Findings

IX. Social Cohesion, Culture and Recreation

Coming Together

Some of the “ideals” for a socially cohesive community identified in 2001 by residents in surveys, focus groups, and community visioning have come true. There is a new arts center located in the former Homer Baptist Church. The new East End Community Center located on Elm Street in the city of Cortland has seen an outpouring of residents who want to use the Center to preserve neighborhood history, improve the community, and expand their education.

We know that rates of violence are generally lower in neighborhoods with higher social cohesion. The East End Community Center serves as a meeting place for Neighborhood Watch and ward meetings so that citizens can work together on local concerns. The Center is also home to the Police Outreach Program that promotes officers and youth involvement in casual and recreational activities to build rapport.

The 2001 report also noted that people wanted to be more involved in community decision-making. This community has a reputation for working well together for civic-minded projects; two examples of this since 2001 are:

Cortland Area Communities That Care (CACTC), a coalition of more than 30 youth-serving organizations/agencies, was created to research and implement scientifically-validated programs to address youth risk behaviors.
The Housing Confab has been a series of public meetings to address the deteriorating housing stock in Cortland. One hundred citizens have lent their voices to this grass roots effort. See more information about this in the Housing and Environmental section.

Other focus group suggestions for civic engagement projects listed school and employer policies that could be created to foster community service. The annual United Way Day of Caring is a fine example of this giving back. SUNY Cortland student internships, service-learning, and cooperative educational experiences are wonderful learning experiences for the students that greatly contribute to the community.

Voter Participation

The U.S. ranked 140th out of 163 of the world’s democracies in average voter turnout. Almost 75 countries had better than a 70% average turnout in the 1990s, while the U.S. did no better than 44.9%. Young U.S. voters (18-20 yrs.) have been increasingly disinterested in voting since obtaining the right to vote in 1972. In both Cortland and NYS, less than 70% of citizens voted in the 2004 presidential election.

Better Town/Gown Relationships

The new college president has made every attempt to improve and enhance town/gown relationships. Dr. Eric Bitterbaum has been involved in improving off-campus housing, providing off campus college classes and establishing a downtown presence where classes could be offered. The SUNY Alumni Association purchased the Gibson-Wickwire House next to the 1890 Museum on Tompkins Street and will assure historically appropriate maintenance of that building. SUNY Cortland’s new Institute for Civic Engagement inspires college students to be involved in the community and in political decision-making.

Music, Theatre and Recreation

Crossing age and class lines, virtually every focus group in 2001 and 2005 identified music in the parks as one of the most positive things about Cortland! With community financial support, a new Cortland Main Street Music series was initiated in 2003, held on Friday nights at the Marketplace Mall parking lot throughout the summer. Summer concert series take place in the Court House Park and on the Homer Green.

There was also strong support for a capital campaign for the 35 year-old Cortland Repertory Theater located in the turn-of-the-century pavilion at the county-owned Little York Park. This campaign allowed major renovations and tremendously improved handicapped accessibility. CRT is New York’s longest running professional summer-stock theatre.

The Center for the Arts in Homer significantly increases the visual and performing art opportunities available to the talented young people of Cortland County. Along with a variety of performance initiatives and exhibit space, the Center offers classes in crafts, visual arts, music, and culinary.

Military memorabilia and model railroads dominate the house at 49 Clinton Avenue in Homer, known at the Homeville Museum. A group of preservationists are seeking official museum status, as well as a permanent location for this unique collection. Cortland’s other museums keep alive our historical roots -- the Underground Railroad, the McGrawville College, Victorian architecture, early commercial enterprises and the memories of the famous social reformers such as Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, Clara Barton, Henry Ward Beecher, Martin Luther King Jr., Granny D. all of whom spoke at our Cobblestone Church on Church Street in Cortland.

The Cultural Council of Cortland County has been active with a newsletter and web site of cultural resources and events in the county.

SUNY Cortland serves as a major cultural contributor to the community. Plays, art exhibits, and musical and dance events are brought to the campus and shared with the community. State-of-the-art recreational facilities are also shared. The physical education emphasis of the college sets a fitness model for the county. The SUNY stadium hosts numerous regional sporting events including the Senior and Empire Games.

The new J.M. McDonald Sports Complex has indoor tennis, soccer, ice hockey, a fitness and conference center. A new park in Cortlandville, currently under construction, will enhance outdoor recreational opportunities. The excitement of new entities brings families, neighbors and the community together in very positive ways.

A Plan for the Future

It was often noted in 2001, that Cortland County lacked an updated Comprehensive Plan or just a plan for the future. This Cortland Counts document, filled with Cortland’s objective and subjective data inspired a community planning process that now takes place each December at the Holiday Inn. Progress towards the goals set at these meetings is tracked by the annual Cortland Counts Community Report Card .

Although funds are lacking to update the 1978 County Planning Department’s Comprehensive Plan, the Department has worked with the various townships to create their plans for land use. Cortlandville hired consultants to create a master plan for zoning, land use and aquifer protection over its Route 13 corridor. This document served as the basis for changes to the town’s local zoning law. After much public input, the plan was adopted and subsequently the town enacted new zoning regulations for the corridor.

There have been a series of community meetings to discuss the proposed River Trail project and draw ideas from the riverfront property owners, naturalists, historians, recreational experts, cyclists, walkers, runners, the disabled, the commercial interests, and those who fish, canoe and kayak. The project has captured nearly $2 million from state and federal grants.