday's article on the defense in the trial.) On the opinion page, Maureen Brull of Dryden encourages readers to...

Posted by simon at 8:55 AM

February 6, 2008

Obama wins in Dryden, Tompkins

I'd suspected that Barack Obama would win Tompkins County (and lose New York State), but I hadn't expected it to be as broad as last night's results indicate. In Dryden, Obama beat Hillary Clinton 804-717, while countywide it was 6593-4647....

Posted by simon at 8:33 AM

February 5, 2008

Primary polls

It's presidential primary day, and polling places will be open from noon to 9:00pm. Please remember that in New York State, only voters registered to a party can vote in that party's primary, so only Democrats can vote in the...

Posted by simon at 8:09 AM

February 4, 2008

More Manos trial news

It's been a busy few days, and I need to catch up with the Journal before it becomes too much to catch up with... Saturday's paper had the latest testimony from the Manos trial, and today's has reflections on the...

Posted by simon at 12:25 PM

January 30, 2008

Jazz Knights tonight

Cathy Wakeman's Dryden Town Talk reminds readers that the United States Military Academy Jazz Knights will be at the Dryden High School auditorium tonight, with a workshop for students at 6:00pm and a concert at 7:00pm. Wakeman also looks at...

Posted by simon at 12:54 PM

January 23, 2008

Lynching challenge

Today's Ithaca Journal seems quiet about Dryden, except for a letter from Gary Simmons of Dryden complaining about complaints about the use of the word lynching....

Posted by simon at 12:24 PM

January 18, 2008

Clinton supporter; changing bus schedules

Susan James of Ithaca (really Bethel Grove) writes to support Hillary Clinton for president in this morning's Journal. The paper also notes that TCAT buses will be making some schedule changes effective Sunday, the 20th....

Posted by simon at 12:38 PM

January 17, 2008

Deploying from Dryden

This morning's Ithaca Journal has a report on the send-off ceremony for the 108th Infantry's Company D held yesterday at the National Guard Armory on Hanshaw Road. 80 local residents are off to Fort Bragg, NC for two months of...

Posted by simon at 8:51 PM

January 15, 2008

Dangers on the road

Today's Dryden news in the Journal is mostly road-related. There's a one-car accident at Mott and North roads, a DWI arrest for a Freeville man, and a letter from Nari Mistry of Dryden urging TCAT buses to drive more carefully....

Posted by simon at 8:47 AM

December 26, 2007

Quiet holiday

The Ithaca Journal and Cortland Standard both seem pretty quiet this holiday. On yesterday's opinion page, Murray Cohen of Dryden asks about President Bush's late interest in the Israel-Palestine peace process. Today, Maureen Brull of Dryden encourages readers to spread...

Posted by simon at 10:37 AM

December 22, 2007

West Dryden boy fights cancer, with help

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on Robbie Busby's battle against Burkitt's lymphoma, and the community support his family has found to help with the fight. As usual, the complicated and largely useless Voice Your Choice electricity supply program hasn't exactly...

Posted by simon at 6:06 AM

December 19, 2007

Preserving Six Mile Creek

Between some travel and connectivity problems, I'm a little behind. To catch up... Yesterday's paper reports that the Finger Lake Land Trust will be establishing a 138-acre nature preserve near the headwaters of Six Mile Creek. Looking at the map,...

Posted by simon at 11:29 AM

December 12, 2007

TC3 seeks dormitory expansion

TC3 is hoping to build two more residence halls, adding 268 beds to its current 546. There are a few obstacles to sort out, mostly notably the moratorium on further development in the Cortland Road Sewer District. I was happy...

Posted by simon at 6:05 AM

December 5, 2007

Lake Huron sends us snow

Every now and then I get into a conversation about lake-effect snow, and I usually talk about how Lake Erie sends snow to the Buffalo area while Ontario sends snow to the south and east. Somehow, yesterday, Lake Huron got...

Posted by simon at 9:31 AM

November 19, 2007

Arcuri visits Dryden

I couldn't make it, but today's Ithaca Journal has an nice article on Congressman Michael Arcuri's visit to the Dryden Town Hall on Saturday. I'm especially happy to see that a lot of the folks quoted in the article are...

Posted by simon at 8:56 AM

November 13, 2007

National and local

I just sent this to a local political mailing list, but think it serves as a good explanation of why I focus on Dryden politics and not on the usual national issues that people think of as "politics": Maybe I'm...

Posted by simon at 10:51 AM

September 25, 2007

Candidates forum tonight at seven

This morning's Ithaca Journal print edition notes tonight's candidates forum in its Briefly in Tompkins section. The forum will be at the Dryden Fire Station at 7:00pm, and will be moderated by the League of Women Voters. On the opinion...

Posted by simon at 12:11 PM

September 11, 2007

BMX bike theft; politics

This morning's Journal reports something I've seen very rarely: a theft committed by a resident at the William George Agency, better known as George Junior Republic. A BMX bike was apparently stolen from Stewart Park in Ithaca August 13th by...

Posted by simon at 8:17 AM

August 14, 2007

SPCA reduces dog fees, changes policies

A lot happened while I was in the Adirondacks. The SPCA had a half-price dog adoption weekend, moving 13 dogs into new homes. They've also changed their policies about who can adopt dogs: While the half-price adoption offer is temporary,...

Posted by simon at 12:38 PM

July 10, 2007

Local Iraq war perspective

This morning's Journal has a letter from David and Christine Bravo-Cullen of Dryden, reporting their daughter's perspective on what's happening in Iraq. The Monitor reports on a Dryden man's arrest in Ithaca for DWI. There are also a few stories...

Posted by simon at 5:33 PM

July 3, 2007

NYSEG building prospects

This morning's Journal reports that the County is considering the old NYSEG building as a new home for the Health Department. As convenient as that would be for me - I need to call them to find out if they...

Posted by simon at 12:20 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

June 20, 2007

Summer in Dryden

Cathy Wakeman declares the start of summer now that Dairy Day has passed. She reports on the upcoming Music in the Park events, starting tonight at Montgomery Park from 6:00pm to 8:00pm with Steve Southworth and the Rockabilly Rays, and...

Posted by simon at 9:14 AM

June 18, 2007

Surveillance camera leads to burglar arrest

This morning's Ithaca Journal Monitor suggests that surveillance cameras can be useful at home when there are burglars around. An Etna man seems to have caught his neighbor on tape in his house, and the man then confessed to an...

Posted by simon at 8:37 AM

May 14, 2007

Talking about Democratic Presidential candidates

The Dryden Democrats will be meeting Wednesday, May 16th, to discuss the 2008 presidential race. We had a great conversation two months ago, and hope to see new and interesting angles that have emerged since then. We'll meet at 7:30pm...

Posted by simon at 12:31 PM

May 3, 2007

Freeville heads right

This morning's Ithaca Journal brings two letters to the editor from the conservative side of the political spectrum. Edgar Seymour of Freeville calls for the prosecution of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for her recent trip to Syria, while...

Posted by simon at 8:44 AM

April 26, 2007

Dryden's 15% dropout rate

This morning's Ithaca Journal has an article on high school dropout rates that oddly doesn't list the Dryden school district's rate, but does say that "Dryden superintendent Mark Crawford was not available for comment". Perhaps they didn't want to print...

Posted by simon at 5:16 PM

April 9, 2007

I'm dreaming of a white Easter

I'm a little surprised that the Journal doesn't mention yesterday's surprising Easter weather, except in an article from Atlanta. We went for a walk on the Jim Schug trail and found it covered in white snow, and there are still...

Posted by simon at 12:51 PM

April 6, 2007

The problem with paying attention

I'm happy to report that this weblog is succeeding in many of the ways I'd hoped it would when I first started. Those successes are generally modest - people hear of things they wouldn't have heard of otherwise, and sometimes...

Posted by simon at 12:26 PM

March 19, 2007

Democratic Presidential conversation Wednesday

The Dryden Democrats will be meeting Wednesday, March 21st at 7:30pm at the Dryden Town Hall, 65 East Main Street (Route 392), Dryden (map). We'll be opening with a brief discussion of how Tuesday's Village of Dryden election went, and...

Posted by simon at 12:47 PM

Dryden residents march for peace

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on Saturday's march for peace. I joined about thirty people marching from Belle Sherman down to the Commons, many of whom had carpooled from the Village of Dryden or walked in from Snyder Hill and...

Posted by simon at 12:35 PM

March 17, 2007

Dryden marching for peace

Dryden residents will be marching today in Tompkins County Marches for Peace, an Ithaca Peace Vigil project. There are multiple places Dryden residents can join, including: carpooling at the Village of Dryden Eckerd at 1:30pm; carpooling at the Village of...

Posted by simon at 8:53 AM

March 10, 2007

Assessment season opens

Today's news seems to be at the county or state level. It's assessment season again, with houses now assessed at 85% of full value. 1500 property owners will be getting notices that the value of their property has increase. Next...

Posted by simon at 8:10 AM

March 8, 2007

Online Monitor differs

Reading the print edition of this morning's Journal, there's no sign of the many Dryden citations that seem to have gotten into trouble in the online edition of the Monitor. A burglary at TC3, an assault, and a second-degree rape...

Posted by simon at 8:43 AM

March 6, 2007

Damaged house unsafe for determination

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that the Hickory Circle home that burned Sunday is unstable, making it difficult to investigate the cause of the fire. Varna Fire Chief Natan Huffman reports that: "The risk of the investigation is greater than...

Posted by simon at 6:36 AM

March 5, 2007

Fire on Hickory Circle

A house on Hickory Circle burned early Sunday morning, sending seven people to the hospital. The Varna Volunteer Fire Company responded to a call about smoke, finding the house catching fire shortly after their arrival. Lack of water meant that...

Posted by simon at 8:02 PM

February 17, 2007

Arcuri speaking in Lansing this morning

This morning's Ithaca Journal notes that Congressman Michael Arcuri will be speaking on energy issues in Lansing this morning. (I can't make it, unfortunately - I'd agreed to be at the History House as a docent this morning.) There's more...

Posted by simon at 9:15 AM

January 18, 2007

North Road man arrested

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that a 51-year-old North Road man was arrested for first-degree sexual abuse, "alleged to have forcibly touched a female in a sexual way without her consent" on Tuesday. An article on a cancelled Trumansburg skate...

Posted by simon at 7:20 AM

November 20, 2006

Arcuri "awestruck"

There isn't much in this morning's Journal about Dryden, except for a piece on our new Congressman. Michael Arcuri is in Washington, excited....

Posted by simon at 12:39 PM

November 6, 2006

Candidate perspectives

The Dryden Courier has always done a great job of giving candidates for local office space to explain who they are and what they're hoping to accomplish, and I strongly recommend finding a copy if you haven't yet decided. The...

Posted by simon at 7:20 AM

Shopping spree, candidates

I never got to cover Friday's Ithaca Journal, which included a heartwarming story of a Cortland man's shopping spree for the Dryden Kitchen Cupboard. Dennis Wright won the spree - at Clark's Food Mart - from Dryden Rotary. Kitchen Cupboard...

Posted by simon at 7:00 AM

October 30, 2006

Still friends

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that congressional opponents can stay friends, as Democrat Mike Arcuri and Republican Ray Meier call each other Sam and Ralph, after a classic Warner Brothers cartoon. Now that's deep news analysis. There's an update on...

Posted by simon at 6:40 PM

October 23, 2006

Mike Sylvia gets noticed - in Utica

I don't think the Ithaca Journal has noticed Libertarian Congressional candidate (and Etna resident) Mike Sylvia since they reported on his endorsement by the Ithaca Libertarians back in July. The Utica Observer-Dispatch writes about Sylvia today, contrasting his low-key low-budget...

Posted by simon at 8:34 PM

October 21, 2006

How low can the national Republicans go?

Misdialed phone numbers are apparently now grounds to attack your opponent: Three Central New York television stations have chosen not to run an advertisement from the National Republican Congressional Committee that alleges Michael Arcuri made calls to a sex hotline...

Posted by simon at 9:29 AM

October 20, 2006

Meier visits Republicans in Dryden

Most of the Dryden news in this morning's Ithaca Journal is political. Republican Congressional candidate Raymond Meier visited the A-1 Restaurant yesterday to talk with around 20 Republicans about the race. On the opinion page, Gary Rith of Etna writes...

Posted by simon at 12:53 PM

October 19, 2006

Robo-polling Dryden?

This morning's Ithaca Journal looks at automated polling techniques being used in the Congressional race and questions about the validity of data collected by touch-tone keypad. In the print edition, Frank Row of Dryden is pictured at the top of...

Posted by simon at 12:09 PM

October 14, 2006

Exploring the Sheriff's Race

This morning's Ithaca Journal looks at the race for Tompkins County Sheriff, profiling Tim Little, Peter Meskill, and Brian Robison. Robison is also noted in Briefly in Tompkins for declaring that Dryden resident Bill Finnerty would be his undersheriff if...

Posted by simon at 3:53 PM

October 13, 2006

"As New York goes, so goes the nation?"

It's not specifically Dryden, but I'm not used to seeing analysis of New York State's internal political gyrations anywhere far beyond here. This Washington Post article looks at the state of the Republican Party here, and recognizes that there's more...

Posted by simon at 12:02 PM

October 11, 2006

More blogging on the 24th District Congressional race

How many readers of this blog get the Utica Observer-Dispatch? Probably a few, mostly around Utica. They seem to be the paper with the most reporting on the 24th District Congressional race, and they now have a blog covering the...

Posted by simon at 7:19 PM

October 7, 2006

Congressional race overview

This morning's Ithaca Journal looks at the 24th district Congressional race, highlighting candidates Michael Arcuri and Ray Meier but apparently forgetting Etna resident and Libertarian candidate Mike Sylvia. There's also a look at the national activity around this seat, and...

Posted by simon at 11:46 AM

September 4, 2006

New York State median incomes fall 2.7%

Here's a story worth contemplating on Labor Day. Update: Er, no. The Detroit Free Press miscalculated, and New York's income climbed 0.71%, while the country fell 2.8%. New York State residents seems to have lost some ground lately on median...

Posted by simon at 4:08 PM

August 29, 2006

More from Human Events on Meier

I mentioned earlier that Human Events had posted an article celebrating how much more conservative Ray Meier is than the current Congressman, Sherwood Boehlert. Now they've devoted an article to Meier's conservatism: A "Rep. Ray Meier (R.-N.Y.)" will also be...

Posted by simon at 7:17 PM

August 18, 2006

Meier much more conservative than Boehlert; Novak cheers

Lately I've had a few questions about how Ray Meier, the Republican now running for the retiring Sherwood Boehlert's Congressional seat, compares to Boehlert. Here's Robert Novak's perspective - someone hoping for as conservative a government as possible - from...

Posted by simon at 7:43 AM

August 17, 2006

Freeville farm Organic; Etna candidate Libertarian

It's been a while since I reported on the Dryden Courier, but it's time to get back into it. This week's cover has a picture of plants growing at Cornell's Freeville Organic Research Farm, which just received certification that it...

Posted by simon at 5:30 PM

July 27, 2006

Empire Zone to arrive in Dryden; 4-H Fair here

It looks like Dryden will soon have two Empire Zones, places where businesses creating new jobs can get tax cuts. I believe one of them will be near the NYSEG building, and another north of the Village of Dryden. The...

Posted by simon at 2:03 PM

July 22, 2006

Varna and Sertoma give laurels

Posted by simon at 3:45 PM

July 20, 2006

Etna resident running for Congress

Yes, there are definitely libertarians in Dryden. The Journal reports that Mike Sylvia of Etna was endorsed by the Ithaca Libertarians to run for the 24th Congressional District seat being vacated by the retiring Sherwood Boehlert....

Posted by simon at 7:08 PM

July 17, 2006

Ken Camera drops out

Maverick Republican Ken Camera has dropped out of the race for the 24th Congressional District, unable to get enough signatures to be on the ballot....

Posted by simon at 8:01 PM

July 12, 2006

TCAT lowering outer zone fares

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that TCAT will be abolishing the zone distinction for its fares on August 20th, making it cheaper to get from Ithaca to Dryden and vice-versa. They expect it will cost some revenue, but should increase...

Posted by simon at 5:16 PM

July 11, 2006

Horse sitting

Have a horse? Think it might get lonely while you're away? Then call Jen Connelly, who "specializes in caring for equine clients throughout Tompkins County while owners are absent." The Journal's profile looks at what's involved, both for the horses...

Posted by simon at 5:23 PM

June 22, 2006

Summer solstice celebration

This morning's Ithaca Journal visits the Foundation of Light for yesterday's summer solstice celebration at the stone circle, talking about how their "own little Stonehenge" works, It also looks like Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton will have a challenger this year, Republican...

Posted by simon at 12:04 PM

June 10, 2006

Trail progress, NYSEG break

This morning's Ithaca Journal visits Thursday's Town Board meeting, reporting on the improved prospects for the Dryden-Freeville trail. They also note the delays on the final Town Hall plans, the proposal for a Dollar General near TC3, and a Varna...

Posted by simon at 2:42 PM

June 3, 2006

Fire in Etna

All four Dryden fire departments plus Lansing and Groton were on the scene yesterday morning at a fire which damaged a house on Wood Road. Firefighters had the main fire out within 45 minutes, and spent another hour hunting down...

Posted by simon at 10:05 AM

May 17, 2006

Les Roberts drops out of Congressional race

The Utica Observer-Dispatch is reporting that Les Roberts has dropped out of the congressional race, leaving Michael Arcuri as the last remaining Democrat, no longer likely facing a primary....

Posted by simon at 5:11 PM

April 22, 2006

Quilting sleeping bags at a Dryden church

This morning's Ithaca Journal visits the My Brother's Keeper Quilt Group, which is based at the Dryden United Methodist Church. They've now quilted over 2000 sleeping bags since 1992. The bags are distributed to people without homes in Syracuse, Cortland,...

Posted by simon at 10:56 AM

April 18, 2006

Housing and immigation issues

This morning's Ithaca Journal examines the county's affordable housing problems in much greater depth than a confusing earlier article. The basic problem is simple: The study found that the median price of a single-family home rose from $92,000 in 1998...

Posted by simon at 7:35 AM

April 17, 2006

Maverick Republican enters Congressional race

The Republican side of the race to replace retiring Congressman Sherwood Boehlert is no longer just one conservative against someone more conservative. Apparently Ken Camera of Geneva, a very different kind of Republican, has entered the race: In 2004, city...

Posted by simon at 5:32 PM

Congressional candidate Les Roberts; state darkness

This morning's Ithaca Journal doesn't have much on Dryden, but it does cover congressional candiate Les Roberts, who seeks to represent Dryden and the 24th district, with an article on his perspective on the state of America and what needs...

Posted by simon at 8:22 AM

April 12, 2006

Camp Farthest Out

This week's Dryden Town Talk seems to be the Easter Week edition, as Cathy Wakeman focuses on church activities. She reports on the Camp Farthest Out activities that will be at the Reach Out for Christ church on April 21st...

Posted by simon at 8:36 AM

April 11, 2006

Boehlert gets Republican environmental honors

The Rochester paper reported last week that retiring Congressman Sherwood Boehlert received the highest ranking of any Republican on a scorecard from Republicans for Environmental Progress. Boehlert actually managed to score 108 out of 100, as the group gave extra...

Posted by simon at 12:12 PM

April 8, 2006

Density policy, confederate flag

The Dryden news in this morning's Ithaca Journal all seems to gravitate toward Ithaca somehow. County Legislator Martha Robertson is quoted in her role as a member of the Tompkins County Industrial Agency Board about a moratorium on applications for...

Posted by simon at 8:25 AM

April 7, 2006

State of the nation, state

This morning's Ithaca Journal is quiet on Dryden news, but there's a letter from Marcy Tino of Freeville expresses her concern about the growing connections between government and business, and the dangers that creates: In fact, it was the fascists...

Posted by simon at 8:34 AM

April 6, 2006

Local gas prices climb

This morning's Ithaca Journal explores the impact of higher gas prices on the Ithaca area. It even includes a handy list of current gas prices, though it's kind of hard to tell what they mean when a station is listed...

Posted by simon at 12:36 PM

April 4, 2006

Dryden school budget waits on Governor

This morning's Ithaca Journal visits the latest Dryden school budget meeting. The state legislature's budget includes a lot for Dryden, but the legislature passing the budget isn't enough to make that final: the governor needs to approve the budget too....

Posted by simon at 8:33 AM

March 29, 2006

Bone marrow search; Tytler drops out

In this morning's Dryden Town Talk, Cathy Wakeman reports on Bob and Doris Speer's efforts to encourage people to become bone marrow donors as part of their supporting their granddaughter, who has leukemia. They've set up a fund at Dryden...

Posted by simon at 7:38 AM

March 25, 2006

TC3 growing honors program with scholarships

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on a new effort to expand the TC3 honors program by giving 15 full scholarships to Tompkins and Cortland County students who enroll in at least 30% honors classes, and are either in the top...

Posted by simon at 8:47 AM

March 23, 2006

Dryden schools sorting budget

This morning's Ithaca Journal visits the Dryden School District as they try to sort out their budget for next year in the face of challenges, including a 40% increase in utility costs, which have already caused problems for this year's...

Posted by simon at 7:24 AM

March 22, 2006

Close-up look at 24th District Congressional race

I've been covering the local Congressional race pretty generally, but don't have the time to focus on it. Fortunately, there's another blog - Take Back New York's 24th - that has the race under a magnifying glass, or maybe a...

Posted by simon at 8:51 AM

March 21, 2006

Man arraigned for $50,000 cemetery theft

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on the arraignment of a man for allegedly stealing $50,000 from Lakeview Cemetery in Lansing. The arraignment itself was in Dryden - and I think was this one, disrupting a Planning Board meeting - but...

Posted by simon at 8:23 AM

March 20, 2006

Healthcare woes explored at TC3

TC3 hosted a healthcare forum on Saturday, one of over 90 being held by Healthcare NOW!. That's at the top of the front page, while the bottom of the front page has an article talking about how hard it is...

Posted by simon at 8:36 AM

March 18, 2006

Seward to run for re-election as State Senator

I'd heard lots of rumors that State Senator Jim Seward would run for Congressman Boehlert's seat when he retired. However, after yesterday's retirement announcement, WHCU reports that Seward will run for re-election instead: SEWARD WAS RUMORED TO BE EYING BOEHLERT’S...

Posted by simon at 8:21 AM

Participating in government

As part of a three-day series highlighting Sunshine Week, the Ithaca Journal reports on how residents can participate in their local government meetings. It opens with one of the usual suspects who attend meetings: To Simon St. Laurent, being part...

Posted by simon at 7:57 AM

March 17, 2006

Congressman Boehlert retires

The Journal reports that Congressman Sherwood Boehlert announced his retirement today at a press conference in Utica: "It's time," said Boehlert, who turns 70 in September and is in the final year of his term as chairman of the House...

Posted by simon at 4:08 PM

Village elections Tuesday

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on the Dryden and Freeville village elections. For Dryden, a contested race, the Journal talks with Democrats Mary Ellen Bossack and Jim Willer and Republicans Dan Wakeman and Randy Sterling. Incumbent Bossack and challenger Willer...

Posted by simon at 7:51 AM

March 15, 2006

Hello Dolly!, Photo History Day this weekend, election Tuesday

Cathy Wakeman's Dryden Town Talk announces the Dryden High School production of Hello Dolly!, to be held tomorrow through Saturday at 7:00pm at Dryden High School. She also mentions the Photo History Day coming up this Saturday from 10:00am to...

Posted by simon at 9:00 AM

March 14, 2006

Challenger Arcuri discusses run against Boehlert

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on Oneida County District Attorney Michael Arcuri's run for Congress. Incumbent Sherwood Boehlert "said Monday he'd reached a decision [about running again], but wouldn't elaborate." The reporter asked Arcuri and Boehlert their positions on a...

Posted by simon at 7:44 AM

March 11, 2006

Sex offenders in Tompkins County

This morning's Ithaca Journal has an article on the Sheriff's sex offender registry website and talks with a Freeville man on the registry. On the opinion page, John Bailey of Dryden writes that "It's time America's free press practice due...

Posted by simon at 8:29 AM

March 2, 2006

Les Roberts event postponed

Because of the weather, the Les Roberts event in Lansing tonight has been postponed....

Posted by simon at 5:47 PM

February 24, 2006

Crash at Simms Hill Road, 13

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports a crash yesterday morning between a car turning left onto Simms Hill Road and another car traveling north on 13. Three people were injured, and both cars totaled. Dryden and McLean firefighters responded and put...

Posted by simon at 8:22 AM

February 23, 2006

Dryden views on Bush impeachment possibilities

The Ithaca Journal's opinion page today is filled with replies to former Assemblyman Marty Luster's December 26th call for the impeachment of President Bush. Writing from Freeville, E. W. Seymour finds Luster "very offensive", while Carol Cleveland of Dryden writes...

Posted by simon at 7:44 AM

February 22, 2006

Race for the 24th; candidate speaking next Thursday

While no one is sure if Congressman Sherwood Boehlert is in or out of the race, there are lots of contenders for his seat. One of them, Les Roberts, will be speaking and taking questions at the Lansing Community Center...

Posted by simon at 12:26 PM

February 18, 2006

Helping the Dominican Republic

A group of teenagers from Dryden, Ithaca, Lansing, and Trumansburg will be traveling to Monte Plata in the Dominican Republic this week to deliver supplies and paint houses. Peter Mattingly, a Dryden High School freshman, collected 300 Spanish-language books for...

Posted by simon at 7:21 AM

February 17, 2006

Ambassador visits

I've missed a week on the Dryden Courier, so I'd better catch up on that. The February 8th issue leads with an article and photos on the visit of Ambassador Bob F. Jalang'o, former Ambassador to the United Nations from...

Posted by simon at 12:31 PM

February 16, 2006

I'm pretty sure that's Dryden....

Posted by simon at 8:56 AM

February 13, 2006

Tytler announces Congressional run in Dryden

The Ithaca Journal has an article on former Cortland Mayor Bruce Tytler's run for Congress. Tytler toured the district for his announcement this weekend, visiting Rome, Utica, Oneonta, Norwich, Auburn, and Dryden, where about fifteen people braved the cold and...

Posted by simon at 8:33 AM

February 10, 2006

More on Seward, Boehlert investigations

I'm not sure why the Ithaca Journal isn't keeping up with this, but the Oneonta Daily Star has more news on the investigations of improper gifts to State Senator Jim Seward and Congressman Sherwood Boehlert. The gift-givers, Walter Rich and...

Posted by simon at 6:58 PM

February 8, 2006

New announcement in Congressional race

Congressman Sherwood Boehlert officially gained a new opponent yesterday, as Leon Koziol of Utica, "a self-described conservative Democrat," formally announced that he too would challenge Boehlert. Also, in an earlier piece on the Congressional race, I mentioned that Boehlert's fundraising...

Posted by simon at 5:52 PM

February 7, 2006

Fire at Mineah Road apartments

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on a bathroom fire on Mineah Road. The Dryden, Freeville, Varna, and Cayuga Heights fire departments responded. On the opinion page, Steve Scott of Dryden sees no contradiction between being pro-life and pro-death penalty....

Posted by simon at 8:52 AM

February 6, 2006

2006 Congressional race already in motion

I'm still focused on the village elections coming up on March 21st, but people clearly have an eye on November 7th already. Congressman Sherwood Boehlert will apparently announce whether he's running again in March, but his likely Republican primary opponent,...

Posted by simon at 9:56 PM

February 4, 2006

Congressional race heating up

Dryden's current congressional representative, Republican Sherwood Boehlert, has a number of opponents this year, as well as slower fund-raising this year than in 2004, when he defeated fellow Republican David Walrath in a primary battle. This year Boehlert has another...

Posted by simon at 9:42 AM

February 1, 2006

70-year-old woman struck, killed on Route 13

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that Janice Cortright, 70, was killed while crossing Route 13 at Livermore Road yesterday. I have enough trouble getting my newspaper and mail from across Route 366, and walking along 13 is even scarier. State...

Posted by simon at 12:14 PM

January 10, 2006

Gadabout needs drivers

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that Gadabout, "twelve demand-response buses for elderly (over 60) and disabled residents of Tompkins County who can not use regular transportation," needs drivers, in fact around ten drivers. The job requires a New York State...

Posted by simon at 8:46 PM

Boehlert in Antarctica

I don't normally report on the whereabouts of Congressmen, but it's kind of unusual for the Congressman representing Dryden, currently Sherwood Boehlert, to visit Antarctica. He's apparently gone there before: "It has been a marvelous experience," Boehlert said of his...

Posted by simon at 5:57 PM

January 7, 2006

Police Chief Ryan gets award

This morning's Ithaca Journal notes in Local Briefs that Village of Dryden Police Chief Margaret Ryan will be receiving the Michael Padula Award from the Tompkins County Human Rights Commission at a dinner on January 28th. The rest of the...

Posted by simon at 2:12 PM

December 27, 2005

Watching creek salt levels

This morning's Ithaca Journal mentions the Fall Creek and Six Mile Creek watershed monitoring projects (a training session for which I visited last year) in an article about concerns over salt levels in freshwater streams. Road salt is the primary...

Posted by simon at 6:41 PM

December 19, 2005

Maverick Boehlert

This morning's Journal is quiet on Dryden specifically, but does have an article on Congressman Sherwood Boehlert's efforts to push Congress in a more moderate direction. Democrats are lining up to challenge him, and he already has a Republican challenger...

Posted by simon at 8:40 AM

December 12, 2005

Tea in Etna; Boehlert on CAFE

This morning's Journal reports on the Victorian Tea Party held at the Etna Community Church Sunday afternoon: Putting a modern spin on a tradition dating back to the days of Charles Dickens, the women of the Etna Community Church hosted...

Posted by simon at 8:53 AM

November 15, 2005

Planning, downtown and on borders

There's not a lot of specifically Dryden news, but County Legislator Mike Lane is mentioned in the Cayuga Green tax abatements discussion: IDA Chairman and County Legislator Michael Lane requested a breakdown of financial assumptions and projections by the project's...

Posted by simon at 8:01 AM

November 9, 2005

Election day happenings

Today's Journal notices the November 8th election. The "Wilkinson wins DA race" across the top is hard to miss, as is the picture of County Legislator Martha Robertson congratulating Gwen Wilkinson, who defeated incumbent District Attorney George Dentes by a...

Posted by simon at 11:47 AM

October 3, 2005

Dryden resident calls for Iraq disengagement

Dryden resident Nancy Suci writes that: We need to leave Iraq. Our time there diminishes our reputation in the world. Our actions in Iraq increase the anger and resentment that erupts in terrorist acts. And we are neglecting our own...

Posted by simon at 12:11 PM

September 26, 2005

Upset about the war, taxes

This morning's Ithaca Journal presents opinions from a few Dryden residents. The Journal's article about weekend war protests talks to Nancy Suci, who is identified as an Ithaca resident, but she lives on Turkey Hill Road here in Dryden. Suci...

Posted by simon at 8:43 AM

September 24, 2005

Little news, a few opinions

Today's Ithaca Journal is quiet on Dryden news, but there are two pieces on the opinion page with Dryden connections. One comes from Freeville resident Jennifer Semo, and only appears in the print edition. Semo writes, about the St.Patrick's Four:...

Posted by simon at 1:12 PM

September 23, 2005

Stabbing at TC3 dorms

A Tuesday stabbing at the TC3 dorms will put a Spencer man in Dryden court today, charged with second-degree felony assault, as well as fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. Dryden firefighters took the victim to Cortland Hopital. In brighter...

Posted by simon at 1:06 PM

September 22, 2005

One union settled, another uncertain

This morning's Ithaca Journal doesn't report much about Dryden, but there's news on two county labor fronts. The county and its white collar CSEA unit have come to terms, and the contract was approved 13-1 last night by the County...

Posted by simon at 12:52 PM

August 3, 2005

Making municipal wireless impossible

Broadband Internet access has come up a few times at Town Board meetings in the last few months, largely because of Time-Warner's push to get a contract signed with the town. Town Councilman Marty Christofferson has been especially interested in...

Posted by simon at 10:04 PM

July 27, 2005

Fire in Freeville

A four-apartment building at 12 Railroad Street in Freeville caught fire last night. Firefighters from the Dryden, Freeville, Etna, Groton, McLean and Cayuga Heights fire departments responded at 6:30pm, and had the blaze out by 7:15pm. No one was injured,...

Posted by simon at 7:04 AM

July 20, 2005

Boehlert takes on colleague over global warming

Congressman Sherwood Boehlert, House Science Committee Chairman (and representing Dryden) challenged a colleague of his, Joe Barton of Texas, after Barton's House Committee on Energy and Commerce opened an inquiry into a 1998 study of temperatures and climate. As the...

Posted by simon at 9:37 PM

July 12, 2005

Dryden resident attended Christian politics conference

This is a bit old, but it's unusual for me to see a Dryden resident quoted in the Christian Science Monitor, so it seems worth reporting. Back in March, the Christian Science Monitor ran a report on a 'national conference...

Posted by simon at 11:36 AM

July 4, 2005

Graduation, trails

This week's Dryden Courier leads with the Dryden High School graduation, as well as congratulations given to the Dryden school board and superintendent. Inside the paper, there are articles on the plans for a Freeville-to-Dryden trail and one on the...

Posted by simon at 4:07 PM

June 30, 2005

Dryden school repairs, much more

Since it's all going to vanish in a week, it's probably a good idea to report what's been in the Ithaca Journal for the past few days. The most Dryden-specific story is one on the renovations in progress at the...

Posted by simon at 12:39 PM

June 9, 2005

Looking forward to Dairy Day, road repair

This morning's Ithaca Journal has an introduction to Dairy Day complete with a schedule for Saturday's events. (Brenda Carpenter and Tricia Edgecomb were also on WHCU this morning discussing the festivities.) There's also an article on summer road repair, largely...

Posted by simon at 8:23 AM

May 20, 2005

A tale of two maps

Two books I edited on mapping topics - Mapping Hacks and Web Mapping Illustrated - are coming out next month, so I've been wanting to play with maps. By combining district-by-district election data for the 2004 presidential race, the 2002...

Posted by simon at 10:58 PM

April 23, 2005

Iraq; lacrosse; school races

This week's Dryden Courier is packed with news about the town, on levels from local lacrosse to the county legislature to a protest at Congressman Boehlert's office to a Dryden dentist returning from Iraq. Once again, if you don't read...

Posted by simon at 8:43 AM

April 13, 2005

McLean afterschool; TC3 tech award

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on the evening youth programs at Cassavant Elementary in McLean held each Tuesday and Thursday night. Tutoring and time in the gym give kids academic help, exercise, and social times. There's also a picture of...

Posted by simon at 8:11 AM

March 24, 2005

Low Tompkins snowmobile accident rate

This morning's Ithaca Journal talks with the Dryden-Caroline Drifters snowmobile club in an article about Tompkins County having a lower rate of snowmobile injuries and fatalities than other parts of the state. There's a picture of Deana Madigan on her...

Posted by simon at 7:58 AM

March 18, 2005

Ask a simple question, get a quick answer

I wrote Congressman Sherwood Boehlert about federal transportation spending in Tompkins County this past Saturday, as I'd seen stories about spending elsewhere but nothing about what was happening here. Boehlert writes: As you will note, the bill contains $4.5 million...

Posted by simon at 12:46 PM

March 13, 2005

Transportation spending

I've seen lots of news trumpeting Congressman Boehlert's transportation funding through upcoming legislation for other parts of his district, but can't seem to find anything about Tompkins County or Dryden. The main press release on Boehlert's site provides few details,...

Posted by simon at 12:04 PM

March 11, 2005

Etna man in high-speed chase

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that an Etna man faces 25 charges after a high-speed chase through Collegetown and along Route 366 Saturday night. Timothy Troy allegedly hit multiple vehicles, including a head-on collision, and was arrested the next day...

Posted by simon at 8:41 AM

March 5, 2005

Absentee ballots for Village of Dryden elections

This morning's Ithaca Journal is pretty quiet about Dryden-specific news, but absentee ballots for village elections are now available from the Tompkins County Board of Elections. Requests for mailed applications must be received by March 8th, though applications may be...

Posted by simon at 8:18 AM

March 1, 2005

Congressman Boehlert pushing for $7.15 minimum wage

Dryden's Congressional Representative, Sherwood Boehlert, tells the Auburn Citizen that he'll be pushing for a national $7.15 hourly minimum wage, following New York State's recent increase. Boehlert says he is doing this: ...to prevent New York from losing businesses after...

Posted by simon at 12:14 PM

February 26, 2005

Dryden man helps free kidnapped Egyptians

Sergeant Matthew Cornell, who graduated from Dryden High School in 2002, helped rescue two Eqyptian technicians from kidnappers in Iraq on February 7th. Two of the three men who fled the vehicle were captured. The Journal has a long piece...

Posted by simon at 7:56 AM

February 15, 2005

Ithaca schools redistricting

Today's Ithaca Journal is the quietest for Dryden news I've seen in a while. About all there is is mention of a hearing on Ithaca School District elementary redistricting tonight from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at the district's administration building (map)....

Posted by simon at 8:08 AM

February 11, 2005

Town Board meeting, Freeville perspectives

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on last night's Town Board meeting. They lead with the question of the purchase of land for the new Town Hall, writing that: In an unexpected move, the Dryden Town Board went into executive session...

Posted by simon at 8:59 AM

February 4, 2005

Sherwood Boehlert backtracks yet again on Social Security

Congressman Boehlert's position on Social Security seems to have evolved yet again, as he's written Josh Marshall to protest that his cheerleading of the President's Social Security proposals in the State of the Union address doesn't mean that he actually...

Posted by simon at 1:29 PM

February 3, 2005

Boehlert cheers President on Social Security

Yesterday I wasn't too sure where Congressman Boehlert stood on the President's plans for Social Security, having gone from "very, very skeptical of the so-called plans to privatize" to "prais[ing] Bush for trying to tackle the politically difficult issue." A...

Posted by simon at 3:26 PM

Final suspect convicted of kidnapping

This morning's Journal reports that Mao-Sheng Lin was convicted of kidnapping in a robbery of the Song Tao restaurant in November 2003. Lin had disappeared after posting $200,000 in bail and was returned from Texas in November 2004. Two other...

Posted by simon at 8:18 AM

February 2, 2005

Boehlert backpedals on Social Security

Tracking Representative Sherwood Boehlert's positions is getting more interesting, but fortunately Josh Marshall is helping keep track. Last week he was talking about the importance of moderate Republicans while facing a new challenger, and a couple of weeks ago he...

Posted by simon at 1:38 PM

January 29, 2005

Boehlert on Main Street Partnership

I just noted that Brad Jones, a more conservative Republican, is preparing to challenge Congressman Sherwood Boehlert. Boehlert has long had conservative challengers in Republican primaries, and his recent stand on Social Security probably encourages them. NYCO mentions a piece...

Posted by simon at 10:52 AM

January 27, 2005

Dryden opinions

Two Dryden residents write to express their opinions in today's Ithaca Journal. Peter Davies writes a guest column encouraging the Ithaca City School District to support rowing as a sport. Maureen Brull writes expressing her concern about Americans' "arrogant use...

Posted by simon at 8:28 AM

January 22, 2005

Congressman Boehlert opposes Social Security privatization

Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo reports that Dryden's Congressman, Sherwood Boehlert, isn't thrilled about the current discussion of Social Security in an radio interview with WAMC Albany: Among other things, said Boehlert: "I've never been a gambler ... I...

Posted by simon at 7:43 AM

January 21, 2005

Letters from Dryden

Most of the Dryden-specific activity in today's Ithaca Journal is on the opinion page, so I'll start there for the first time in a while. Henry Kramer of Dryden writes to argue that New York (population 19.2 million) follow Connecticut's...

Posted by simon at 7:39 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 19, 2005

Coral reefs in Dryden; Foundation of Light

In this morning's Journal, Cathy Wakeman's Town Talk column visits a local business that grows coral, Reef Encounters. As Wakeman notes, their photo section is especially stunning, especially on a cold January day. Wakeman also mentions a a 4-H spaghetti...

Posted by simon at 8:45 AM

December 30, 2004

TC3 professor and husband injured in tsunami

TC3 Communications and Media Arts professor Christine Xaver and her husband Scott Weatherby, also a TC3 employee, were both injured in Sunday's tsunami. The couple was vacationing in Thailand while their son attended boxing camp. The Journal also published an...

Posted by simon at 9:56 AM

December 8, 2004

Victorian Festival; physical therapy; jail voted down

Cathy Wakeman's describes last Friday's Victorian Winter Festival and provides a list of holiday events yet to come in today's Ithaca Journal. There's also a profile of Freeville physical therapist Richard Weiner, looking at a class he taught in Ithaca...

Posted by simon at 8:52 AM

December 2, 2004

Angry Oklahoman apologizes

There's hope for the transportation projects struck from Sherwood Boehlert's earmarks after all, as Representative Ernest Istook (D-OK) has written Boehlert and other congressmen to apologize. Istook removed funding for their projects because they had supported Amtrak funding. I still...

Posted by simon at 9:20 PM

December 1, 2004

Democrats and Reform

I've written a piece on why I think the Democratic Party should take reform as a core issue, including the need to reform places where we have control. The article isn't specific to Dryden, so I've posted it on my...

Posted by simon at 7:47 PM

November 29, 2004

FEMA restores funding

The Ithaca Journal reports this morning (as I reported Thursday) that FEMA has decided to restore the $170,000 in funding they had removed because they claimed the project had changed since it was authorized. The McLean Fire Department has purchased...

Posted by simon at 8:55 AM

November 26, 2004

Varna cleanup in progress

After an article earlier this week that mentioned the uncertain status of a gas spill at Varna Auto Works, the Journal has an update that talks with the owners about the status of the cleanup. Varna Auto is investing over...

Posted by simon at 8:28 AM

November 24, 2004

Boehlert transportation funding stripped by angry Oklahoman

I'll have to do some research on what exactly was cut, but it looks like Representative Ernest Istook (R-OK) took revenge on Congressman Sherwood Boehlert and a number of his colleagues for writing him a letter in support of Amtrak...

Posted by simon at 9:35 AM

November 18, 2004

Sherwood Boehlert and Tom DeLay

An interesting tidbit about Dryden's recently re-elected congressman just came across my radar. Blogger Joshua Micah Marshall has been encouraging readers to contact their Republican congressmen about how they voted on modifying their rule that House leaders can't serve when...

Posted by simon at 3:27 PM

November 17, 2004

McLean activity

Today's Ithaca Journal has lots of news about McLean, a hamlet that crosses the Groton/Dryden town line. McLean residents are working on new activities for youth, preferably run by teens themselves. There's also an article on Turtle Dreams, a bed...

Posted by simon at 9:13 AM

November 13, 2004

Railroading on the Auburn Division

Today's Ithaca Journal includes an article by John Marcham on the history of the Lehigh Valley's Auburn Division, giving a brief overview of many lines, including the ones that crisscrossed Dryden. The History Center of Tompkins County has just published...

Posted by simon at 8:21 AM

November 11, 2004

Democrats gather at Town Hall

Democrats and sympathetic independents met last night at the Dryden Town Hall to discuss the 2004 election, looking over how well we'd done locally while contemplating the growing divide among Americans and talking about how to communicate with people on...

Posted by simon at 10:24 AM

November 9, 2004

Dryden school audit clean

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that Dryden Central School District got good marks in an audit, and that the board is looking at academic intervention support and energy management. The Journal also takes a look at TC3's alcohol awareness programs...

Posted by simon at 8:25 AM

November 8, 2004

Dryden Democratic gathering Wednesday night

The Dryden Democrats will be hosting a gathering this Wednesday night, November 10th, at 7:30pm at the Dryden Town Hall, 65 East Main Street, Dryden (map). Democrats and independents are welcome. We'll be taking a look at what worked for...

Posted by simon at 12:21 PM

November 6, 2004

Kitchen cupboard, laurel, election

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on Tompkins County Kitchen Cupboard programs, including one in Dryden, looking at where they get their food and funding and the services they provide. On the opinion page, there's a Laurel from Laurie Schutt of...

Posted by simon at 8:33 AM

November 4, 2004

Apprenticeships, Veteran's Day

Yesterday was a fairly quiet day in Dryden. The county legislature approved requiring apprenticeship programs of its contractors by a 9-5 vote. County Legislator Michael Lane is quoted at the end of the article supporting the measure, though they don't...

Posted by simon at 8:50 AM

November 3, 2004

Elections, budget

Much of the Journal's coverage today is about yesterday's elections. They lead their local coverage with a piece on the defeat of the OTB referendum, which quotes Bruce Drowne of Dryden as supporting the measure. There's also an article on...

Posted by simon at 8:22 AM

73% turnout in Dryden

73% of registered voters turned out across Dryden yesterday, with 10 of 11 polls reporting 69% or greater turnout. In Dryden, John Kerry won 3398-2597, while congressional challenger Jeff Miller defeated incumbent Sherwood Boehlert 2556-2444. Neither of those results seem...

Posted by simon at 7:43 AM

November 2, 2004

Voting in progress

I just went to vote at the Varna Community Center, with lots of other people. They had the usual lovely display with a model voting machine, sample ballot, and instructions. Sample ballot, instructions, and model voting machine. It was pretty...

Posted by simon at 8:47 AM

Election news, bookkeeper sentencing

There's lots of news about today's election in the Journal, including general instructions for voting and a list of election-day dinners including the one at the Dryden United Methodist Church. The Journal takes a look at how Tompkins County residents...

Posted by simon at 7:20 AM

Where do I vote in the Town of Dryden?

From the Board of Elections listing, polling places for each of the districts are: Etna Fire Station - 26 Wood Road, Etna (map). Freeville Fire Station - 21 Union Street, Freeville (map). Dryden Fire Station - 26 North Street, Dryden...

Posted by simon at 5:30 AM

October 31, 2004

Decorating funds, wonderful schools, letters

This weeks' Dryden Courier takes a look at the Dryden Decorating Committee's efforts to raise funds, as they look for an additional $4,000 for wreaths to decorate village lightposts. The Village Board turned them down this time. There's also an...

Posted by simon at 2:47 PM

October 30, 2004

Dryden firefighters to receive awards today

At halftime during today's Cornell-Princeton football game, a number of fire fighters from the Town of Dryden and Bangs Ambulance will be receiving awards: Captain Ken Vorstadt of Neptune Hose Company will be receiving the Firefighter of the Year award....

Posted by simon at 7:53 AM

October 29, 2004

Heating aid, county budget, opinions

There's not much Dryden news in today's Journal, but there's a fair amount that applies to Dryden in some way. The Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) is starting up again for the winter, and the Tompkins County Office for the...

Posted by simon at 8:58 AM

October 27, 2004

Signs of the (political) times

Dryden is pretty well covered by signs about the presidential race, as well as signs for Congressional candidates Boehlert and Miller, plus the occasional Barbara Lifton sign. (I don't think I've seen signs for Jim Seward, but I'm not certain.)...

Posted by simon at 5:43 PM

October 23, 2004

Stone Circle School, letters

Today's Ithaca Journal is pretty quiet about Dryden. It notes today's Stone Circle School open-house from 1:00 to 3:00pm today (map), and there's a dart from Murray Cohen, who writes "The world might be better off without Saddam but it...

Posted by simon at 11:52 AM

October 20, 2004

New Dryden Intermediate principal, gift box drive

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on Sandra Sherwood, the new Dryden Intermediate School principal, who came to Dryden from Marathon this September. In the Our Towns section, there's a report (with complete directions for how to participate) on the "Home...

Posted by simon at 8:39 AM

October 19, 2004

Sample ballot, and other politics

Today's Ithaca Journal notes that sample ballots are available from the Tompkins County Board of Elections. The Dryden ballot can be viewed online here (46KB PDF). There's an article on a variety of web sites pushing reform of New York...

Posted by simon at 8:32 AM

October 17, 2004

Congressional candidate Jeff Miller visits

Congressional candidate Jeff Miller came to Ithaca yesterday and spoke to a group of us from the 24th Congressional District. (At one point we'd considered having the event in Dryden, as he was going from an event in Cortland to...

Posted by simon at 2:39 PM

October 15, 2004

Dryden budget; Miller visit tomorrow

Ithaca Journal reporter Jennie Daley provides details on a subject that wasn't addressed directly at last night's meeting: the budget, and a likely 7% tax levy increase. Highway equipment, recreation, and a decline in state and federal aid are all...

Posted by simon at 8:39 AM

October 14, 2004

Political days

As we get closer to the election, more and more of the news is political. The Journal today mentions Congressional candidate Jeff Miller's stop in Ithaca this coming Saturday, October 16th, at 2:00pm in the Mural Lounge in the Clinton...

Posted by simon at 8:35 AM

October 12, 2004

Congressional candidate Miller coming Saturday

Congressional candidate Jeff Miller will be in Ithaca on Saturday, October 16th from 2:00 to 4:00pm, at the Mural Lounge in the Clinton House (map). The session will be a chance to hear from the candidate and talk with him...

Posted by simon at 12:57 PM

October 9, 2004

Last-chance voter registration

There will be a last-chance voter registration session today from 2-9pm at the Dryden Town Hall (map) and at other town and city halls in the county. (Yes, I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but this is the...

Posted by simon at 10:27 AM

October 8, 2004

Registration, TC3 scholarships, letters

The Ithaca Journal seems to have found yesterday a quiet day for Dryden. I didn't see anyone from the papers at last night's Town Hall with Senator Seward. WHCU was there interviewing him, but I don't see a piece on...

Posted by simon at 8:34 AM

October 4, 2004

Selling anti-depressants in school

This morning's Ithaca Journal is pretty quiet about Dryden, with the first mention of Dryden in the Monitor. A 15-year-old girl at Dryden High School was selling prescription drugs to other students, and she and a 14-year-old customer were arrested...

Posted by simon at 8:23 AM

October 1, 2004

Keeping farms alive; McLean crossing guard

Today's Ithaca Journal explores the many issues around land-use planning and agriculture in Dryden. The article looks at farmers' concerns about disappearing ag land, their financial needs, and different possible ways of addressing the issue. There's also an article on...

Posted by simon at 5:37 PM

September 30, 2004

Varna BBQ Saturday, Dryden opinions

Dryden news today is light, peaking with an announcement that the Varna Community Association will be selling chicken halves for $4 each on Saturday, starting at noon at the Varna Community Center (map). In county news, legislators voted themselves a...

Posted by simon at 10:46 AM

September 29, 2004

Eagle Scout project success; county budget hike

In today's Dryden Town Talk, Cathy Wakeman reports that Adam Pamel's Eagle Scout project, raising money for school supplies for 33 children, was a success. Pamel set up collection boxes, held a car wash, and was noticed by Cayuga's Helping...

Posted by simon at 8:53 AM

September 28, 2004

Boehlert bypass successful

Posted by simon at 10:29 AM

Meet Dryden Superintendent Mark Crawford tonight

This morning's Journal looks at last night's Dryden School Board meeting. The Board appointed Amanda Kittelberger to the seat Tricia Edgecomb resigned, and worked on annual goals, the strategic planning committee, and the public relations committee. Following state mandates, they...

Posted by simon at 8:27 AM

September 27, 2004

Vietnam politics

It's another quiet day for Dryden news. The only Dryden-specific item in today's Ithaca Journal is a letter from Dryden resident Steve Scott defending President Bush on both his recent statements about John Kerry's service in Vietnam and Bush's service...

Posted by simon at 8:27 AM

September 14, 2004

Republican primary today

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports on today's Congressional primary between Sherwood Boehlert and David Walrath. Polls are open today from noon to 9pm. You must be a registered Republican to participate in the primary. On the opinion page, Lily Parsons...

Posted by simon at 9:24 AM

September 9, 2004

Weather, Reagan

It's a quiet day for Dryden news in Thursday's Journal. Hurricane Frances' remnants are soaking the area, though not producing flooding. There's an article on Ithaca High School's rules for parents opting out of information sharing with military recruiters, which...

Posted by simon at 8:49 AM

September 6, 2004

Primary, Lifton

It's a quiet holiday for Dryden news. There is an announcement for next Tuesday's Republican primary, where Congressional incumbent Sherwood Boehlert and challenger David Walrath will face off. On the opinion page, Fred Quinlan of Freeville writes of Assemblywoman Barbara...

Posted by simon at 8:33 AM

September 4, 2004

Schools watch roofs; county transportation

Dryden appears briefly in this morning's Journal, mentioned once in an article about schools inspecting their roofs after a collapse in Washingtonville, and once in an article on the start of football season. The county is working on a long-range...

Posted by simon at 10:11 AM

September 2, 2004

Candlelight vigil for Kerry

The Tompkins County Democratic Committee and the Cornell Democrats held a candlelight truth vigil on the Ithaca Commons tonight. We lit candles, marched briefly around the Commons, and heard about the Democratic Headquarters that's now open. In a ferocious political...

Posted by simon at 9:32 PM

August 31, 2004

Rain damage, forum tonight

Yesterday's heavy rains are a big story in the Ithaca Journal today, with a piece on a rollover on Hanshaw Road caused by flooding, an article on flooding in Groton and throughout the county, and an article that looks at...

Posted by simon at 8:10 AM

August 30, 2004

Dryden Veterans Memorial Home robbed

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that the Dryden Veterans Memorial Home was robbed last weekend. Thieves broke into a video lottery machine and an empty safe, and cut phone lines. Farm disaster aid is available for farmers whose crops were...

Posted by simon at 8:37 AM

August 24, 2004

Crawford starts well; Gingrich to speak for Boehlert

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that new Dryden superintendent Mark Crawford "has made a positive impression in a short time." Crawford made progress quickly in reaching a contract agreement with the Dryden Faculty Association that will be voted on September...

Posted by simon at 8:09 AM

August 23, 2004

Walrath fails to find cash

It seems to have been a quiet weekend in Dryden from the Ithaca Journal's perspective, but there's a piece looking at the primary in the 24th Congressional District, where the Club For Growth, which supported him verbally, hasn't come through...

Posted by simon at 8:16 AM

August 21, 2004

Pataki vetoes TC3 expansion funding

Governor Pataki's budget vetoes struck TC3 and Cornell yesterday, as the governor vetoed all capital funds for higher education, including $10.6 million for TC3's expansion and $12 million for Cornell renovations. A legislative override seem uncertain, though there's definitely some...

Posted by simon at 8:14 AM

August 13, 2004

Town board meeting, deficits

This morning's Ithaca Journal covers last night's town board meeting, focusing on the well contamination issues. The story also notes one part of the Highway Superintendent's report I'd forgotten: someone is stealing road signs in the northeast corner of the...

Posted by simon at 12:19 PM

August 12, 2004

Accused restaurant robber skips bail

This week's Dryden Courier has a lot of detail on Mao Shen Lin, who failed to show up to his trial for kidnapping and attempted grand larceny last week after posting $200,000 bail. Mao Shen Lin was arrested in connection...

Posted by simon at 12:53 PM

August 11, 2004

School numbers arrive, jail numbers don't

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports that the New York State Legislature has finally passed an education bill, so schools will know their aid levels before they send out tax bills. Dryden will be getting $12.85 million this coming year as...

Posted by simon at 8:47 AM

August 5, 2004

Congressman Boehlert in Freeville

Congressman Sherwood Boehlert held a forum at Freeville's W. B. Strong Fire Company yesterday, addressing a program, the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, which is set to expire at the end of this year. Boehlert is working on its renewal,...

Posted by simon at 9:24 AM

August 4, 2004

Political categories

The "politics" category had accumulated enough stories that it was getting hard to see from the archives quite what was going on here. I've now split it into three categories. There's now a politics (local) category that focuses on town,...

Posted by simon at 12:22 PM

Organic farm research in Freeville

This morning's Ithaca Journal visits the open house at Cornell's Freeville Organic Research Farm, looking at the experiments underway and visitor reactions. Also in Freeville, Congressman Sherwood Boehlert will be hosting a forum on homeland security and first responders at...

Posted by simon at 6:55 AM

July 31, 2004

Generator poisons contractors; opinions

Emergency crews responded to a carbon-monoxide poisoning incident in Dryden yesterday after two men were overcome by fumes in a basement where they had set up a generator. On the opinion page, John and Marlene Nardi of Freeville send a...

Posted by simon at 10:21 AM

July 30, 2004

4-H fair; assault at George Jr.

Today's Ithaca Journal has pictures of the 4-H Fair in progress on Lower Creek Road. The Monitor includes news of an assault on a George Jr. Republic employee as well as a DWI. There's also a notice of a poker...

Posted by simon at 11:59 AM

July 24, 2004

Democrats party for Kerry

County Legislator Martha Robertson held a "Party for Kerry" at her home Friday, raising money for the Kerry campagin in the last few days before the convention and the end of fundraising. (Once Kerry accepts public funding, the fundraising and...

Posted by simon at 12:04 AM

July 22, 2004

Jail questions, sign-stealing

After yesterday's burst of stories, today's a quiet day for Dryden in the Ithaca Journal. County Legislator Martha Robertson is quoted in a story on whether boarding in prisoners could help finance a larger jail, discussing the risks of the...

Posted by simon at 8:03 AM

July 19, 2004

Fishing, opinions

This morning's Ithaca Journal has a picture of nine-year-old Brandon Elia fishing at Dryden Lake as part of the Wal-Mart Kids All American Fishing Derby that was held Saturday. The State Police seem to have been busy along Dryden's borders,...

Posted by simon at 8:02 AM

July 16, 2004

Congressional race shaping up

This morning's Ithaca Journal has two articles on the race for Congress in the 24th District. Democrat Brian Goodell of Lansing has left the race and endorsed Jeff Miller of New Hartford. Meanwhile, Republican incumbent Sherwood Boehlert has raised a...

Posted by simon at 8:34 AM

July 15, 2004

Flags not included

It's a big year for politics, and signs have been in yards for months. I have a stack of Kerry signs in my basement, but there are other choices as well. Here's a roundup of where to get signs related...

Posted by simon at 5:21 PM

July 14, 2004

Farm walk, abuse charges, more

If you read this in the next hour, you have time to get to a dairy walk at 9am this morning exploring how Lewie and Steve Stuttle "have successfully combined pasturing with high milk production on their farm in Dryden."...

Posted by simon at 8:02 AM

July 13, 2004

Half-timbered house, Fahrenheit 9/11

This morning's Ithaca Journal brings a story of a house on German Cross Road being built of timber, clay, and straw. The foot-thick walls are as insulated as walls using typical 6-inch fiberglass batts. The materials are all local, and...

Posted by simon at 8:17 AM

July 12, 2004

County patrols, OTB, jail, sign thefts

There's very little in today's Ithaca Journal specific to Dryden, but county issues come up. The Journal reports that State Police told the County Legislature Friday that they couldn't easily take over road patrol duties from the Sheriff's Department. Troopers...

Posted by simon at 8:29 AM

July 11, 2004

Updates in The Shopper

I've been a bit more lax about covering The Shopper, but there's been less in it lately that I haven't covered elsewhere. I do scour it every week, though. This week's Shopper contains, among many other things: An ad for...

Posted by simon at 9:26 AM

July 10, 2004

Volunteer fire companies, jail, laurels

Today's Ithaca Journal has a strong focus on volunteer firefighting, with a piece on families volunteering and the difficulties of recruiting volunteers, the latter of which quotes Dryden Chief Ron Flynn about the sign in front of the Neptune station....

Posted by simon at 10:32 AM

July 8, 2004

Intergenerational Band, Fish tales

This week's Dryden Courier takes a look at the Dryden Intergenerational Summer Band and Chorus, which formed to help Dryden celebrate its 1997 bicentennial but "discovered they were having too much fun to disband". They'll be performing August 14th at...

Posted by simon at 12:38 PM

June 28, 2004

Dryden Democrats selling Kerry signs

The Dryden Democratic Committee has Kerry signs, complete with wire frames, available now. The committee is requesting a $5.00 contribution. The signs come from KerryGear.com, and we've added a wire stand. Kerry signs in front of my house on Route...

Posted by simon at 8:36 AM

June 26, 2004

Hanshaw Road accident, Freeville barbecue

This morning's Ithaca Journal reports a rollover on Hanshaw Road north of Neimi Road that injured two women while two children avoided injury. There is also a chicken barbecue today at the Freeville United Methodist Church (map). Police arrested a...

Posted by simon at 8:58 AM

June 15, 2004

Preschool, Reagan, specialized degrees

Today's Ithaca Journal mentions Dryden in two stories, while the editorial focuses on TC3. In an article on New York State's efforts to back preschools, Dryden Superintendent Patricia Archambault discusses space problems and the instability of state funding as reasons...

Posted by simon at 8:23 AM

June 8, 2004

Republican (non)endorsements, family reunion fundraiser

Today's Ithaca Journal is fairly quiet on Dryden news, after a busy run for the last few weeks. The Tompkins County Republican Committee met to endorse candidates on Saturday, and "honored its tradition of not making an endorsement when there...

Posted by simon at 7:58 AM

May 20, 2004

Fire on Hanshaw Road; religion and public service

Last night at 7:20pm, firefighters responded to a call of a burning mobile home, which they were not able to save. Medical oxygen tanks createdan additional hazard. Earlier in the day, the county had a major malfunction in its microwave...

Posted by simon at 7:54 AM

May 4, 2004

Draft, abuse prevention, schools

The only Dryden-specific item in today's Ithaca Journal is a letter to the editor about the prospect of a draft from Ellen Schmidt of the Town of Dryden. In broader county news, the Journal covers a presentation by Meredith Wiley,...

Posted by simon at 8:32 AM

April 22, 2004

Walrath announces run against Boehlert

It looks like there will be a Republican primary in the 24th Congressional District, which includes Dryden. The Auburn Citizen reports that Dr. David Walrath announced Tuesday that he will run for the Republican nomination, claiming that "my candidacy represents...

Posted by simon at 8:58 AM

March 26, 2004

Two Charlie Harts

Today's Ithaca Journal has a letter from Nancy Hart of the Town of Dryden, noting that there are two Charlie Harts in the town. Her husband, the Charlie Hart on Lee Road, is not the same person as the Charlie...

Posted by simon at 7:58 AM

March 23, 2004

Republican congressional primary?

The Auburn Citizen reports that Dr. David Walrath may be running against Congressman Sherwood Boehlert again. Walrath, who nearly defeated Boehlert in the 2002 primary, is well to the right of Boehlert. It looks like there will also be a...

Posted by simon at 2:32 PM

Local giving to presidential candidates

Thanks to Fundrace, a site keeping track of election donation records, you can explore political donations by what location they came from. It's a little limited, in that it chops up information by zip codes, and the Town of Dryden...

Posted by simon at 8:50 AM

Marriage, jails, economy

Today's Ithaca Journal, like yesterday's, is very quiet on Dryden, though it covers some county and state issues that have an effect. Today's paper includes: a letter from Pat Ober of Dryden opposing gay marriage, discussion of the county jail...

Posted by simon at 6:20 AM

March 20, 2004

Looking back at a year of war

Today's Ithaca Journal looks back over the year of war in Iraq, featuring two stories with a Dryden perspective. The easier of the two to read, "Bush's Iraq policy finds support in Tompkins County", includes comments from Dryden resident Richard...

Posted by simon at 9:35 AM

March 2, 2004

Democratic presidential primary today

Registered Democrats can vote today in the presidential primary. (Republicans don't have a primary this year, and only people registered as members of a party can vote in that party's primaries in New York State.) Polls are open from noon...

Posted by simon at 8:43 AM

January 30, 2004

Candidates forum last night

A few hundred Democrats filled the Women's Community Building in Ithaca last night to hear local speakers present cases for presidential candidates. The Clark, Dean, Edwards, Kerry, Kucinich, and LaRouche campaigns all had speakers, and there were tables for most...

Posted by simon at 8:40 AM

January 29, 2004

Forum on Democratic presidential candidates

The Tompkins County Democratic Committee is sponsoring a forum on presidential candidates tonight at 7:30 at the Women's Community Building auditorium, 100 West Seneca Street in Ithaca. No candidates will be there, but it's an opportunity for Democrats to talk...

Posted by simon at 8:33 AM