Transfer This . . .

In the Building for Building's sake department: Bus Transfer facility .

Bus ridership -- and downtown traffic -- had their zenith about 50 years ago when Utica had a population of 100,000 and a thriving commercial center.  No bus transfer facility was needed then.

It's not needed now.

What would have made this project worthwhile to pursue would have been the parking garage that was originally proposed.  But that has been left out.

What this does is close another street to traffic.  Granted, Charlotte Street does not have a lot of traffic most times  . . . but it does handle some traffic during evening rush trying to get from the Union-Blandina lot to Bleecker-Lafayette Streets to go East and West.  Closing it off only forces traffic to go farther out of its way -- increasing the inconvenience of navigating through Downtown.  Forcing people to drive farther to accomplish what should be simple movements has been a contributor  to the decline of Downtown over the last 50 years. (Note: Charlotte Street used to connect Steuben Park with Oriskany St E. and, with Park Ave., was formerly an important bypass of busy Genesee St. ...  Here's an idea: Knock down the County Office Building and reconnect Blandina Street with itself!)

At least with a parking garage, the inconvenience would have been balanced by more parking which most people acknowledge is needed at this location ... Early concepts included small store fronts which could help re-establish Bleecker as a street for small retail operations.

As this project stands now, it fulfills only an academic need that does not really exist. It takes more property out of private hands and puts it in public... creates a gap in commercial development . . . and it causes further disruption to the street grid.

It has become merely an excuse to spend Federal dollars, with little real return for the taxpayers.

More of the Same . . .

But with some interesting changes that may contain a message . . .

That's my assessment of the election results.

A number of new faces will be taking positions in January but not necessarily new parties, so it is unclear if voters in those places have picked a new direction for their communities.

But something is happening in New Hartford . . .

Long a Republican stronghold, Paul Miscione takes a seat on the Town Council away from Christine Krupa, and David Gordon (who lost this race a couple times before) takes a County Legislative seat from Fred Sadallah. Is New Hartford becoming disillusioned  with the Republican establishment?

Another County Legislative seat that will switch hands to Democrat: Harmony Speciale replaces old-timer Howard Welch.  Although the Republicans still have a majority on the County Legislature, it is narrowed.  However, of the 29 seats up for grabs, less than half -- only 12 -- were contested.


What would have happened if there were contests in all races?

As evident from the Utica Mayor's race and County Exec race, minor parties play a minor role in this area (spoiler at best) ... The thinking among voters seems to be, if one of the two major parties does not endorse a particular candidate, the candidate is not worth considering.

The Democrats did not field a candidate for County Executive.  The Republicans did not field a candidate for District Attorney.  The Voters were deprived of the chance of sending government in a new direction for two very important positions.


Few choices for voters result in a government that is stagnant. And a government that is stagnant results in a region that is stagnant.  Party leaders need to do more to cultivate and promote alternatives if the region is to move forward.

Bait and Switch . . .

Looks like my congratulations to the Common Council for "doing the right thing" was premature.

Per the OD today, Mr. Zecca changed his resolution at the last minute to gut its meaning.

But after several meetings, Zecca said it became clear the state is proceeding
with the $62.5 million plan, which will include replacing the aging bridge
over Columbia Street.. . . Instead, the council unanimously approved a
resolution Wednesday urging the state to put together a long-term plan for the rest of the Arterial after the current project is finished.

To so significantly change and pass the resolution after it was discussed the night before with totally different wording is "bait and switch" and borders on dishonesty.

The public was entitled to an up or down vote on the resolution as originally drafted, so voters can decide which councilmen will stand up for Utica residents and which do not.

The whole lot should be sacked tomorrow.

Time for Change?

Did everyone remember to "Fall Back" an hour last night? The bigger question is will everyone "Fall Back" upon the incumbents during Tuesday's election, or strike out in a new direction?

The Utica mayoral race has grabbed attention for good reason.  Five candidates and no incumbent is unprecedented. Clearly change is coming to Utica . . . but with the three most familiar candidates all tied to one political machine or the other (assuming there really are two machines) it is unlikely Utica will see significant change unless, somehow, one of the two political outsiders manages to get elected. It is local history that the same old people keep getting recycled ... after all, plenty of patronage jobs ensure loyalty to the ruling elite. 

The excitement over Utica Mayor has distracted from what is probably more important to Greater Uticans:  the Oneida County Executive (CE) and Legislative races.  I say more important because Regional policy as determined by Oneida County and its surrogates has trumped anything that Utica and nearby governments could do for at least the last 15 years. The County exerts controls over Greater Utica that it does not exert elsewhere. Unfortunately much of the County's activities goes unnoticed because of a lazy (or complicit) newspaper.

For example, two of the most important municipal services are water and sewer and both are essentially controlled by the County in the entire Greater Utica area. The people in the Part-County Sewer District are denied the opportunity of controlling their own destiny when most of the County legislators who control the Sewer District reside outside of it.  No one on the board of the Mohawk Valley Water Authority is elected. However, the crazy setup for appointments ensures that a County perspective prevails, rather than that of the people who actually reside in the water district and pay the bills. How else does one explain MVWA's attempt to send Greater Utica's limited supply of water to other parts of the County that have alternative sources available, and the CE's recent involvement in MVWA's affairs? Considering that these systems are costing us hundreds of millions of dollars, the fact that they are not controlled by the residents of Greater Utica is a major problem.

Although nominally Republican, the failure of Democrats to field their own CE candidate, and the fact that many of the legislator positions are uncontested,  make clear that we are really governed by a regional ruling elite for which party label has little meaning. The elite are the successors to the Utica textile mill owners of the early 20th century, running everything in the County to favor themselves and squeeze out the competition. They can be found on the Water Authority, OCIDA, UIDA, EDGE, MV Chamber of Commerce, and even the New Hartford Planning and Library Boards.    The current CE, one of a long line of CEs who have been carefully groomed for the position, is merely the latest head on this beast, because the policies have essentially been unchanged for 30 years.
 

Four years ago I asked whether people would take comfort with their known leaders or take a chance on new ones. In Utica voters went with the new, but in the County they went with comfort.  It is interesting to reflect on the 2007 election.  Many of the issues we had then are the same ones we have today.

Too much of what goes on at the County Legislature is rubber stamping what the CE wants... which is rubber stamping what the elite want.  I'm not going to try to recap events like I did 4 years ago -- it takes too long -- but look through the posts on this blog, they are there. Decisions seem to be made to commit taxpayer money to projects with no weighing of costs and benefits. "Build it and they will come" is their motto, without realistic assessment of the competition.  Economic development has been nothing but moving jobs from one place to another.  There is constant subsidization of new developments on green-fields, requiring new supporting infrastructure, while the infrastructure in our cities goes underutilized. County officials look the other way when laws are broken to favor development ... whether it is in New Hartford or in Ravenrock. Overall, little has been accomplished other than making our property and sales tax rates among the highest in the nation, and leaving people vulnerable to things like flooding and sewage.

This year we have a choice for CE... only because Mr. Potocki took on the task himself because he did not want to see this job go uncontested.  Given the experiences detailed in his book, "From the Inside," he has seen the good, bad, and the ugly in the County and both Utica and Rome.  He has seen it all and offers a lot more experience than what is currently in the CE position now. . . and a lot more independence and rational thought. Here the choice is clear, more of the same or a new direction.

Some of us have choices for Legislators. Look at the records of the incumbents.  Are they rubber stamps, or do they show independence and a willingness to take on the conventional wisdom?  If they are rubber stamps, consider going with the new guy.  They can be soon replaced if they don't produce.

Remember to Vote Tuesday, November 8th.

An ODd View Of Our Region . . .

"The greatest power of the mass media is the power to ignore. The worst thing about this power is that you may not even know you're using it." --Sam Smith 

A free people cannot wisely exercise their democratic voting rights without access to essential information on the issues which confront them.

Although several sources of information on local issues are available to Greater Utica, by far most people (including this blogger) depend on what is in the Observer-Dispatch to be aware of local issues and to form opinions on them.  Apart from its editorials, the OD strongly influences what people talk about each day, what is considered important or unimportant to them, and what they may or may not do, merely on the basis of what information the OD chooses to publish.  

As information's gatekeeper, a newspaper bears an enormous responsibility for what becomes local public policy.  A newspaper must wisely choose which issues to inform upon, present all sides of the issues to allow people to make up their own minds, and leave opinions to the editorial pages. This is a difficult job because reporters, editors, and publishers are people, too, and people's opinions color what issues they consider important and unimportant, and even what they perceive to be the "side" of an issue. Issues reported upon, and how they are reported, can shape, for better or worse, the public policy that comes out of local governmental bodies.  Policy on issues that are totally ignored by the press can be expected to be for the worse because it is usually uninformed. 

 

How well has the Observer-Dispatch carried out its responsibilities lately?  

The items below seem to reveal either an inability (perhaps through budget or personnel limitations) to properly cover certain issues, or an intent to advance particular policy outcomes, perhaps desired by those who may be socially connected with the newspaper's decision makers, by withholding information. You be the judge.

1) The lack of a story on the passage of Mr. Zecca's resolution on the Arterial as noted on this blog's last post.   (This would seem to violate the OD's own standard of separating what is important from what is unimportant, since it previously editorialized on the issue.)

2) The lack of a story on the New Hartford Town Library Board's meeting this past week, where the subject of discussion was either separating the Library from Town government and making it part of the New Hartford School District, or forming some sort of Regional library -- as if one is needed with the Utica library only 4-5 miles away.  (The OD was invited to attend this meeting but chose to stay away.)

3) The lack of a story on how New Hartford sewer users have been taxed more than is needed, "loaned" $1.5 million from their New Hartford Consolidated Sewer Fund to other town funds, and have yet to be paid back, as uncovered by a NYS audit and reported by New Hartford Online.

4) Publication of a guest editorial promoting the Utica Master Plan, but failing to publish an opposing perspective (even though one was sent by someone on the planning committee).

5) A general and fairly consistent failure to report on the activities of the Oneida County Legislature as opposed to what can be read in the Rome Sentinel. (Perhaps this explains why Oneida County's policies are often contrary to Utica's needs.)

Lack of resources? Intentional withholding? Whichever it is, the Observer-Dispatch needs to do a better job.  Look around . . . The results of poor public policy are palpable. 

One Surprise -- Two Stories

I woke up this morning to hear on WIBX that the Utica Common Council voted 8-0 last night to send a resolution to Governor Cuomo, asking him to halt the State's plans for the North South Arterial.

I thought I was dreaming!

To anyone sitting through the UED meeting Tuesday night where the resolution was discussed, it seemed like the resolution would go down in flames when put to the whole Council for a vote.  I don't know what happened between Tuesday night and Wednesday night to sway votes. Was it concern for next week's elections and how a "no" vote could be spun?  Was it the influence of the "Occupy Utica" protesters who were present?  Does it really matter? 

For once Utica's Common Council did the right thing for Utica's residents and small businesses.

Now that the Common Council has articulated City Policy, it is incumbent on the Mayor, the Urban and Economic Development Department, and all other segment's of the City's executive branch to support it -- to find ways to make it work in cooperation with the State, so that State's need to move traffic safely through Utica can be met while also meeting Utica's needs for maintaining existing street connections, stronger visual connections between both sides of the Arterial Replacement, a walkable neighborhood, maintenance of properties on the tax rolls, and more places for entrepreneurs to set up shop. Candidates for Mayor should be asked how they intend to carry out the Council's wishes.  It also is incumbent on the City Council to monitor what becomes of its resolution and not to let it languish.  This story is just beginning . . .


And then there is the OTHER story . . .


... the almost complete blackout of news coverage on the vote.  Fortunately WIBX reported this -- but only on the air today and temporarily on line (the link to the audio coverage was replaced this afternoon).  None of the other local news outlets have this story. 

This is especially curious with regard to the OD.  As previously noted, the OD edictorial board was so upset over Mr. Zecca's penning the proposal that it ran an editorial against it before the ink on the proposal was even dry. One has to wonder about the lack of interest now . . . or if there is a purpose behind it.

Perhaps it will be covered tomorrow . . . or in another editorial this weekend.

Why Invite the Public . . .

... if you are not interested in what it has to say?

That sums up the impression left from last night's Urban and Economic Development committee of the Utica Common Council with reference to its discussion of the North-South Arterial remake.

Certain members of the public were asked to attend the meeting which began at 5:30 PM, but were not permitted to speak until almost 8PM . . . only after the late hour was pointed out to the councilmen, the news media had long left, and the public members insisted on speaking... and only after everyone was already exhausted from listening to the councilmen nit-pick over trivial details.

This was not a serious effort to receive input from the public and invited guests, but, rather, the proverbial "dog and pony" show.

Councilman Bucciero is specifically called out for this.  He ran the meeting when it got to the subject of the arterial and kept everyone waiting. In spite of his expressions of concern at the last Council meeting over what the arterial would do to the city, it was pretty obvious that his mind was already made up to favor the State's proposal, and that the project only needed "tweaking."

One slide from DOT's repertoire succinctly summed up the issues.  It was an artistic rendering of the view of the arterial looking south from the new Court Street bridge. . . It was gorgeous . . . showing a beautiful new white highway passing through a lush green countryside.  Only if you looked close could you see some recognizable buildings in the distance.   

Essentially, Utica is gone!

Therein lies the problem.  The Council is apparently prepared to allow huge swaths of properties to be removed from what should be in private hands and have them turned over to highway use.  That guarantees that they will never be the site of economically productive activities . . . never create jobs or wealth . . . and never generate a dime of tax revenue for the financially-strapped City of Utica.  Instead, they will create a "green gulf" (with a bisecting wall in some places), that will forever divide West Utica from itself and prevent it from ever functioning as a neighborhood.

Councilwoman Arcuri liked what she saw, particularly the features that enhanced safety by separating pedestrians from the traffic.  But for the only person who voted against the Utica Master Plan simply because it did not address Utica's precarious financial situation, her lack of interest in the financial impact of this project to the residents of the City of Utica is inconsistent.  Quite simply, no one has been presented with an estimate of the property/sales tax revenue to the City and to the School District that will be lost due to the proposed takings. That should not be too hard to figure out...properties will be removed from the tax rolls and businesses will be shut down ... but where is the estimate?  In addition, no attempt is made to estimate the potential revenue loss that can be expected to result from the change in traffic patterns when Sunset Ave. and Warren St. are cut off.  Businesses, such as Carl's Furniture, will lose customers when they become difficult to reach and the city will lose sales tax. How can Mrs. Arcuri . . . or any council member. . . allow the project to go through without at least first knowing how it will impact Utica's tax rate?

Yes we need to move traffic through Utica . . . and we need to do it safely for pedestrians . . . but the way to accomplish these tasks is not to erase a city neighborhood and build a mini-Thruway in its place.

The State needs to seriously reconsider its 60 year old policy of rerouting traffic in cities and sending it down one or two limited access highways at high speed. Instead, look at improving the street grid  to provide a variety of alternate routes which can accommodate the traffic.   Streets, such as Whitesboro St., which formerly handled a lot more traffic now have their capacity wasted due to arterial reroutings.  Use them. Traffic will move, businesses will have places to do businesses, their customers will be able to reach them, and the economy will improve.   The State, however, will not look at alternatives at this point because they are well along in their project and the Council is not going to insist on it.

The Council, again, fails to protect the interests of Utica residents.     

A Kind of Hush . . .

Potocki attacks opponent’s proposed budget

Oneida County Executive candidate Rodger Potocki slammed incumbent County Executive Anthony Picente’s proposed $360 million 2012 budget at a press conference Thursday morning.
“What is Picente doing? It is obvious that he has created an election year budget of smoke and mirrors that not only fails to meet state law but uses gimmicks to cover up the failure,” Potocki said . . .

Can't wait to see these two in a debate . . .

But what debate?  Perhaps the most important office in the County, but no information about a debate being scheduled.  Has anyone scheduled one? If not, why not?

Is anyone ducking the possibility?

It sure is quiet around here!

A Cynical Translation . . .

Economic council completes draft plan for state competition

The Mohawk Valley’s Regional Economic Development Council . . . submitted a draft summary of its strategic plan Wednesday to state officials. . . .
Once finalized, the Mohawk Valley’s plan will compete with plans from nine other regions in the state for the massive pot of economic development funds.

Although the regional plan is still under wraps, the article reveals several "strategies" which are listed below -- along with a cynical translation of what they probably really mean.

(1) "Leveraging existing businesses that have potential for high growth."
Cynical Translation: "Giving taxpayer money to businesses that are politically connected."

(2) "Increasing the supply of skilled workers to meet employer demands."
Cynical Translation: "Using taxpayer money to train people for businesses that are politically connected."
Alternate Cynical Translation: "Using taxpayer money to hire politically connected instructors to train people for jobs that don't exist locally."

(3) "Fostering a culture of investment and entrepreneurship."
Cynical Translation: (Ditto number one above) (If there was real interest in these things the state would lower taxes and regulate less.)

(4) "Modernizing local systems of government, possibly through consolidation."
Cynical Translation: "Remove control of local systems of government from the taxpayers that pay for them."

Sorry to be cynical, but when I read the words, their translations automatically came to mind. 

Show Boat Legislation . . .

Brindisi: Keep hydrofracking away from Hinckley Reservoir

“If any of the streams or rivers that run into the reservoir became contaminated, it could potentially leave thousands of homes in our region without clean tap water,” Brindisi said.

The map at left is a map of the surface geology in the vicinity of Hinckley Reservoir. The Utica Shale is shown at the lower left in brown. The Trenton Limestone is shown in diagonal blue and white lines. Although both have been associated with gas production elsewhere, these layers are too close to the surface near Hinckley to hold recoverable quantities of gas. The geology below these layers, and the geology to the northeast of Hinckley Reservoir (northeast of the diagonal line passing through Hinckley Res.), both on and below the surface, consists of Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rock. I.e. It predates the life on earth that is the origin of hydrocarbons and therefore cannot contain gas!

Hydrofracking is the "hot" issue of the day. It is easy to score points and prey upon people's fears by coming out against hydrofracking. But this proposed legislation, geologically, makes no sense.

Legislation on hydrofracking should be based on science, not emotion. While hydrofracking is an important issue in areas to the south and west of Utica, it is not an issue for Hinckley.  


There are far to many real issues that affect the 116th District (like high power costs and Thruway tolls) which need to be dealt with.  This is not one of them.

The Obligatory Hit Piece . . .

Per the OD: Mayoral candidate Sanita runs campaign with own money, ideas.

Digging into Mr. Sanita's past, the newspaper uncovered operation of an x-rated theater at age 21, a "proposed" bar featuring nude dancers, a 1995 plea to a felony for which he received probation, alleged code violations, and owing $730 in back taxes.

ONLY $730 in back taxes? From an owner of multiple properties?

The City should be so lucky with some of its property owners.While the felony plea is a bit disconcerting, the rest seems more like a tempest in a teapot . . . stirring up the sludge to dirty a candidate just days before an election.  Mr. Sanita announced his candidacy months ago.  Why bring this up now?

We saw this type of hit piece before, mere days before the Utica School Board was to vote on a new superintendent.  It was obviously aimed at knocking out a very well qualified candidate in favor of the locally-connected one -- who did not receive similar scrutiny in the press. 

At this point in time, lets focus on the candidates' visions for Utica's future rather than on their past.


If Mr. Sanita warrants the "obligatory hit-piece," then the "powers that be" in Greater Utica must consider him a threat to the status quo.  

That is a good thing. 

[9PM Update:
After hearing the 5 candidates "debate" tonight on the radio, I now understand why the "hit piece" was written.]

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.