More Nonsense from the Educrats . . .

Per the OD: New "common core" standards a challenge for educators.

But anyone who was hoping for promotion of a "core knowledge" among school students will be sadly disappointed according to the description given in this article:

The new standards more or less start with what a college student needs to be able to do: study independently, glean information from complex textbooks without help and be ready to take college-level mathematics.


The standards give suggested course pairings in math to get the best use of high school courses. In reading and the other subjects, the common core suggests increasingly difficult books with speaking and writing tasks that demand students back up their arguments and answers to questions with evidence.

Short people are seldom good basketball players.  Some people are not wired to be great orators. What students are able to "do" as "tasks" beyond the basics, is more often a function of maturity and genetic makeup rather than knowledge.  This cannot be taught in school.   

What can be taught is "knowledge" -- so that when the electronic textbooks of tomorrow are rewritten to change our history, or to change the facts of science, society will know it.  But that, of course, is not the objective here.

The educrats now propose more of the same "task-oriented" -- as opposed to "knowledge oriented" -- curriculum that has resulted in the easily-misled society that we have today.

It will ensure a more docile, compliant, and manipulated society tomorrow.

The Skeptics HAVE Spoken on the Arterial . . .

Better late than never, Councilman Zecca is backing up his long-time call for a Boulevard-style alternative to the North-South Arterial with a resolution for the Common Council to vote upon.

Amazingly, before the ink on the resolution is even dry (and before even writing a story about it), the OD Edictorial Board has pronounced "Time to move ahead with state plan for arterial"calling for the Council to "soundly defeat that measure." 

It's no secret that the current City Hall administration has supported the State's latest concept from the beginning.  Repeated efforts going back years to expressly incorporate a Boulevard as an Arterial replacement into the draft Utica Master Plan were not only ignored, they were rebuffed by city officials and their hired hands, allowing the State to respond in kind. Proponents of the State's plan, knowing that the "fix was in," largely absented themselves from discussions which prevented exploration of alternatives that would meet all the needs of the Neighborhood, the City, and the Region.       

As it stands now, plans call for dead-ending Sunset Ave. and Warren St., a pedestrian-only bridge at Sunset, an extension of New Hartford's recreational Rayhill Trail into Downtown Utica,  a highway interchange and bridge over Court St., replacement of existing bridges, but a stone wall in place of existing pylons to support all overhead structures.

Debate on the Arterial sounds a lot like that of 50 years ago... Only now Utica has a 50 year history to draw upon. Arterials have resulted in the loss of 100s of properties from the tax base, rerouting of countless streets with disruption of established traffic patterns, gutting of business districts destroying the "critical mass" needed to sustain economic activity, and the displacement of economic activity to the suburbs. Only suburban developers have benefitted.

West Utica is just starting to show signs of rebirth, in the Brewery District with its entertainment venues and Sculpture Space, and in the Arts District spurred by Pratt at MWPAI and the new Player's Theater. This rebirth will take time and involve a lot of trial-and-error risks (and no-doubt, losses) by individual entrepreneurs -- but it is starting and it is natural growth -- the kind that built Utica in the first place -- not instant characterless suburban-style development growth. 

Growth in the Arts District will be to the northwest -- toward the Arterial. Growth in the Brewery District will be to the southeast -- toward the Arterial. Land uses about the Arterial are an unusual mix of residential, retail, and industrial -- with lot sizes that are generally small. This area is perfect for entrepreneurial artisans to take risks and set up studios, small manufacturing facilities, shops, and residences.  But if a highway gobbles up the properties and a wall is erected between the Arts and Brewery Districts, the potential for synergy and growth -- and the potential for an artisan-oriented "destination" to develop -- will be forever lost.

Neighborhood convenience and potential is being sacrificed for shaving 2-3 minutes off the suburban commute to Downtown attractions. Is this fair? West Utica is one of the poorest areas in an already-poor city which, from a federal perspective, should raise so-called "environmental justice" concerns over the State's plans.

There are plenty of ways to address public safety and move traffic without destroying a neighborhood.

Councilman Zecca is giving the Utica Common Council its first real opportunity to officially voice its position on the Arterial project. Residents who oppose the State's plan need to turn out 6PM Wednesday if this is important to them.  It will be interesting to see who supports the State's current plans, and what their rationales are. Who will place suburban interests above the needs of City residents?

Will Utica's interests be sacrificed again for an alleged "regional" good? 

What is best for Utica IS what is best for the region.

The Obvious Question . . .

From Utica OD: Some Utica officials not sold on Arterial Plan

James Zecca, a Second Ward councilman running for an at-large seat, and Frank Montecalvo, chairman of the one of the master plan’s subcommittees, have said the Arterial’s main purpose now is to connect the region’s suburban travelers.

They have said a multilane boulevard could spur private development and correct what they see as the original mistake: the 1960s construction of the Arterial itself.

From WIBX: Utica’s Zecca Pushes for Cheaper Energy

Now that Utica’s Master Plan is in place, 2nd District Councilman Jim Zecca plans to introduce a resolution that will create a committee to look into the feasibility of forming a low-cost public power utility service for the City of Utica.

The Obvious Question: If Mr. Zecca is prepared to introduce a resolution re municipal power, Where's the Resolution on the Arterial? 

If Mr. Zecca is unwilling to introduce a resolution at the next Council meeting to stand up for what he claims would be in the best interest of his West Utica constituency, who else will? It makes one wonder how he would serve all of Utica if elected to Councilman at Large.

Municipal Power can wait for the new administration. The Arterial, which is scheduled for Federal Approval before the end of the year, cannot.

City Hall blocked every attempt to put the Boulevard in the Utica Master Plan. Only the Council can fix this.

The Pork Lawsuit . . .

Arguments were presented to the Court of Appeals yesterday in what has become known as the "Pork Lawsuit." This is an extremely important case, involving the use of taxpayer money for "economic development." Some would use the term "crony capitalism" instead.

New Hartford Online Blog has very good coverage of the suit and its implications. You are urged to read their posts. See: Bordeleaux v State of New York .

Right On Cue . . .

Just a few days ago, green colored the the Utica landscape; but right on cue the Autumn colors descended in time for traditional Columbus Day, October 12.  Enjoy the peak color before it's gone . . .

(Click images for larger views and desktop backgrounds.)

Where's the Resolution on the Arterial?

Last week the Utica Master Plan was passed 7-1 by the Common Council after a rather interesting public meeting and discussion. 

Earlier in the day, Mr. Zecca had sent an e-mail with a paper touting the benefits of boulevards to advocate for passage of the Master Plan.  Mr. Zecca suggested that language of the Master Plan could be used to get the State to change its design for the Arterial.  As proposed now, West Utica would be split in two by the new design.
 
At the Council meeting, one member of the public pointed out (with page citations) that the New York State Department of Transportation in its documentation had almost verbatim lifted language out of the draft Master Plan to demonstrate that DOT's proposal complies with Utica's vision for itself.

In the ensuing discussion among the councilmen, almost everyone expressed concern over the State's plans and a desire that West Utica not be split in two.  Yet, amazingly, not a single one, including Mr. Zecca, proposed that the draft Utica Master Plan be amended before its passage to call for a boulevard replacement for the Arterial.

The State has conducted many meeting on the Arterial and has heard many times that Utica residents object to the street cutoffs and the wall that will be constructed across their neighborhood. Yet the very government that supposedly represents its residents failed to take an official position on the project, although individual officials including the Mayor and head of the economic development department had expressed support for the current design in the press at various times.

Sitting there at the meeting, one could imagine such a discussion having taken place when the City decided to give up the waterworks to a regional authority.  There must have been oh-so-many expressions of "concern," but in the end, they gave it away and the residents later lived to regret it.

So we stand now at the 11th hour and 59th minute to make a decision on West Utica's future.  The Arterial still needs FEDERAL APPROVAL before State DOT will have the funds to build it.  Does the Common Council stand up for its residents and their needs . . . or does it stand for more development in New Hartford and some alleged "regional"  need?

Who represents the residents of Utica?


Where's the Common Council resolution calling for a change in the State's plans?

99%ers and the Tea Party: NOT 2 Sides of the Same Coin . . .

There is a narrative out there that the Tea Party and the 99%ers (Occupy Wall St.) crowd are basically the same phenomenon. The 99%ers are now extending invitations to the Tea Party to join their protests. Certainly both movements seem to have "organically" grown out of disgust for actions that favor the "1%" at the expense of everyone else.  But looks are deceiving and that is where the similarity ends.

(1) The Tea Party's objectives have always been clear: downsize government, reduce government's influence on our every day lives, cut government spending and indebtedness, and make government follow the Constitution.  The 99%ers? . . . It's not clear what they stand for other than whine that the "greedy" top 1% is responsible for all of their problems.

(2) While painted by the Main Stream Media and Democrat pundits as a group of rich old white Republicans, close examination of photos of events and scrutiny of news stories reveal the Tea Party as a diverse group of adults. (Locally, some of the organizers have been Democrats). . .  The 99%ers, however, have been overwhelmingly white jobless college students or recent graduates carrying huge student-loan debts that they are unable to pay off, now being joined by Labor Union members.

(3) The Tea Party works within the system, using the tools provided by our system of government to effect change.  It has achieved some success by getting more conservative candidates into office.  The 99%ers are working to collapse the system and have created disruption.

(4) The Tea Party targets the source of many of our problems: the elected officials who control the government -- which controls us.  The 99%ers target Wall St. even though Wall St. does not make the rules.

It is false that both movements are "organic."  The Tea Party movement clearly is, having started with Rick Santelli's rant on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. The 99%ers, on the other hand, have been orchestrated from day one, even though most of its members don't know it. (Followers of conservative media have known  for months that these demonstrations were coming.)

To "Occupy Utica":   Let your voices be heard on 10/13 -- but then, please, go home.  All you will accomplish by camping 24/7 at the Busy Corner is sticking Utica with the cost of policing and protecting you, and later picking up after you.

Utica has enough issues to deal with without "Occupy Utica" adding more.

If you want change, be part of a solution, not a revolution: Work within the system.

9PM Update:  Freedomworks has an interesting take on the difference between the Tea Party and the Occupy crowd. . . . And Utica Uprising has a completely different take on the Occupy Utica event.

Oneida Street Castle . . . Another Architectural Victim

The apartment complex planned for what is now the "Oneida Castle" building has received final federal approval. Unfortunately, the building itself will be demolished in the project.

Something does not smell right.

Back in 2003 the City of Utica installed a new main roof,  rebuilt lower entry porch roofs, and boarded up windows to preserve the building. Now we are supposed to believe that it is unsalvageable?

In an OD article last December   former Urban Renewal Commissioner Robert Sullivan said that the apartment complex proposal

 . . . is the best possible outcome for Oneida Castle after the state Historic Preservation Office determined it was not eligible for historic status, thus meaning historic tax credits were not an option. Those tax credits are the primary mechanism for private market-rate development of a building such as the castle . . . 

So in the end, it's not about salvageability . . . It's all about the money. . . Money from federal grants that will be used to knock the place down. . . Money in the form of tax credits not being available to keep the place up. Taxpayer Money.

And therein lies the problem.  The availability or lack of Taxpayer Money for what should be completely private endeavors of housing and building rehabilitation is determinative of what does or does not get done in Utica.  Utica sounds like it has a soviet-style planned economy -- and looks it.

Private Money should be seeking out the Oneida Castle as an opportunity to create architecturally distinctive living quarters. . . but this is not happening.  Why not? This question was raised for that neighborhood here in January.

I'm going to suggest a simple answer:  It's not in the city plan.  You won't find that expressly stated in the Utica Master Plan, but implicitly . . . where the "strategies" to "increase the percentage of owner occupied structures"  (see p. 30 latest version)  is a laundry list of government handouts for people to do what responsible people should be doing anyway . . . where a "mixed income model" (p.30) will be imposed on all city neighborhoods . . .   where "anti-gentrification guards" will be imposed (p.55) . . .   where an oft-repeated alleged need for "affordable housing" is a euphemism  for "government-subsided housing" . . .  where a specific vision for each neighborhood's future is lacking. . . where future regulation is planned to be developed by citizens committees. 

Private Money will not go where it has to compete with Taxpayer Money, where there are high concentrations of disadvantaged or poor people, or where future regulation is uncertain. 

Utica has been a magnet for the poor and disadvantaged.  This concentrates costly issues within Utica and raises taxes within Utica -- which encourage the well-heeled to leave Utica. It also makes it convenient for the County off-load some of its responsibilities on to the residents of Utica (like the MVCC proposal).  Utica's status as the place for the region's poor is a money-maker and raison-d'être for many. There are simply too many that benefit from the current arrangement for it to change without intervention. The Utica Master Plan was a missed opportunity to intervene. It did not. Instead, it perpetuates the current arrangement.      

There is insufficient Taxpayer Money to save our architectural heritage. Until Utica's policies are changed to encourage the inflow of Private Money, there will be more architectural victims.

No More Meltingpot . . .

Cuomo: NY to translate forms into other languages 

Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered state agencies Thursday to translate documents and provide interpreters in six languages for immigrants seeking public services. . . . The project will translate documents and websites from agencies including social services and motor vehicles into Spanish, Chinese, Italian, Russian, French and French Creole. .. . .

So typical of NYS governing from a Downstate perspective. Here in Utica, Bosnian, Russian, Albanian, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Farsi, Polish, and Spanish might be the choices . . . but maybe 20 more may be needed from time to time . . .

"It's government's responsibility to figure out how to communicate with the person," Cuomo said. . . .

Government already does this to some extent, but what about the responsibility of the individuals?

"Most of us are immigrants that made this state the greatest state in the country, we're proud of it," Cuomo said, opening his news conference in Italian.

This statement sent me into orbit!

I, too, am an American of Italian descent who is proud of his heritage. My grandparents would not have dreamed of government communicating with them in Italian. If government offered, I'm pretty sure they would have refused. They came here. They wanted to be American. Being American meant speaking English.

I bet it was the same in the Cuomo household.

Like my grandparents, the immigrants who "made this state the greatest state in the country" were self-reliant. They neither expected nor wanted a hand out or an accommodation. They were discriminated against, but they persevered. They might not have achieved English fluency for themselves, but their children succeeded.  Whatever their backgrounds, it was their common desire to be Americans that resulted in the blending of cultures in the great American Melting Pot that produced the strong alloy of New York and America.

Mr. Cuomo's proposal caters to those who prefer to remain separate, who prefer not to assimilate. That weakens New York and America.

Mr. Cuomo's ancestors must be rolling in their graves.

Stick it to Utica Residents Again, Oneida County?

Oneida County plans to bill property taxpayers for MVCC costs

Oneida County is taking a gamble that an accounting change could enable it to stay beneath the state’s new cap on property tax increases.

 The budget Picente proposed Wednesday morning stays within the 2 percent tax cap, according to Picente’s calculations.

 That’s because he wants to bill property tax payers for the county’s share of the Mohawk Valley Community College budget on a different line than the rest of the cost. . . .

If Picente’s plan goes through, residents will pay a share of the cost of the college funding based on how many MVCC students live in their home municipality. 

So let's see how this will work . . . Utica has the main MVCC campus. Rome has a secondary MVCC campus. Both cities are the places where students are most likely to take up residence because (1) the campuses are there and (2) both cities contain most of the region's affordable housing. The residents of both host cities already pay increased police costs because students behave like ... students.

This is like the bad old days when Oneida County billed Aid for Dependent Children to City residents because the City was the only place in the region where the poor could afford (or were allowed) to live. It was the poor being forced to support the poor.

Mr. Picente's proposal continues the terrible Oneida County record of sticking County costs on to city residents and taxpayers, especially those in Utica. Any wonder why our cities are in decline?


Maybe the occupation of Liberty Bell Corner on 10/13 should be moved to 600 Park Ave instead?

If Mr. Picente wants to get Counties from outside Oneida to kick in for their students, that's fine. But if our County leaders want to support the costs of educating MVCC students, they should pass those on to ALL Oneida County taxpayers, not shift them on to individual municipalities without the approval of the voters of each municipality.

Trees for Traffic Control!

Some recent studies indicate that trees may be an effective -- and cheap -- means of traffic control according to a new article in Next American City.

Most of us like trees. These incredible organisms clean our air and water, provide valuable habitat for wildlife, increase our property values, and make us feel happier through their beauty. They also seem to make urban roads safer. Most of us don’t think of trees as infrastructure, but in an urban context they are just that. Research indicates that they can play a powerful role in traffic calming, especially through their impact on three vehicle-related risks: speeding, road rage, and pedestrian/bicyclist injury.

The article explains the evidence and how trees work to control traffic.


. . . A few well positioned trees with "traffic-calming" roadway design may be a more cost effective and less socially disruptive solution to avoid pedestrian-vehicle accidents than the blocked streets, ramps, and overhead bridges proposed by NYSDOT for the Arterial.  Less can be more... at least that is what the latest research seems to suggest.

10/5/11 Update:
One of my astute readers provided me with this bit of research on this topic I thought I'd share:

Perceptual Countermeasures: Experimental Research, Godley, Fildes,
Triggs and Brown, 1999, Monash University Accident Research Center,
Melbourne, Victoria (Australia)
Thanks, Dave.

NYRI Redux?

From FoxNews: Fed Plan to Consolidate Power Over Nation's Power Highway Has States Nervous . 

The Obama administration is looking to consolidate control over the nation's power highway, pushing a proposal that would put one federal agency in the driver's seat when it comes to reviewing and approving power-line projects across the country. . . . 

[The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission] said the plan would allow for an "expedited" process and, in the long run, "help satisfy the need for a modern and efficient transmission grid in the United States, with increased access to the most cost-effective renewable resources."

It's easy to see where this will go for us in the Greater Utica area.

A New Problem: Plundering Utica . . .

From Bob Sullivan's blog comes this disappointing story: Self-Proclaimed "Princess" destroys 294 Genesee Street.

The genteel and elegant interiors of ... The former "Catholic Women's Club", was gutted by the infamous "Faux Princess," Diana Lenska.

The hand carved Carrara Marble fireplaces, of which there were 6 throughout the house, were ripped from their chimney mounts ...

The Roccoco Pier and Overmantel Mirrors-gone. ...

 The crowning glory of the mansion, the electrified gasoliers, that have hung from the ornate center medallions since Lincoln was in the White House, vanished. Everything was bundled on a huge moving van and shipped to secret destinations. . . . 

How sad!  Was this 'pay-back' for receiving the 'cold-shoulder' in Utica? A means to recoup losses from failed efforts to establish a cultural venue?  A little of both?  Or something else?  We can only speculate on motive... which is irrelevant. As owner, the fixtures are Ms. Lenska's ... hers to dispose of as she wishes.  But this posting is not about Ms. Lenska . . .

This is the second time this year that an architecturally significant structure has been "plundered" (for lack of a better word) in Utica. What happened to the HSBC building? Like the Catholic Women's Club, it was purchased by an out-of-town buyer with fanciful ideas and wound up ransacked. It's not clear exactly what was taken from inside the building, but some marble slabs from exterior planters are obviously missing. There certainly is a lot of beautiful marble covering most of that building . . .

Looking at both situations, Uticans have to consider the possibility that many of the city's remaining architectural treasures may be worth more as sources of fixtures and materials than as real-estate holdings ... With a global marketplace, the prices obtainable may be much much more than local preservationists can muster. Utica may see a lot more out-of-town buyers scooping up properties from desperate sellers at prices that are super-cheap (to the buyers), "mining" the properties for their fixtures or building materials, and then abandoning them. 

Utica seems to be going the way of the Coliseum which had its marble facing stripped after the fall of the Roman Empire.

Only the full-fledged economic recovery of Utica with rising property values will solve this problem.

BTW - Please pass the humble pie.

Reading Tea Leaves

Yesterday's defeat of a proposed contract between the State of New York and rank-and-file members of the Public Employees' Federation apparently took both the governor and the union head by surprise. From the Crain's New York article:

"The decision to reject the tentative agreement was made by our rank-and-file members who clearly feel they are being asked to sacrifice more than others, particularly in light of the pending expiration of the state's millionaire's tax,” said Ken Brynien, president of the Public Employee Federation.

Mr. Brynien should have stopped after the word "others."  He is reading tea leaves if he assumes the rejection was over expiration of the millionaire's tax.  I think union members, too -- the quiet ones without the signs -- understand that we ALL are Taxed Enough Already in New York State and "taxing the rich" will only drive the well-heeled to permanent safe-haven residences in Florida... and then where will NY be?   

I can't say for sure why people voted "no" -- they were not asked on their ballot.  ... But I note that it was after other unions had approved of their similar contracts that the State announced all the new spending on the "economic development contest."   If the state has the money to spend on a contest that pits one region of the state against another, it has enough money to pay people for the 5 days furlough they are being asked to take.  It is not as though the workers are really getting out of work . . . the assignments will be higher and deeper when they return.

Now it will be interesting to see where Mr. Cuomo cuts.  If it is across the board layoffs, then things that need to get done won't -- or at least not on time.  Traditionally that is how it has been done to avoid the politically unpalatable task of cutting programs.

But cutting programs needs to be where it is done.I will even suggest a program to go:  the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and the DEC Office of Climate Change.  The program, which cannot save the climate, was implemented by executive order (Gov. Pataki) and won't be missed.  The governor could even bill a cut as a jobs plan because it will reduce the cost of electric power for everybody. 

Of course the "contest" can go as well as all the economic development programs.  If people have to be paid to bring jobs to NY, there is still something in NY to be fixed.

Good News X 2 . . . We Hope . . .

A couple good stories from 9/27/11.

First was the opening of the Roundabout at Oneida Square. While the subject of much ridicule and scorn, after traveling through it Tuesday morning and afternoon from two different directions, it seemed to work smoothly. Much less time was taken to get through the intersection whether from Genesee Street (Yield sign) or Park Ave (Stop Sign) than it took before the make-over. Time will tell whether the narrowing to one lane on Genesee Street will be a problem when traffic is heavy or weather bad . . . But so far so good.

Second was the announcement of the 450 new nanotech jobs for Marcy. We've heard such promises before only to be let down . . . but with architectural drawings this time feels like the real deal. Four hundred fifty good paying jobs will be welcome ... but considering that we've lost thousands over many years it is too early to sing "Happy Days Are Hear Again" even if this dream comes true. Troubling is that the State has to practically sell its soul to get private companies to invest in NY. But this seems like a start.

Let's keep our fingers crossed ... on both stories.

"Extreme" . . .

WIBX reported on Congressman Hanna's visit to the Mid-York Library . . .

Hanna who served on the Utica Public Library Board for a number of years says he understands the financial struggle its facing.

Hanna said his goal is to lend the full support of his office and listen to what library officials have to say, “It’s an easy place to cut, but the one thing about a Library is that it’s a great leveler. . . . it’s important to remember that education is the one great leveler and has been throughout history, and Libraries educate."

I like the congressman's description of education as being the one great leveler. It is true . . . and defines why it is important to maintain our libraries and other educational institutions.

During his speech, Hanna seemed to distance himself from the Republican party when addressing cuts to education and other institutions like public libraries. He said, “I’m comfortable being a Republican. I think that I probably find myself distanced a little bit from both parties because they both tend to be run by their extremes. . . But, these are harsh times so it’s important to bring balance . . ."


When asked about the threat of the government shutting down again Hanna said, “I don’t think that’ll happen . . . When you have 30 or 40 people that want to push for their extreme views it’s hard to get through that because you need their votes and sometimes the things you have to do to get them on board aren’t really palatable, generally."

Accusing people of being "extreme" is a personal attack intended to marginalize a viewpoint to avoid having to deal with the substance of what is being said.   

Claiming "balance" while not addressing the issue at hand with an explanation similarly implies that the people being labeled extreme are not worthy of being listened to.

While most people recognize the value of education and libraries (and other matters that the Federal Government may have involved itself in) is it "extreme" to question the role of the Federal Government, as opposed to the States, in the endeavor? Is it "extreme" to question the need for its spending? Since we know that the Constitution limits federal powers to certain essential things, is it "extreme" to insist that the Federal Government do the job it was given to do and stay out of things left to other levels of government . . . at least until the Federal Government gets its fiscal house in order?

Mr. Hanna takes pride in his "independent voting record" -- as he should.  No representative of the people should be a "rubber-stamp" for party elite.  Nonetheless, the congressman needs to figure out why he was sent to Washington at this particular point in time.  Dismissal of concerns as "extreme" without explanation merely because they happen to collide with one's worldview interferes with the process.

Tilt-a-Whirl!! . . .

. . . And you thought they were just constructing a Roundabout on Oneida Square.

Especially enjoyable will be that feeling of centrifugal force as you speed up from the 30 MPH City speed limit to slingshot around the circle as you go from Genny to State St or Genny to Oneida St.

I can't wait. When do the tickets go on sale?

9/22/11 Noontime Update:
The 35MPH signs have been replaced with 15MPH signs. Either someone is reading this blog or someone is on the ball! A funny thought, though, while it lasted.

And Then There Were Five . . .

People were just getting used to the idea that the race for Utica mayor would be four-way, when from out of "left" field comes a fifth candidate, Robert Clemente, of the Green Party. Per the OD . . .

During his announcement Tuesday at F.T. Proctor Park, Clemente spoke about various goals for saving the city money, and many ideas had an environmental focus. . . .

“We will think green, live green and save green,” he said.

Catchy . . .

While the "think green, live green" motto will make some see "red," Mr. Clemente's appearance is bringing some new ideas into the mix.

One of his main initiatives would be to take over street-lighting from National Grid and build toward medium-scale municipal power generation using methods such as solar panels, he said.

Although a Government take-over of private business should raise concern, when one is dealing with a practical monopoly like National Grid, can it be that bad? Monopolies are as inefficient and unresponsive as Big Government. National Grid is answerable only to its shareholders and to the State Public Service Commission. Considering that the former are located world-wide (and could care less about Utica) and the latter seems intent on sending our "cheap" power downstate, moving toward a municipal take-over of the power supply is worth considering. . . At least the voters will have a say. It sounds like Clemente has gone beyond mere talking about muni-power to thinking about how it might be accomplished ...

Although some may dismiss Mr. Clemente as an academic, is that any less a qualification than iceman (Mayor Dulan), cheese maker (Mayor Caruso), undertaker (Mayors Assaro and Roefaro), teacher (Mayor Lapolla), lawyer (Mayor Pawlinga), or entrepreneur (Mayor Hanna)? We know where they got us.

Some of his other goals include listening to the public, bringing pharmacy and food stores to downtown Utica, dealing with sewer and water issues, developing urban forestry and urban agriculture, analyzing whether city services can be delivered in a more efficient way and addressing vacant buildings through deconstruction work and the reuse of materials, he said.

These are new subjects for a mayoral candidate to talk about, but they address clear issues that the city faces. Some ideas may be good, other not so, but at least they will be discussed ... and that is the first step to solving Utica's problems.


Mr. Clemente's entry on the scene will hopefully get other candidates to present specific ideas for addressing the issues instead of spouting the usual rhetoric. That would be refreshing.

Curious Non-Issue . . .

There has been a lot of talking about the Marcellus Shale and Hydrofracking ... whether gas recovery is a good thing or a bad thing.  It certainly presents an opportunity, but also a threat.

It is doubtful that fracking will take place locally, and the controversy here seems a time waster.  The boundary of the Marcellus just touches southern Oneida County and it is likely too shallow to be productive.  The same can be said of the Utica Shale, which is productive in Ohio, but outcrops (comes to the surface) in . . . Utica, which is where it got its name. (I have a garden full of it!).  It really should be a non-issue here.

But what IS a non-issue and perhaps should not be is the fact that New York State is one of very few oil and gas producers that has no mineral severance tax.  It's hard to believe that there is a tax that NYS does not have, but this is one.  While it is doubtful that NYS could fuel state government with such a tax (like Texas or Alaska), it might be worthwhile to consider enough of a tax to pay for the oversight of the industry.

Pros and Cons of such a tax should be considered, of course, but it seems that it should be considered now with all the controversy.  

Does This Make Sense?

The State just closed Oneida Correctional Facility to save money. Now it is spending $33 million to expand facilities at Mohawk Correctional Facility (which is next door isn't it?).

Employees from Oneida Correctional have been forced to relocate supposedly so the state can save money.  Almost ALL state employees are being asked to take 5 days' furlough without pay so the state can save money (even though their work will still be there when they get back because the state refuses to cut programs). 

If the State has all this money to spend on facilities . . . not to mention the $1 BILLION to be given away in the "economic development" contest . . .  why are civil servants expected to take a hit?