The City of Ithaca has retained its credit rating of AA, despite earlier facing a $3 million budget deficit.

At a meeting Monday, the city’s Board of Public Works discussed the possible creation of “Parking Benefit Districts” — a step city officials said will give communities a say in how revenue from parking meters in their neighborhoods is used.

Imagine facing a $3-million budget deficit three years after graduating from college. 

The City of Ithaca and the Ithaca City School District received nearly $300,000 in federal funds in January to improve roadway safety and increase the number of children that walk or bike to school.

A plan to renovate the Commons by improving lighting, renovating aging infrastructure and increasing its aesthetic appeal was unanimously approved by the City of Ithaca’s Planning and Development Board on Tuesday.

Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick ’09 was joined by developers, bankers and public officials Wednesday for the groundbreaking ceremony at 140 Seneca Way, a new commercial and residential development in downtown Ithaca.

There was a slew of crimes —  including a robbery, several attempted robberies and multiple stabbings — reported in Ithaca between Sunday evening and Monday afternoon.

“I’m M.G. Whitney, the menacing looking fella that left the metaphorical bomb on the wall at [Bank of America]," he wrote in a recent message on Craigslist.

Despite prolonged opposition from emergency responders, the Ithaca Common Council approved an amended version of Mayor Svante Myrick’s ’09 budget Wednesday, closing the city’s $3 million deficit through a mixture of spending cuts and revenue increases.