The City of Ithaca announced that Lara Tomescu M.P.A. ’27 has been appointed to the Common Council as a Fourth Ward alderperson in a Thursday press release.
Tomescu is currently a master’s student at the Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy.
This appointment fills the open Fourth Ward seat that has been unfilled since August, when former Alderperson Patrick Kuehl ’24 (D-4th Ward) resigned to pursue a doctoral degree at the University of Texas at Austin.
In the press release, Tomescu stated that she aims to better connect Ithacans with the city and amplify all residents’ voices.
“I hope to use my coalition-building and community organizing skills to bridge the gap between the City and its constituents,” Tomescu stated. “I want people who feel left out of city politics to get involved and weigh in on decisions that affect them.”
Before arriving at Cornell, Tomescu received a bachelor’s degree in sociology and political science from Binghamton University. She co-founded Concerned Residents of Greater Binghamton, a coalition that built a network to alert local immigrant communities about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection presence.
Tomescu was appointed, not elected, by the Common Council, as the resignation of an alderperson triggers an application process to fill the empty seat.
A committee of three Common Council members reviewed resumes and interviewed applicants. This committee then recommended a candidate to the entire Common Council, requiring a majority vote for appointment. The Common Council voted unanimously to appoint Tomescu during its Wednesday meeting.
Ithaca Mayor Robert Cantelmo M.A. ’20 stated in the Thursday press release that he was impressed with Tomescu’s interviews and is confident she will serve the residents of the Fourth Ward well.
“During her interviews, she also demonstrated a firm commitment to addressing the needs of the City's unsheltered homeless population in partnership with the County,” Cantelmo said. “I feel this appropriately carries on one of the chief interests of her predecessor and continues to champion that work on behalf of Fourth Ward residents."
Dalton Mullins is a member of the Class of 2027 in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He is a senior writer for the news department and can be reached at dmullins@cornellsun.com.
