Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca are announcing a series of community engagement opportunities and seeking the public’s input to help reimagine public safety. The collaborative effort follows an executive order from New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo requiring all municipalities with police departments in New York State to adopt a plan for reinvention by April 1, 2021. Members of the Ithaca and Tompkins County community are encouraged to review public forums and presentations shared by City and County officials and provide input.
The County and City will be hosting a series of Community Voices Public Forums for community members to share perspectives and visions for reimagining public safety. Community members are encouraged to provide input based on their recent interactions with law enforcement and thoughts on the role of trust in policing and public safety.
The first Community Voices Forum will be held on Friday, November 6 from 4:30pm – 6:00pm, using Zoom’s webinar function for live comment, livestreaming on YouTube. Members of the community are invited to participate by registering for the zoom webinar in advance, the moderator will use a timer displayed on the screen and participants will speak one at a time. Officials from Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca will be present, and all input shared in public forums will be archived and shared with working groups developing the reimagining public safety plan. Forums will occur weekly on Fridays through December 4, 2020 at 4:30pm, with the exception of November 27. An additional forum will be held on Saturday November 14.
Additional opportunities for community input are available and are listed below, online, and on a document being distributed widely throughout the community:
- Fill out this online form
- Leave a voice mail with input by calling 607-274-5465
- Submit a paper input form. Download here or pick up at the Tompkins County Public Library (Starting November 5)
- Mail Attn: Reimagining Public Safety
- 125 E. Court St.
Ithaca, N.Y. 14850
- 125 E. Court St.
- Drop Off:
- Mayor’s Listening Post (Mailbox)
108 E. Green St.
Ithaca, NY 14850 - Tompkins County Drop Box
125 E. Court St.
Ithaca, NY 14850
- Mayor’s Listening Post (Mailbox)
- The Tompkins County Public Library is offering hours at computer stations to watch community forums and submit feedback. (Starting Nov 5th)
- Open at 101 E. Green St, Ithaca, NY 14850, Tuesdays and Thursdays 10am-1pm, and Saturdays 3pm-6pm
- Mail Attn: Reimagining Public Safety
A timeline of the reimagining public safety process, a list of working group members, and details on how the community can submit input are available online, and on this downloadable paper input form.
Members of the community who would like to receive updates on the process and announcements of future community forums via email can fill out this online form.