Green Street Station Grand Opening

CAT and gimme! coffee will celebrate the grand opening/ ribbon cutting of the Green Street Station, 131 E. Green St., at 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 18.The media, TCAT passengers and public are welcome. Free coffee, cookies, balloons and mugs with TCAT-gimme! logos, (‘til we run out) will be available.Dan Cogan, acting Ithaca mayor (filling in for Mayor Carolyn Peterson), who is also TCAT board chairman, will officiate and address the event.Also speaking will be: Dan Lamb, district representative for U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey, who was instrumental in securing federal funds for the station; TCAT General Manager Joe Turcotte; and gimme! CEO Kevin Cuddeback. TCAT board members, city economic development representatives, architects and contractors involved in the project, and TCAT and gimme! folks will all be there to celebrate an important milestone in TCAT’s strategy to offer more comfort to its ridership. TCAT is subleasing 450 feet of the 1,400 square foot station to gimme! coffee, referred to as “New York’s ultimate no-nonsense espresso bar and artisanal coffee roaster,” to serve both passengers and the public No purchase is required. The station first and foremost is for passengers and their comfort and protection from the elements.The new station includes restrooms replete with a baby-changing station for patrons and a separate comfort station for TCAT’s bus operators.“We are extremely pleased to offer our valued TCAT passengers and hard-working bus drivers an environment that will add some ease to their daily lives,” Turcotte said. “We are also happy to team up with a locally based company with such a stellar reputation for offering not only great coffee and baked goods, but a warm and inviting ambience.” Hours are 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. TCAT’s outside shelters next to the library will remain in place to provide protection from the elements after hours“Ithaca is trend-setting with something of this scope,” said Dan Tome, TCAT’s purchasing and project manager, who oversaw the project. “There are very few passenger-amenity stations like this throughout New York State. I am ecstatic that it is completed and that our tenant, gimme! coffee, is satisfied with the space. It’s a plus for TCAT passengers and also a plus for TCAT drivers who will have their own comfort station.”Cuddeback said earlier he was pleased with the amount of business the new station/café has already attracted since the initial, soft opening on Thursday, Nov. 19.Both Cuddeback and Tome praised John Snyder Architects, McPherson Builders and the many subcontractors for their hard work in creating what is now another attractive downtown destination.The $240,000 project was part of the estimated $1.46 million TCAT’s City Center Project, which also included the construction of the beautifully designed Seneca Street passenger station three years ago. Improvements were made largely by federal funds, thanks to the help of Congressman Hinchey, as well as state and local funds.TCAT continues to enjoy increased ridership and fill a critical need in the local economy while reducing stress on the environment.