Backstory: an Ithaca Voice podcast

Listen and subscribe to Backstory on: Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Overcast , Amazon Music or wherever you get podcasts. Part I: New York State wants Ithaca’s local wastewater treatment plant to make major and expensive upgrades to its treatment process. But local officials say all the necessary repairs could potentially double sewer bills . . . and they want the see hard data to prove that the wast...

Listen and subscribe to Backstory on: Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Overcast , Amazon Music or wherever you get podcasts. Part I: For years there's been deadlock over plans to bring basic services — like showers, lockers and charging stations — to people living in the homeless encampments on Ithaca’s West End known as The Jungle. But that's about to change. The city is turning a former Burger King re...

Listen and subscribe to Backstory on: Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Overcast , Amazon Music or wherever you get podcasts. Last August, officials and developers celebrated the opening of Asteri, a massive, multiuse building in the heart of downtown Ithaca. The project was supposed to put a dent in the city's housing crisis and boost downtown businesses and hotels. But a year later, the building's owne...

Listen and subscribe to Backstory on: Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Overcast , Amazon Music or wherever you get podcasts. Part I: Ithaca's city owned dams are in poor shape and there may not be enough money in the bank to fix them. There's been little discussion of the matter among Common Councilmembers so far. What does that mean for Ithaca's water supply ... and everyone living downstream? Part II:...

Part I: An ambitious project to provide permanent supportive housing for some of Ithaca's most vulnerable has garnered renewed scrutiny after an alleged arson attempt last month. The downtown building, Asteri, has also become the subject of a disproportionate number of calls to law enforcement since it opened last year. Now, local officials are seeking accountability. So what's next for the buildi...

Part I: President Donald Trump signed the "Big Beautiful Bill" into law July 4 — and with it, some of the largest ever cuts to federal Medicaid spending. The program provides health insurance for about 15% of Tompkins County residents. Megan Zerez and Ithaca Voice Editor-in-Chief Matt Butler go over the cuts and what they might mean for us locally. Part II: Potential harms to rural and small city...

The New York State comptroller is in the process of auditing the City of Ithaca's financial management processes. Meanwhile, the city remains without a credit score and is years behind on its routine yearly audits. Updated federal flood risk maps were released last month for Ithaca. More properties will require flood insurance, which could drive up housing costs. The city's more renter-heavy, work...

Tuesday was primary election day in the first countywide local elections since President Donald Trump's second inauguration. We analyze the races and talk about the winners — and winning issues. However the general election shakes out, county, city and town governments are poised to see significant turnover come January. With looming threats of federal spending cuts on Medicaid and other programs,...