Village Elections: March 18, 2026Voters in the Village of Cayuga Heights will be asked to vote for: one (1) Mayor, with a two-year term.Polling Places: First Congregational Church of Ithaca, 309 Highland Rd., Ithaca, and Kendal at Ithaca, 2230 N. Triphammer Rd. Polls open: 12 noon - 9pm.Tompkins County Board of Elections: For more information, including sample ballotshttps://www.tompkinscountyny.gov/All-Departments/Board-of-Elections(607) 274-5522/5521; 128 East Buffalo Street, Ithaca. 9-5pm Mon. - Fri.Mayor: As the chief executive officer of the village, the mayor presides over all meetings of the board of trustees and may vote on all questions coming before that body. The mayor is responsible for enforcing laws within the village and for supervising the police and other officers of the village. Subject to the approval of the board of trustees, the mayor appoints all department and non-elected officers and employees. Except in villages that have a manager, the mayor acts as the budget officer.
Candidate's Name
Linda Woodard
Current Employment/Occupation
Mayor
Government Experience-elected or volunteer (e.g. committees)
Mayor, Board of Trustees. Public Works Committee, Finance Committee, HR Committee, Admin Committee, Natural Areas Commission
Education
Masters
In June of 2016 I was asked to replace Kate Supron, our last mayor when she took a job at Cornell. I expected to be a care-taker mayor so that there would be time to find a more suitable candidate. I doubted I had the appropriate experience to be a good mayor. Ten years later I think I was wrong. My analytical training as a research support specialist at Cornell has proven to be very valuable. I learned quickly that the mayor of a small village cannot afford to focus on only a few pet projects, especially when we are responsible for a regional waste water treatment plant.
Over the past ten years, I have worked closely with our Board of Trustees and Village staff to deliver excellent services, keep taxes low, and maintain our exceptional financial record. I am proud of what we have accomplished together, and hope you will allow me to continue in the best job I have ever had.
When I became mayor in 2016, I did not think I had the necessary qualifications for this job. I had recently retired after 36 years at Cornell working in research support, primarily statistical analysis, ecological modeling and design of research databases. The only person I had ever managed was myself. Instead I learned my analytical training was a good match to the problems facing the Village then and extending to today. Being mayor involves weighing options; my research background has helped me identify and evaluate proposed solutions to the problems we face.
Over the past ten years, with the help of the Village staff, I have come to understand the issues facing the Village and how to deal with them. I discovered skills I never knew I possessed: absorbing residents’ demands without rancor, effective listening, strong communication, building consensus, managing other people, and negotiating contracts, among others.
Infrastructure issues are uppermost. We need to spend 1.5 million this year on our Waste Water Treatment Plant, in addition to repaying the 8 million dollar debt we have incurred on necessary upgrades. Our plant serves us, the Lansings and parts of the Towns of Ithaca and Dryden. Adequate plant capacity is an issue when there is a significant rain or snow-melt event. Identifying and fixing leaks is daunting and expensive.
The exceptionally cold temperatures this winter have exacerbated the number of water main breaks. We also have a large culvert next to Rt 13 that is failing and needs to be replaced as well as a number of the lead water pipes in the Village that need to be switched to copper.
A number of key personnel have retired. Our Village Justice, attorney and Assistant Superintendent of Public Works have retired; our Superintendent of Public Works will be joining them soon. Mayors and Trustees come and go; it is the Village staff who do the real work our residents depend on.
Maintenance of Village infrastructure will always be a critical. Our WWTP personnel keep us informed of problems as they arise. We have lobbied our state representatives to pass a law to fund this work similar to the state funding for roads. We continue to line sewer manholes and monitor for leaks in our sewer pipes. We began replacing lead water pipes last year and will continue this effort.
The culvert near Rt 13 will be replaced this summer. The sidewalk project on Cayuga Heights Road is currently on hold, a victim of the Federal Government closure last year. We hope to get approval for the next step from the DOT soon.
Funding is an ongoing issue. We have policies in place for replacing vehicles in a timely manner, keeping them just long enough to get a reasonable resale price on the secondary market, but not so long that repairs mount up.
We have a new Village Justice, Attorney and Assistant Superintendent of Public Works. Replacing the Superintendent of Public Works is on-going.
Our Village website, updated regularly by Village staff, is easy to navigate. We post all meeting times, upcoming events and information on major projects. We also have a bi-weekly electronic newsletter called eNewsBlast for timely communications and detailed descriptions of pertinent events. It is delivered to more than 1,000 recipients. And we have an annual newsletter that is mailed to our residents highlighting Village activities with a summary of our revenues and expenditures for the year.
My Village Hall phone rings directly to my cell phone, so I am available at all times. I try to respond to emails from residents within 24 hours, and I am in Marcham Hall several days each week to connect with staff and attend meetings.
All residents are welcome at our monthly Board of Trustee meetings, Planning Board meetings and Zoning Board of Appeals meetings in Marcham Hall as well as our annual Budget Workshop in March. All meetings are available via Zoom too.
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