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Showing content with the highest reputation on 05/20/2023 in all areas

  1. 1 point
    Absolutely!! Donner may have seized the opportunity to con the CCIDA, but he didn't create the situation. The County (and City at the beginning) have refused to cut our losses and admit the Arena is a burden that needs to be abandoned as a publicly owned facility. I think that the last 20+ years of drama have possibly blurred perception of what “success” for the Arena is supposed to look like. Simply offsetting a small portion of the taxpayers’ ongoing costs is a net loss – not a “successful” business venture. Admittedly, I’m not a live hockey fan or player or parent of a hockey kid......I don’t even have an understating of the various leagues like ECHL or FPHL, etc (other than NHL is the “big” one). But I will totally accept the word of hockey fans who say that, at some point, First Arena was filling seats at hockey games. The (several) million-dollar question is whether just hockey will pay the bills. From the start, it was assumed that was not the case, and the Arena would need to be a multi-use venue that drew crowds for events in addition to hockey. In 1999 when the City and County first “invested” in the place......it was touted as a “Civic Center” that would host all kinds of events for broad audiences year round. The original owners almost immediately defaulted on bills and were several years in arrears for property taxes before the County took ownership (and removed it from tax rolls). To date, no operator has ever been able to draw enough revenue to maintain the facility and cover operating expenses.....let alone pay City, County and School taxes. In fact, other than the original Afr promises (that quickly proved false), has anyone ever even offered to try to operate the Arena as a fully self-sustaining business that can pay for operations, staffing, maintenance and taxes from its own sales?
  2. 1 point
    Albany, N.Y., May 17—State Senator Tom O’Mara (R-C, Big Flats) and the New York State Senate last night at the capital paid tribute to Nancy Kirby, a longstanding advocate and leader for small businesses and entrepreneurship throughout the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions, as a 2023 New York State Senate “Woman of Distinction.” Kirby, a native of Elmira, has been an established regional business owner, mentor to numerous small businesses still operating throughout the region, and is the former Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of IncubatorWorks in Painted Post, a leading Southern Tier economic development agency focusing on small business entrepreneurship. She is currently the Town Supervisor in Caton, Steuben County, and also continues as an “Entrepreneur in Residence” at IncubatorWorks. “Nancy Kirby stands tall in the arena of economic development and small business ownership throughout the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions," Senator O'Mara said. "As a longtime small business owner herself and an early mentor to numerous small businesses still thriving throughout the region, Nancy’s deep belief in and lifelong commitment to entrepreneurship has made enduring contributions to the growth, strength, and vitality of local communities and local economies. I am proud to take this opportunity to pay tribute to her achievements, leadership, and unwavering vision, all of which represent the best of what the New York State Senate seeks to honor through our annual ‘Women of Distinction’ recognition. Her lifelong devotion has made an enormous difference. Nancy has been a lifeline and a foundation of support for countless success stories across this region. I am truly pleased this year, on behalf of the 58th Senate District, to be able to extend this well-deserved and well-earned tribute of appreciation and respect.” During her nine-year tenure as the Executive Director and CFO of IncubatorWorks, before her retirement last June, Kirby guided the emergence of this Southern Tier economic development agency into a regional leader in the growth of small business entrepreneurship. Under her direction, influence, and decades of experience as a financial professional, founder of her own accounting firm, and early mentor to small businesses still operating throughout the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions, IncubatorWorks developed an impressive array of resources to partner with local industry, academia, and other economic development agencies offering training and support for regional entrepreneurs, with a focus on serving diverse and underserved communities. Kirby credits her own experience as a Contract CFO for clients of the local firm she founded and operated for 26 years, as well as her commitment to volunteerism and mentoring, for the qualities of collaboration, leadership, teamwork, and vision that define her lifelong work and her career at IncubatorWorks. Reflecting on her years at IncubatorWorks, Kirby has said, “Working to support entrepreneurship, in the area I grew up in and had my own business for 26 years, has been a dream come true. Building on my experience as a Contract CFO for so many years in my CPA firm, along with my decades of volunteer experience and mentoring, has been very rewarding.” Kirby represented O’Mara’s 58th Senate District as part of the Senate’s 25th Annual “Women of Distinction” celebration and joined nearly 60 other honorees representing state senatorial districts throughout New York. The 58th District covers all of Chemung, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tioga, and Yates counties, and a part of Allegany County (the towns of Alfred, Almond, Amity, Andover, Birdsall, Burns, Grove, Independence, Scio, Ward, Wellsville, and Willing). The Senate's annual recognition program, which began in March to coincide with Women's History Month, allows senators statewide to select one honoree from their respective legislative districts to be celebrated for their significant accomplishments, service, and contributions to the quality of life within and beyond their communities.
  3. 1 point
    On Friday May 5, 2023 at 2:30 PM, the Elmira Police Department held a swearing in ceremony for a new police officer. According to Chief Kristen Thorne, Dalton Guisewhite, who is currently attending Session 44 of the Southern Tier Law Enforcement Academy, took the Oath of Office becoming the Elmira Police Department’s newest police officer. Prior to attending the Police Academy, Officer Guisewhite obtained an A.A.S. in Criminal Justice from Corning Community College and served in the United States Marine Corps from 2009 until 2013. Officer Guisewhite will complete his Police Academy training in June at which time he will enter into the Elmira Police Department Field Training Program where he will work on several different shifts over the course of twelve weeks prior to being assigned to a Platoon. "The Elmira Police Department wishes to recognize Officer Guisewhite for his hard work in getting to this point in his law enforcement career and wishes him well on a long career ahead of him in serving the City of Elmira," wrote Thorne. A short time later, a walk out ceremony was held for another officer retiring. Officer Michael Collins, who has served as an Elmira Police Officer since April 2003, was recognized for his 20 years of service to the City of Elmira. During Officer Collins’ career he held several collateral duties including being a member of the Crisis Negotiation Team and a Defensive Tactics Instructor.
  4. 1 point
    I may have that printed as a poster to hang on my office wall.
  5. 1 point
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