January 20, 2022 – Urban CNY

In 2022 State of the City Address, Mayor Walsh Says Syracuse Is Resilient and Ready to Reach Higher for Greater Progress and Opportunity for All

by Urban CNY News
January 20, 2022

Mayor announces new programs and investments in public safety, housing, neighborhoods, parks and economic development Walsh will create the new Mayor’s Office to Reduce Gun Violence Mayor reports FY 2021 surplus of $38 million and fund balance of $80 million; combination gives the City more time to fix structural deficit Syracuse, N.Y. – In his fifth State of the City address, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh announced programs and proposals to improve public safety; invest in housing, neighborhoods and parks; and expand economic development. Walsh said Syracuse is “resilient and ready” to reach higher for greater progress and opportunity for all. Mayor Walsh delivered his annual address to the Syracuse Common Council from the production floor of the new JMA Wireless 5G manufacturing facility in the City of Syracuse. The first new factory in the city in decades, the plant will go in to operation in February. Walsh said conditions are aligned more favorably for the City than at any time in a half century. He cited improving fiscal health for the City, American Rescue Plan Act pandemic relief, upcoming Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework spending, the impending start of the Interstate 81 project and a rising sense of belief in progress among city residents. “Things have never lined up better. But how will we respond to this remarkable moment in Syracuse history? We have a mandate to reach higher; to collaborate more completely in the next four years. I have no ambition greater than to work in partnership with you to speed Syracuse’s path to our best days ever. This amazing facility is an example of what we can achieve together,” Walsh said, referring to the JMA Wireless tech manufacturing campus. “It is a critical component of the Syracuse Surge which the Common Council embraced with its bold support to acquire and upgrade our street light network to put Syracuse on the map among the world’s most forward looking smart cities.” Mayor’s Office to Reduce Gun Violence Mayor Walsh announced the creation of the City’s first Mayor’s Office to Reduce Gun Violence. The new office will be staffed by a full time director and will work alongside residents, community stakeholders, law enforcement and violence prevention experts to identify factors perpetuating gun violence in Syracuse. It will also implement strategic solutions informed by proven best practices. The City is accepting applications for the director position until January 28, 2022. “As we have painfully experienced in the past year, the lack of opportunity, addiction and trauma drive too many people to dangerous and violent acts,” Walsh said. “I believe the fight against gun crime is a war that can be won. We will save precious lives and Syracuse will show the nation how a city successfully turns back gun violence.” Connecting the New 15th Ward – Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Mayor Walsh announced the City will submit a massive proposal to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s premier place-based initiative, the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative, for $50 million in federal money to comprehensively invest in the East Adams corridor, known as the 15th Ward. The grant application is the next step toward realizing the resident-driven transformation of the neighborhood being planned by the Syracuse Housing Authority and Blueprint 15 in association with the nationally-proven Purpose Built Communities model. The result will be an $800 million in investment bringing all of the SHA housing in the neighborhood – more than 1,000 units – up to modern standards that their residents deserve. “The 15th Ward is a place with unwavering spirit despite enduring an injustice that has lasted more than half a century. Across our nation, there is no greater example of the destructive impact of urban highways on neighborhoods than the Interstate 81 viaduct. We must and will right this wrong,” Mayor Walsh said. “The possibilities for the 15th Ward have been envisioned by residents – parks, transportation, child care, retail and mixed-income housing – and they are exciting. I want to be clear, though, about one critical point: preventing displacement of current residents is central to this transformation. I will not accept an approach that triggers gentrification or forces families to leave a neighborhood they love and call home.” Parks Programs for Families, Health and Wellness, and Therapeutic Recreation Mayor Walsh announced the Syracuse Department of Parks Recreation and Youth Programs will create three new bureaus that recognize the critical roles that parks play in our lives. Health and Wellness Bureau: to coordinate and expand our programs in yoga, running, dance and other mental health and physical fitness programs. Therapeutic Recreation Bureau: for the many members of our community with mental, emotional and physical needs. The bureau will be staffed by a therapeutic recreation specialist to create and operate sports, arts and crafts, dance, music and other programs to reduce stress, improve functioning and build confidence. Family Recreation Bureau: to respond to the exploding demand for new family programs, like pop-up equipment rentals, community events and races in all seasons. “The people of Syracuse are served with a spectacular network of parks and a robust portfolio of recreation programs for seniors, youth and people of all ages,” Walsh said. “In 2022, Parks will reach higher levels.” Syracuse Surge Progress: Tech Manufacturing and Housing at Former SDC Property The Mayor’s address reviewed the broad progress accomplished during the past three years on the Syracuse Surge, the City’s strategy for inclusive growth in the New Economy. In a new development for the Syracuse Surge, Walsh announced the City is working with CenterState CEO to attract a high-tech company and build an advanced manufacturing facility at the vacant Syracuse Development Center property on the West Side. The abandoned and vandalized structure will be demolished and replaced with a modern, job creating manufacturing, research and technology campus. The City also signed a letter of intent with CenterState CEO and the Albanese Organization, a leading Northeast development firm that wants to invest in Syracuse to bring a mixed income housing development to the SDC property. “This 48-acre site

Health News

Governor Hochul Provides January 20, 2022 Update to New Yorkers on State’s Progress Combating COVID-19

by Urban CNY News
January 20, 2022

New Hospital Admissions (7-Day Average) Down 18.4% From Prior 7 days New Cases (7-Day Average) Down 43.6% From Prior 7 Days Cases Per 100k (7-Day Average) Declining in All Regions 165 COVID-19 Deaths Statewide Yesterday Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state’s progress combating COVID-19. “We are continuing to turn the corner against the winter surge thanks to New Yorkers getting vaccinated, boosted and masking up,” Governor Hochul said. “But we can’t let our guard down and undo all of the progress we’ve made. Please keep wearing your masks and make sure you get your vaccination or booster as soon as possible.” Today’s data is summarized briefly below: Test Results Reported – 203,423 Total Positive – 23,375 Percent Positive – 11.49% 7-Day Average Percent Positive – 14.27% Patient Hospitalization – 12,027 (+99) Patients Newly Admitted – 1,409 Patients in ICU – 1,617 (+48) Patients in ICU with Intubation – 920 (+30) Total Discharges – 257,739 (+1,109) New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS – 165 Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS – 51,184The Health Electronic Response Data System is a NYS DOH data source that collects confirmed daily death data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only. Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC – 63,980 This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by NYS DOH and NYC to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings. Total vaccine doses administered – 35,159,893 Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours – 75,031 Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days – 548,652 Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose – 90.3% Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series – 81.4% Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) – 95.0% Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) – 83.8% Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose – 79.5% Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series – 71.0% Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) – 86.4% Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) – 73.1% Each region’s 7-day average of cases per 100K population is as follows: Region Sunday, January 16, 2022 Monday, January 17, 2022 Tuesday, January 18, 2022 Capital Region 201.60 194.92 179.25 Central New York 225.61 216.62 200.54 Finger Lakes 174.55 165.98 147.73 Long Island 227.38 207.64 183.67 Mid-Hudson 234.09 221.01 198.77 Mohawk Valley 180.77 177.53 162.08 New York City 301.87 272.92 239.10 North Country 172.19 166.87 160.12 Southern Tier 188.37 183.38 166.16 Western New York 209.44 198.07 176.90 Statewide 250.57 231.29 205.41 Each region’s 7-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows: REGION Sunday, January 16, 2022 Monday, January 17, 2022 Tuesday, January 18, 2022 Capital Region 17.10% 17.10% 16.54% Central New York 20.09% 19.77% 19.31% Finger Lakes 18.21% 17.83% 17.44% Long Island 18.47% 17.60% 16.68% Mid-Hudson 15.49% 15.16% 14.07% Mohawk Valley 16.71% 16.72% 15.98% New York City 14.28% 13.48% 12.70% North Country 16.77% 16.51% 16.49% Southern Tier 14.24% 14.13% 13.98% Western New York 20.92% 20.28% 19.47% Statewide 15.68% 15.04% 14.27% Each New York City borough’s 7-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows: BOROUGH Sunday, January 16, 2022 Monday, January 17, 2022 Tuesday, January 18, 2022 Bronx 15.23% 14.44% 13.60% Kings 13.30% 12.48% 11.83% New York 11.81% 11.21% 10.46% Queens 16.65% 15.76% 14.90% Richmond 14.44% 13.72% 13.01% Yesterday, 23,375 New Yorkers tested positive for COVID-19 in New York State, bringing the total to 4,579,803. A geographic breakdown is as follows: County Total Positive New Positive Albany 52,444 298 Allegany 7,843 55 Broome 40,141 169 Cattaraugus 13,445 185 Cayuga 14,029 71 Chautauqua 21,031 260 Chemung 18,856 118 Chenango 7,994 38 Clinton 13,227 111 Columbia 8,772 38 Cortland 9,052 54 Delaware 6,712 45 Dutchess 58,736 318 Erie 189,318 929 Essex 4,669 38 Franklin 7,773 97 Fulton 10,771 46 Genesee 12,338 61 Greene 7,609 21 Hamilton 752 6 Herkimer 12,140 59 Jefferson 16,766 147 Lewis 5,538 22 Livingston 10,227 21 Madison 11,092 81 Monroe 138,581 507 Montgomery 10,307 56 Nassau 379,090 1,605 Niagara 43,351 162 NYC 2,145,676 11,301 Oneida 47,078 297 Onondaga 94,516 740 Ontario 17,284 87 Orange 98,785 538 Orleans 7,758 49 Oswego 21,509 120 Otsego 8,395 46 Putnam 21,931 104 Rensselaer 27,378 147 Rockland 86,822 462 Saratoga 40,217 297 Schenectady 29,044 204 Schoharie 4,269 32 Schuyler 2,985 16 Seneca 4,948 36 St. Lawrence 17,695 99 Steuben 17,169 83 Suffolk 402,658 1,559 Sullivan 16,603 92 Tioga 9,294 57 Tompkins 14,923 59 Ulster 27,979 167 Warren 11,727 58 Washington 10,446 60 Wayne 14,928 77 Westchester 234,789 922 Wyoming 7,509 33 Yates 2,884 15 Below is data that shows how many hospitalized individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 were admitted for COVID-19/COVID-19 complications and how many were admitted for non-COVID-19 conditions: Region COVID-19 Patients currently hospitalized Admitted due to COVID or complications of COVID % Admitted due to COVID or complications of COVID Admitted where COVID was not included as one of the reasons for admission % Admitted where COVID was not included as one of the reasons for admission Capital Region 432 300 69.4% 132 30.6% Central New York 346 255 73.7% 91 26.3% Finger Lakes 756 441 58.3% 315 41.7% Long Island 2,033 1,196 58.8% 837 41.2% Mid-Hudson 1,255 803 64.0% 452 36.0% Mohawk Valley 160 112 70.0% 48 30.0% New York City 5,994 3,143 52.4% 2,851 47.6% North Country 125 64 51.2% 61 48.8% Southern Tier 225 134 59.6% 91 40.4% Western New York 701 446 63.6% 255 36.4% Statewide 12,027 6,894 57.3% 5,133 42.7% The Omicron variant now represents more than 95% of the viruses in circulation. For more information on variant tracking, please visit here: (COVID-19 Variant Data | Department of Health (ny.gov). Yesterday, 165 New Yorkers died due to COVID-19, bringing the total to 51,184. A geographic breakdown is as follows, by county of residence: Deaths by County of Residence County New Deaths Albany 2 Bronx 19 Chautauqua 1 Chemung 2 Clinton 2 Dutchess 9 Erie 7 Fulton 1 Genesee 1 Greene 1 Herkimer 2

The Hall Monitor Voices

Control: Syracuse University’s Plan to “Assist” Thornden and Walnut Parks

by Ken Jackson
January 20, 2022

This is a story about control Our control Control of where we play Control of what we do And this time I’m gonna say it my way I hope you enjoy this as much as I do Are you ready? I am ‘Cause it’s all about control* And we’re about to lose it) I grew up on Harrison St. across from Walnut Park, our house was on the campus map. When they told me to go home or “back to the south side” I proudly said, “I am home”. We lived in that house from 1960 – 1978 and during that time what I witnessed was the considerable shrinkage of public use property. While on maps and books they’re still part of the city of Syracuse, however in reality, entries to formerly public streets have become gated bastions. Previous agreements gave residents access to the streets after 5:00 pm. Access covenants are rarely enforced on behalf of the people. Growing up on campus was like constantly viewing a panoramic diorama. Colorful 3D images in memory. Dutch Elm trees lined Harrison Street, taller than most houses forming a canopy during the peak of summer’s heat. Fraternities and Sororities lined both Walnut Ave and Walnut Place with the four-block park in the middle. Everything on campus had a season. And like an interconnected organism, the neighborhood would move in sync with the University. They weren’t giving mortgages to black people in that neighborhood. My mom was very creative, we had a Jewish lawyer and Joe Atkins was the Black realtor, the seller held the mortgage. Across the street was Walnut Park. Marshall Street was my friend. I must have been the kid mascot for a while, because I had little jobs along what was then called “M Street”. The merchants lived in the neighborhood; it was the laid-back time of the 1960’s. We lived within a few blocks of both Marshall Street’s commercial district and the commercial district of East Genesee Street. At the time, this was a neighborhood inhabited mostly by people of color. If you wanted any Black magazine, newspaper, Dream Book or Black hair product you went to Harvey’s Drug Store. Liberty Market was a grocery store that catered to the needs of that neighborhood. And you didn’t do anything wrong because your parents knew the owners of Essie’s Store or Liberty Market! And Phoebe’s was where you went to play your numbers. Vietnam War Protests would pass by the house, I recall a silent candle lit procession to the War Memorial, little did I know I had front row seats to the student protests against the war in Vietnam. Urban Renewal ended within a block of the house. As neighborhood dwellings were vacated for demolition we’d have a new fort, instead of building them from old plywood, we had full size houses to play in. Thornden Park was like a second home, in the summer especially. City of Syracuse Parks & Recreation programmed in the park. We had arts & crafts, there were people that worked with us kids, they taught us, play. Before the neighborhood was torn down to the immediate north and west, the area was full of children. Two churches played a pivotal role in our daily lives. Grace Episcopal Church held programs for us during the morning with Ms. Ester Green, in the afternoon we would all go to University Methodist Church that programed for the afternoon. We had full days, full of activities. When we weren’t in funded church programs, we were in supervised play at Thornden Park. In the winter, we improvised, why get a sled when you can fly down a snow-covered Thornden Park hill in a repurposed Kenmore appliance box. Our immediate neighbors were mostly students residing in Syracuse University owned buildings. At the time there were student living arrangements that were cooperative. The closest to our home was Co-op II, a converted residence, in between was the home of Laubach Literacy, which has morphed into a global operation located on the city’s west side. The Black families that did live in the area were run out by university expansion. Areas that were once inhabited by Black families are now high-end apartments. Portions of Thornden Park are unusable during the week due to its proximity to the university, as the park serves as an extended daily use parking facility for Syracuse University. My parents and neighbors painted and fixed, not a sight of pealing paint or blight. Mr. and Mrs. Kemp who were our neighbors, their home was immaculate. But one house down was Syracuse University owned housing. Co-op II was home to students, while it was once a grand residence typical of that area, the university made it a student living facility. What I witnessed over 18 years was the total abdication of responsibility by the university. During that period, Syracuse University engaged in letting their properties run down, impacting everyone in the neighborhood including my parents. I never saw a home with the paint pealed down to its bare wood. But that began to happen to many of the university owned housing units in the immediate area. In 1978, my parents were made an offer they couldn’t refuse, so after 16 years we moved to Barrington Road. In the meantime, it was announced that Syracuse University would be tearing down “crumbly old” Archbold Stadium and building what was to become the Carrier Dome. The person that bought my parents house was a Syracuse University employee working in an area where he had direct knowledge of the university’s plans. After the closing, according to reports at the time, he was removed as he’d speculated on property using inside information. He then sold the properties to a relative. Syracuse has come a long way, now let’s recap: We’ve allowed Public Housing to disappear as we know it; Pioneer Homes, Central Village, McKinney Manor; all being replaced by a newly constructed neighborhood from the ground up. Residents in the existing

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Control: Syracuse University’s Plan to “Assist” Thornden and Walnut Parks

Syracuse Common Council Joint Committee Meeting Topic: SU/Thornden Park Agreement– January 21, 2022 at 10:00 a.m.

Black Voices