New York State Promotes Urban Sprawl . . .

New York State is giving Hartford Financial Services Group (a private company) a $500,000 grant (your tax money) to locate in a new office park being developed in New Hartford.

I wonder how it ever became State policy to give grants that encourage construction in undeveloped areas? I wonder if a generic environmental impact statement was done on such a policy – - and what mitigation was proposed for the sprawl that it promotes?

Just wondering . . .

Unbuilding Bridges . . .

In Utica, we’re still debating whether or not the North-South Arterial should be elevated over Court Street, and how we can best speed traffic through to New Hartford.

In Syracuse, the conversation is taking a different tone. Like the Arterial, I-81 overpasses are nearing the end of their useful life, but there, the talk is about removing them all together. Sandra Barrett of the Onondaga Citizens League commented.

“Basically, we think someone needs to take an advocacy role for downtown, or others will make the decision for downtown,” Barrett said. “We want to make sure it’s not just dollars and construction costs on the table, but that people take a look at the community at large. We want to take a look at alternatives to a highway that cuts through our city and separates our downtown from our fastest-growing industries.”

People are starting to realize how superhighways, cutting through city neighborhoods, can destroy them. We need to think about this ourselves when remaking our own Arterial.

Transportation Collaboration in New Hartford

The New Hartford School District has come up with an idea that merits a close look: a shared transportation facility. Per the O-D,

The school district, town, village and local BOCES unit may collaborate to build a shared transportation facility.

The effort reflects an opportunity to consolidate services and facilities, Superintendent of Schools Daniel Gilligan said Monday.

“Rather than everyone building their own, we should share one,” Gilligan said as the Board of Education passed a resolution that could help further the project.

Other potential partners: Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES and the town and village of New Hartford.

But this idea really needs to be taken further because there is a customer already looking for a transportation facility: CENTRO.

CENTRO wants to consolidate its bus maintenance facility for both its Utica and Rome-based fleets. The City of Utica has voiced some reluctance to having it in downtown Utica — not thinking that it would fit with the City’s plans for downtown. The Mayor proposed that it be located between Utica and Rome. That seems to make sense. . . and that seems to make New Hartford’s proposal for a facility on Middle Settlement Road a perfect fit for CENTRO as well.

Location aside, there are other obvious benefits:

(1) CENTRO’S expertise. The local bus system seems to have gotten a boost by the boys (and girls) from Syracuse. Something sorely lacking in almost all school districts, no matter how handsomely compensated the superintendent, is a business sense for running operations. Although CENTRO is subsidized, it competes for passengers against taxis and private automobiles. It has to make those fares it collects go as far as possible to survive. Integrating school transportation with a professionally run public transit system would seem to lead to both cost savings and increased customer satisfaction.

(2) Educational Opportunity. A facility co-located with BOCES would seem to tailor-make an opportunity for training mechanics much like MVCC’s aircraft maintenance training facility already does at Griffiss. Students would not only learn about nuts and bolts, but they would have a chance to learn about the transportation business as well.

Location, Expertise, and Education . . . Adding CENTRO to the mix would seem a natural fit.

Free the Thruway 500 . . .

Another day, another story about the impending Thruway toll hike. This time truckers say they will be avoiding the Thruway and using secondary roads if the hike goes through. Just what we need on our secondary roads … more traffic. And, of course, those big rigs will mean more wear and tear on the roads that local municipalities may have to raise taxes to fix.

But those trucks will only be those that HAVE to be on NY roads because they serve a NY clientèle. Trucks that have origins and destinations out of NY will try to avoid the state all together. But worse, BUSINESSES for whom Upstate NY might be a convenient location will avoid coming here to keep the costs of their products low. Others that may be here now may leave.

Without this 500 mile highway, a huge swath of Upstate NY becomes a backwater. If it is priced so that it is not used, it’s like not having it at all.

The over arching issue is why do we need the Thruway authority?

Most interstates in the country are toll free, being supported out of general taxes or gasoline taxes. I-81, I-86, I-88, I-495 (LI Expressway), I-84, I-390, I-87 (the portion North of Albany) in NYS are all toll free. There is also the Taconic Pkwy (NYC to Albany areas) and a myriad of Parkways on Long Island which are open to cars only, but are toll free. I-84 deserves special mention because Thruway tolls are used to maintain it!

Essentially, we in the Mohawk Valley are taxed every day to support these free super highways elsewhere in the state — but are taxed again in the form of tolls when we use our local interstate (I-90) here.

Why?

The Mohawk Valley is one of the poorest areas in the state, therefore, New York is literally taxing the poor to support the rich.

It’s time to end the unfair treatment, end the bureaucracy, and end the patronage gravy train that is the New York State Thruway Authority. The original bonds that were the reason for the tolls have long been paid off. The federal government even contributed a large sum on top of this. There is no good reason why the Thruway should be treated differently from any other Interstate in New York.

It’s time to FREE THE THRUWAY 500.

Since Utica-Rome and Buffalo are the only two metropolitan areas entirely dependent on the Thruway for their connection to the outside world, the legislation to dismantle the Thruway Authority should come from majority-party legislators from these areas. Buffalo, however, just got the Niagara Thruway freed of tolls. Mr. Griffo, Mrs. DeStito, it’s now your turn. If you have the guts to place your constituents above your personal political ambitions, you would pick up the gauntlet. And if you do, the machinations to keep the status quo will be interesting to see.

The Key to the Future . . .

According to the O-D headline, “rivers, trails key to area’s future.” Oneida County is seeking to make better use of waterways in the Mohawk River corridor. Undoubtedly, the headline is a lot of hyperbole.

But Oneida County Chief Planner, Ms. Breiten, makes a good point:

“This whole thing started because there is currently a lot of public-held property within the corridor, along the river and the canal, and it just seemed logical to try to link these publicly owned lands,” Breiten said.

That’s what we like to see — LOGIC in our government’s workings. And linking existing publicly owned lands along the river and canal seems to be one way of making the whole greater than the sum of its parts.

As readers of this blog know from some of my photos, there is a lot of beauty along the river and canal. I regularly bike from Utica to Oriskany and have gone from Oriskany to Rome. The bikeway is a great asset that people are just starting to become aware of and use.

A greatly under utilized (non-utilized is more accurate) area is the eastern end in Utica at the canal entrance to Utica Harbor. The lock looks non-functional. Maybe it can be fixed? The harbor proper holds potential for waterfront development and boat useage. Down valley villages have done a marvelous job with their harbors. Utica, the largest city on the canal between Syracuse and Schenectady, logically should have the largest harbor development. There is a lot of public land just ready to be used. And there should be money available to clean up a lot of the contaminated old riverfront sites.

A disappointment on the western end is the trail ending on a heavily traveled highway just short of Rome proper. It is just begging for a pedestrian/bike-friendly connection into downtown and the fort, with some clear signage.

Another disappointment is the lack of a connection from the canal trail to the Oriskany Battlefield and Monument. It would seem to be a natural destination.

Of course (and I hate to say it but it seems to be true) the O-D is pushing a New Hartford agenda again by wanting trails in the Sauquoit Creek Basin. While that would be nice, NH has already gotten a lot of County largess . . . and it can well afford to implement its own trail system. While the 840 trail is “OK,” it does not have the scenic or historic potential to attract a regional clientèle like the Mohawk River trail system does (which will eventually stretch from Albany to Buffalo). It would be wasteful to spend county money on far flung projects that would attract limited interest.

Lets focus on the Erie Canal – Mohawk River areas first — Utica, Rome, and Oriskany — and make better use of the public lands we find there.

Mohawk Valley: Help Thyself . . .

There was an interesting editorial by a Mr. Livadas in this past Sunday’s (12/2) O-D entitled “It’s time for the Mohawk Valley to help itself.” [I would link to it, but it has not been posted online yet.] He really got my attention and had me nodding in agreement (in spite of the mixed metaphors) when he described “the ship of state,” as a now grayed “yellow brick road” passing eastward through places from Lackawanna to Amsterdam, “once stable, industrious cities and towns, now laying comatose,” that ends in a “flourishing Emerald City” (i.e., Albany). He had me cheering when he said:

“Space prohibits citing the litany of ill-advised decisions leading to the current disheartening state of affairs. But one thing is certain: the birthplace of many of our problems is on the steps of the state Capitol in Albany.”

He then called on the leaders and people from Rome, Utica, Herkimer, and the various townships to “[p]ush aside all city vs. city competing “priorities” and establish one priority – the revitalization of the Mohawk Valley . . . ” to “join together in an unprecedented spirit of cooperation and good will to . . . “

“form a study commission to undertake a thorough analysis of the issues confronting our region.“

That’s where he lost me! He had just articulated a lot of the problems that NYS has created for upstate, but now we need a study commission? To tell us what? The things that we already know?

“Commission members would be composed of local state officials such as state Sen. Joseph Griffo, who has formed a committee of business leaders to review the area’s needs, together with the presidents of the Utica, Rome, Herkimer and other Chambers of Commerce. Mayors, supervisors, the county executive , economic development officials, civic leaders and area college presidents are to be included.”

He really lost me there. He would put in charge the very same officials and “influential” community leaders who have presided over our decline. Their impotence has spanned decades.

The end product of this committee would be a “Revitalization Master Plan” for the Mohawk Valley. But this is just “pie-in-the-sky” philosophizing. While Mr. Livadas would have each municipality put aside its own interests for the benefit of the whole, it simply does not work that way when are talking about local development. As I pointed out in my “Reconnect” post, as long as our municipal boundaries separate people into groupings that will unevenly share costs and benefits, attempts to force “cooperation” will end in “competition,” and efforts will be lost in “friction” among the elements. Only when the people reorganize themselves into new municipalities which encompass people with common interests and lets them all share in both the costs and benefits of their decision-making will that friction be overcome.

But even if the Mohawk Valley could be remade into one city to eliminate our regional “frictions,” it would not remedy the major woes that stretch in common across Upstate from Schenectady westward — the woes so well articulated by Mr. Lividas. We would still have Albany-imposed millstones around our neck such as the Thruway and its Tolls, utility rates that are out of proportion with our incomes, state taxes and fees that are out of proportion with our incomes, government programs and regulations that make sense from a Downstate — but not an Upstate — perspective. The fact that Upstate legislators do not demand removal of these millstones bespeaks of their being beholden to Downstate interests for their survival.

The only thing we could hope for is for a new boundary to be drawn around Upstate that allows us the opportunity for some self-determination — to make our own policies in certain areas. The current political leadership on both sides would never go for this. If the public had the right of initiative, referendum and recall, however, there may be a chance for a reorganization — because, on a person to person level, people are not that different. They have many hopes and aspirations in common. Downstaters would understand and appreciate the benefits of self-determination as much as Upstaters would.

Mr. Griffo and Airline Passengers

Mr. Griffo is co-sponsoring a law to protect fliers stranded on planes in New York.

This is an interesting display of priorities when Oneida County (and, therefore, his Senate District) has NO scheduled airline passenger service, having lost it three or four years ago.

Mr. Griffo, if you want to do something meaningful for your constituents, why don’t you co-sponsor Mr. Valesky’s legislation to require the Thruway Authority to get legislative approval before every toll hike? Or is party loyalty more important?

Speaking Out Against the Toll Hike

The Observer-Dispatch has challenged readers to speak out against the proposed Thruway toll hikes.

Pressure works. Governor Spitzer just postponed a bus and subway fare hike in New York City in response to the Daily News’ “Halt the Hike” campaign. Ahh . . . the power of the press . . .

Senator Valesky has met the O-D’s challenge by proposing a law that would require legislative approvals of all toll hikes.

But Mr. Valesky is part of a minority party in the Senate.

Where are Sen. Griffo and Mrs. Destito on this issue? They are members of the controlling parties in their respective houses.

Does their silence mean they have been bought and paid for by their party leadership … which benefits from the Thruway Authority patronage mill? When will we hear from them?

Food For Thought

A reader wrote in with some “Food for Thought.” Since I couldn’t say things better myself, I thought I would post his comments in their entirety:

In yesterday’s Observer Dispatch article, a resident was reported to have had some real concerns regarding why there was no Mohawk Valley Water Authority customers asked to serve on the commission? ( Griffo: Area water changes needed – Officials discuss short- and long-term solutions – Nov 16, 2007 @ 10:31 PM – By BRYON ACKERMAN – Observer-Dispatch). “During the public comment period Friday, Barneveld resident Kathy Kellogg expressed concern about the make-up of the working group.” However, Herkimer County Administrator James Wallace and Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, as well as Senator Griffo will be the ones representing their interests. Both Picente and Griffo reside in Rome. Rome is not located in the affected Nine Mile Water Shed. Why not ask someone from Botswana or New York City to sit on this commission?

Somehow, I can see the residents of Utica getting screwed . . . again. Why wouldn’t the Mayor and Mayor-elect of Utica be asked to represent the interests of the Utica residents? Some direct accountability would be nice.
_________

In another Observer Dispatch article it was reported that Congressman Arcuri was able to secure $400,000.00 in federal funds for the design, land acquisition and construction of a Centro transit garage and maintenance facility in Utica. The new Centro Bus garage facility will be built in Utica to house busses that serve the greater Utica and Rome areas. (Arcuri secures $1.45M for projects – Nov 16, 2007 @ 08:03 AM – By ROCCO LaDUCA – Observer-Dispatch)

Utica Mayor Tim Julian questioned why this facility should be built in Utica? “When this was being talked about two years ago, I said I didn’t want to give up a multi-acreage parcel of land in Utica for a bus garage, and I still stand by that today: Put it somewhere else, not in Utica,” said Julian, adding “the facility should be located between Rome and Utica.”

I feel that Utica Mayor Tim Julian has a good point. It would be logical for this facility to be located in the Town of Whitestown. Perhaps in the “shovel ready” new State Route 840/Judd Road corridor. (Whitestown Supervisor Matt Shannon’s quote “We’re prepared, and we’re shovel-ready for the growth.” Route 840 spurs growth – Nov 14, 2007 @ 12:31 AM – By STEPHANIE VEALE – Observer-Dispatch). This location would optimally serve the transit company in three ways: First, it would be centrally located conveniently between the cities of Utica and Rome. Second, this location would be convenient to where the busses are manufactured. Orion Buss Industries is located in the Whitestown Business Park at the former Oneida County Airport just off of Judd Road. And third, Busses need room in terms of their sheer size. The Whitestown location would be able to provide the additional acreage that this facility would demand.

Those dam Walesville alliens are hard at work again!

—Greens and Beans

Walesville, 1954 – Another Followup?

I received this e-mail response to the Walesville posts. It is self-explanatory:

Okay, you have been successful in exposing me and my extraterrestrial comrades. You are so very cleaver. Our mission has been to stifle any and/or all positive economic development activity in the Central New York corridor. We have been successful with getting the most incompetent earthlings to run for all of the various elected offices. In turn, these elected officials have filled the entire political hack appointments with the utmost arrogant narcissists and babbling idiots found in this universe. This undertaking was not easy. We even we had to import some of them from other cities where they have exhibited unconditional ineptitude. We are particularly pleased with our appointments to the Mohawk Valley Water Authority, EDGE/GLDC, Oneida/Herkimer Solid Waste Authority, Utica Municipal Housing Authority and the multitude of State Agencies that have been so successful in confounding any and all community economic progress. We have been awarded the coveted economic development “black-hole” award from our Martian Superiors back home. We have been chronicled on the Martian “Red Planet 60 Minutes” counterpart news show. We are proud to say that we are the Martian college model for extraterrestrial interference in terms of confounding economic progress on external planets.

However, now that you have exposed your recognition of having discovered our existence here in Walesville, New York, we have no other alternative than to sever any and all communications with you. We will not jeopardize our mission by having some smart aleck – like you – exacerbating our untarnished success rate by simply exposing our existence. A large part of our success has been how we have been able to instill complacency and apathy on the residents of central New York with the extreme low expectation from all public officials.

For the above reason we have no other alternative than to relegate you to NUT status. Therefore, we have decided to relegate you, along with all the other kooks, to Roswell, New Mexico status. We have alerted the highly successful “Skeptic Squad” to watch for your letters to the editors and internet postings. They will neutralize any rational utterances you may offer to ‘wise-up” the general populace. So give up before we drive you crazy!

Farewell Intrepid Earthling!

Your Favorite Martian

CEO, Earthlings Impediment Division

Mohawk Valley Economic Encumbrance Mission

Walesville Covert Central Office Complex

Yow! If I stop posting, look for me in Roswell!!! :-O