Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION....................................3

EARLY WARNING: A Rather Lax Fiscal Management...4

FROM MAITRE D' TO MAYOR........................ 5

FOLLOW THE MONEY................................6

ALL ROADS LEAD TO COHEN.........................6

THE MAYOR WHO DOES NOT MAKE APPOINTMENTS........8

PUBLIC ACCESS TO PUBLIC ACCE...................10

BIKE FREE CITY.................................11

CONTROLLING INFORMATION........................14

THE BARBERSHOP QUARTET.........................17

CAMPAIGN AGAINST HOFFMAN.......................19

WIDEWATERS & DEEP POCKETS

---Bullying the BZA............................26

---The Public Non-Hearing......................27

---Read His Lips--- Developers Will Pay........29

---Dismissing Public Comment...................30

---Widewaters is Above the Law.................32

---Kane Changes His Mind.......................33

---Historic Decision...........................34

---Vote for your Property......................36

LAKE SOURCE COOLING............................37

PLAYBOY COP....................................38

TV DEMO........................................38

FOSSILIZED THINKING............................39

THE LOWEST PURCHASE OFFER WINS?................39

BULLDOZING NEIGHBORHOODS FOR PROFIT............40

THE SWEATER SNIT...............................41

GIMMIE COFFEE HOUSES...........................41

MAYOR SUPPORTS FARMER'S MARKET SQUATTER........42

HERSHEY AND COHEN BEAT UP AN ARTIST............42

CITY BUYS CORNELL'S POISONED PARK..............43

ALAN V. FAY GOUGAKIS...........................44

A.C. PHONE HOME................................45

DEMOCRATS FOR COHEN #3.........................45

COHEN "FORGETS" TO REPEAL SALES TAX............46

BOATYARD GRILL.................................46

CONFLICT OF INTEREST...........................48

THOSE WHO DON'T LEARN FROM THE PAST............49

APPENDIX:
     Democrats for Cohen Steering Committee....50

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Author Joe Wetmore had also filed an ethics complaint against Cohen and Alderman Ed Hershey, for conflict of interest in several of their votes. The Tompkins County Ethics Advisory Board found them in breech of two of three charges. Wetmore's letter to the Ithaca Times was not printed. Here it is:

"The recent Ithaca Times story on the decision of the Tompkins County Ethics Advisory Board was replete with inaccurate and misleading statements. You led your readers to believe that the Board found Mayor Cohen and Alderman Hershey blameless and innocent on all counts. That is simply not the case.

"I was the complainant in this case, and my complaint was threefold:

"1) that both individuals had conflicting interests in matters they voted on and/or in which they acted for the CIty. Specifically, (A) Mayor Cohen voted on public funding and loans received by the Boatyard Grill without revealing that he was renting a house from one of the principals; and (B) Alderman Hershey presented to Common Council, and then voted on, the Cornell-Ciminelli office building project while also working full-time as head of Cornell's "full-service public relations agency."

"2) That Mayor Cohen and Alderman Hershey failed to avoid the appearance of a conflict in their actions, in violation of the relevant provisions of Ithaca's ethics law.

"3) That Mayor Cohen and Alderman Hershey failed to submit required financial disclosures in two different years, and failed to make full and accurate disclosures, or to file them in a timely manner, in each of the other years they have served in office.

"The Ethics Board did, indeed, clear Cohen and Hershey of actual conflict under the narrow definition established by state law. On the other hand, the Board also found that both men failed to comply with the law's requirements for disclosure and avoidance of apparent conflicts.

"The Board said, "We find that both individuals failed to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, although they could have avoided this through a full disclosure at the time they discussed and voted on the two actions under our review." This is not a trivial point: Section 55-7 B of Ithaca's ethics law provides that officials should, to the "to the greatest extent possible, avoid even the appearance of conflict of interest".

"The Board provided detailed examples of ways the mayor and alderman ought to have acted:

"...Mayor Cohen might have avoided any accusations or thoughts of conflict by disclosing the lease arrangement he had with Mr. Campagnolo... Clearly it would have been better practice for Mayor Cohen to disclose that financial relationship. His failure to do so contributed to suspicions regarding a potential conflict..."

"...Mr. Hershey similarly contributed to the potential for persons to think that a conflict might exist. The vote in question was an important vote to the City and concerned Cornell University... [Hershey] could have allowed another council member, who was not associated with Cornell, to introduce the legislation... It's possible that a reasonable member of the public, not understanding Mr. Hershey's role at Cornell, might have thought that he had a pecuniary interest in the project or that his standing with Cornell might be improved..."

"On the third point, the Board concluded, ""We find that neither individual completed his disclosure forms fully or carefully and, for some years, failed to file a form." The Ithaca Times indicated that the two officials later filed the missing disclosure forms. That is untrue. Neither Mayor Cohen nor Alderman Hershey has ever filed their disclosure forms for the years 1998 and 1999. Neither other City officials nor the public has any idea what relevant financial transactions or arrangements they may have been party to during those years.

"In addition to the issues raised by my complaint, the Ethics Board found fault with the way the City handles its financial disclosure procedures:

"We believe that certain deficiencies in the City procedure and forms have contributed to the problems of confusions and unsatisfactory disclosure."

See the complete report of the Ethics Advisory Board