Tompkins Projects

[Gordon Neal]

The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is the agreed-upon five-year list of specific projects for which federal funds are anticipated. Required by federal law, the TIP represents the transportation improvement priorities of the Tompkins County Transportation Area. The list of projects is multi-modal and includes highway and public transit projects, as well as bicycle, pedestrian, and freight-related projects.

The TIP also represents the translation of recommendations from the ITCTC Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRP) and UPWP into a short-term program of tangible transportation improvements. All TIP projects are evaluated to assure consistency with the community goals and objectives established in the LRP. The majority of projects in the TIP are aimed at increasing the efficiency and safety of the existing transportation system, rather than construction of new facilities.

In addition, all TIP projects must be in conformance with air quality requirements. Representing the culmination of the transportation planning process, the TIP signifies a consensus among local, state and regional officials as to what improvements to pursue, thereby establishing eligibility for federal funding.

The Statewide Transportation Improvement Program, otherwise known as the "STIP", is the federally required, four-year, statewide multimodal program or list of transportation projects proposed for federal transportation funding.

The Tompkins Nstat Team led a participatory budgeting process through Local NeighborhoodStat in which residents were invited to submit their own ideas to strengthen safety and build community through built environment projects and/or social programming. The Tompkins Nstat Team collected 522 responses from neighbors. The most popular project and top priority for $30,000 was Educating Our Youth, a youth-based program that focuses on self-awareness and mental health through a series of workshops.

Since its launch in 2014, MAP agency partners have focused their programming to meet a variety of needs, ranging from support of seniors and kinship caregivers, mentorship of young adults, family-friendly programming of playgrounds, safe spaces for teens, assistance with public benefits, youth employment, and more.

The Tompkins Nstat Team is currently building a digital network to stay connected to one another during this time and to develop platforms to reimagine digital public space, co-create safety responses, support community building, and convene city agencies to leverage resources and collaboratively solve local problems.

The Tompkins County Recycling and Solid Waste Center will undergo construction projects and maintenance starting on Monday, July 19th. The projects include concrete repairs to the bays of the public drop off area, and construction is expected to last about two weeks.

Visitors using the public drop off area during this time should use caution and obey any written and verbal directions. Visitors may consider postponing using the public drop off area while work is underway.

The highest awards in Tompkins County went to Cornell University for an incubator for engineering and physical science entrepreneurship and to the History Center of Tompkins County for the planned Heritage Center on the Ithaca Commons. Other awards went to streambed repair in different areas, conservation efforts, development projects and job training.

This list includes websites built to share specific aspects of Tompkins County history. Most projects engaged with and utilized archival materials and knowledge from The History Center in Tompkins County and Historic Ithaca archival collections, but were developed and maintained by groups and individuals independent from our organizations*. The research compiled remains available at the web pages below, but not all the pages are considered active projects in the community. If you're looking for active local history groups and projects explore the Tompkins County Historical Societies page.

*The History Center in Tompkins County cannot guarantee the historical accuracy of these projects, and any views shared in them are not representative of The History Center's policies or approach to historic research and/or archival work.

CineFiles-Ithaca hopes to engage you in the world of silent film -- the then and now of it. Stay tuned for monthly posts about silent movies from filmmakers, historians, culture critics, and film devotees, CineFiles-Ithaca is brought to you by Wharton Studio Museum, which is preserving and celebrating the role Ithaca, NY played in early American moviemaking,

Local resident Bill Hecht has amassed an impressive index of hundreds of scanned images including: Maps, Gazettes, Stereo Views, Photographs, Postcards, View Books, Newspaper Articles, Books, and more concerning Tompkins County.

The Tompkins County Industrial Development Agency (IDA) approved two new projects located in Downtown Ithaca on May 8th. The Library Place or Ex Libris project is located at 316 N. Cayuga St. and will offer 66 market-rate, age-restricted apartments for people 55 and older. It will include a community room operated by Lifelong, a public restaurant, private spa and wellness center, and an office intended for a home health care agency that residents may elect to contract with for home health care services.

The A.R.T., representatives from Harvard University, and a peer architect review panel unanimously selected Haworth Tompkins for this project after reviewing proposals from firms based in the US and UK. A site for the new building has yet to be announced. Design work on the new building is in the early stages, and the A.R.T. will continue to produce work at the Loeb Drama Center for several years while plans develop.

Haworth Tompkins is a British architectural studio, voted Building Design Architect of the Year and RIBA London Architect of the Year. Founded in 1991 by Graham Haworth and Steve Tompkins, the studio has an international reputation for theater design, the Liverpool Everyman Theatre winning the RIBA Stirling Prize for the best building of the year by a UK architect. Haworth Tompkins was part of the Gold Award UK winning team at the Prague Quadrennial and was chosen to exhibit theatre work at the Venice Biennale. Performance projects include the Royal Court, the Almeida temporary theatres at Kings Cross and Gainsborough Studios, Snape Maltings, the Young Vic Theatre (shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize), The Egg at Bath, the Oxford North Wall, NT Future, Battersea Arts Centre, Bristol Old Vic, and Bridge Theatre. The studio has additionally won numerous major awards for its work on social housing, heritage, and higher education projects.

ARC/ Architectural Resources Cambridge is a nationally-recognized architectural, planning, and interior design firm specializing in education, performing arts, life science, sports and recreation, and multi-use campus facilities. The firm consistently applies a collaborative approach to architecture, one based on a 50-year tradition of providing design excellence for clients. Recently recognized as a global Top 50 Firm in Sustainabilityby ARCHITECT Magazine, ARC brings a team of knowledgeable advocates for sustainable design, LEED practices, and healthy buildings.

The Loeb Drama Center where the A.R.T. performs is located on the traditional and ancestral land of the Massachusett, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. We pay respect to the people of the Massachusett Tribe, past and present, and honor the land itself which remains sacred to the Massachusett People.

The Tompkins Chamber Foundation was organized as a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization in 1987. The organization creates support for the community through various efforts in order to promote the quality of life in Tompkins County. View current and past projects and initiatives of the Chamber Foundation below.

To promote and sponsor projects which positively impact quality of life, community health, economic successes, the recruitment and retention of a talented and adequate workforce and yield long-term benefits for the residents of Tompkins County.

An initiative to foster workforce recruitment, retention, and candidate relocation support for employers and their teams. Custom relocation support and industry focused marketing to attract potential residents and recent transplants. Email Sarah Barden to learn more.

The Ithaca Pride Alliance exists to create new and uplift existing safe, inclusive, accommodating, educational, and accessible spaces for the LGBTQ+ community. The Tompkins Chamber Foundation provides fiscal and administrative support to the IPA.

A locally led initiative to establish a 55,000 square foot conference center in Downtown Ithaca. The Chamber Foundation has been engaged in this initiative since inception and helped attract $5 million in New York State capital funding to the project.

The Tompkins Chamber Foundation provides fiscal and administrative support to Tompkins Connect, our local young professionals networking group. The Tompkins Chamber provides marketing, coordination, and recruitment support

The Chamber Foundation supports the Collegetown Small Business Alliance as fiscal sponsor of projects to improve the collegetown streetscape and business environment. Past efforts include the Collegetown banner program, in part with Tompkins County Tourism Program Beautification funds. Other key partners include the City of Ithaca and Cornell University.

In partnership with Tompkins County, the Chamber Foundation supported microenterprise startup and expansion throughout Tompkins County with education, technical assistance, resources, and grant funding. The Foundation attracted $300,000 to Tompkins County for this program, which was expended from 2021 through 2023 in the form of reimbursements to eligible businesses.

The Tompkins Chamber, along with our partner Ithaca Area Economic Development, has led prior efforts to offer business/local community air service revenue guarantees for airlines, to attract and retain viable air service between our community and key destinations. Air service is a key aspect of our economic development transportation infrastructure, and requires numerous partners to manage successfully.

c80f0f1006