[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6203432,"mediaKeyId","3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8","parentId",3783044,"title","Visit Ithaca: 2024 outreach, conferences and eclipse events boosted local visitor spending","audioSeconds",1451,"startMs",2834365,"endMs",4286115,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8&start=2834&end=4286","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8/thumbnail_2834365.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6203432/Tompkins-County/New-York/Visit-Ithaca-2024-outreach-conferences-and-eclipse-events-boosted-local-visitor-spending","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6203432-d020bd6f4e50a27963c3de48ff459d05/orig.mp4?Expires=1771152393&Signature=Tez4C08XCSEmDzf1TOf3IUDDNv2lm~sm9lJ80F20wqq26OSShnLW8oCWm7IhDel-27TRr4M55-Q1DGJvfo8oG102wQlBipR8W0p8F1otuYVReZcdx41EGiDOuYPktvENpj2SseWhLuKctJa1yB-piI8YtXDXPrKZTw2vOZjtVB6HczEc~BMV5gi5toxI-xH0H8YHWePRKvsi66x3Oxv6rf7kvMF6PgxllqLG1e0qciiaMYmbjS~F~3l0mKbydXLLGRVsDeGGHdgldnpBZ64ynCFxj-CoNCZPeewyY4kTfwWMWT1XFqdU6NuCtId1GJ5sVJ4XOHwCKVDzTR4EbVIanA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Tompkins County, NY","date","2025-06-05T00:00:00Z","article","Representatives of Visit Ithaca and the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce presented their 2024 annual report to the Housing and Economic Development Committee on June 4, highlighting marketing, conference sales and special-event activity that county officials say supports local tax revenue and jobs.

Peggy Coleman, president and CEO of the Tompkins County Chamber and sponsor of Visit Ithaca, said the CVB’s 2024 work drove web traffic and partner referrals and helped fill hotel rooms during peak events. \"Tourism is economic development,\" Coleman said, and she provided county-level figures for 2023 (the latest year available from state-level reporting): visitor spending in Tompkins County generated $35 million in economic impact and, she said, if visitors disappeared every household would pay an additional $814 in property taxes to maintain current services.

Visit Ithaca staff described specific results: more than 65,000 outbound clicks from visitithaca.com to partner sites, broad national and international web traffic, and a successful April program tied to the April eclipse. The office organized events including a Hangar Theatre talk by Sasha Sagan that sold about 350 tickets and coordinated transit to Fairhaven (in the path of totality) for viewers; Visit Ithaca said related pages and content received more than 13,000 views during the eclipse period and area hotel rooms sold out on April 7.

The new Ithaca Downtown Conference Center opened July 1, 2024; Visit Ithaca said the center generated 40 proposals and 11 booked conferences in the first six months, producing 747 room nights from four hosted conferences and an estimated $23,000 in hotel tax revenue for those events. The 11 conferences booked in 2024 for 2024–26 have an estimated economic impact of $2.16 million.

Visit Ithaca reported other marketing outcomes including earned-media visits by national journalists, social-media reach and collaborative regional winter campaigns. The bureau said it continues sales outreach for major events such as a forthcoming North American finals event and a national government-alliance conference that will bring attendees in October.

Committee members thanked the Visit Ithaca and Chamber team and asked about specific programming and partnership support; staff described fiscal sponsorship arrangements (for example, the Ithaca Pride Alliance’s fiscal sponsorship by the Chamber Foundation) and marketing support for Bridal and Pride Month activities.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Tompkins County Housing and Economic Development Committee - June 4, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Visit Ithaca and the Tompkins County Chamber presented a 2024 annual report to the county committee, citing expanded conference bookings at the new Downtown Conference Center, a high-profile April eclipse campaign and $35 million in visitor spending that supports local services.","taxTitle","Tompkins County, New York","taxId",52737,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6203437,"Tompkins County planning staff announce new housing grants round, hire David West to lead housing work",370,2304705,2674735,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8&start=2304&end=2674","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8/thumbnail_2304705.jpg","/articles/6203437/Tompkins-County/New-York/Tompkins-County-planning-staff-announce-new-housing-grants-round-hire-David-West-to-lead-housing-work","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6203437-4b94c7aad350af5abb357cf70cc4f652/orig.mp4?Expires=1771152393&Signature=nSJibOLcT3L5ZtBFhWn69YPi3lXsoNou0jtsV6CeD3oDDlikgJ5fWLdHaVh2fWDfcT7T1zJkYILg032poKkHTwvoU8-5nHdu36ioAVTGvBS0I2pGxylxPqzHduFvtyeNllB0SM~4OPdI~0ldn2~gr2hjTM8aOCzXdYYCCsfQT54abO97-ca9Xlb4gF2zdL0i9ewhy4X3b5ts2QMW-4lrEz8SFzGTm6JTwLqglj~vJk3pf8-Gsau3d29kqa8ElKOr-uZhJmnKHwMD8MAu3AJMkEwzBLzmNPdbHF1U31P~7RqNMqsbRVFZFt2J9xrRC0~hs3~Fg8HC48NAMYjJ6VvfhQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Tompkins County planning staff on June 4 introduced David West as the county’s new planning administrator for housing and community development and briefed the Housing and Economic Development Committee on current grant activity.

\"I’m very happy to be back with Tompkins County,\" West said after being introduced; he said his recent experience included planning and economic development roles in Geneva and the town of Danby and that he expects to bring ideas and grant-administration experience to the county.

Staff reported two housing-affordability and infrastructure grant applications recently received — one from the City of Ithaca and one from the Town of Danby — and said they will present fuller briefings to the Legislature next month. Planning staff also closed the current Community Housing Development Fund round: seven applications requested a combined $1,600,000 and the fund currently has $3,070,000 available for awards.

Committee members asked for details about how the municipal affordability grants work. Planning staff described a small municipal assistance program that allows municipalities to request up to $5,000 in awards approved administratively by staff and up to $10,000 in requests that require legislative approval; this fiscal year’s budget includes $20,000 for that program. Staff said municipalities commonly use the funds to hire grant consultants to pursue larger competitive programs such as Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) awards and that small investments have been leveraged into substantially larger projects in the past.

No legislative votes on the grants were taken at the meeting; staff said fuller proposals and recommendations will be brought to the Legislature in coming weeks.","County planning staff introduced David West as the new planning administrator for housing and community development and said grant rounds include two housing affordability/infrastructure applications and a Community Housing Development Fund round with $3.07 million available and $1.6 million requested.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6203443,"County administrator: four shelter provider applicants under review, interviews underway",249,224610,474195,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8&start=224&end=474","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8/thumbnail_224610.jpg","/articles/6203443/Tompkins-County/New-York/County-administrator-four-shelter-provider-applicants-under-review-interviews-underway","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6203443-0c3a800702119b81edeb85576ac8b0b6/orig.mp4?Expires=1771152393&Signature=M0r~cMbLYf8sutinB79wLKIrY8p8D817rpElkPYB6KQEBabVfcnrEdFA7tude4q9-aHgyN6u7T6Z2LNXVVPenl5jLyldrll8wWwnXER6Pba1wjSscEb-RAHpd~LAGzViXuMHcDhxsb9zvQpZa0q4D-ADKGSxclNxGk4rs4uHWI7c1204-LSbGLTh3To7P0qvTXsKtJ2ymIaF6nHLH~Kq0jOjfqlLheobIuflptFOwtpzC6yF3BJMCS8dd0hhYD8GJeh00eoouwV~p3kcCeMC7bpLKi7znZFNeGzzQYltHGzJpSRL2XdHVIOo6WNImihAct6ivSJ7ZL3hH2lVUUAzmw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Tompkins County’s administrator told the Housing and Economic Development Committee on June 4 that the county has four applicants to operate or provide services for a planned shelter and that the review process has begun.

\"We have four applicants. We reviewed two today, and the next set of two will be interviewed on Bridal,\" the county administrator said, describing the current procurement status. The administrator added that county staff will communicate next steps after finishing reviews and that the county hopes to settle quickly and begin planning with a provider.

The committee did not take a vote on the procurement during the meeting. Committee members asked procedural questions and thanked staff for the update.

Separately, Donna from the Department of Social Services provided a shelter census: as of May 30, the county sheltered 94 individuals, including 81 adults and 13 children. Committee members noted the ongoing operational challenges of new supportive housing projects and asked staff and partner organizations to continue coordination on building- and provider-level issues.

No formal procurement decisions or provider selections were recorded at the meeting; the administrator said staff will announce next steps after completing interviews and evaluations.","Tompkins County administrator reported four applicants for a planned shelter; two were reviewed at the June 4 committee meeting and two more were scheduled for interview. County staff said they expect to select a provider soon and begin planning shelter development.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6203448,"Tompkins County housing officials warn many renters at risk as homelessness prevention expands",940,805575,1746480,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8&start=805&end=1746","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3783044-8dd7c184c34e2541abb201a0611dbab8/thumbnail_805575.jpg","/articles/6203448/Tompkins-County/New-York/Tompkins-County-housing-officials-warn-many-renters-at-risk-as-homelessness-prevention-expands","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6203448-4e98745c33cb42325f1aa51414767bcf/orig.mp4?Expires=1771152393&Signature=dXtfTYLpMY-xwDTasduILqb3UAVk5nIeJ3GfpoAJGJ1xTK2PiUQmvAcDcQtHqbVK~y6brx48CRLhiB14ZLp54rU3ZcvetJe1~ClL8GgPzuPcuS9kAVAq3x1zY3bdDiGnmupwbtz-8x33Dq5AGmEVVQp6C4qfODW3U90IDyZioxZaDwP1tHldYSoQfu8SzDs8BpyaldA4yWXKy~m6dkwjg1IKPrnMw-VraEph-imjzkA6djLRbJ1RT2-64YCy-gPcbdlmhNRYFJyFGSPZvcdhlTV40A4e~mvmH8YjjgPndWIx0S457NLIHxq2VQrMeVqzYjd9oLP6AwH7q0FaaHfDfQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Liddy Barger, director of housing initiatives at the Human Services Coalition, told the Tompkins County Legislature’s Housing and Economic Development Committee on June 4 that rising rents and limited supportive housing are driving repeated entries into the county’s homeless response system.

\"Four out of five people who are currently experiencing homelessness in our continuum of care do not have a supportive housing or other unit to move into,\" Barger said, summarizing local capacity shortfalls. She said 59 percent of renters in the City of Ithaca are cost-burdened, meaning they pay more than 30 percent of their income for housing.

The presentation placed those figures in context with area median income and fair market rent. Barger said 2025 area median income for a family of four in Tompkins County is $122,100 and used that to illustrate affordability gaps: \"For somebody in that extremely low income, 30 percent area median income range ... the rent that they could reasonably afford ... would be $902 a month.\" She cautioned that real-world rents are higher and that many households cannot find units at those levels.

Barger described the frequency of eviction-related contacts and court activity: in 2024 local intake lines recorded 988 calls for eviction-related assistance; housing staff were able to provide some navigation or assistance to 162 callers. In the City of Ithaca there were 313 eviction court filings in 2024. She said most filings are nonpayment cases and that a small set of landlords account for a large share of filings.

On outcomes, Barger noted a durability problem: roughly one in three people who exit the homeless response system into housing return to the system within two years. She said the Human Services Coalition, housing specialists and partners are focusing more on upstream prevention rather than only on people already literally homeless.

To expand prevention, Barger described the county’s early use of New York State’s Medicaid 1115 waiver to pay for social care supports for Medicaid members at risk of homelessness. \"The 11 15 waiver ... is designed to save money from emergency visits and other high-cost Medicaid things by meeting social care needs using Medicaid dollars,\" she said, and added that participating providers can bill for housing-related supports including up to six months of rental assistance, security deposits, and utility help.

Committee members asked for additional, comparative data. County Legislator Deborah requested median rent figures for one-, two- and three-bedroom units to compare with fair market rents and affordability calculations; Barger said she could provide or obtain more precise median-rent figures. Committee members also pressed for more detail on eviction trends by month and landlord concentration.

Barger and others emphasized limits on who qualifies for certain homeless-response resources: HUD definitions of literal homelessness determine eligibility for many programs, while the county is trying to serve people earlier in the risk continuum. The presentation relied on Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) intake data and local eviction filings to describe demand and capacity.

The committee did not take any formal votes related to the presentation; the briefing was informational and followed by questions from committee members.","Human Services Coalition briefing to the Tompkins County Housing & Economic Development Committee described high rents, eviction pressure and limited supportive housing; county providers are piloting Medicaid 1115-funded prevention services to avert homelessness.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Visit Ithaca: 2024 outreach, conferences and eclipse events boosted local visitor spending

Tompkins County planning staff announce new housing grants round, hire David West to lead housing work

County administrator: four shelter provider applicants under review, interviews underway

Tompkins County housing officials warn many renters at risk as homelessness prevention expands