![]() ![]() But do you? And perhaps more importantly, should Enfield? Downtown development interests, and most vocally, the Ithaca hotel and hospitality industries, support the venture. And as a result, “Ithaca Exceptionalism” spawns that heartfelt, curiously-bolstered conviction that Ithaca’s exceptional attributes can counterbalance our central city’s most glaring obstacles, drawbacks of which Downtown’s cheerleaders dare not speak impediments like our central isolation, overpriced hotels, unpredictable weather, and of course, Ithaca’s notorious lack of Downtown parking.ĭuring three meetings, each on three consecutive days, February 4th through the 6th, the Tompkins County Legislature, Ithaca’s Common Council, and finally, the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency, green-lighted the venture with initial Resolutions of Commitment likely to obligate government to cover expected operating losses once the Conference Center is up and running, probably beginning in 2023. You, like me, may view this project as the product of “Ithaca Exceptionalism ” a fervent belief among many (generally those not in Enfield) that our County Seat’s uniqueness will draw professional conferences like a magnet that we can succeed whereas other similarly-sized cities might fail. It would occupy the ground floors of a 12-story high-rise housing project on the site of Ithaca’s Green Street parking garage. This is one such issue: A proposal advanced and promoted by the Downtown Ithaca Alliance, and embraced by prominent Ithaca City and Tompkins County lawmakers, to construct-with County governmental guarantees-a 49,000 square foot, $31.5 Million Downtown Ithaca Conference Center. ![]() With the campaign over, I’ll showcase on this Home Page, from time to time, issues and controversies of local import that reach beyond Enfield’s borders, yet still impact each of us as Enfield citizens and taxpayers. ![]()
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