February Session Press Release

Legislators Invest in Water Treatment, Zoo Upgrades, Libraries, and More during February Legislative Session

With elections, budget, and more at the end of the 2021 legislative agenda, there were several resolutions that got pushed down the road to be reviewed later out of necessity. This month, the County Legislature took up those resolutions and approved funding for some pivotal investments in the future of Onondaga County.

In Session, the Legislature approved a bond resolution sponsored by Legislator Olson to fund the purchase of brand-new radios and mobile units for all emergency responders county-wide. Radio units being used by the Sheriff’s Office were out of date, beyond their useful life, and could no longer be repaired. By purchasing radio units for every emergency response agency across the county, there is cohesion across the community, and it leads to incredible cost saving for fire departments, EMS agencies, and smaller municipal police forces. It also saves on the cost of repair and maintenance for radios for the entire life of these new radios.

Legislators also took a vote to approve many important infrastructure changes and upgrades to our sewage treatment facilities in key areas. On any given day, there are upwards of 20 trips back and forth from outlying treatment facilities of trucks delivering waste sludge to the Metro Sewage Treatment plant on Hiawatha Boulevard. To begin to cut down on this, one facility that is getting upgraded is Oak Orchard, in Clay. These upgrades have and will continue to increase the efficiency of Oak Orchard, which also allows for greater development and growth of the area.

When Onondaga County took over the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in the 1980s, it took on a great responsibility of caring for and growing an incredible collection of animals and maintaining a fun and educational park for County residents. Since its acquisition, the Zoo has had many repairs of roofs and mechanical systems, but never a complete overhaul. Now, nearly 40 years later, the time has come to replace roofing on most of the buildings at the Zoo. We are thrilled to be part of this vital project, and glad to have unanimous support behind it.

We are always thankful for your support and participation in our work here at the Legislature and will continue working for the betterment of Onondaga County and for our residents. If you have thoughts or suggestions about the workings of the Legislature, we are always open to feedback from our residents. We couldn’t do what we do here without you!