Q: What happens when idealism gives way to ambition?
A: Hands get dirty.
Dirty hands is an expression used to describe the moral standing of government officials, and would be government officials (otherwise known as politicians), who compromise moral principles in favor of achieving certain results perceived to be better for specific constituencies: Officials who put aside moral values are said to have dirty hands. [See this link.]
In the course of the Democratic primary, Hillary’s hand got dirty. Here’s how. She feared, as a female candidate, there would be a bias against her as a woman among the electorate. She had good reason to believe she’d be perceived as too soft for the job of president. So she launched her Democratic primary campaign trying to convince her party she was tougher than Barack Obama.
She ran ads about answering the White House phone at 3am—when crisis always calls. She kept the nuclear option on the table for dealings with Iran. She took a hard-line on foreign policy. She drew on Obama’s discussions of domestic issues and his social justice background to portray him as a more ‘sensitive’ person, somehow softer. It’s the language of gender stereotypes. She wanted to send the message that she was more of man than Barack Obama.
When that approach raised doubts about her sensitivity—was she woman enough?—Hillary poured out her emotions, tearing up on the eve of the New Hampshire primary, acting a bit more subdued and ‘feminine,’ and seeking sympathy in a harsh, judgmental political world. Hillary supporter, Geraldine Ferraro, took it upon herself to play up the idea that men have an unfair political advantage, claiming that Obama had it ‘easier’ as a black man, by virtue of being a man than Clinton did as a white woman, by virtue of being a woman.
But what abut her whiteness?
Caught in a gender bind, where being more manly than Obama might cost her feminine votes and being less manly than Obama might cost her masculine votes, Hillary turned to race. During the Pennsylvania primary, she began to highlight her appeal to a certain demographic, as compared with Obama: white, blue-collar, Catholic, European ethnic men seemed to prefer her. She took that demographic and ran with it, through Ohio and Indiana and West Virginia, to the super delegates.
Over time, the other rubrics were dropped and she emerged as the white candidate and argued she should get the nomination because she was more electable in battleground states because she could compete with McCain for the white vote.
When it’s pointed out by a political analyst that she gets certain segments of the white vote over Obama, it’s one thing. Coming from her, it’s another. In making her pitch about her whiteness, she never explained what about her positions on the issues would make her more appealing to white folks. Few commentators asked. Jon Stewart, on the Daily Show, lampooned West Virginia voters in a tongue-in-cheek report on the racism and ignorance of West Virginia voters (click here to watch it).
More seriously, CNN political commentator David Gergen said after West Virginia and Oregon that Hillary should tell white voters if they preferred her over Obama because of her race, then she didn’t want their vote. (click here to watch it) But she never did. That’s how her hands got dirty:
Having had a career devoted to civil rights and social justice, and having been First Lady to the White man Toni Morrison dubbed the first Black president, Hillary brought the message of white supremacist voters to the Democratic party leadership and made a virtue out of it, when she should have denounced it.
Friday, May 30
How Hillary's Hands Got Dirty in the Presidential Race
Wednesday, May 28
Will a Trip into Uncharted Waters Make a “Splash” for the School District?
Or is $10,000 just a “Drop In the Bucket”?
About a year ago, as the City was ramping up for the Fall 2007 election, we ran a post showing how Geneva City politicians were attacking NoStrings, but incorporating a great deal of its content into their political platforms. We didn’t mind all that much, since we agree that the ideas we post are in Geneva’s best interests, but it was a bit hypocritical on their part to trash our site while stealing our content.
That’s why we read with interest the Geneva City School Board’s decision to hire “Splash,” Phil Beckley’s (and Charlie Wilson’s) new public relations firm. The Finger Lakes Times was apparently more interested in providing cover rather than context to this decision, since they did not disclose in their story that Splash is the latest endeavor of the former Finger Lakes Times newspaper reporter, editor, and publisher turned failed 2007 mayoral candidate. They did, however, give him a nice write up when he launched his venture.
When we read the article we thought we’d missed the Request for Proposals (RFP) for these services and the presentation that public relations firms usually make when trying to woo a new client. We contacted District officials to find out the details.
As it turns out, the District never put out an RFP for a public relations firm. The School Board never interviewed Beckley or had him give a presentation to the Board on his ideas, as would be common for virtually any board hiring any firm for any sort of public relations. And there was no public discussion of Beckley’s firm’s track record. Who else has “Splash” worked for? What media do they specialize in? What kind of content portfolio have they developed? What deliverables are they promising the district? After all, if you are venturing into public relations-- getting into ‘spin’, you ought to know what the spin doctor’s diagnosis and treatment plan are.
It seems the only public details of the proposal are that Beckley’s firm will earn $150 per hour working for the School District. How was this rate set? Did the District survey public information efforts by its counterparts to calculate an acceptable ‘going rate’? Did the District look at statewide best practices for acquiring these services and determine an acceptable budget? We don’t know the answers to this, because the decision to hire “Splash” was merely ratified in public by the School Board with virtually no discussion. That indicates that the details had been worked out beforehand, in the ‘back room,’ kind of reminds us of past City Council decisions.
We do believe the Geneva City Schools have a positive message to share. We’re on record about that. On a personal note, we each have had a positive experience with our own children, respectively, in the District. But the money that’s been set aside for Beckley is for, as yet, unspecified work, so we’re not convinced that this is the best investment of public funds.
Last year, Augustine attended a meeting with School District officials, organized by Councilor Jan Nyrop, to discuss the many ways the city might promote the school district’s offerings, and vice versa, as a means of encouraging new businesses and new residents to the City. Among the ideas presented was the development of a joint city-school district web portal, similar to this site hosted by the City of Elmira. Such a site could be designed by a joint city-school committee and programming done through an internship agreement with one of our regional colleges.
Another suggestion was to create a promotional handout featuring a list of colleges and universities where Geneva High graduates have been accepted (many of them Ivy League or other Tier I schools) as well as a list of accelerated and unique course offerings and statistics on Advanced Placement testing. These are areas in which the Geneva City Schools demonstrate superiority to our regional counterparts. That would entail the collection of existing data, not all that much effort and virtually no cost. This approach would be a collaborative, volunteer effort bringing city and school staff together with community members for a common purpose. That is, in itself, a worthy endeavor, and we bet it would also yield a more useful end product because the messengers would really be committed to the message!
Perhaps district officials believe that the newspaper experience of Beckley and his partner, Charlie Wilson, are enough. But it’s one thing to write for a paper that has a set distribution network. It’s quite another to write content and select media to reach a non-captive audience. It’s one thing to be able to connect with Geneva people and explain why the school their children already attend is a nice place, but it’s quite another thing to be able to outreach to prospective parents and prospective business owners and explain why this district is tops in the area. To do that will require a ‘Splash’ in a bigger pond.
Tuesday, May 20
Milepost #101 on this Long, Strange Trip
With our first post going up, March 15, 2007, and our blog officially launched, March 25, 2007, the posts just keep on posting. At post #101, we’re into the next century of posts, with no end in sight. The full text of each is available via the archive on the left. Here they are:
1. Thursday, March 15 Let the Sun Shine In...
2. Sunday, March 25 Shouldn't Council Have Access to Public Documents?
3. Thursday, March 29 Does Geneva Have the Highest Taxes in the Country?
4. Monday, April 2 Conflicted Interests: City Staff, Geneva IDA, and the Attorney General
5. Tuesday, April 3 A Tax Exemption Would Be Good, but a Lower Tax Rate Would Be Better
6. Friday, April 6 'Tax Exempts' vs. Tax Exemptions
7. Tuesday, April 10 Putting the 305 Main Street Decision on a Solid Foundation
8. Friday, April 13 Beckley to Put Down Pen and Take Up Sword?
9. Monday, April 16 A Case Study in What We Call "The Back Room" and why it's not always a good thing
10. Wednesday, April 18 1,000 Hits!
11. Thursday, April 19 Reorienting City Council
12. Monday, April 23 Can We Expect Different Results From The Same Old Efforts?
13. Thursday, April 26, Latest Radio Interview Available Online
14. Thursday, April 26 The Mayor Reminds Us Why This Website Is Necessary
15. Monday, April 30 Memo on Tax Exempts Now Available
16. Tuesday, May 1 Property Sale Compromise in The Works: Photo Essay Highlights Church and Land
17. Thursday, May 3 The Local Impact of Federal Programs: Arcuri’s Message About Fire Grants
18. Tuesday, May 8 County Supervisors Take Charge of Wayward Loan Program
19. Saturday, May 12 Blog Gets More Hits Than DiMaggio, Mantle, Ruth, or Williams
20. Tuesday, May 15 Time to Can “The Can”?
21. Monday, May 21 A Celebration of our 1001st Visitor!
22. Tuesday, May 22 Hindsight is 20/20: ReRuns of Meeting Show “New Business” is the Same Old Business
23. Friday, May 25 Correcting Council’s “Revisionist History” with Real Facts
24. Sunday, May 27 “Curfew” not really a curfew, But It’s Still A Good Idea
25. Monday, June 4 City Manager Evaluation is Council’s Primary Responsibility
26. Thursday, June 7 4256 Hits, 1 Error
27. Saturday, June 9 Q: What’s Black and White and Green All Over? A: Hybrid Police Cars in Ohio
28. Thursday, June 14 Radio Appearance Friday 8:35am on 1240 AM
29. Wednesday, June 20 If You Were the Mayor/ A Call for Reader Responses
30. Saturday, June 23 Mayor’s Comments Heavy on Emotion, Light on Fact
31. Monday, June 25 Not All Property Tax Relief Is Created Equal
32. Thursday, June 28 To Post or Not to Post? That is the Question
33. Sunday, July 1 Upstate Economic Development Under “The Gun”
34. Thursday, July 5 Why Employee Health Matters
35. Wednesday, July 11 1,500 Visitors Later: A Checklist of “No Strings” Posts
36. Tuesday, July 17 Sharing Services in the Name of Community: City, Town, and County Have to Get it Together
37. Saturday, July 28 City Manager's Multi-Year "Plan" is a Multi-Year Disaster: Council Must Assert Itself
38. Wednesday, August 1 Republicans Go "the Blog Way": Beckley and D'Amico Flip Flop, Join Democrats in Criticism of Cass
39. Friday, August 10 An Information "Lock Down" Doesn't Serve the Public Interest
40. Monday, August 13 Community Forum for Youth
41. Thursday, August 16 Youth Gun Violence is the Immediate Problem: Gun Lobbyist Doesn't Get It
42. Thursday, August 23 Why Won't Council Meet?
43. Sunday, August 26 Empire Zone or Twilight Zone?
44. Thursday, August 30 Council Meets--Finally, with Some Positive Results; but the Finger Lakes Times is nowhere in sight
45. Monday, September 3 A Great Leap Forward: 2,052 will be a leap year; it’s also how many people have logged on
46. Monday, September 10 Sorry, Scare Tactics Won't Work: Geneva is No Batavia
47. Sunday, September 16 Rich Rising's Rising Riches--Part I: If Cass gets his way, the budget will include another increase for the city manager
48. Thursday, September 20 Have We Made An Error?
49. Sunday, September 23 Rethinking City Living: Efforts to Reinvigorate Our Neighborhoods
50. Friday, September 28 A Tax Decrease in 2008 Is Possible! Here's How:
51. Wednesday, October 3 Attack the Messengers, Then Steal Their Message? Critics Want Readers to Focus on Us, Rather Than on Our Efforts
52. Friday, October 5 Rich Rising's Rising Riches Part II: Let's Be Responsible and Fair
53. Monday, October 8 Augustine Needs to "Man Up" About Community Aide Position
54. Sunday, October 14 0% ? How About Less Than 0% ? Five Steps to Lowering the Tax Rate, Increasing Services and Helping Seniors
55. Monday, October 22 Danny Boy, The Pipes Are Really Calling: Time to Stop City Subsidies for Town Water and Sewer Usage
56. Monday, November 5 Augustine's Open Letter to the Times' Editorial Board
57. Tuesday, November 13 Margin of Error May Be Larger Than Margin of Victory: Do You Know Your Voter Rights?
58. Friday, November 23 If the Machine is Broken, Fix It
59. Tuesday, November 23 Does Gundersen Have the Prescription for Geneva?
60. Wednesday, November 28 Public Involvement in Choosing a Public Leader? This Novel Concept is Stranger than Fiction
61. Thursday, November 29 Will Candidates Get Answers Before Election is Certified?
62. Monday, December 3 Lakefront Consultants Stage 'Community Input Theater' at Smith
63. Sunday, December 16 "Unshackle Upstate": A Petition to the Local Warden Might Be More Effective
64. Wednesday, December 26 "City Attorney" is a Lucrative Post
65. Monday, December 31 Are Capraro and Augustine Good for Geneva? Have a Listen
66. Friday, January 4 So Much For Unity
67. Saturday, January 5 A New Year's "Resolution" for Geneva City Council
68. Wednesday, January 9 Horn is tip of the ISO-berg: A case study in how not to study cases
69. Friday, January 11 "I Live NY" is an Idea Whose Time Has Come
70. Tuesday, January 15 Step Up To The Plate
71. Wednesday, January 16 Top Ten Clues A Search Is Over Before It Begins
72. Wednesday, January 23 "Voting Machine-Gate?": Re-Set Machine Poses Problem for AG Inquiry
73. Monday, January 28 'He Said/He Said' Isn't News and It Doesn't Serve the Public Interest
74. Tuesday, January 29 "Geneva City Manager"--An Attractive Post in an Attractive City
75. Friday, February 1 Understanding the Cost of 'Interim Legal Services'
76. Monday, February 4 City Hall Installs Revolving Door
77. Thursday, February 7 Separation, Fusion, Inversion: The 'City Manager' Post in Geneva City Government
78. Sunday, February 10 Opening the 2008 Radio Interviews With Open Government
79. Sunday, February 17 "Keep your eye on the ball," but Pay Attention to The Rules of the Game
80. Tuesday, February 19 The Latest Bloggers' Appearance on WGVA
81. Friday, February 22 Is A Tax Cap the Answer?
82. Sunday, February 24 Questions Prove That More Answers Are Needed
83. Thursday, February 28 We've Dealt With the Horn, Now How About the Whistle
84. Tuesday, March 4 Who Gets the Most Votes? Rethinking Representation
85. Friday, March 7 Accidental Bloggers
86. Friday, March 14 To Shadow Means to Follow or to Shade
87. Sunday, March 16 Why Did Spitzer Resign? Notes on 'Public' and 'Private' in Civic Life
88. Tuesday, March 18 March 16-22 is "National Sunshine Week"
89. Wednesday, March 19 Council Does the Right Thing on Ethanol
90. Thursday, March 20 NoStringsGeneva.com Celebrates First Birthday, Receives Bloggy Award
91. Tuesday, March 25 "Happy Birthday to the blog": WGVA's Ted Baker Hosts Party for Bloggers
92. Thursday, April 3 A Fact-Based Point of View on the Total Cost of Legal Services
93. Sunday, April 6 Fat Cats and Starving Artists: Keep Arts-Based Development Arts-Based
94. Wednesday, April 9 Accountability 101: The City Has Itself to Blame for the "305" Fiasco
95. Monday, April 14 Accountability 102 (Part I): Maybe No News is Good News When It Comes to the Local Paper
96. Wednesday, April 16 Accountability 102 (Part II): Who's Pressing the Press?
97. Saturday, April 26 Accountability 102 (Part III): Retrospective on Finger Lakes Times 305 Coverage
98. Thursday, May 1 Somebody Please Send www.nostringsgeneva.com to editor@fltimes.com
99. Friday, May 2 Accountability 101 (Part II):What Actually Happened at the 305 Hearings
100. Thursday, May 15 Local Retirees Head to "the Beach"
101. Saturday, May 17 Bloggers Discuss Three-Part Post on Local Media (newspaper) on Local Media (radio)
Saturday, May 17
Bloggers Discuss Three-Part Post on Local Media (newspaper) on Local Media (radio)
Our latest interview on Ted Baker’s morning show was an on-air discussion of the three-part post on the role of local media, and the Finger Lakes Times in particular, in the political process. We offered our reflections on recent public hearings on the proposed demolition of the gas station at 305 Main Street, the snarly response of the Town of Geneva when town users were asked to pay the same sewer rates as their City of Geneva counterparts and the Belhurst tax assessment appeal, and the Albany legislative earmarks of Senator Nozzolio which, in some cases, appear to subvert community-based planning initiatives already underway. In each case, with more objective reporting, better sourcing and fact checking, and less of an ideological perspective, the Finger Lakes Times might have better served the public purpose. We feel accountability in government (Accountability 101) requires accountability in the press (Accountability 102). When flawed deliberative processes are not accurately represented in the local paper, that makes a bad situation worse. Baker acknowledged some of the challenges to resources posed by an insistence on better reporting and editing. Click here to hear the unedited interview in its entirety, or visit the NoStrings radio archive.
Thursday, May 15
Local Retirees Head to "the Beach"
Some months ago, we posted about Ontario County's wayward revolving loan program. We included a spread sheet which documented what an inquiry by the Ontario County Board of Supervisors' considered questionable modifications in loan repayment terms. Among the loans on the spread sheet were hundreds of thousands of dollars loaned to the Geneva City IDA which had not been repaid. The loans date back several years, some to 1995, when former Geneva City Manager Rich Rising was Executive Director of the City's IDA.
According to the Canandaigua Messenger, in June 2007, following an investigation into the loan program, the Assistant Director of Economic Development, Roberta Jordans, faced disciplinary action from the County board of Supervisors for allegedly violating rules pertaining to the granting, monitoring, and repayment of these loans. The Messenger states an agreement was reached in December 2007, whereby Jordans resigned, but continued to draw her salary ($98,500 annually) through April 15, 2008.
One month after Jordans's resignation (and four months before her payments from the County ended) the Rochester law firm of Harris Beach announced her appointment as their Manager of Economic Development Assistance. Read the announcement here.
Harris Beach has now hired former Geneva City Manager Rich Rising. Here's how "the Beach" frames it:
They say, "Richard E. Rising of Penfield [Penfield? We thought he was a resident of Geneva?], former city manager for the City of Geneva, has joined the firm as manager of economic development in the firm's Public Finance & Economic Development Practice Group."
In his new position, Rising "advises clients on their economic development projects and helps to expedite those projects to completion. Mr. Rising supports the firm's Public Finance & Economic Development Practice Group attorneys prior to the closing of a transaction by acting as an intermediary between clients and governmental agencies." Intermediaries between 'clients' and government officials is usually considered lobbying.
Making these 'connections' between clients and government agencies seems common practice for the Harris Beach firm. An investigative report in the Democrat and Chronicle, published in October 2004, said: "Look at the major public projects on the region's drawing board, and two players come up again and again: State Senator Michael Nozzolio, one of the region's most powerful Republicans, helps get millions of dollars in state funds for those projects. And Harris Beach LLP, one of the region's largest law firms, gets millions of dollars to do the legal work....Those two players have another tie: Nozzolio is a partner in the Perinton law firm." (Democrat and Chronicle, 10/10/04).
And a recent article in the Syracuse Post Standard lists Harris Beach as claiming $1.2 million in tax breaks through the Empire Zone program, a program intended to help new businesses create new jobs in distressed areas. Geneva holds the only Empire Zone designation in Ontario County.
A few months ago, it was recommended that the council select Harris Beach as the provider of 'interim outside legal counsel.' With Rising joining Jordans and Nozzolio at Harris Beach, it is clear that Harris Beach cannot turn that 'interim' status into 'permanent.' It doesn’t seem appropriate, now, for the City of Geneva to be calling on Harris Beach for input on any economic development projects.
At the federal level, there are laws meant to regulate the 'revolving door' of government officials and private firms doing business with the government. They are aimed at preventing any undue influence on law makers from business firms, lobbyists, and others who mingle with government. When it comes to spending tax dollars, legislators should be making decisions based on sound principles, not private relationships.
We're NOT suggesting there is any law being broken here, but it seems to us that while the Geneva City Council is looking for a new City Attorney, they should also be looking for new outside counsel.
Friday, May 2
Accountability 101 (Part II):
What Actually Happened at the 305 Hearings
(Take a picture of Main Street with 305, take a picture of the cell tower and backs of buildings behind it, then put them together for this view of Main Street without 305, assuming fencing to protect pedestrians from the steep drop)
On Tuesday, April 8th, about 40 people gathered for the “Section 106 Consultation Meeting.” A court stenographer was present so that there would be an official record of all comments, as required by federal law. In addition to an agenda, and a list of ‘ground rules’ for the discussion (no interrupting, be respectful of others, etc.), a two page Project Update was distributed to all in attendance (click Page 1 and Page 2 to read the Update).
The BRS consultant stated that demolition of 305 was necessary to “effectuate the cleanup” of the petroleum located behind the building. Because 305 and surrounding properties are either eligible for, or already listed on, the National Register of Historic Places, a Section 106 review of the method of cleanup was triggered. The purpose of the inquiry was to mitigate any “adverse effect” caused by the cleanup.
Demolition is, by definition, an adverse effect. The City, therefore, cannot access EPA funds until a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) is reached between the City, the New York State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), and the EPA. The MOA must provide a plan to mitigate that ‘adverse effect’. As Jim Warren from SHPO’s Technical Services division explained, what that amounts to is that his office would require the City to demonstrate that all alternatives to demolition have been explored before they would sign the MOA.
Daniel Mackay of the New York State Preservation League, an independent advocacy group, began by pointing out the reasons that the building was named one of their “Seven to Save”. He referenced the 150 pages of documentation that the City was offering in support of the decision to demolish. According to Mackay, those technical studies demonstrate, instead, that “demolition is not a necessity.”
At that point, the focus of the studies, which was to prepare a clean building site for a performing arts center became the topic of discussion. Former City Councilor and Geneva Arts Development Council member, Alaine Espenscheid, addressed the group. She explained how she was “instrumental” in getting the City to acquire the building so it could be renovated and given over to the Arts Council to be used as a performing arts and conference center. Espenscheid’s on-the-record testimony directly supports the account we gave in previous posts. That account was further confirmed by Carl Fribolin, who was also in attendance and spoke about the initial plan.
Developer Bob Stivers, who owns the Red Brick Inn adjacent to 305, expressed his concern about the stability of the building and the road. He said he had been told by the City that it is structurally unsound. He then recounted his own bid to buy 305, renovate and reuse it. That bid, along with three others, was turned down by city council.
Sam Zeoli, operator of the Red Brick Inn, expressed his concern about the retaining wall. He was told by the City that the wall might collapse if something isn’t done to fix it. Much of the discussion centered around this point: whether or not the wall and the road were stable. That will take an entire post of its own to cover, which is forthcoming with all relevant documentation submitted by former City Manager Rich Rising, consultants hired by the City, and NYS Department of Transportation.
Next, City resident Cynthia Hsu questioned the consultant who prepared the EPA grant for the City about her reason for including several community agencies as being ‘involved’ in the project when they weren’t, and for suggesting they supported the proposed plan to demolish the building when there was no evidence they had.
The agencies listed in the grant include: the Geneva Public Library, the Geneva Historical Society, St. Stephen’s Church, the Women’s Club, and the Smith Opera House. You can read the grant application in its entirety here (the list of agencies appears on a table on page 9). Most of these agencies had not even been contacted about the project and were unaware that they had been named in it.
The former Executive Director of the Historical Society, Charlie Bauder, had come to the City Council podium to go on record with his opposition to demolition. Hsu reminded the group about another Council meeting when it was discussed that the current director, Ken Shefsiek, was only notified that the agency had been included in the grant application after it was submitted. The consultant did not respond to Hsu’s questions.
Downtown property owner and attorney David Linger submitted a statement to be included in the record and verbally stated his concern about the proposed demolition. He said that he believed the meeting’s purpose should be to explore options to remediate the soil without demolishing the building, but that everything being stated by the City and its consultants indicated that demolition was “a foregone conclusion.”
Linger went on to explain how he, and attorney Wendy Marsh, had recently purchased the Guard Building on the corner of Linden and Seneca Streets. He reminded folks that many years ago that building was ravaged by fire and was slated for demolition. But it was restored and now he felt most people would agree that it is an important building for downtown. He pointed out that the architect of the Guard Building, Geneva native I. Edgar Hill, was also the architect of the 305 Main Street service station. The building could become a pride point for the City if restored.
Geneva City Planning Board Member Tony DiCostanzo stated that he felt most people in the City would want the building saved if it were feasible to do so. However, his concern was that the City has portrayed the building as too costly to save and therefore we should be talking about some way to save the facade, even if the rest of the building must be torn down. With that, the discussion turned to those cost estimates that Council relied on in making its demolition decision.
Augustine tried to draw attention to the fact that there is a difference, in definition and cost, between stabilizing the building and restoring it. The numbers touted in the newspaper to ‘save the building’ were estimates for restoration. Of course those would be high, given prevailing wage requirements for municipal projects. But at no point, she said, has she or any other councilor advocated the expenditure of city dollars on restoring the building. Instead, her goal and that of other Councilors, was to see the soil remediated and the building stabilized so that it could be sold to a private owner, putting it back on the tax rolls. It would then be up to the private owner to do the interior decorating. She also noted that grant funds are available, from private sources (not local, state, or federal tax dollars) to do this type of work but the city has made no efforts to complete the applications for these funds. That, in her opinion, is a lack of due diligence in pursuing options.
Councilor Steve O’Malley explained his involvement with a group that had tried to purchase the building three years ago. He said that the local group, with expertise in rehabilitation of historic buildings, submitted a purchase offer of $50,000 to acquire the building, complete the required work to improve the building’s condition and then market it for a tourism-based end use such as a restaurant or art gallery (and paying full taxes on it in the meantime). He made clear that the group was not seeking to make a profit, but was only interested in saving the building and seeing it reused in a way that added value to downtown and the tax base. He said that the group would sell the building for only as much as it had invested in materials, indicating again that there was no profit motive.
The City’s consultant jumped in at this point to ask what the group’s asbestos remediation plan was. O’Malley indicated that the asbestos issue was never raised until the City received the group’s offer. This occurred only after members of the group toured the building. O’Malley explained that the City said the group would be required to remove any asbestos when it is common practice, and less costly, to encapsulate it.
In fact, O’Malley pointed out, several buildings throughout the city have dealt with asbestos in far less-expensive ways than the City was proposing for 305 Main Street. O’Malley went on to review, in detail, the pre-demolition asbestos survey that the City paid for. The survey (available here for your review) says that only a handful of sites tested positive for asbestos, such as a small amount of roof material, a patch of spackle on a non-load bearing wall, and traces of pipe insulation in the basement.
O’Malley challenged the City’s conclusion that all debris on the floor is ‘asbestos contaminated,’ because the debris on the floor is fallen ceiling material and the report shows that all ceiling samples tested negative for asbestos. But regardless of the extent of contamination, O’Malley described the building as “built like a bunker” and pointed out the full accessibility of both levels, because a backhoe can be driven right into the lower bays from the back of the building. Gordon Eddington, the city’s Director of Public Works agreed that the lower level is stable and could support construction equipment.
Larry Campbell, another Planning Board member, asked for clarification about the memorandum of agreement (MOA). The EPA representative present at the meeting and Mike Carmody of Dovetail Cultural Resource Group responded that the City, EPA, and SHPO would have to agree to a strategy to mitigate the adverse effect and sign the MOA before any funds could be expended by the City. Mr. Campbell asked if an MOA would be required if the City did not demolish the building, and the answer was that it would not be. So, the City could begin the soil remediation now, using the EPA funds, if the building stays standing. That was affirmed by the group.
There were several additional comments made and questions asked that expanded on the topics presented above. However, at no time during the meeting did anyone advocate for demolition of the building. The meeting concluded with the Dovetail consultant making three announcements. First, he stated that the Section 106 process allows ‘interested parties’ to review and participate in the formation of the MOA (though they are not required to agree with it) and offered a sign up sheet for that. Second, he reminded those present that there would be a meeting the following night simply to discuss the soil remediation plan for the 305 site(which is independent of the demolition of the building). Lastly, he indicated that there were copies of the studies available for people to take and review.
The following evening’s meeting was shorter and focused only on the soil remediation, But, one point of similarity was that it was made clear that many options remain unexamined with regard to this building. We believe that before any taxpayer dollars are spent, the City must make clear to the public what the intended outcome is (A clean site? A taxable reuse? The empty lot pictured above? A performing arts center?) and demonstrate that the selected course of action is the most cost-effective approach and yields the best return for the investment.
Thursday, May 1
Somebody Please Send www.nostringsgeneva.com to editor@fltimes.com !
The managing editor of our local paper, Anne Schuhle, writes a weekly column, From Where I Sit. It’s where her readers get a view of a newspaper editor’s world from her perspective. This Sunday, she talked about a workshop on newspaper websites she recently attended. Naturally, the topic of blogs came up.
Schuhle was careful to explain to her readers what a blog is (“an online journal of sorts”). She noted one workshop presenter felt newspaper reporters don’t make good bloggers. Schuhle felt otherwise, and let her readers know she regularly reads blogs authored by New York Times staffers. But then she said those “are the only ones I visit regularly.”
What do Schuhle’s colleagues in journalism have to say about blogs? The New England Newspaper Association hosted a special seminar on blogs and other ‘new media’ sources. The group states that blogs are an essential part of the “marketplace of ideas.”
The Associated Press Managing Editors group hosts “National Credibility Roundtables” meant to maintain and build trust in news organizations. They have posted on their website a “Steps to Credibility” chart listing steps editors take to “improve their newspapers’ credibility.” Several points made suggest reader blogs are a valuable resource.
As a general rule of thumb, editors need to be in touch with their readership. Blogs, especially blogs with a local focus when it comes to a local newspaper, are ideally suited for that. Reader blogs generate story ideas and new content (by indicating what is of interest to the audience). Bloggers are reader advocates who provide evaluations of news coverage by either incorporating news stories into the blog content or critiquing news coverage (or lack thereof) within the blog. Feedback is critical for any learning, so blogs are good for anyone who wants to learn more about their readership.
Schuhle admits she “normally wouldn’t bother” visiting blogs other than the New York Times. She did say, though, that she will occasionally visit one when she is sent a link. So, would someone please send the editor a link to NoStringsGeneva? You’d be doing the Finger Lakes Times’ readership a favor.
