Posts by Jimmy Jordan
Gov. Hochul is Investing $1M to Speed up Rent Relief
(Jimmy Jordan / WRFI) ITHACA, NY — New York is putting $1 million dollars into marketing and outreach efforts for the State’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP). The $2.7 billion dollar Rental Assistance Program was dubbed ‘poorly managed’ by the State Comptroller’s Office two weeks ago, namely for it’s poor outreach, sluggish application approvals, and…
Read MoreTompkins County Seeing ‘High Transmission Rate’ of COVID-19; Children Under 12 Make up 20 percent of Recent Cases
(Fred Balfour / WRFI) ITHACA, NY — Tompkins County is seeing a high transmission rate of COVID-19, prompting the Health Department to recommend masking in all local schools. As defined by the CDC, high-transmission of COVID is seeing over 100 positive cases per 100,000 residents over a seven-day period. According to data from the Tompkins…
Read MoreIthaca Seeks to Replace Stephen Smith on Common Council
ITHACA, NY — The City of Ithaca is seeking to replace Common Council member Stephen Smith, who suddenly resigned from his elected position on August 8th. Smith represented Ithaca’s 4th ward for the last nine years. His abrupt departure was in order for him to follow his wife to New York City, where she will…
Read MoreNY Comptroller Calls the State’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program ‘Poorly Managed’
(Jimmy Jordan / WRFI) ITHACA, NY — New York’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program, or ERAP, has got problems. That’s the finding of New York’s Comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli. ERAP is a $2.7 billion fund to help eligible New York renters and landlords avoid financial ruin as the economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of…
Read MoreCornell Updates University COVID Policies
(William Barkoff / Unsplash) ITHACA, NY — With students soon to arrive on campus, Cornell has updated it’s COVID policies. Cornell now has three alert levels: green, yellow, and red. The alert levels are determined through a variety of factors, including local hospitalizations, Ithaca area COVID transmission, and the university’s capacity to isolate people. At…
Read MoreSuicidal Man talked off Parking Garage Roof by Officers
ITHACA, NY — The Ithaca Police Department was able to talk a suicidal man down from a parking garage roof. The incident occurred on Wednesday morning. A man was standing on the outside of the railing at the top level of Seneca Street Parking Garage. The IPD’s Crisis Negotiation Team responded after Tompkins County’s mobile…
Read MoreDelta is the Dominant Variant in Tompkins County, Health Department Confirms
(Dominick Recckio / Tompkins County) TOMPKINS COUNTY, NY — The Delta Variant is the dominant variant of COVID-19 in Tompkins County. The Tompkins County Health Department confirmed it’s prevalence on Tuesday. The Health Department sequenced 87 virus samples from county residents infected in June and July; 80 of those people were infected with the Delta…
Read MoreTompkins County Legislature Seeks Commissioners for Independent Redistricting Process
(Dominick Recckio / Tompkins County) TOMPKINS COUNTY, NY — The Tompkins County Legislature is seeking commissioners for its independent redistricting process. These are volunteer positions. Commissioners will redraw the 14 Tompkins County legislature districts in accordance with 2020’s census data. The districts will determine the geography and constituents that will be represented by the County’s…
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