Not a whole lot to say at the moment – everything above surface level on the site has been cleared as of the end of February, and grading/leveling is taking place. Part of the existing 1960s foundation will be reused for underground parking, and part of it will be taken out. According to the project team, an examination of the existing foundation column footers vs. the blueprints found that eight of the column footers were not where indicated on the as-built drawings. That created a conflict with portions of the new structure, ans so these column footers are being removed (probably by the demolition subcontractor, Gorick Construction of Binghamton; LeChase is the general contractor overseeing the whole project).
It might seem weird, but this isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Half the footers were missing outright at Ed Cope’s Ithaca Glass site, which led to a total overhaul of the project plans (now held by Visum, although I haven’t heard anything about the plan since the transfer was announced in November).
It’s a bit unusual since the project is already underway (or at least, the site prep is), but Library Place has yet to receive approval for a tax abatement. The Tompkins County Industrial Development Authority (IDA) will be receiving the tax abatement application in early April and the board will get their first glance at it on April 10th. A public hearing on the abatement will be held sometime before the May 8th IDA meeting. Assuming the application is approved at the May 8th meeting, pile driving would start within a few days of approval.
Ithacating in Cornell Heights 
Has there been any indication of asbestos escaping the abatement process during demolition?
Not that I’m aware of.
[…] With tax abatement approvals in hand, construction on the 67-unit Library Place project is set to move forward. According to the project website, at the moment 20 steel test piles are being driven into the ground to verify the correct depth to the subsurface layer that will support the weight of the structure (the library’s foundation is being reused, but the new 4-story building is heavier and has additional load bearing needs). If all goes well, the remaining 60 piles will be delivered and driven into the ground, with pile driving work to wrap up around Labor Day. This is somewhat later in the year than first anticipated. […]