Center of Government

The proposed project involves constructing a 48,000-square-foot Center of Government designed to:

1. Meet current and projected office space requirements. Create a building that will accommodate future growth and change.

2. Get out of existing leases and consolidate County departments

3. Provide residents with more integrated services (improve convenience and efficiency)

4. Provide residents with equitable access to services via bus, bike, walk, or drive in one location

5. Meet the County’s Green Building Policy requirements

6. Maintain and enhance the economic vitality of downtown

7. Complement and enhance the character of the Historic District

8. Create a government campus around DeWitt Park

2026

• In March, per legislature request, county administration presented a 37,000 square feet option(PDF, 8MB) in comparison to the previously presented 57,000 square feet proposal. Neither option received a majority support. The June 2025 resolution stands, which authorized a Center of Government project of about 45,000 square feet with a cap of up to $50 million, including related renovations to other county buildings. 
  View the meeting recording

2025

• In April, SHPO provided a conditional approval to deconstruct the Professional Law building, Key Bank building, and Annex C.
• In May, the Legislature amended a 2024 resolution, updating the placement of departments that will occupy the Center of Government.
• In June, Town Hall meetings were held in Groton, Dryden, Enfield, Caroline, and Ithaca to inform residents about the project status. An online survey was made available to solicit public feedback on current access to government services and improving service delivery.
  The Legislature approved a resolution for funding up to $50 million for the project, including the construction of a 45,000 square feet building, the deconstruction of existing facilities, planning and design activities, the construction of the new Center of Government building, and the renovation of the Old Jail and a portion of the Daniel D. Tompkins building.
• In July, first design options were presented in a public meeting. A second online survey was published for residents to weigh in on design, building material, and aesthetic element options.
• County Administration and Human Resources departments relocated from 125 East Court Street to 201 East Green Street.
• In August, the results of a community survey and parking study(PDF, 12MB) were presented at the Downtown Facilities Special Committee meeting. 
• In September, design updates were presented at the Downtown Facilities Special Committee meeting. The presentation(PDF, 16MB) was based on community and legislative feedback following the initial design presentation in July and included proposed floor-by-floor layouts of the building's interior and exterior design elements.
  The Information and Technology Services department moved to 125 East Court Street. 
• In November, updates on the deconstruction efforts were presented to the Downtown Facilities Special Committee.
• In December, further design updates and refinements were presented in a public meeting. The presentation(PDF, 32MB) incorporated previous community and legislative feedback. The building design has evolved to 57,000 square feet (including 20% growth factor for future space needs) for a total project cost estimate of $64 million. An online survey was provided for additional feedback.

2024

• The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) commenced a review of the proposed project site that was believed to contain buildings in the historic district.
• After an RFP process, the County hired HOLT Architects for architectural design and engineering services in December.

2023

• The Legislature decided to move forward with the Center of Government Building project in September 2023.

2022

• In February, the County took ownership of the two properties on the 300 block of North Tioga Street adjacent to the Main Courthouse.
• The Legislature approved moving forward with a program space study update in April 2022. The space study update was completed and presented to the Facilities & Infrastructure Committee in July 2022. 

2021

• The County Legislature took action to purchase a property at the corner of Buffalo and North Tioga Streets in the City of Ithaca with the plan of constructing an office building that will serve as the Tompkins County Center of Government. 

Public presentations

You are invited - Help shape the future of county government!

March 2026

At the March 3 legislature meeting, per legislature request, county administration presented a 37,000 square feet option(PDF, 8MB) in comparison to the previously presented 57,000 square feet proposal. Neither option received a majority support. The June 2025 resolution stands, which authorized a Center of Government project of about 45,000 square feet with a cap of up to $50 million, including related renovations to other county buildings. 
View the meeting recording

December 2025

As part of the community engagement plan for the Center of Government project, a public presentation on December 8 provided project updates and the latest iteration of external and internal design features. The building design has evolved to 57,000 square feet (including 20% growth factor for future space needs) for a total project cost estimate of $64 million. A third community survey offered an opportunity to provide feedback on site design and interior and exterior design.

September 2025

At the September 2 Downtown Facilities Special Committee meeting, HOLT Architects and Fisher Associates presented design updates for the Center of Government, based on community and legislative feedback following the initial design presentation in July. The presentation included proposed floor-by-floor layouts of the building's interior and exterior design elements.

August 2025

At the August 5 Downtown Facilities Special Committee meeting, HOLT Architects and Fisher Associates presented the results of the first community survey and parking study. 167 individuals responded to the community survey on any barriers they have experienced when accessing county services (55% parking, 51% finding the right building), how they would access services at the new Center of Government (73% personal vehicle, 44% walking), and amenities they would like to see. The parking study outlined currently available on- and off-street parking, estimated employee and visitor parking demands, and how the project would accommodate them.

July 2025 - Round II

This second round of community feedback allows residents to evaluate and compare multiple design options that were created considering department needs, service delivery, and community input. Resident preferences will be captured for each presented option, and pros and cons will be documented to inform the final design. This hybrid meeting was live-streamed and interested residents participated in person and virtually. A second community survey offered an opportunity to provide feedback on building design options, features, amenities, outdoor space, and sustainability goals. Read the press release

June 2025 - Round I

The Tompkins County Legislature and Administration invite residents to participate in the planned Town Hall meetings that are scheduled throughout the county in June. The purpose of these meetings is to gather information from residents about what they would like to see in a new Center of Government Building, including how they currently access County services and how that access could be improved, and to inform the design of the project. Public engagement sessions will take place periodically as the building design progresses to ensure residents’ voices are heard. A community survey offered an opportunity to provide feedback on current access to county services, Center of Government preferences and design features.

The project will involve the removal of three structures in the DeWitt Park Historic District (128 E. Buffalo St. and 300 and 308 N. Tioga St.). These meetings and the online survey provide the public an opportunity to share input as provided under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. 

Read the full press release and download the townhall meeting flyer.

The final community town hall meeting on June 24 will be hybrid and livestreamed from the Legislature Chambers in Ithaca. Residents are encouraged to participate and provide feedback in person, on Zoom (email the Communications Office to receive the Zoom link), or watch the live feed or recording on the County’s YouTube channel.

This new facility will replace the existing buildings at 300 and 308 North Tioga Street and 128 East Buffalo Street, all of which will be deconstructed as part of the project.

To prepare for construction, the County must relocate the departments currently housed at 128 East Buffalo Street - Assessment, Board of Elections, and Information Technology Services. A carefully coordinated relocation plan aims to minimize service disruptions and ensure continuity of operations.

The relocation effort will involve:

• Relocating Information Technology Services (ITS) to the Old Jail to establish a dedicated County Information Systems space
  • ITS has completed its move in early September.
• Securing leased space for displaced departments 
  • Board of Elections update August 2025
  • Office for the Aging and Assessment Department update October 2025
• Moving staff currently located in the Old Jail into the Mental Health building
  • Administration and Human Resources departments completed their move to 201 East Green Street in July 2025.
• Ensuring ITS establishes server connectivity at all new locations
• Allocating sufficient time for County Facilities staff to install connectivity lines, move furniture, and reconfigure spaces

Departments involved in this project:

Departments-Occupying-Buildings-for-COG-Project (as of June 2025).pdf(PDF, 445KB)*

* Since the drafting of this document in June 2025, there have been changes made to relocation plans. See updates about department relocations above.

The latest estimate (December 2025) for this entire project totals $64 million. This funding will consist of a combination of cash, debt financing, and available grant opportunities as outlined in the 2022 Capital Plan. The funding will cover all phases of the project, including remediation and deconstruction of existing facilities, planning and design, construction of the new building, and renovations to the Old Jail and portions of the Daniel D. Tompkins Building.

We want your input!

Survey # 3 - Design details - interior and exterior (closed)

We appreciate your participation and feedback!

Provide us with your feedback by December 31, 2025:

• on the site design
• on the interior design
• on the exterior design

Survey # 2 - Design options - closed

We appreciate your participation and feedback!

Share with us by August 29:

• which building design options you prefer
• which features you like and dislike
• which amenities you would like to see
• what you would like the outdoor space to look like
• what sustainability goals you would like to see implemented

Survey # 1 - Access to county services - closed

We appreciate your participation and feedback!

Share your thoughts by July 18 on:

• how you currently access County services and how that access could be improved
• what you would like to see in a new Center of Government building
• your desired design features of the project

The project will involve the removal of three structures in the DeWitt Park Historic District (128 E. Buffalo St. and 300 and 308 N. Tioga St.). The online survey provides the public an opportunity to share input as provided under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.

Fill out the survey below and help shape the future of county government services:

¡Queremos conocer su opinión!

Comparta sus ideas sobre:

·        ¿Cómo accede actualmente a los servicios ofrecidos por el Condado y cómo se podría mejorar ese acceso?

·        ¿Qué le gustaría ver en un nuevo edificio del Centro de Gobierno?

·        Las características de diseño que le gustaría que tuviera el proyecto

Complete la encuesta que figura a continuación y ayude a dar forma al futuro de los servicios del Gobierno del Condado.

Нам важно ваше мнение!

Поделитесь своими мыслями по поводу:

· Как вы в настоящее время получаете доступ к услугам округа, и как этот доступ можно улучшить

· Что бы вы хотели видеть в новом здании Центра государственных услуг

· Ваши желаемые конструктивные особенности проекта

Заполните опрос ниже и помогите сформировать будущее Центра государственных услуг.

我们需要您的意见！

请分享您对以下内容的想法：

·        您目前是如何获取县政府服务的，以及这些服务的获取方式如何改进

·        您希望在新的政府中心大楼中看到什么

·        您希望项目的设计特色

请填写下方调查问卷，帮助我们共同塑造县政府服务的未来。