G.L.A.M—Grow, Learn, Advocate, Market Your Chamber, Your Resource

ADVOCACY

I was thrilled and a little surprised to read a recent editorial in The Tattler, the Ithaca High School student newspaper, supporting the Collegetown Terrace Apartments Project. The editorial writers correctly noted one of the interesting current ironies in local government. The City of Ithaca’s Common Council’s Planning Committee is considering rezoning several areas of the City from R3 to R3aa. R3 zoning allows multiple unit housing and larger numbers of units than in R3aa. This, of course, is at the same time that the City of Ithaca has publicly supported the County’s Comprehensive Plan, which encourages infill development and increased housing opportunities.

The Collegetown Terrace Apartment project would build about 1260 units of housing in the area bounded by State Street, Quarry Street, and Valentine Place. To do this it would demolish about 19 properties, with about 635 units, and replace them with six or seven apartment buildings. As I understand it the project was developed in keeping with the current zoning regulations, but might need a variance to get a building permit.

I was really delighted by this editorial because the writers identified two very important points and because they cared enough about housing to write about this subject. Their points were that “Demand for housing will not diminish if people aren’t allowed to develop in the city; Ithaca’s suburbs will just expand instead, swallowing more open space.” And secondly, “The real issue at work is NIMBY syndrome—Not In My Backyard. ‘Nodal’ growth is great, but not here.” Infill projects help prevent sprawl and it’s certainly ironic that the City is considering whether to limit such projects not only on East State Street but in other areas of the city while generally supporting “smart growth” concepts.

Developers simply ask to know the rules. Once ground-rules are established these entrepreneurs can take it from there and obtain financing while supplying the risk tolerance that makes dreams become realities. Unfortunately when the ground-rules are uncertain developers become very wary of investing their time and start-up money in a community that changes the rules in the middle of the game.

The Chamber’s Governmental Affairs Committee has supported a resolution that supports this development. The resolution is working its way through committees and will be reviewed by the Board of Directors in February. Common Council’s Planning and Economic Development Committee will meet and review the rezoning proposal on the evening of February 17th. We’ll be there to voice the opinion of the Chamber’s Board. We hope you will consider lending your voice as well.

FEBRUARY 2010 MEMBERS IN THE NEWS

EMBERS IN THE NEWS

Greenstreet Real Estate’s Diana Drucker has been awarded the National Association of REALTORS®’ [NAR’s] Green Designation, the only green real estate professional designation recognized by NAR. This designation reflects Diana’s training in, and understanding of, what makes a property green, and how a property’s green characteristics can benefit her clients. These benefits can include – but aren’t limited to – financial grants and incentives. As an NAR Green Designee, Diana has gained the knowledge and the tools necessary to become a trusted green resource for Ithaca.

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Ithaca Athlete to Participate in 7-Day, 155-Mile Australian Outback Foot Race;
Celebrates with $20,000 Fundraiser for Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes

Ithaca resident Christopher LaVallee is one of 200 athletes worldwide, who was recently accepted to compete in the April, 2010 RacingThePlanet 7-day, 155-mile Western Australia rough-country foot race. LaVallee is celebrating his acceptance to the April 25, 2010 to May 1, 2010 event with a $20,000 fundraising campaign for the Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes. For details, visit www.crcfl.net.

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Christine M. Ludlow, a longtime Tompkins Trust Company employee, has been promoted to Vice President of Consumer & Residential Mortgage Lending Services for Tompkins Financial Corporation as part of the company’s restructuring of its support services organization.
Ludlow will be responsible for directing a newly formed function of the company that combines the underwriting, processing and service support areas of consumer and mortgage lending.

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The Ithaca law firm of Miller Mayer, LLP is pleased to announce two new additions: attorney Kimberly N. Rothman has become the 12th partner and patent attorney Randall L. Reed has joined the firm as of counsel.

Kim has been an associate attorney at Miller Mayer since 2005, and she specializes in estate planning, estate administration and real estate law. Randy comes to Miller Mayer from Transonic Systems, Inc., where he served as vice president, general counsel and secretary from 2004 to 2008.

Welcome Back Anchor Capital Management!

Anchor Capital Management is once again a Chamber member and is looking forward to renewed involvement in Chamber activities.

"Anchor is one of the few truly independent financial planning and investment counseling firms in the area," said Anne Chernish, CFP®, Anchor's president and managing member. "We have absolutely no outside pressure to sell products," she stressed.

"We have purposely chosen this form of organization to achieve the highest standards of fiduciary duty," Anne explained. "It enables us to always put our clients first."

“As our name implies, we strive to be a 'financial anchor' for our clients,” she added. While Anchor is relatively new, Anne has served the Ithaca area as a financial planner and investment counselor for 20 years.

She has two key employees, Susan Simmons and Tim Begany. Susan has been handling day-to-day administration since 2003. Tim joined Anchor last year as an associate advisor and is a candidate for CFP® certification.

Anchor is at 315 Taughannock Boulevard, across from Island Health and Fitness. For more information, call Susan at 607-272-0004. After an initial conversation, she will refer you to Anne or Tim. You may also wish to consult Anchor’s website for information: www.anchorcapmanagement.com.


www.anchorcapmanagement.com
607.272.0004

Michaleen’s – 22 Years and Going Strong!

Michaleen’s Flower Shop has been a staple in Ithaca since it’s inception in 1987. After graduating from Cornell University, Michaleen decided to stay and open a small flower shop in Ithaca. Since that time, the flower shop has grown along with the local community. Greenhouses were added several years ago, to accommodate the need in the area for green and blooming plants year round.

For Valentine’s Day, Michaleen’s is offering a free Lake Champlain Chocolate bar with any order placed on or before the 11th. To accommodate their customers’ schedules, orders can be sent all week to the workplace. Michaleen’s is open and delivering all day on February 14, Valentine’s Day

Michaleen’s offers cut flowers and floral arrangements for every occasion, specializing in wedding and event flowers. Sumptuous Lake Champlain and Promise Me Chocolates can be found at the counter while Crabtree & Evelyn products are just around the corner. Eclectic gifts for everyday and special occasions decorate their light and airy space. Corporate gifts and packages are also available upon request. Some of the areas best pottery can be found in their Garden Room, which also features botanical gardens created on site. Plant rentals are also available for special events.

Michaleen supports many local organizations, such as The American Cancer Society, Lansing School District, and the Salvation Army to name a few, by giving donations and flowers as part of the fundraising efforts.

Michaleen’s has and will continue to provide quality flowers at an affordable price with an emphasis on customer service and providing a knowledgeable staff. Michaleen is thankful to the community for their responsiveness to the shop local initiative.


607.257.3203
www.michaleens.com

Welcome Aboard, FitzGerald Brothers Bus & Limo Co!

Building on its green commitment by using vehicles that are powered with Bio Fuels, FitzGerald Brothers is happy to service the Ithaca area on a daily basis. Owner Mike FitzGerald says, “The number one area I enjoy serving the most is Ithaca because the people there appreciate a green alternative and love Bio-Fuels too! You don’t get the same reaction or appreciation anywhere else.”

The company is excited to announce that in January they added a Bio-Fueled 35-passenger Mid-Size Touring Coach Bus moving the fleet size to over 20 busses, limousine, SUVS’s & Sedans. The Mid Size Touring Coach features several TV’s, DVD, reclining seats, overhead parcel racks, rear cargo, and is ideal for wine tours, college travel, out of state field trips, sporting events and wedding shuttles.

The staff is also gearing again for this year’s Cayuga Lake public trolley tours. Last year’s Trolley Tours were a huge success thanks to many hotel and B&B owners that were up-selling their stays into packages with Trolley wine tours as a part of it. “We found that the owners were driving their guests to Cass Park, the Trolley would take them on their tour, and then at day’s end; guests would be picked back up.” This year’s tours will begin in mid June and will run till November. Pick-ups are every Saturday at local hotels and Cass Park. Riders visit five wineries and a stop for lunch during their six hour tour.

The company expects many more B&B operators & hotels to partner up in 2010 to place more guests on Trolley Wine Tours visiting the Cayuga Wine Trail.

For more information please contact us at 315-828-6289 or visit our websites, www.fingerlakeswinerytours.com and www.fitzlimo.com

Finger Lakes Fitness Center – An Uncommon Experience, on the Commons!

Finger Lakes Fitness Center (FLFC) is more than just a health club! The fun, clean environment and knowledgeable, caring staff are what keep members coming back. Whether you are looking to lose weight, better your health, or improve athletic performance, FLFC has everything you need. With a variety of cardio machines, a full strength circuit, free weights, and a full class schedule in a beautiful group fitness studio, you'll never have to wait in line to work out. If you are unsure of how to get started, talk to FLFC's friendly staff about setting up personal training.

FLFC – located in Center Ithaca - has events going on throughout the year to help bolster its community feel, such as the free Wellness Lecture Series coming up the last week in February. There will also be a Metabolic Testing seminar held in March, with Registered Dietitian Michele Wilbur. Check out FLFC's website at www.FingerLakesFitness.com for more details about upcoming events.

Membership at FLFC is affordable and never has any initiation fees. Included with all memberships are complementary orientations to the cardio and strength machines and all regularly scheduled group fitness classes. FLFC offers a variety of group fitness classes including dance, aerobics, and strength, as well as three different styles of yoga. Two new yoga series-- Svaroopa and Intro Iyengar-- recently began as well, for those new to yoga.

Stop by any time for a free day pass to try out Finger Lakes Fitness Center for yourself!


607.256.3532
www.FingerLakesFitness.com

The Chamber Welcomes Lucienne’s Fine Foods

Lucienne’s Fine Foods is now open for business and ready to provide a rich variety of high quality chocolates and baked goods to retailers, caterers, and consumers.

Working in their new commercial kitchen located in Jacksonville, New York, Lucienne Cruvellier and her business partners - Terry and Diane Kelleher - combine natural and organic ingredients to produce unique and flavorful products that may change the way you look at biscotti and dark chocolate forever!

Lucienne’s biscotti recipes have been refined and developed over many years of experimentation and bring wholesome and delicious ingredients together in a way that has generated fresh excitement wherever they’ve been offered. Her signature biscotti are called “Over the Top” and are made primarily from pistachios, almonds, dried cherries and fruit juice sweetened cranberries with just enough organic flour, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, locally produced eggs, and other ingredients to hold it all together. Additional biscotti varieties include Anise Lemon, Chocolate Cherry, Citrus White Chocolate, Double Almond, Double Chocolate Orange, and Lemon Cranberry.

Lucienne’s passion for dark chocolate has led her to explore its many qualities; both singly and in combination with common and uncommon ingredients. Lucienne’s line of dark chocolates is made exclusively with 65% to 75% cocoa and is referred to by the name “Chocolat Chat Noir,” French for “dark chocolate cat”. This line includes numerous molded solid and filled chocolates and chocolate snack formulations.

Lucienne’s kitchen is located at Ulysses Square on RT 96 in Jacksonville. Our goods are currently available through our website www.luciennes.com, with more local outlets expected to follow.


607.209.4100
www.luciennes.com

Your Chamber, Your Resource: Grow, Advocate, Market, Learn

What does the Chamber do? When a group of us tried to pare the answer down to a reasonable size, eliminate detail, and find the kernel at the core of our work we came up with four words: advocate, market, grow and learn.

The Chamber advocates for our members with our elected representatives, with local, state and national governments, and with planning boards and sewer commissions. We help businesses and organizations market their services and products to each other and to the world. The Chamber’s website and membership directory reach tens of thousands of potential clients and customers every year. Chamber members utilize the services of the Chamber to help grow their organizations. They meet other entrepreneurs and service providers at networking events and create opportunities to do business with each other. And through workshops, webinars and one-on-one business counseling they learn to do all of these activities better.

One of the most important ways the Chamber can advocate for our community in 2010 is to encourage everyone to participate in the Census. You’ll be hearing more about the Census over the next few months and materials will begin showing up in your mailbox soon. We will be asking you to let your employees know about the Census and the importance of being counted. The funding for many federal programs is tied to population statistics and without an accurate count our county could lose needed dollars.

The Chamber is partnering with the Census to help get this message out and we have received several thousand pedometers with the slogan “The Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce Wants YOU to be Counted U.S. Census 2010.” We’ll be distributing these at events in January and February. It’s a great way to get healthy by counting your steps and to help our county continue to have a healthy population count!

JANUARY 2010 MEMBERS IN THE NEWS

Local Habitat to Build in Village of Dryden!

Next Tompkins County Building Site Announced, Partner Family for next Habitat home given wonderful news before Christmas!

The Habitat for Humanity of Tompkins and Cortland Counties (TCHFH) Board of Directors unanimously approved the purchase of 6 Wellsley Drive in the Village of Dryden. This lot will be used for the next Tompkins County Habitat Build, starting next spring.

“We are thrilled to be building in Tompkins County again next year,” says executive director Christy Voytko, “Dryden will be a great location for volunteers from both Tompkins and Cortland Counties to come out and help build a home for a family in need of a simple, decent, and affordable home.” For more info, please call (607)898-4148.
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Coughlin & Gerhart, L.L.P. is pleased to announce that Robert H. McKertich has joined the firm to practice in the areas of Environmental Law, Labor and Employment and Municipal Law.

A graduate of Northeastern University School of Law, Mr. McKertich has practiced law in the Boston, MA area since 2003 in courtroom litigation and he is experienced in practicing before federal, state and local administrative agencies.
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Community Foundation Board Elects Leadership for its 10th Anniversary Year
The Community Foundation of Tompkins County has elected its leadership team for 2010, the local public charity’s tenth anniversary year. Local attorney Mariette Geldenhuys will be the Board Chairperson following 2009 Chair, Tommy Bruce, and Cornell Vice President for University Communications. Mickie Sanders-Jauquet, a Community Foundation donor advisor, active in education and local government and current chair of the Grants Committee, will serve as Vice Chair. Tompkins County Finance Director David Squires succeeds long time Treasurer Joanne James of Newfield Central Schools. Attorney Kim Rothman of Miller Mayer, LLP completes the leadership team as board Secretary.

The Blue Stone – Come On In!

Having been open for 4 years now, Doug and Nancy Gruen, the owners of the Blue Stone Bar Grill & Lounge at 110 North Aurora Street, have a question and a suggestion: "Why haven't you been in here yet?,” and "Get in here!"

Nancy says, "There's something for everyone here," and she points out that the chef-owned eatery (Doug is trained at the Culinary Institute of America) offers "elegant comfort food, great cocktails and is a great meeting spot for dinner."

When you come to Blue Stone, tell your server that you would like to have the "Dinner and a Movie" package. After dinner, you will be given a ticket good for one admission to Cinemapolis on the Commons, and the package is just $21.95.

Blue Stone is pleased to be connected to the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce, and would like to offer all Chamber members 25% off their dinner entrees for the month of January! (The Chamber's resident vegetarian always orders Blue Stone's Veggie Burger, and deems it quite scrumptious.) January will also be a special month because a Wine Dinner will be held there on Wednesday January 20, and will feature, starting at 6 pm, a Six-course meal with six different wines (presented by one of the owners of Lamoreaux Landing Winery).


607.272.2371
www.bluestoneithaca.com

The Chamber Welcomes Snug Planet!

Snug Planet is a locally-owned home performance consulting and contracting company based in downtown Ithaca. The Snug Planet team is a small, highly trained group of home performance professionals. Our mission is to serve the community and protect the environment by improving the comfort and efficiency of buildings. We focus on customer satisfaction and keeping our staff trained, certified and educated on the latest in home performance. We are accredited by the Building Performance Institute and we are Energy Star-certified, so customers can depend on us to deliver quality work.

Snug Planet wants people to be comfortable in their buildings. We take an integrated approach to assessing and improving each building’s energy performance in order to deliver increased comfort and energy savings. We focus on heating, cooling, insulation, healthy and safety and moisture issues. Home energy audits include a site visit by a BPI-certified analyst, state-of-the-art diagnostic analysis, health & safety inspection, comprehensive written report, and targeted recommendations for increased comfort and energy savings. Our team installs a variety of products to fit customers' specific needs, including high-efficiency heating and hot water systems, renewable systems, insulation, new doors and windows, interior & exterior storm windows & doors, vapor barriers, crawlspace improvements, and other custom work.

Snug Planet is a Living Wage Employer certified by the Tompkins County Workers' Center, and we provide on-going training, health insurance and retirement benefits to our employees. As a Tompkins County certified Rebusiness Partner, Snug Planet is committed to minimizing business and construction waste. We are also members of the Ithaca Green Building Alliance, and the newly formed Sustainable Enterprise & Entrepreneurs network (SEEN).

At Snug Planet we care about our people and the earth, and we take pride in delivering environmentally-sound solutions to building performance problems in our community.


(607) 277-7684
www.snugplanet.com

Sandler Offers World Class Sales and Management Training

Sandler is a world leader in innovative sales and sales management training. We teach a distinctive, non-traditional selling system and highly effective sales training methodology, which has helped salespeople and sales managers take charge of the process.

Our training is designed to create lasting “performance improvement” rather than the motivational “quick fix” typical of many seminar-based training programs. To help you accomplish your goals, Sandler provides reinforcement training, a system that combines quality materials along with access to ongoing training workshops and individual coaching sessions. Through our Syracuse and Elmira training centers, we provide continuing face-to-face support and reinforcement of the world’s most successful selling system.

At Sandler, we understand that business success is directly related to the effectiveness of upper- and mid-level managers within an organization. Sandler’s management solutions help managers at all levels become more effective communicators, better mentors and coaches, and competent managers of change.

Entrepreneur Magazine has ranked Sandler as the No.1 training company eight times since 1994, including 2005-2007 and again in 2010.
“Find the Power in Reinforcement”


315-234-8153
www.peakpm.sandler.co

Doug Levine, Outgoing Director of Membership, Public Relations and Special Events

It has been an honor and pleasure serving as your Director of Membership and Public Relations for the past five years. As my time at the Chamber comes to a close, I would like to take a moment to reflect upon the past five years and share some of the accomplishments and achievements of our organization. None of this would have been possible without the support and involvement of the Chamber Board of Directors, Committee chairs, Ambassadors, Chamber members and of course, the Chamber and CVB staff. I want to thank all of you for your continued support and involvement during my time here.

Over the past five years, there were many fun, informative events organized by scores of volunteers and attended by thousands of Chamber members. Some of the accomplishments of which I am most proud include moving our annual business tradeshow, Showcase Tompkins, to The Ithaca Farmers Market, which allowed more members to participate while also making it a truly memorable event that the public could be a part of. The Annual Chamber Golf Tournament has evolved immensely. By utilizing both Cornell’s Robert Trent Jones course and the Country Club of Ithaca, our participation has more than doubled! The Great Big Chamber Auction continued to raise a significant amount of money while Auctioneer extraordinaire David Hall was brought on as Auction Committee Chair. We grew our monthly Networking@noon event to a point that we are sold out almost every month. And despite the plethora of bad jokes lobbed at me on a daily basis, I am very proud to have hired Steve Lawrence as your Membership Account Executive. For many of you Steve is the first face of The Chamber, and for that, I am sorry.

This year, we have once again been busy with ribbon cuttings, anniversaries, mixers and new member orientations while our business community continues to expand and diversify despite current economic conditions. I would like to formally welcome my successor, Rob LaHood, to the Chamber. After a weekend visit to Ithaca in 2002, Rob instantly fell in love with the area and decided to relocate from Washington, D.C. and make Ithaca and Tompkins County his adopted home. I met Rob while enrolled in Leadership Tompkins during the fall of 2005 and a friendship quickly ensued. We’ve been in touch ever since and I’m so proud to see him take over for me.

As I sit here adding the finishing touches to my last Chambergram, while looking forward to starting my new role as Executive Director of The State Theatre of Ithaca, Inc., I truly feel like the luckiest guy in town. I’m moving from a job and organization that I love to a dream opportunity. As many of you know, music plays a big role in my life. I remember thinking to myself during last October’s Crosby & Nash concert at The State Theatre, “I wish I could just see EVERY show at this beautiful theatre!” Happily, that is now my reality.

AUGUST 2009 MEMBERS IN THE NEWS

Les Swartz, the owner of Federal Safety Equipment in Candor and an active member and familiar face at Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce events, has picked up another prestigious award. Les was named the 2009 Small Business Person of the Year for the SBA’s Syracuse District – which is no small distinction, given that the district comprises 34 counties in upstate New York. Les, a disabled veteran, has grown his business into a six member team generating annual revenues in excess of $1.5 million. The Binghamton SBDC nominated Federal Safety Equipment as the SBA’s Veteran Business of the Year in 2008.

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Retirement Essentials, Inc., a local Third Party Pension Administration firm, is pleased to announce that as of August 1st, their office has moved to the South Hill Business Campus at 950 Danby Road, Suite 140. Retirement Essentials will be celebrating its 20th year in business in March, 2010.

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Warren Real Estate of Ithaca was named the 2009 Family Partner of the Year by Family & Children’s Service of Ithaca. Each year Family & Children’s Service of Ithaca celebrates the extraordinary philanthropy of our local businesses by recognizing among their colleagues a business that has distinguished itself in this elite group. Family & Children’s Service has benefited from Warren Real Estate’s consistent generosity and support for over a decade.

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Eric Lindstrom, a long-time Ithaca-based media executive with nearly two decades of experience, has joined 93.5 WVBR-FM Ithaca as its General Sales Manager. Lindstrom most recently acted as Vice President and Art Director at Communiqué Design & Marketing, Inc., one of Ithaca's most respected advertising agencies, and was often responsible for writing, editing, producing and recording radio advertising for some of the area's largest organizations. Lindstrom has also produced printed collateral as well as video projects for companies in the northeast. “Eric brings a tremendous amount to the table in the way of marketing, promotional and sales experience, and I look forward to working with such a creative and well-connected individual,” said Dan Powers, President and General Manager of WVBR-FM “We're very excited to have him on board."

Leadership Tompkins is Seeking New Participants for 2009

Leadership Tompkins is a community leadership development program that serves Tompkins County by nurturing community leadership in service-oriented individuals. Co-sponsored by Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce and Tompkins Cortland Community College, Leadership Tompkins:

Just as organizations must develop leaders to ensure their future success, Tompkins County must develop the awareness and skills of its future community leaders. Whether it's serving on a board, holding an elected position, or mentoring a child, Leadership Tompkins alumni make an impact on our community.

Please contact Susan Greener, Facilitator, or Sharon Sanford, Administrator, if you are interested in learning more about Leadership Tompkins for yourself, a staff member, a colleague or a friend.

(607)272-3025, www.leadershiptompkins.org.

Join The Chamber’s Auction Committee!

Every October, the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce hosts its Great Big Chamber Auction and each year, the event is organized and evolved by a volunteer committee of exciting individuals just like you! This event is the Chamber’s largest fundraiser and is as much fun to work on as it is to attend. There are a number of areas to become involved. Being a part of this committee and its teams is an excellent way to meet other Chamber members and to network with area business people. Not to mention being a part of supporting the excellent work of the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce. If you are interested in participating on this team, please contact: Rob LaHood, Director of Membership and Public Relations, (607) 273-7080.

Downtown Visitors Center moves to The Commons

After 14 years in The Clinton House, the Downtown Visitor Center and Ticket Center has moved to Center Ithaca in the heart of the Ithaca Commons. The new address is 171 The Commons, Ithaca. The move allows the Visitor Center and Ticket Center to better serve downtown residents and visitors with increased parking, visibility, access for people with disabilities and gallery space. The move also frees the ground floor of the vacated Clinton House for New Roots Charter School which opens in September.

The combined Visitor/Ticket Center, which attracts 5,000 to 10,000 people annually, is joint venture of the Ithaca/Tompkins County Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Community Arts Partnership (CAP). The visitors bureau provides travel, lodging and activity information at the site. CAP manages the Ticket Center program, provides information on local arts events and maintains the site’s public gallery space. The new location also houses CAP’s business offices. Local developer Travis &Travis was instrumental in facilitating the move. The firm manages Center Ithaca, among other properties.

For local tickets and arts information, call the Ticket Center at 273-4497. For travel & tourism information call 273-7482 (downtown visitor center) or 272-1313 (visitors bureau main office).

Redmoon Caregivers Relocates to 222 South Albany Street

Redmoon Private Caregivers & Consultants, a Home Health Care Agency licensed by the NYS Department of Health to provide home health aide, personal care aide, and companion and nursing services for the elderly and people with disabilities in Tompkins and surrounding counties, is now operating from their new location.

Anyone interested in Redmoon’s services is encouraged to call 607-254-6090 or visit the new office at 222 South Albany Street.

www.redmooncaregivers.com

(607)254-6090

Ithaca maurices Donates $500 to the SPCA of Tompkins County

maurices, a leading national specialty retail store for savvy, fashion-conscious customers with a 20-something attitude, celebrated the one year anniversary of its store by awarding $500 to a local non-profit organization. "We believe in giving back to the communities we are a part of and are thrilled to announce the local non-profit organization who will receive this donation," states Erin M. Donnoe, Store Manager. "Customers determined the charity by stopping in our store and voting during May. It was exciting to see the response from the community and their number of individuals who came out to submit their charity of choice. The organization that received the most nominations was the SPCA of Tompkins County, which provides a valuable service to our community. We are happy to offer this additional support to their effort," says Donnoe.

Established in 1931, maurices is wholly owned by dressbarn inc. and is an innovative fashion retailer for young women. The Ithaca store is located in the Elmira Road Shopping Center in next to Kohl’s and Home Depot. Maurice’s moderate prices, convenient locations, and its focus on friendly customer service differentiate it from department stores and other specialty retailers. .

www.maurices.com

(607) 277-9950

The Chamber Welcomes Blue Bird Antiques

Blue Bird Antiques, a cheerful and fun antique shop with a flair for "off the beaten path" antique, vintage and collectible treasures, celebrated their opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday, July 28th. Located just off of the Ithaca Commons, next to the State Theatre at 113 West State Street, Blue Bird offers an ever changing variety of Antique Furniture & Artwork, 100% Hand Knotted Persian Rugs, Vintage Clothing & Jewelry, Textiles, Ephemera, Porcelain, Glass, etc.

The store is owned and operated by Jenny McGuire and offers an interesting and ever changing inventory of unique antique items and treasures from days gone by. Jenny says, “I joined the Chamber because I like being a part of the community. I grew up here, and moved away for 20 years, and it’s great to be back!” Jenny invites everyone to stop in and take a look during regular business hours.

http://bluebirdantiques.com

(607)272-BIRD