Winter Wonderland here.

I uh sorry we're a little late.

I just came back from a Scene Ellis Lake watershed meeting and um didn't account for the winter weather.

So we're running a little little behind, but uh but but here we are.

So um just want to start out by acknowledging that this is uh this is gonna be my final community briefing as mayor.

Uh doesn't mean it's the last time you'll hear from me, but we've been doing these community briefings now since uh since the pandemic and have found them to be a useful way to get uh information out there to have an opportunity for the the media to uh to ask questions.

And so um this will be my last scheduled one, and appropriately I have our mayor elect Sharon Owens here, who you'll be hearing from in a little bit, but um uh I'll do so again at the end, but just want to thank the media for uh for being great partners with us uh over the years as we've conducted these briefings and um again look forward to answering questions after as we always do.

Um we've got a full agenda.

Big items that we're gonna touch on are public safety and housing, which is appropriate because those have been priorities of of mine and mayor elect owens for the past eight years.

So some good uh good information to share.

But you're looking at the agenda here.

Uh again, we started these with the pandemic, and what we would always start with uh was a health update.

And so we're gonna uh we've continued with that um since then, and we rely on uh Dr.

Katie Anderson at the Onodaga County Health Department, our health commissioner and her team for those updates.

So she's provided one uh for us, uh which we're you know calling the early winter health update.

We'll do Comstat like we always do.

Look at the look at the SPD data, uh brief update on uh automated enforcement in school zones, um, touch on parking amnesty, um housing, as I mentioned.

Um Deputy Mayor is going to share some updates on online permitting and code enforcement and a few other items that I that uh we don't need to go into in detail, but again, we'll answer questions at the end.

So let's start with the health update.

So um I'm sure everybody's noticing more people walking around with the sniffles or maybe a cough.

Uh tis the season.

So we checked with Dr.

Anderson and have the following updates.

So um flu, COVID-19, and RSV uh are all on the rise.

They're all increasing as they typically do this time of year.

Flu is rising the fastest uh of those three, both in terms of cases and hospitalizations.

A reminder there is still time to get vaccinated.

We know that vaccinations nationwide are down.

Um they are still the most effective way to um reduce the the risk uh and the impact of um of those viruses.

So encourage folks to get their flu and COVID uh 19 vaccines.

Um in addition to the usual seasonal issues, uh viruses, um, seasonally we also see an increase in depression and anxiety uh this time of year, as well as um people dealing with substance use problems.

Um the holidays tend to again exacerbate some of those issues.

So um health commissioner wanted to remind folks that the risk of overdose does increase this time of year.

Um there are things that people can do uh to help address that.

Um the county does offer free uh naloxone um as well as treatment referrals and crisis counseling.

So information can be found on the county's website, which is ongov.net.

So encourage people, you're you're struggling, going through some issues.

Please avail yourself of the many resources that we have out there.

Everybody struggles in different ways, uh, and it's important that you uh you take advantage of the resources and support that's out there.

Um finally, another challenge that becomes particularly acute this time of year is around food access um as well as um um uh heating costs.

So food and heating costs are we know are a significant burden on many of the family, many of our families here in the city.

And again, um the county is a great partner in providing support uh for individuals uh um uh facing those increases in costs.

So uh encourage people to reach out to the Department of Social Services at the county as well as um the Onodaga County uh community food connections.

Um so information on local food pantries, meal sites, and other programs across the county can also be found on their website uh at ongov.net.

So hopefully uh we'll get the screen back up here momentarily.

Um, but we're gonna we're gonna keep moving.

Okay.

Would you push the accept button for some reason they wanted to knock us out?

Okay.

Um so uh hopefully momentarily you will see our CompSTAT report.

So as a reminder, uh SPD provides the weekly Comstat reports on their website on the city's website.

So go to SYR.gov, go in the search bar, type in Comstat, and you'll get the weekly reports.

So uh wanted to highlight a few things from the uh from the the weekly report.

Overall crime is down 23.7 uh percent compared to the same time last year, uh which is uh really positive.

Um we've seen 1,200 fewer calls to police.

Um specifically, come on in.

Uh welcome, Scott.

So uh specifically violent offenses are down 19%, and property crime is down 24.6%.

So significant decreases in both uh violent crime and property crime year over year.

I want to certainly acknowledge the good work of the Syracuse Police Department.

I sat in on my last uh CompSTAP uh uh meeting of the uh of the administration with uh with SPD leadership this morning.

Um they do a great job.

Our officers are out there every day um not only preventing crimes but solving crimes, and want to give credit where it's due.

Also want to acknowledge the significant work that uh that we've done over the years to build our capacity to deal with these issues, which I do think is reflected in these numbers that you see again.

Um every uh major crime category is down year over year, and all but two are down compared to the five-year average.

Um, you know, our mayor's office to reduce gun violence, their safer streets program, uh our Syracuse Police uh Athletic and Activities League.

Um, these are all efforts that were um that were initiated under this administration, and we do think, along with a lot of other community partners in the great work of our uh first responders and our police officers uh have contributed to the to the decline in numbers.

And again, it's not just year over year.

Um when you look at the five year average, overall crime is down eight and a half percent.

Violent crime is down 24.6% compared to the five-year average, homicides are down almost 41% uh year over year, and against the five-year average down 4.2%.

Um, so these are uh a lot of these declines are consistent with what other communities are experiencing, but make no mistake, the specific uh things that we're doing here uh in Syracuse are making a difference, and in many ways are a model for uh for other communities as well.

Um we never rest on our laurels, uh, we don't pat ourselves on the pack.

Um, there's still a lot of um challenges out there, and we're certainly not going to let our guard down.

Uh, we're gonna continue to try to drive these numbers down, and I have no doubt that Mayor Alec Owens and her team um uh will continue uh continue these efforts.

I want to show you the next screen because you know oftentimes when we talk about the five-year average, um people say, well, yeah, but that you know that includes um that that was still during this administration, or that was that includes the the um the pandemic.

So um shootings with injury and fatality, which I think we would all agree are are um uh are the most tragic crimes and oftentimes have the most impact um on our community and the most trauma.

Um I think this this graphic is telling, and I just want to call out uh a few things about it, but which also speaks to some of the efforts of the mayor's office to reduce gun violence and and and the other work that we have going on every day.

Um so if you look at the top of the chart, that red line, that's 2020.

We know that 2020 was a challenging year in many ways, but uh as it relates to to um shootings, um it was uh uh it was a really bad year.

Um when you look at the purple line, um, that's on the bottom, that's this year.

Obviously, much, much uh better.

Um so when you look when you compare um this year to 2020, um, shootings with injury and fatalities uh are down um a third.

Um when you look at the five-year average, uh, which is the I believe the black dotted line there, as well as the 10-year average, which is the blue dotted line there, you see that uh uh that um shootings with injuries and fatalities are down more than 50% this year compared to both the five-year average and the 10-year average.

So um what we're seeing here is significant, and and we expect um you know we are gonna do everything in our power to uh to continue um to drive down these numbers.

But again, want to acknowledge all of the partners involved and also want to acknowledge Mayor Elect Owens, who you know, in her role as deputy mayor, um uh oversaw not only uh the police department, but a lot of these programs that we've instituted that again we think are positively contributing to these numbers.

Excuse me.

Something in the eye there.

Okay.

Um shifting gears a little bit.

We've talked about um the role of uh speed and red light enforcement in school zones as a force multiplier for the police department.

You know, we need our officers uh focusing on um on the most serious crimes, and the reality is given where um our current uh capacity is um traffic violations have not been uh on the top of the list.

So thankfully we have technology that's helped to serve as a force multiplier and really help uh address uh traffic safety issues, especially around our schools, where of course we have our most vulnerable constituents.

Um so we are in the process of getting a uh uh a data dump on the most recent um uh numbers through November.

So I don't have fresh data to share yet, but what I can tell you is that um the numbers are continuing to go down.

So as we know, um in the first uh in the first couple of weeks, we saw really shocking numbers, both in terms of overall volume of violations as well as um you know uh some really uh some really scary speeds that uh that uh that we've that we caught drivers um uh taking down some uh some critical uh school routes.

And so um those numbers are coming down.

So that's a good thing.

Uh and again, we will share those as soon as we get them.

We have, as some people are aware, if they've been following, um, we have been in the process of locating, uh relocating some of our locations, 13 to be exact, where uh again, you know, this is a process that uh we are we want to make sure that we're in full compliance with uh with New York State law, but we also want to make sure we have them in the right places uh where they're they're um most effective.

So that process is underway, and and once we get those relocated, those will go online as well.

And it'll be interesting to see what it does with the numbers.

But the bottom line is we're moving in the right direction.

Drivers are getting the message, they're slowing down, um, they are stopping uh at red lights as they should, and and and they are um uh you know abiding by the school bus stop arm rules as well at a at a at a better clip, but still a lot of dangerous driving out there.

We um we can tell you after just a couple months that uh this is absolutely the right thing to do uh in this community.

It's part of our broader vision zero approach in um in eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries.

Uh it's been a very successful program.

And again, success is defined by um by eliminating fatalities and serious injuries and by getting people to drive safely, not by the fines uh that we collect, although that is a you know that is a relevant component of it.

So moving in the right direction, more data to share soon, but um really uh really proud of the work that we've done so far.

Moving on, uh, just wanted to remind folks that our parking amnesty program uh is still is still live.

So we extended the parking amnesty program through uh January 2nd uh to give drivers with overdue parking tickets more time to take advantage of this opportunity.

Um, as a reminder, uh we waive late fees on all overdue parking tickets uh and allow drivers to pay their tickets at a discounted cost of the original fine and the New York State discharge or surcharge, excuse me.

Uh it's a great opportunity to prevent your vehicle from getting booted uh due to multiple uh overdue parking tickets.

Um, and it's a great opportunity to use our online portal.

If you have any tickets that you may have forgotten about, you can look uh search up your name and find those tickets and get them paid for at a reduced cost before you end up getting uh getting booted.

We know how critical it is to have access to a vehicle for work, for school, for other purposes.

And again, we don't want to take people's access away, but you know, people need to be responsible uh and accountable and pay the fines that are owed.

And we're trying in partnership with the common council to give people uh an opportunity to catch up and to and to um start fresh with uh with with parking amnesty.

So that's the goal here.

Highly encourage everyone uh who parks in the city again, even if you don't think you have a ticket, to visit our parking amnesty webpage at SYR.gov slash parking amnesty.

And again, you can look it up uh by name to see if you have overdue tickets.

You can also look it up for family and friends if uh if you want to help them out.

Uh one more update for me before I turn it over to Mayor Elect Owens.

Uh again, we are at the end of the administration, and so we've been doing a lot of reflecting and uh and making sure that we are holding uh our ourselves accountable uh for the promises that that we've made.

And I'm very pleased to say that uh the housing promise uh that I made at my state of the city address on 2024 in 2024 has been met.

So um for for those that may need a reminder um at my state of the city address in 2024, uh the housing promise that I made was that um at a time of urgent need of housing uh that we would complete, have completed or underway 2,500 uh units of additional housing in the city of Syracuse before I leave office.

We spent a lot of time looking at the numbers.

Uh we wanted to set a goal that was achievable but ambitious, and uh and and we've we feel like we did that with the 2500 units.

Uh so again, I'm proud to say that we have met that promise uh to give you uh you can see on on the screen here a breakdown of it.

So uh of those um units, uh we have 1,215 units complete.

Um we have an additional 1,936 units underway for a total of 3,151 units.

So we had we um not only met our promise, uh we exceeded it by about 25%.

Um really proud of our team.

Uh you know, housing is one of those things that we have influence over, but not full control over.

We need our critical partners, our developers.

Uh, we have some some great housing partners in the region.

We also need our city government partners working very hard to support these projects, whether it's through financing, whether it's through permitting.

So I want to give a specific shout out to some of our partners in the Department of Neighborhood and Business Development, including zoning, permitting and code enforcement, and people across city government.

Virtually every department touches housing in one way or the other.

And everybody when we set this goal and housing has been a priority since 2018, and we've uh we've achieved even more than that over the course of the eight years.

But again, going into uh into 2024, we felt um that it was necessary to raise the bar, both in terms of the immediate need for more uh safe quality, affordable housing for our our residents that are here today, as well as to prepare for what's coming tomorrow with future investments, including Micron.

So uh it was really a team effort.

Uh, it was a massive lift, again, uh an achievable but ambitious goal.

And I'm really proud of our team that we've uh that we've exceeded that goal with a strong pipeline of projects uh going forward and and even more that aren't accounted for in these numbers that we expect to be underway uh in the coming weeks and months.

With that, uh I'm gonna turn it over to Mayor Lack Owens.

Um, obviously, permitting is a critical component uh of our housing work as is code enforcement, and Mayor Lack Owens is going to touch on some updates in those areas.

Mayor Lack.

Mayor.

Hello, uh we absolutely have been uh listening to uh businesses and homeowners in the city of Syracuse about increasing the efficiency and the streamlining the process for our permitting uh process.

And so I'm here to give you some updates today that the final round of applications for business licenses right away and zoning permits have been added to the city's online portal.

Um and it marks the completion of moving all of those uh paper applications into um an online part of the city's digital transformation of that process.

Um it will help us reduce the number of steps uh to review and provide 24 hour access.

Now that is the key part of it.

24 hour access for the applicant to track the submittal of their application, but also the process underway for their application.

And so it be provides a more open and transparent opportunity.

And I'm proud of the improvements that we've been able to make to improve those times.

We have an internal process that we hold ourselves accountable to really set a litmus for how we um are doing as far as processing our applications.

And I'm pleased to report from 2019 when we were um just over half compliant, to now we are 80% meeting those internal thresholds that we set.

It's about a 27-point increase.

And so we understand that for people seeking to do development in our community, time is money.

And so we need to ensure that our processes are not hindering the ability for the development that's going on all over the city, whether it be a fence for a um a family or the newest innovative um and amazing project being developed in our city.

And so next week, the central permit office is gonna host two community training webinars, uh, one on Tuesday, December 16th at 5 o'clock, and the other Thursday, December 18th at 2 o'clock.

We um encourage you to ensure that if you want to know about the process and how to move through, you'll have to go through, click on the portal, set up at your own personal personalized account.

That account will help you get access to your applications and what you're looking to communicate between the city and um our uh department people.

You can always you can register for these at uh sear.gov slash camino slash training.

Oh, and you can always get information online um at sear.gov slash online applications, or you can always just call the office if you need to talk to a human being.

I know that there are some people there, you know, maybe a little concerned about being able to do this online.

We're here to help you through that process.

We believe this is the most efficient way, getting out of the way of paper into the digital um sphere so that we can 24-hour access and open communication on a uh database, hour-to-hour uh process.

And so code enforcement.

Uh code enforcement again, um, our code enforcement uh uh silent heroes out here in this snow right now, making sure people's heat is working, checking to see whether there are super sewer backups, um, responding to the complaints of our residents concerning their um code violations or code issues that are going on.

And so um sometimes um uh a prophet is not honored in its own home.

So our code enforcement, we do the work every single day, but nationally, people are seeing what we're doing and really recognizing the work that they do every day to protect residents and um safety, improve the quality of life in neighborhoods.

So, in a recent publication of strategic code enforcement, and it's a national guide for innovative code enforcement approaches.

Our city and our code enforcement department was one of several pioneering cities around the country to be highlighted.

And so our people, including Jake Dishhaw, who is uh uh uh uh Ruth Nicolas the General.

That's right, the general, right?

Including Jake Dishall, who is the commissioner of uh code enforcement zoning administration, um, are on three of the the four cover photos because they really are looking at what we're doing in Syracuse.

Syracuse is not a lot alone, um, really having to address aging housing stock um and and comparing aging housing stock with innovative um ways to really improve housing.

And so um with our major challenges, we are taking a proactive and data-driven approach to responding to community needs.

Um, we have a small army of code inspectors to to ensure that people are living and working and playing in safe spaces across this city.

And I give all kudos to them in the work that they do every day.

Um, they go to training programs, conferences, and um people pretty much find them in the crowd to say where the people from Syracuse, because they're hearing about what we're doing.

It is a major accomplice in this community should be proud of.

Um, while you're calling a code inspector and asking them to um address the issue in your house, give them an attaboy, tell them thank you for coming out.

Thank you for thank you for coming in.

It is a hard job that they go out and they do every single day.

And so I want to recognize that achievement and that national recognition that they're getting.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you, Mayor Lect.

Again, just want to echo uh how uh how proud we are of our uh of our permitting and code enforcement teams, again, led by deputy commissioner Jake Dishaw, uh Code Enforcement Director Ryan Shield, of course, Commissioner Michael Collins, they're a great team.

And and again, our uh are certainly on the radar across the country in terms of um uh you know innovative practices and and uh doing doing things the right way.

So um just a few more updates for you before we we open it up for questions.

Um as you know, uh co-enforcement's critical for quality of life, um, as is um sanitation.

Uh you've heard us talk a lot about our trash and recycling uh program, the improvements that we've made, and uh we're very proud of those as well.

Um, but I do want to uh flag for everyone uh a new uh tool that we have that we think is is um gonna be very helpful to uh property owners and and in particular landlords who um you know who have been uh asking for uh for this for for a long time.

So um we call it our SEER notify system.

Uh it's a new digital alert to inform property owners, tenants, and property managers about health and sanitation violations, including illegal set outs and improper trash cart placements.

So for those of you that have experienced that before, oftentimes what happens is someone will get an illegal set out violation.

Um you might not see the tag on um on the cart.

Uh and you might um it might be a week until you get something in the mail, um long after the opportunity to cure that violation before uh a fine is assessed.

Ums the SEER notify uh system, it delivers near real-time email notifications, ensuring that individuals are alerted as soon as violations are issued.

Um the system supplements the traditional mail and posted notices that I mentioned, allowing residents and property managers to respond promptly, often within the 24-hour cleanup window before crews return, reducing fines and repeated violations.

So again, when you get that violation, I think oftentimes people think that that's when you you have to uh pay pay the fine.

Um that's the violation.

You have 24 hours to cure this notify system will give you again near time notification.

Um again, if you're a landlord, uh you may not have eyes on the property right away.

You get that notification, you can call your tenant or you can send your property manager or go over there yourself, pull it back.

Um, and uh, and so when we come back to to reinspect and ultimately to clear the violation if if needed, um you will have had time to to address it and save yourself um a fee and also do your part to keep uh our curbside and our neighborhoods clean.

So um we have uh since we launched it, uh kind of did a soft launch.

We have 1,800 addresses already subscribed to the SEER notify system.

We have 1,800 addresses already subscribed to the SEER notify system, but I'd recommend everyone participate, whether you're a landlord or you're just a property owner or homeowner.

Um you never know when you might get a violation.

Maybe if it's it's even a mistake, but all the more reason um the sooner you know about it the better.

So to learn more, just go to our website syr.gov slash sear notify and get signed up.

We promise we won't spam you or anything.

It's just a good useful tool that every property owner in the city of Syracuse should avail themselves to.

Um next, I want to talk about deer management.

Again, tis the season.

Um want to give a quick update on our tick and deer management program.

Um, as a reminder, this is our sixth season doing this.

So I've been doing a lot of reflecting and thinking about the campaign trail in 2017 and how much people were talking about deer.

Um, I can I think it's safe to say this most recent uh cycle certainly was not as uh nearly as big of a topic, uh, although there's still work to be done and still differing opinions on um you know on the impact of deer in the community.

But uh we have found it to be a very effective program.

Uh as a reminder, the reason we do it is to reduce deer vehicle accidents, um, to reduce damage to parks and gardens and the overall environment and ecosystem, as well as to reduce public health risks like Lyme disease.

Um the targeted removal of deer begins next week in the program will continue through through March.

Um so we have both private and public sites.

Um we make sure that they're closed so there isn't acts uh public does not have access to it to uh uh eliminate any risk of uh of any interactions between the public uh and uh and our partners in the program.

Um the work is done by wildlife managers from the U.S.

Department of Agriculture.

They're very good at what they do and they do it really well.

Um so uh all the sites that we've identified, and we have some new ones, meet the state guidelines.

I want to give credit to our state delegation who's been uh great partners to us in making sure that we have the appropriate state legislation in place to undertake this program.

Also want to thank the common council for being great partners as well as County Executive McMahon and the county legislature, all of whom who have supported this program uh and uh and ultimately help uh to achieve a more balanced and healthy deer population in the city of Syracuse.

I've mentioned TIS the season a few times.

Um I'd be remiss if I didn't talk about the fact that uh it is winter, as evidenced by the the fluffy snow outside.

Um, and there are is a lot to do in the winter.

I think sometimes people, it starts to get cold, you start it starts to snow, people tend to hunker down and hibernate.

Um, we encourage people to get out and enjoy all that is uh offered here in um in this winter wonderland that is the city of Syracuse.

So um just some reminders.

Um lots of opportunities through our parks.

We have cross-country ski trails and snowshoeing rentals uh and pop-up guided uh snowshoe uh walk opportunities.

We have sledding, we have ice skating, all available in our parks facilities.

Um Sunnycrest Park specifically, that's kind of our winter hub.

Uh they have 2.5 miles of cross-country ski trails at Sunnycrest and Eastwood.

Um they uh also will uh those they will groom those trails when weather permits.

Uh and they also convert the golf club uh clubhouse into a winter lodge.

You can rent ski cross-country squee ski equipment there, and you can also sled there as well.

I mentioned pop-up snowshoe rentals.

Uh so those occur throughout the winter.

We'll be announcing our um we announce those on our Syracuse Parks and Rec Facebook page and uh and Instagram pages.

So make sure you follow those pages uh for those pop-up events that happen uh uh during the weekends.

Uh of course we have uh the Clinton Square Ice Rink, uh, which is uh officially open.

We also have the John Dunn Ice Rink at Meacham Field and the Sunny Crest Ice Rink as well, that are all now open for the winter season for ice skating.

Um I mentioned sledding.

We have designated sledding areas at Burnett Park and Sunnycrest uh and uh and encourage people to get out and enjoy that as well.

If you do prefer to stay indoors, we have plenty of indoor opportunities as well.

I specifically want to mention our Burnett Park Arts and Crafts Center, where we're offering a variety of seasonally themed classes, um classes including winter paint and sip with hot cocoa, uh, needle felted ornaments, felted coaster making, holiday card making, and 2026 vision board collage design.

So there's really something for everybody at parks.

If you want to learn more about these and other programs, go to Syracuse.reckdesk.com.

Okay.

Um I mentioned this is my last uh community briefing.

Um I could not be more excited about um my colleague and partner, Mayor Elect Owens, uh, who is um who is, as you can see in this picture, has literally been by my side for the past eight years.

That was at my inauguration.

Um uh Mayor Elect Owens was my first tire.

I cannot wait to uh to attend her inauguration.

Um it's been a great ride, and we've been a great team.

And uh again, I could not have written the script better than this in terms of the transition.

There's nobody more qualified uh for this job.

Um, frankly, much more qualified than I was when I started this job.

Um, I have no doubt you are going to hit the ground running uh and do amazing things uh in the city of Syracuse.

So um I just want to say congratulations to you, Mayor Elect Owens.

Um, we're gonna see each other again, but want to uh formally and publicly thank you for your incredible public service uh over the past eight years and uh and for your willingness to continue to serve in the coming years ahead.

And I would love to have you come up here and share a few words uh before we close it out where we will answer questions.

So congrats again.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Wow, that picture reminds me how bad my hair was back then.

Um get a little emotional.

Um Mayor Walsh, you have been an amazing partner.

This has been a good, good, good ride for you and for us together.

And I just see after just going over what you just showed, how much we have been able to accomplish.

Now I know how tired I wow, tired I am right now.

It has been an amazing ride.

And I think that the city is um well positioned to move forward.

It's be been because of your dedication, your leadership, and our partnership.

Not and we cannot exclude that other all the other team members we have that have kept this um train going and really efficient.

I'm looking forward to um swearing in.

I'm looking forward to coming into this role.

Um we we um foundationally have the same belief system, and I think that's important, but we are very much different people, and so um there are things that we're doing right now that I'm gonna continue to do.

I don't reinvent the wheel when something's working, we're gonna continue to do it.

But I'm also gonna look at some other things that um I'd like to do and really be able to establish and bring you on my senior team, you'll be hearing those names between this week and next week, um, and bringing them on.

I'm really excited about that team of individuals.

Um that it's gonna be working with me and how we're gonna continue to move this this city and the momentum it has again.

I've said on my campaign trail, and um this is uh really resting in who I am as an individual, that um we've done an amazing job at really preparing the city for the next phase, a lot of infrastructure work, a lot of um whether it be roads and record record pacing.

We use record for a lot of stuff, and it was permitting, it was paving roads, it was getting sidewalks in, it was our trash program, so many different things.

Um, I'm gonna continue that work because that is what needs to happen with a growing city.

I am going to adopt all the transition and the and the change that's going to happen with the 81 project.

And while we have been focused on what should be focused on the north and south parts of the project, it's coming home and it's coming home really quickly for the work that's going to continue off of 690 and come through downtown in the areas as we finally get to the actual biaduct coming down.

So it's going to be a lot of, I'll be talking to you folks a lot about communication with DOT, about communication with our homeowners, about communication with our builders and our stakeholders about the transformation.

Pastor friend of mine um said to me one day when he was in line waiting and I was in my car waiting, and we're on the Bluetooth talking to each other.

You are paused in progress.

That is what we are.

We're not used to this kind of traffic, we're not used to these kind of detours, but we are paused when you're waiting five more minutes to get where you need to go.

We're paused in the progress that we're looking forward to in Syracuse.

But my really looking at the focus of um moving the human condition in our city to match the physical condition in our city, and that is where I'm really going to be focused in on and um working with the council to really start.

I'm looking forward, as I've said before, to work with council president Rita Paniago.

She has been a friend and a colleague for many years.

Doesn't mean we're gonna agree on everything, but I have a relationship with her that I believe that we'll be able to really move forward as we continue to move this city forward.

I'm excited about the next years here.

It is going to be different, it is going to be changed, but it all is working um for all of our collective good, and I'm excited about it.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you.

Questions?

Both available, obviously, for questions.

So we're uh first of all, thank you so much for having us in here.

I appreciate it, and congratulations.

Thanks.

So overall, part numbers like way down.

It's gonna pass it.

Talk about this involvement for your administration.

I mean, you guys have talked about how much work into this to drop it over the past five years, the past 10.

Yeah.

But talking about that accomplishment, I mean, that's that's a huge there's no greater priority than public safety.

There's no greater responsibility that we have than to ensure that the people that we serve feel safe.

And you know, acknowledging the significant progress we made, that we still understand that there are many people in this community that don't feel safe in their neighborhood or in their home.

And so the work is never done.

But you know, when I look back over the past eight years, you know, I think we got out of the gate and we made some some good strides.

Um, but then the pandemic happened and and the world turned upside down and and um you know crime numbers skyrocketed here and everywhere else.

And so that really forced us to rethink uh the the changes that we were making and and the pace in which we were making them, it really created a greater sense of urgency that um that we needed to account for what was happening in the community and across the world and how it was impacting people.

Um, and so you know, those were some really tough years.

But you know, if it if it wasn't for uh that time, you know, I don't know that we would have seen the same amount of of state and federal resources that have been invested here, which have been critical.

Um I also want to acknowledge that you know, while Mayor Lectowens and I both embraced the you know the police reform movement and looked at it as an opportunity to um to to make our police department better.

We never did it at the expense of the department or its officers.

We never stopped investing uh in the department.

And so I think in that way, again, we were a model and that we leaned into the reform to make the department better, but we continued to support our officers, continued to fund uh our department, and and so that put us in a position when we came out of the um the pandemic to really not only pick up where we left off before, but to accelerate the progress that we were making, whether it was the amazing work that Mayor Lec Owens and uh our our next uh um police chief Mark Russin did relative to alternative response, understanding that many of the folks that SPD is engaging with are dealing with mental health issues, with substance use issues, um, really creating brand new mechanisms to ensure that that people were getting the right first response.

But again, creating new programs like the police athletic activities league, uh making sure that our young people have outlets where they can um have fun, be safe and be kids.

Um, our mayor's office to reduce gun violence and and really putting a focus on engaging with those really high risk individuals that I think many uh many people were inclined to just you know give up on.

And we said and we acknowledge that many of these individuals are young and don't have a lot of the support systems that that many of us benefited from, and that we had an opportunity to engage with those individuals and try to get them on the right path.

And again, I think we're we're really seeing um the benefits of those.

So uh again, there's no greater responsibility, and it is uh it is gratifying to see that um that those uh investments and those efforts uh are producing results.

But if I've learned you know, one thing over the past eight years, you you cannot rest on your laurels, you cannot let your guard down.

Um you we need to continue doing that, and I have no doubt that Mayor Lectowens and her team will do that.

Um I also know oh talking about um updates on cloud drivers, yeah, um the amount of applicants that come in or any updates you have from.

Yeah, so you know, uh I I've learned a lot about plowing over the past eight years too.

And what I've learned is you know there's there's a lot of ingredients that go into having a successful plow operation.

Um, many all of which we've addressed in one way or the other.

The the most critical one for us, you know, some people have heard me talk about in the the early storms in 2018 when you know we might have started with 10 or 12 big plows on the road, only to end up in single digits when inevitably some go down during the storm.

Um, you know, we have uh we have over 20 big plows now that are available uh for use.

So getting the fleet in a better condition, that was a multi-year effort.

But our fleet, our plow fleet has not been in this good of uh shape in a very long time.

Um, so I feel really good about that.

Um mechanics is another one that we've you know that that that we've struggled with, but you know, we uh we've we we have mechanics in place to keep those trucks operating, but that's another critical element of it that is always a challenge.

But um, you know, we we've invested in those areas and drivers and and for drivers, yeah, of course you need to have the the numbers, and we do need more drivers.

Um we we have been um slowly but steadily bringing on new ones.

Um and so I can't give you a specific update on numbers, but you know, uh we're we're in a better we're in better shape today than we were you know a month or two ago.

Um, but it's not only getting drivers with CDLs, it's getting them experience.

And I think that more than anything is the challenge that we're dealing with in the early part of this this winter is we have a lot of new drivers out there, and um, you know, I I've never sat uh behind the wheel of a plow.

And um, you know, I I've never sat uh behind the wheel of a plow.

I have done used our simulator, which was another new thing that we brought.

Um it is it is daunting.

It's scary.

And and we've had we've had new drivers start and do one, go through one storm and go, this is not for me.

And I don't blame them.

You you're driving uh a very large vehicle um under uh difficult conditions, and it's not for everybody.

So it's it's not only getting the drivers, it's getting them experience.

And so you're gonna see that uh throughout the the winter.

Um but I think I think they're doing a good job.

I think they will get better.

Um, but it is uh, you know, again, it's one of the many things that I thought that when I started, I would get to a point where I was done, and then we'd be like, all right, we're good.

It's it's constant, it's evolving, it's fluid, but the fleet's in much better shape than it's been.

Um we are getting new drivers in, and now we're getting them the experience that I think uh people will see as the winter goes on.

I got one more question about the housing help as well.

Kind of a similar approach, but what was that number one driving factor to get exceed you know your promising we're seeing more units created and so kind of what pushed that?

Yeah, so again, that it that it's been a priority since day one.

Before people were talking about a housing crisis, you know, I I announced the resurgent neighborhoods initiative back in 2019.

Um, we just uh cut the ribbon on some new houses down on South State Street.

So it's been a it's been a priority for the past eight years.

Um it's been a multi-pronged approach where we're not just investing in one type of housing.

We are building new single-family owner occupied houses, we're building two family uh houses, and we're building high density um you know residential uh rental uh homes as well.

And um there's a I think there's a few key elements that have helped us to uh to get to this point, understanding there's more work to be done.

On the on the single family housing development front, our secret weapon that we have that most other communities don't have is home headquarters.

Um they're not the only game in town.

We have some other good partners, Jubilee Homes and other organizations that are you know that are that are building their capacity.

Home headquarters has been doing this for a long time.

And so we knew that we had a partner that if we were able to get resources for was going to be able to do more and more, and they've continued to um to take on more and more.

We have other really critical development partners as well that that have had experience doing this work.

So we have we have really good private sector and nonprofit sector housing partners.

The other critical element is resources and and credit where it's due.

Uh Governor Hoechel and her team at Homes and Community Renewal HCR has uh has invested unprecedented resources into Syracuse to help us build our housing stock.

I mentioned the owner-occupied single family housing development.

Um, there's a relatively new program.

Uh the acronym is AHOP that didn't exist uh a few years ago that has really helped to make the the numbers work on this development.

It's really hard to make the financials on these projects work, and that's the only thing that's stopping us from doing more faster.

You know, we've gotten our permitting process to a point where we're able to accommodate um those needs, but the financing is really difficult.

And without New York State, whether it's through the the uh low-income housing tax credit program, the AHOP program, or the variety of other programs that um that they've um that they've launched, um, you know, we would not be able to do as much as we're doing.

You add on top of that the historic tax credit program, the brownfield program, all of these are critical in order to making these projects work.

Mayor Lect, I don't know if you have anything to add to that.

Um we're a good team.

Anything else?

Just about uh the plow app was down yesterday.

I just wanted to updates of why that happened.

Yeah, well, I love that people noticed that.

Um, you know, that that was something that also didn't exist eight years ago.

And and you know, one of the things that we we wanted to do is make sure that you know that uh we had transparency around uh our plowing operations and so people could see what we were doing.

Um what I'm told is there was actually a uh system-wide outage with the the um the technology provider that uh that that supports the map.

It wasn't anything specific to Syracuse, but I think it was uh it was back online pretty quickly yesterday and is currently online.

So, you know, in this world of technology, uh, we are relying on you know, um on partners far beyond the limits of the city of Syracuse.

And I think everybody uh can relate to that uh with the various programs that they rely on.

But it was a relatively brief interruption and and back online.

Anything else?

Thank you everybody for the time again.

Uh to the members of the media, I I do want to say thank you very much.

Um the the role that you play um in in not only sharing information on the work that we do, but holding us accountable.

It's critical uh for our community, it's critical for our democracy, and I really appreciate uh the work that you all do.

So thank you and happy holidays.