A Tompkins County parking study presented during a public engagement session concluded the downtown street and garage system can accommodate the additional parking needs for the proposed Tompkins County Center of Government, but residents and some county legislators warned convenience and employee parking remain political and operational concerns.

Tim Faulkner, senior transportation manager with Fisher Associates, described on‑street and garage counts the team used to estimate demand around the proposed site. He said the study measured street parking and garage occupancy over two weekdays in late April when universities and the Ithaca school district were in session.

Faulkner reported a total of about 352 on‑street spaces within the closest walking radius defined for the study; roughly 275 of those are two‑hour metered spaces. He said on a typical day there are about 150 to 160 on‑street spaces available at any one time in that area. The two public garages in the study — at Seneca Street and Green Street — also showed available space during the day, and the consultants counted more than 800 spaces that allow 24‑hour parking within a 10‑minute walking radius of the site.

The study separated employee and visitor demand. Faulkner said the study accounted for roughly 187 employees currently tied to facilities in the area and estimated the new center would need to accommodate roughly 256 total employees — a net increase of about 69 employee parking spaces. County departments reported 653 unique visits over a four‑week survey; of those, about 490 visits involved driving and survey responses suggested visitors typically stayed about 19 to 20 minutes, which the team translated to around four average visitor arrivals per hour.

On-site and nearby parking plan

Project materials show the existing site has space for about 104 vehicles today; presenters said they plan to retain 39–44 of the current on‑site spaces for courthouse staff and other regular users and to designate ten spaces for county electric‑vehicle fleet use. The team said short‑term visitor parking on the new site would be limited — roughly 10–20 spots dedicated and planned as 20‑minute or short‑term stalls — and that the county-owned Cascadilla Lot and the downtown garages will provide the remainder of visitor and longer‑stay staff parking.

"There is a significant amount of on‑street spaces that are available at metered parking spaces," Faulkner said in the presentation summarizing the counts and average occupancy.

Public reaction and operational concerns

Several members of the public and some legislators said they were not reassured that proposed arrangements would be convenient for county customers or fair to employees. One legislator noted many county employees dislike paying to park, and others urged the county to consider underground or basement parking and to avoid pushing employee parking into long‑term metered street spaces.

Several public speakers suggested downtown alternatives where free parking is available, such as vacant buildings at the Cornell Business Park, Herald Square and the local conference center, arguing those options could reduce the capital cost and reliance on metered downtown parking.

The county and consultants said the plan is still preliminary and that final parking allocations, dedicated visitor spaces and signage would be part of later design decisions. Presenters also said the team will continue to monitor downtown parking supply and work with the city on possible dedicated short‑term stalls for visitors to the new center.

Speakers: Tim Faulkner (Fisher Associates), project architects and county facilities staff; public commenters included town councilors and residents who asked about alternatives, employee parking costs and downtown accessibility.