Hey everyone, this past week I completed my first story with Ithaca Week on the city manager position in Ithaca. It was a fun story to do and it got me out of my comfort zone. I really find my beat to be important and an often-overlooked importance in reporting. I interviewed a local alderperson, Robert Gesualdo Cantelmo about the position in Ithaca. We talked about the importance of having a new council-manager system to help the city of Ithaca with policy enactment. The city manager was voted for by the people of Ithaca last year at the ballot, with overwhelming support for the new role in the city’s government. He told me, “Policy decisions are still made by your elected officials, the responsibility of the city manager will be to help the council realize the decisions and execute those plans and ensure the resources needed are appropriately martialed into city government…The key role of the mayors’ office going forward is that bridge between council and city manager to ensure clear transition of policy needs to administrative capacity.” . It was really interesting learning about this position that I otherwise may have never learned about without my civic reporting beat. I also talked to residents in the Ithaca Commons about the new city manager position and it was really interesting to see what they had to say about the new position. Many that I talked to supported the new position and were glad to see the government of Ithaca trying to make their operations work more efficiently.
Next week I will be reporting on a new economic initiative happening in Tompkins County by the Ithaca Area Economic Development organization and Tompkins County Bank. The goal of the initiative is to raise two million dollars by the end of the year for increased job opportunities, community funding, and raising of property taxes. I’m excited to speak with property owners about their perspectives on the new initiative. I will be speaking with property owners, Ithaca Area Economic Development, and some people on the street to gain their perspective of the new proposal. I’m excited to keep reporting on my beat of civic reporting. Along with my written story, I will be making a video to go along with my story along with an edited graph visual to aid my storytelling. To see my work on civic reporting please look to Ithaca Week news website for more. Until next time!
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