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Tompkins County hearing draws residents urging condos and sparking preservation debate at old library site
Summary
At a public hearing convened by the Tompkins County Legislature’s Old Library Committee, roughly 28 speakers split largely between supporting for-sale condominium development to bring long-term residents downtown and urging preservation or renovation of the historic library building; committee members said public input will shape a forthcoming RFP.
Mike Lane, chair of the Tompkins County Legislature and chair of the Legislature’s Old Library Committee, opened a public hearing and framed the meeting as part of the county’s effort to determine a reuse strategy for the vacant old library building in downtown Ithaca.
The building has not served as a library since 1999, when the Tompkins County Public Library moved to a renovated former Woolworths building. Lane told attendees the county issued a Request for Expressions of Interest in December 2013 and received six responses; one proposer, Ithaca Neighborhood Housing, later withdrew to pursue another site. An earlier Holt Architects study, Lane said, estimated converting the old library into a new government center would top $20,000,000 and was not financially feasible after the 2008 recession. Lane said the…
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