County, city approve lease for winter Code Blue shelter; city to run daytime navigation hub

Tompkins County legislators unanimously approved a lease authorization on Aug. 5 to use a former fast‑food property on Route 13 as the county’s Code Blue emergency shelter and as a daytime homeless navigation hub operated in partnership with the City of Ithaca.

The resolution authorizes a three‑ to five‑year lease with the Maguire Family Limited Partnership for the site commonly referred to in the meeting as the Burger King property. County and city staff said the arrangement is intended to pair overnight shelter services with daytime navigation and outreach, and to place shelter services adjacent to an area the city temporarily permits for camping.

Dominic Recchio, deputy city manager for the City of Ithaca, told legislators the city will operate a daytime navigation hub at the leased site that will host nonprofit service providers and city staff to connect people to housing, medical care and other resources. He said the location provides adjacency to a city parcel used for temporary camping and offers operational advantages for outreach and transitions.

Why it matters

The vote implements a multi‑year plan to provide winter sheltering and daytime services in closer coordination between county and city governments. Legislators and staff said the joint model is the product of longstanding efforts to address homelessness with both temporary shelter and casework aimed at moving people into permanent housing.

What the meeting record shows

Legislators described the measure as the result of years of work. Legislator Rich John, who chairs the Public Safety Committee, said he was “optimistic” this collaboration could produce better structured services than earlier efforts. County staff said the lease would secure the location for…