City Partner Recognition: Julie Holcomb, retired City Clerk; & Tom Parsons, retired Ithaca Fire Department Chief, and the Ithaca Fire Department.
Julie Holcomb: Julie was an Ithaca institution in her own right. As City Clerk and Director of Information Technology and Communications, Julie served as the glue that kept City Hall together- year after year, mayor after mayor. She was a vital member of the senior leadership team and become its keeper of City Hall knowledge and history. For most of her tenure at City Hall, Julie was the issuer of permits, the person who decided whether an event would be able to proceed or not. Julie’s knowledge and affection for Downtown is extensive and profound. Learning from her father, former Mayor Ed Conley, Julie was familiar with the creation of the Commons as well as the rebuilding of the Commons many years later. For her tireless service to the City and the people of Ithaca and her unwavering support of Downtown and the DIA, tonight we present this special City Partner award to Julie Conley Holcomb.
Ashley Cake, Downtown Ithaca Alliance Board of Directors president; Gary Ferguson, DIA executive director; City of Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis presents a City Partnership Award to Ithaca Fire Department Acting Fire Chief Rob Covert.
Retired City of Ithaca Fire Chief Tom Parsons and the Ithaca Fire Department: Like Julie, Tom devoted a significant portion of his life to serving the people of Ithaca, serving in the Fire Department and leading that organization over the past decade. Tom was passionate about his work, elevating fire and public safety to a new standard of excellence. Every community event required his and his department’s stamp of approval. Every new building and community project likewise needed the consent of IFD, which certified that the building or project would adhere to the safest standards. Some called him strict; Tom and IFD called it keeping our people safe. Tom’s and IFD’s wisdom and sensibilities are evident downtown and at all our events. Recognizing his public service career that has kept everyone safer and more secure, we honor Tom Parsons and the Ithaca Fire Department with this second 2022 City Partner award.
Economic Development Project: Green Street Parking Garage
The Green Street garage was originally built some 45 years ago, soon after the original Commons was created, and Center Ithaca constructed. It was the premier parking facility here in the City for years, serving City Hall, Woolworths- now our public library, the Commons, the Marriott Hotel, and Center Ithaca. As the garage aged, the center portion was rebuilt, ensuring it would remain functional during the past 15 years. But the two ends of the garage were never rebuilt, and they continued to deteriorate, necessitating the complete rebuilding of the garage. Thanks to creative City leadership, this rebuilding created the opportunity for additional downtown growth and development – in the form of the Asteri housing project, the Ithaca Community Conference Center, and the Ithacan housing project. The new Green Garage, built by Vecino Development, now occupies the center parcel. This project features 350 new parking spaces and a host of amenities that again make it Ithaca’s premier parking facility. In recognition of the excellent work to rebuild the facility by Vecino Development and our City leaders’ creative and farsighted planning, we tonight award the new Green Street Garage with our 2022 Economic Development Project of the Year Award.
Downtown Nonprofit Partner of the Year: Tompkins County Public Library
Ashley Cake, Downtown Ithaca Alliance Board of Directors president; Gary Ferguson, DIA executive director; Leslie Tabor, TCPL Director; City of Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis; Woody Chichester, library assistant.
Everything we accomplish here at the DIA involves some form of partnership. Partnerships are the lifeblood of our organization and our downtown. Tonight, we salute the Tompkins County Public Library for its long-standing partnership with Downtown and its support of the DIA. TCPL has been a critical foot traffic generator for Downtown over its years at the corner of Green and Cayuga. At its peak, over a half million people a year visited the facility. TCPL has creatively served all segments of our population, including youth and marginalized communities. It hosts a maker space for use by the public. Its staff serves on DIA committees.
TCPL produces numerous events that touch and reach a broad cross-section of our community. In 2022, TCPL staff help lead the effort plan and host our first-ever community Pride event. Recognizing its decades of commitment and service to the community, we honor TCPL with our 2022 Downtown Nonprofit Partner of the Year award.
Special Events Partner of the Year: John Ryan (Sound on Sound Productions) and Ashley Broadwell
Ashley Cake, DIA Board president, Gary Ferguson, DIA executive director; and City of Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis present a Special Events Partner of the Year award to John Ryan of Sound on Sound Productions.
John Ryan: John and his firm are essential behind-the-scenes partners. We, the public, don’t see them but certainly benefit from their professionalism and expertise. John’s team is present at all of DIA’s large events, providing the best in sound to ensure that our public can appreciate the performances, the words, and the messages. He and his team have labored in the shadows for many years, making our events great. Tonight, we recognize John Ryan and Sound on Sound, stepping out from the background, as one of our 2022 Special Event Partners of the Year.
Ashley Broadwell: To many, Ashley is known as one of the family faces of Ithaca Guitar Works in the Dewitt Mall, a revered music store that has served the Ithaca community for decades. But to us, Ashley is more than just a store owner. Ashley has been an ardent special events volunteer year after year, providing his infectious good-hearted labor to countless DIA community events. Ashley has been our holiday Santa, befriending thousands of Ithaca’s children. He has been a stalwart bartender for our Summer Concert Series and other DIA events, befriending a whole other generation of Ithacans. As a volunteer, Ashley donates his time for the benefit of downtown and the entire community. Tonight, we thank and recognize him with this 2022 Special Events Partner of the Year award.
Board Member of the Year: Brett Bossard
Ashley Cake, DIA Board president, Gary Ferguson, DIA executive director; and City of Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis present the Downtown Ithaca Alliance Board Member of the Year Award to Brett Bossard.
Brett Bossard has worn many hats during his career of service here in Ithaca. Most of these have intersected with Downtown. He was the Executive Director of the Community Arts Partnership. He was the Executive Director of Seventh Arts, better known as Cinemapolis. He was President of the Ithaca Rotary Club and the County Tourism and Planning Board leader. And, of course, he was a DIA board member. Brett served in a leadership position on the Executive
Committee, serving as organization secretary. His nonprofit work experience and understanding of community building made him an invaluable resource for the DIA and a voice of wisdom for us all. Recently, Brett accepted a new job with Ithaca College, where he will be involved in alumni and community engagement. Recognizing his years of service to the DIA and the Downtown community, we honor Brett Bossard as our 2022 DIA Board Member of the Year.
Downtown Business of the Year: Buffalo Street Books
Ashley Cake, Downtown Ithaca Alliance Board of Directors president; Gary Ferguson, DIA executive director; Lisa Swayze, general manager for Buffalo Street Books; and City of Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis.
Buffalo Street Books: Being an independent community bookstore in 2022 is even more daunting. Yet, Buffalo Street Books has repeatedly risen to the task, achieving what many thought couldn’t be done while serving their community in an exemplary manner all along the way. You know the story…. When faced with the prospect of closing, Buffalo Street Books choose the brave and unknown path. They created a cooperative business, asking the community to sign on as financial members. They succeeded and prevailed. Today, BSB is a model for Ithaca and the nation in how a community that loves and reveres its independent bookstore can collectively work to achieve success. BSB is also a model for service to the community, hosting dozens of events annually and actively supporting and participating n DIA activities. We recognize Buffalo Street Books as our 2022 Downtown Business of the Year for its perseverance and dedication to downtown and the people of Ithaca.
Lifetime Achievement Award: Joseph Wetmore, property owner, and Autumn Leaves Used Books owner.
Ashley Cake, DIA Board president, Gary Ferguson, DIA executive director; and City of Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis present a Lifetime Achievement Award to Joseph Wetmore.
Joe Wetmore has been synonymous with the DIA since its inception. He was part of the planning committee that worked on creating the BID, was a founding board member in 1997, and has served six terms — some 18+ years of service. Joe was recently termed off the board for a second time, and with him went an incredible history of this organization. He was the DIA parliamentarian and resident expert on the organization’s by-laws. His bookstore was originally a downtown tenant, but became a property owner, making Autumn Leave Books a community institution. As a DIA’s board leadership member, Joe helped steer the organization through countless ups and downs. He chaired the Special Events committee of the board for years, helping to grow our events into the major, anticipated community celebrations they are today. When the Board looked for a guiding hand, they looked to Joe. For his years of service to the organization and his unfailing commitment to downtown, tonight we honor Joe Wetmore with a DIA Lifetime Achievement Award.
