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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-11-17-newsletter1 Casey Beck From:town-of-ulysses@googlegroups.com on behalf of Carissa Parlato, Town Clerk <ulysses.clerk@gmail.com> Sent:Friday, November 17, 2023 4:07 PM To:Google Groups Subject:Ulysses Updates for 11/17/23 Hello Ulysses, See this week’s updates below. If you are not already registered to vote and would like to vote in the Town’s Special Election on Dec. 6, come to the Town Hall tomorrow between 12-4pm or Tuesday 3-7pm to register (more information below). Please note that there will not be a newsletter next week, so Happy Thanksgiving সহ঺঻ IN THIS WEEK’S ULYSSES NEWSLETTER: Update from Supervisor Olson Special Election Drinking Water Protection Survey Winterfest Facebook page UPDATE FROM TOWN SUPERVISOR OLSON: Greetings, Ulyssians! Thanksgiving has long been my favorite holiday. I have spent the day in many different ways---alone with a stomach bug; with just 1 person; serving fish because my young children hated turkey or really anything that didn't have an elbow macaroni shape; with lots of extended family; and with just my household, still wiping down our groceries, during the pandemic. Wherever you are and with whomever you share the day this Thanksgiving, I hope you are safe, well-fed, and satisfied. It is also a good moment to remember that many children, individuals, and families in Ulysses are struggling. For the 2023 Trumansburg/Ulysses Summer Camp, 5% of attendees (between Kindergarten and 6th grade) qualified as homeless residents of Ulysses because they lacked permanent, stable housing. About 20% of attendees qualified for free or deducted lunch, and a much higher percentage fell within 300% of the poverty rate, as determined by Tompkins County for service eligibility. The Trumansburg/Ulysses Recreation program subsidizes the cost of enrollment in both the summer camp and our recreational programming when costs are a barrier to access. We provide a range of youth and adult programming, and have long recognized that youth sports participation has a significant benefit to the mental and emotional health of youth (and, by extension, their families and the broader community.) More information on that is available here, here, and here. Needs exist beyond the summer. Demand for food support has increased in our local food pantries and mutual aid cabinets. Needs for scholarships for child care and early childhood education has tripled, according to local organizations. 2 The Town continues to be committed to judiciously using tax money to support programs and organizations that strengthen our community and contribute to the overall safety, well-being and health of Ulysses residents. We are also committed to the financial and environmental sustainability of our Town. In the recently adopted 2024 budget, the Town provided funds to community organizations including the Trumansburg Food Pantry, Trumansburg After School Program, and the Trumansburg Community Nursery School. These programs, among others, work to make Ulysses an inclusive community for everyone. The Town's contributions are just a small fraction of their overall budgets, but it's a way to help support scholarships and food security efforts. On 11/9, the Town hosted a public information session about the proposed purchase of land for recreational purposes. (As always, lots of questions are answered here.) Some recent questions include: Who will benefit from a Town-owned park? Parks are for everyone. One doesn't need to play a sport to enjoy walking on a trail, or throwing a ball for their canine pal in a gated dog park, or pushing a child on a swingset, or hosting a family reunion in a pavilion. (Again, the ultimate design for the property would come through a community design process, and everyone can participate in that process.) Is this project worth doing if only 400 children benefit? (Note: The number was provided by the person who asked the question.) Not only children benefit from and use parks! The Town Board members, however, certainly considered the number of children and adults who could benefit from a free municipal park, which would allow the Town to expand opportunities to provide programming through our Recreation Department. If 400 children (not counting all of the adults in their lives) from Ulysses benefited each year from using a Town-owned park, that adds up to 4000 children in a decade. (And parks go on to serve generations to come.) If the land is purchased, what will happen next? If the voters approve the land purchase, the Town will establish a Recreation Committee composed of town residents to oversee the process of seeking feedback from the public, including at least one representative from the surrounding neighborhood. Broad needs, such as playing fields and a free jungle gym, are generally known, but 30 acres provides plenty of space to incorporate ideas that serve a wide range of children and adults. The community visioning process would proceed any development of the land, and would be used to seek governmental grants through the Town and private grants through Trumansburg Community Recreation. All necessary environmental reviews would occur to make sure that designs were sensitive to the environmental needs of the property and the surrounding area. Realistically, this thoughtful, methodical, community-oriented approach will likely take 2-5 years. Throughout this process, the land would likely remain in agricultural use until sufficient outside funds could be raised to pay for the development, as the Town Board is committed to not passing the development costs to the Ulysses taxpayer. Special Election Info Ultimately, it will be up to the public to determine at the ballot box whether the Town should purchase recreational land. Reasonable minds can differ on the direction and future of our Town, but all eligible voters should participate in the process. 3 Regardless of your position, I encourage you to exercise your right to vote on December 6. Be sure to keep up to date here. The right to vote is just another thing I plan to give thanks for this Thanksgiving! Happy Thanksgiving, Ulysses! TOWN OF ULYSSES SPECIAL ELECTION 12/6/23 A Special Election will be held on 12/6/23 to determine whether the Town should purchase 30 acres for recreation purposes. DATE: Wed., Dec. 6, 2023 TIMES: 11am-8pm POLLING LOCATIONS: (Select whichever is most convenient for you)  Trumansburg Village Hall- 56 E. Main St., Trumansburg NY 14886  Franziska Racker Center- 3226 Wilkins Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 WHO CAN VOTE:  Anyone already registered with the Tompkins County Board of Elections. Check your registration status with Tompkins County here.  Anyone who is not already registered can register with the town on either Sat. 11/18/23 from 12 noon- 4pm or Tues. 11/21/23 from 3-7pm at the Town Hall, 10 Elm St., Trumansburg. IF:  a US citizen o will be 18 years old on or before Dec. 6, 2023 o not be in prison for a felony conviction o not claim the right to vote elsewhere o not found to be incompetent by a court o have lived in the Town of Ulysses for at least 30 days by Dec. 6, 2023 ABSENTEE BALLOTS: You must first submit an application for an absentee ballot:  Deadline to pick up ballot in person at Town Clerk’s office- by 5pm on Dec. 5, 2023.  Town Clerk’s office must receive mailed application by 5pm on Nov. 29. 2023.  The absentee ballot itself must be returned to the Town Clerk’s Office by 5pm on Dec. 6, 2023 to be counted. DRINKING WATER PROTECTION SURVEY: How is your drinking water? We want to know! All Ulysses residents (outside the Village of Trumansburg) will receive a postcard in the next 10 days with a link to a Drinking Water Survey. The Town of Ulysses is encouraging everyone to use this survey to describe where they get their water from, and any problems with its’ quantity or quality, such as taste, color, or odor. Paper copies of the survey will also be available at the Town Hall or you can go directly to the online survey at https://arcg.is/1DO1TT0. Responses are requested by November 22. The information will be a critical element in developing a comprehensive Water Source Protection Plan that will ensure sustainable drinking water resources throughout Ulysses in the coming years. A generalized summary of the Survey results will be presented at a Workshop in early 2024, along with useful guidance such as how to protect groundwater wells and filter systems for improving drinking water quality. 4 For more information, you can contact the Ulysses Source Water Protection Plan Committee by emailing Linda Liddle, WSPPC Chair liddlela@verizon.net. Information about the Drinking Water Source Protection Plan project and updates are posted on the Committee’s webpage at https://townofulyssesny.gov/boards/wsppc- source-water-protection-committee/ WINTERFEST: Winterfest is scheduled for Sat., Dec. 2 from 3-6pm in the Village of Trumansburg with free music and entertainment. Visit https://www.facebook.com/TburgWinterFest/ for more information. FACEBOOK PAGE: Visit our Facebook page and share with your friends! The goal of the page is to share useful and important information with a wider audience, but not to engage in dialogue on that platform. As always, please stop in, call, or e-mail with any questions or concerns on municipal issues. Follow our page at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550846207662 ### If you are receiving this as a forwarded message and would like to sign up to receive it directly, visit https://groups.google.com/g/town-of-ulysses -- PLEASE NOTE: Please update my address to ulysses.clerk@gmail.com as I am not receiving messages at other addresses at this time. Thx Best, Carissa Parlato, CMC (Certified Municipal Clerk), RMC (Registered Municipal Clerk) Ulysses Town Clerk, Tax Collector, Records Manager, Notary Public 10 Elm St. Trumansburg NY 14886 (607)387-5767, ext. 221 Hours: M-F, 10am-3pm (or by appointment) https://townofulyssesny.gov/ Get the latest updates on the town- sign up for the e-newsletter! Click here. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "town-of-Ulysses" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to town-of- ulysses+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/town-of- ulysses/CABMwf_CuT%2BkhUyhuFhYzgUDGbebQLCVFgdhONApWV1x14uWCqw%40mail.gmail.com .