April Committee and May Session Update
Roadwork, state grants, police services and Inner Harbor redevelopment were among the items discussed and voted on during April committee meetings and the May Session
The April Public Safety committee meeting was held at the new Onondaga County Emergency Operations Center in Liverpool. Run by the Department of Emergency Management, the facility is on Electronics Parkway near 7th North Street and was a former Army Reserve Center. Committee Chair Mark Olson (10th District) began the meeting with a moment of silence, in honor of Lieutenant Michael Hoosock of the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office and Officer Michael Jensen of the Syracuse Police Department. Both were killed in the line-of-duty less than 48 hours before the meeting.
Captain Jeremy Young with the Sheriff’s Office attended the meeting and spoke about a proposed agreement with the Town of Otisco for police services. “We will provide law enforcement in the form of New York State laws, local laws, any directive patrols within the town of Otisco. The amount of this contract would be $10,000 reimbursed to the county for any costs associated with the deputy’s work.”
The initial contract would be for 1 year with renewals possible. It would be similar to the ones already in place in Pompey, Van Buren, Salina, and Fabius.
Legislator Richard McCarron (11th District), who is Vice Chair of the committee, said “I want to speak in support of it. I met with the Otisco Town Supervisor Glenn Hall. That number of $10,000 was what the Town of Otisco proposed and it’s again to provide enhanced services when they have special events, traffic concerns in the town, etc.”
The committee also had an informational presentation and discussion with the Wilderness Search and Rescue Team. Jeff Sargent and Jason Baleno shared details about what their team does, how they train, and how county funding would be able to help with what they do and the equipment needed to do so.
The Wilderness SAR Team describes itself as a non-profit organization made up of volunteers, from in and around Onondaga County, who receive intense training to provide them with the skills necessary to assist in managing and working in an organized search and rescue operation. They assist conservation and law enforcement agencies in searching for lost or missing persons in the forest and wilderness areas of New York State.
“The critical issue to realize is that this dedicated group of volunteers is on standby 24/7 365 days a year” shares Legislator Ken Bush Jr. (13th District), a committee member. “Their efforts are invaluable when it comes to helping locate individuals lost in the wilderness.”
Click here to learn more about the Wilderness Search and Rescue Team.
Following the presentation, Legislators were taken on a tour of the new building. Department of Emergency Management Commissioner Daniel Wears showed off various areas of the facility, including the Emergency Operations Center (EOC). It’s here that officials from various agencies – including hospitals, fire/ems, National Grid, transportation agencies, etc. - can all gather together to handle any type of emergency that happens in county.
“It’s a great new center” said Chair Olson following his tour. “Now all of our assets and all of our offices and all of our operations are under one roof. Hopefully the EOC doesn’t have to be used very often, but it’s here to help and protect all of the people in Onondaga County and we look forward to its success in the future.”
The County Facilities committee, chaired by Legislator Debra Cody (5th District) also held their meeting on location this month, at the Department of Transportation’s headquarters in East Syracuse. The facility on East Molloy Road houses DOT’s administrative and engineering staff, as well as the North Area Maintenance Facility.
“It is absolutely spectacular and you will be incredibly impressed when you hear of the story of how we beneficially reused this facility in an environmentally sensitive way while saving money and getting an end result that is simply state of the art” DOT Commissioner Martin Voss told the Legislators. “We’re very proud of it.”
Commissioner Voss then shared details about their 2024 Highway Plan, which includes their vision for roadwork and bridge repairs in 2024 and the years ahead. The county has over 800 miles of roadways and more than 200 bridges. Projects are planned in all parts of Onondaga County.
The committee advanced resolutions concerning various road and bridge projects, a sewer connection project at the DOT’s Marcellus Maintenance Facility, and a project to complete the County's Onondaga Lake Trail System by constructing a multi-use trail from Murphy's Island in the City of Syracuse to the trailhead at Bloody Brook in the Town of Salina. Construction of that is anticipated in 2026.
Commissioner Voss concluded by saying, “We try to do what we can with the work zones. We shouldn’t be too disruptive this year but it is construction. It has to happen. We have to maintain our infrastructure and preserve our assets. That’s what growing communities do.”
The committee then toured the renovated facility, with the DOT’s Deputy Commissioner Odean Dyer leading the way. It was his vision for the 1950’s era building that brought it into the 21st century and allowed DOT to continue utilizing the space instead of moving. The facility is home to more than half of DOT’s workforce.
Work included new LED lighting, a new roof, front-end renovations, a new mechanic’s bay, and more.
Chair Cody said, “Our tour of the DOT facility was fun and informative. The large conference room worked well for our meeting, and it was great to see the renovation that was carefully designed to achieve a functional and attractive facility for the hard work of our DOT administrators and crew. We even saw the recycled generator that was procured to ensure that the facility remains up and running in the event of a power outage - nice work, Odean!”
There were two items on the agenda for April’s Environmental Protection committee meeting.
The first was the acceptance of $156,000 in grant funds from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The money will allow Onondaga County to partner with the Skaneateles Lake Association to install a series of check dams, vegetated swales and soil stabilizing mats in a neighborhood in the Town of Skaneateles to reduce stormwater and sediment runoff into Skaneateles Lake.
Director Jesse McMahon with the Onondaga County Office of Environment shared the association and neighbors approached her department in hopes they would submit the grant application on their behalf (a DEC requirement). “So this is essentially pass-through money” she said. “We are accepting it and then we will go into contract with the Skaneateles Lake Association who will be sort of the contractor, the project manager, of that.”
Director McMahon added that her department will continue to manage this pass-through funding to make sure the funds are being used appropriately. Legislator Julie Abbott, whose 6th District includes Skaneateles, is Chair of the committee.
“The bottom line with the runoff and stream bank stabilization is that the nutrient load from the soil feeds the harmful algae bloom” she said during the meeting. “That is the poison that harms our unfiltered drinking water source, for the entire city of Syracuse, Skaneateles and parts of Camillus. It’s a problem and that’s why the DEC puts money towards this.”
The Skaneateles Lake Association and Winding Way homeowners association were more than willing to front the required 25% match in order to obtain the grant.
Legislator Cody Kelly (14th District), a committee member, noted that Onondaga County has had a lot of success with grants the past few months. He asked Director McMahon if she felt her office had adequate resources to go after all this available money. She replied that they are doing their best, but it can be difficult and time-consuming as each grant is complicated and has its own requirements that must be met during the application process and then in managing it if received.
The second item on the committee’s agenda was an Intermunicipal Agreements to provide services to municipalities within Onondaga County to assist them in complying with DEC storm water permit requirements. This is simply a 5 year renewal and applies to the 19 villages and 14 towns in Onondaga County eligible to participate.
There was only one resolution on the agenda at this month’s Planning & Economic Development committee meeting. It was a request from the county’s Community Development office for the Legislature’s official support for its application for a Restore NY grant. Commissioner Martin Skahen explained part of the application process is securing a support resolution passed by the County Legislature. The $2 million dollar grant being applied for will allow for the demolition of a building at Solar and Spencer streets in Syracuse.
Onondaga County is partnering with COR Development on the project. They'll pay the remaining $500K for the demolition of and asbestos abatement at the 261,000 square foot building. COR hopes to create 600 apartments, 30,000 square feet of commercial space and 900 parking spaces in an open lot and garage. Legislator Olson, a committee member, asked how many of the 600 units will be affordable? Commissioner Skahen responded by saying the City requires 12% for a project of this size.
The committee also had their annual presentation from the Greater Syracuse Land Bank. Executive Director Katelyn Wright explained they are a local public authority created by the City and County in 2012 to acquire vacant and abandoned properties and facilitate their return to productive use. Doing so is key to stabilizing real estate values and growing neighboring property values.
“The Land Bank has, to date, acquired over 2,000 properties and we’ve sold 1,300 putting them back on the tax rolls” Wright told the committee. “We’ve completed over 600 demolitions and I was recently informed that the number of vacant buildings in the City of Syracuse has reduced by 44% since the Land Bank first started.”
Wright shared there are currently just over 1,000 vacant properties in the City and so they still have a lot of work to do, but added they have secured more grant money than any other Land Bank in the state.
Legislator David Knapp (12th District) is Chair of the committee. “I was on the Legislature when we created the Land Bank many years ago and it’s done some great work and continues to do so” he shared at the meeting.
Legislator Kevin Meaker (2nd District) is Vice Chair of the committee and also works in real estate. “The Land Bank is a wonderful partner to the city, county, and the community. As a Real Estate Broker, I have witnessed the increased value of individual properties and neighborhoods due to the direct effect of their acquiring properties in the neighborhood. A major challenge moving forward will be how to determine the fair market value of the properties acquired.”
Most of the above resolutions also came before the Ways & Means committee this month, where they were advanced to Session.
Legislators also learned about the need by the Onondaga County Department of Personnel to reclassify nearly 100 positions into HELP (Hiring Emergency Limited Placement) positions. The program through New York State aims to help fill some positions within county government by temporarily eliminating the requirement of a civil service test.
The program launched last year but was limited to critical health and safety titles. Now, it has been expanded to include all open-competitive positions within the county. This included many entry-level positions. Onondaga County’s Commissioner of Personnel Carlton Hummel shared details with Legislators, saying that the positions chosen included:
Open competitive positions or those that have an open competitive component
Positions which the county traditionally has difficulty filling or getting tests for
Positions that currently have provisional appointments in them or have a funded vacancy, or both
Open competitive positions are ones open to anyone in the general public who meets the minimum qualifications. A provisional appointment is a temporary appointment to a position with the understanding a civil service test would need to be passed in order to keep the position. In this case, the test requirement is waived and the position becomes permanent after one year. Those in this category would work without the need for a test for as long as they stay in the same title.
“I’m happy to hear that the New York State Department of Civil Service is implementing an expanded program” Committee Chair Colleen Gunnip (4th District) shared. “The county still has many vacant positions throughout various departments. The first phase of the program was very successful and I hope the next phase will be just as helpful to hire diverse and talented candidates on a permanent basis to help grow the county workforce.”
Click here to see current Onondaga County job openings.
At May Session, all the above resolutions were approved. “Funding the local share of the key infrastructure projects approved today usually involves borrowing” Majority Leader Brian May (1st District) shared after the meeting. “Over the last few years, however, the county has consistently demonstrated a commitment to spending cash whenever it is more appropriate—particularly for one-shot expenditures. The DOT sewer connection in Marcellus is another great example of how the legislative and executive branches are working together to keep borrowing costs low.”
Chairman Timothy Burtis (3rd District) opened the meeting with a moment of silence for the two local law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in mid-April.
“What happened that tragic night is something I imagine none of us will ever forget and I’m sure we will also never forget our heroes, Officer Jensen and Lieutenant Hoosock” Chairman Burtis said, speaking from the podium at the front of the Legislature’s chambers. “On behalf of the entire Legislature, I offer my condolences to both the families and to all the first responders who knew them.”
During the meeting, Chairman Burtis also took time to remember former Legislator Russell Andrews, a Republican, who passed away in the fall. His wife Linda was able to attend Session along with William Dee of the insurance business which bears Mr. Andrews name.
Mr. Andrews served two terms in the 1990s and represented the people of the 24th Legislative District. During his time serving, Mr. Andrews was both Chair and Vice Chair of the Planning and Economic Development and also served on the Public Safety committee for his entire tenure. Mr. Andrews was well-known for creating the Be+ movement which encourages a positive attitude about the community, and his wife proudly wore the Be+ button as she stood next to Chairman Burtis.