Town of Ithaca FAQs
Marriage licenses for marriages to be performed within the State of New York are issued at the Town Hall between 8:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Both bride and groom must come to the Clerk’s office with a photo ID (such as driver’s license or passport) and a certified copy of their birth certificate. If an individual has been divorced, a certified copy of their divorce decree is required; and if a former spouse has died a certified copy of their death certificate is required.
The couple must wait 24 hours after issuance of the license before they can marry, and they must be married within 60 days. The cost of the license is $40.00. The individual who officiates at the ceremony will sign the license and return it to the Town Clerk's office. Upon receipt of the signed marriage license, the Town Clerk will issue and send the couple a Certificate of Marriage Registration. The marriage will be recorded at the Town Hall, and the original license then forwarded to Vital Statistic in Albany for their records.
Where can I pay my property tax and water & sewer bill?
REAL PROPERTY TAX BILL INFORMATION:
The Town and County Tax Bill payments can be made by mail or in person at the Ithaca Town Hall Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Payments can be made by cash or by check only. The Ithaca Town Hall has a night drop box that is checked daily for any payments or correspondences. It is located by the Buffalo Street entrance door.
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Town and County tax bills are mailed out every year during the last week of December |
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Tax payments are due annually by January 31st without penalty |
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No payment will be accepted before January 1st. No post-dated checks. |
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A partial payment option is available for payments received January 1st through January 31st only |
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Starting February 1st a penalty is added to the full amount of all unpaid tax bills. The schedule of penalties is as follows: |
· Payments received February 1 through 28 – 1% penalty
· Payments received March 1 through 31 – 2% penalty
· Payment postmarked after March 31st or later will be mailed back to the owner.
On April 1st, all unpaid 2006 Town and County Tax Bills will be handed over to the Tompkins County Budget & Finance Department for collection.
Starting April 1st, the Tompkins County Budget and Finance Department will be collecting taxes at 125 East Court Street, Ithaca, NY 14850. If there are any questions for Tompkins County Budget and Finance Department please call 607-274-5545.
The State Law stipulates that property owners are responsible for their taxes and any penalties, whether they receive a tax bill or not.
WATER & SEWER BILL INFORMATION:
Bolton Point prints and mails Town of Ithaca water and sewer bills quarterly (March 1st, June 1st, September 1st, and December 1st). All name and address changes need to be made with Bolton Point by calling 607-277-0660.
Town of Ithaca residents have 30 days to make payments without penalty. After 30 days, there is a ten percent penalty applied to the unpaid balance. It is the property owner or landlord’s responsibility to make sure payment is made.
Water and Sewer payments can be made by mail or in person at the Ithaca Town Hall Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Payments can be made in cash or by check only. No post-dated checks.
The Ithaca Town Hall has a night drop box that is checked daily for any payments or correspondences. The drop box is located by the Buffalo Street entrance door.
The full application must be used for deck construction. The plans must include details on footers, framing, railing, steps, and lighting.
Contact Dig Safely New York at 1-800-962-7962 or visit their website at www.UFPO.org.
Who are the Town Board members?
Click here to meet the current Town Board members.
How can I get copies of meeting minutes?
Draft Town Board and Planning Board meeting minutes are available at the Town of Ithaca web site within two weeks of the meeting date. Final minutes are available after the Town Board has approved the DRAFT minutes (usually at the next regularly scheduled Town Board Meeting).
If you prefer to receive a hard copy there is a nominal copying charge for these documents and they are generally supplied the same day they are requested. A Records Request Form is available for your convenience to submit an online request for copies of documents.
Can I request copies of any record via email?
The Governor recently approved legislation (Chapter 182) to amend the Freedom of Information Law that requires the Committee on Open Government "to develop a form, which shall be made available on the internet, that may be used by the public to request a record". The new law further requires as follows:
"All entities shall, provided such entity has reasonable means available, accept requests for records submitted in the form of electronic mail and shall respond to such requests by electronic mail, using forms, to the extent practicable, consistent with the form or forms developed by the Committee on Open Government pursuant to subdivision one of this section and provided that the written requests do not seek a response in some other form."
The Town of Ithaca has complied with this new legislation by creating an interactive form for you to submit a request for records: Request For Records Via Email
Once you've clicked the Submit button on this page, you will see a confirmation page letting you know that your request has been sent to the Town Clerk. The Town Clerk will respond to your request within 5 business days.
For more information on the Committee on Open Government and the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) go to www.dos.state.ny.us/coog/coogwww.html
When is the next Town Board meeting?
Who maintains my road? I see Town trucks, Tompkins County trucks, and New York State trucks.
That depends on who owns your road. The Town of Ithaca owns certain “local” roads within its boundaries. Tompkins County owns 15 roads and New York State owns 8 roads within the town. County and State roads are considered thoroughfares—roads that go through the Town of Ithaca into another town. Examples are Coddington Road (County Road) and Danby Road/RT 96B (State Road). However, the Town plows and salts certain roads that are owned by Tompkins County and the County plows and salts all the State roads in the Town. If you have questions about this, please call the Town Highway Department at 273-1656 so we can direct you to the proper entity. County road questions should be referred to Tompkins County Highway Department at 274-0300 and State road questions should be referred to New York State DOT at (607) 756-7072.
When is the brush and leaf pick up?
We pick up Town yard waste twice per year. The spring pick up is the third week in April. Brush piles are chipped up and do not need to be bundled. All other yard waste (leaves, grass clippings, and garden wastes) must be put in biodegradable, paper bags. The fall brush pick up is the third week of October, and leaves, the first week in November.
This year we will be conducting the leaf (yard waste) collection a little differently. The first week of the pick up, we will accept leaves that have been raked to the curbside—either loose or in biodegradable paper bags. After that, each Monday during November the Town Highway crews will collect leaves and yard waste that has been placed in biodegradable paper bags at curbside.
Can residents obtain mulch or compost from the Public Works Facility?
Yes. The Town's Public Works Facility offers wood chips, shredded wood mulch, and compost free of charge to Town of Ithaca residents only. (Please note that the wood chips are irregularly sized due to the chipping process.) These services are not available to contractors. You can find these items at the Public Works Facility located at 106 Seven Mile Drive. Town of Ithaca residents should sign in at the office before picking up any wood chips, shredded wood mulch, or compost. Please note that ONLY Town of Ithaca residents may bring brush, leaves, garden wastes, and grass clippings to the facility for drop off.
Does the Town provide trash and recycling pickup?
No, you must contract with a local hauler or contact Tompkins County Solid Waste at (607) 273-6632. They can advise with contracting with local trash haulers.
Does the Town have a Dog Ordinance?
Yes, If you have any questions, contact the Town Clerk's Office at 607-273-1721 or email townclerk@town.ithaca.ny.us
Does the Town have a Noise Ordinance?
Yes, click here to view Town's recently updated Noise Ordinance.
Click here for a Noise Ordinance Permit application you can submit to the Town Clerk's Office.
If you have any questions, contact the Town Clerk's Office at 607-273-1721 or email townclerk@town.ithaca.ny.us
Where can I pay a Town Court fine?
