South Side Commons Project
The South Side Commons Project involves multiple parcels of land
and several different property owners. The City of Binghamton has
spent years trying to acquire the various pieces of land, and to
date has not yet secured many of the prime parcels needed to advance
the project. I question the wisdom of spending $118,452 to design a
project on land you don't even own yet. I believe this announcement is premature to say the least.
For more details on this issue, please click here
Concern Over Giant Market Closing on Main Street
The loss of the Giant Market in the center of the City is of great concern to me.
I am interested in working with the Ryan Administration to form a bi-partisan group
of residents and business owners to work with Weiss Markets in an effort to keep the
store open. The Giant Market at 56 Main Street provides an invaluable resource to a
very targeted demographic: students, the elderly and impoverished. In addition, many s
hoppers who frequent that location do not own a vehicle and walk to and from the store
to surrounding neighborhoods. The loss of a Giant Market at that location, compounded by
the loss on the Giant on Court Street where the new Broome County Library is located,
leaves a massive void for many shoppers in Binghamton’s urban core.
For more details on this issue, please click here
Cold Asphalt Recycling to Pave Streets
My proposal is to recycle the asphalt that is milled up (ground up)
from Binghamton streets and recycle it for reuse as the first layer of
asphalt on a newly paved street. The cost of this recycled asphalt is
currently about half of what new asphalt costs. With "Cold Asphalt Recycling,
” conservative estimates indicate the City could save approximately $290,000 annually,
adding that the cost savings between using hot mix asphalt pavement and cold asphalt
recycling on Binghamton street projects is approximately $41,000 per mile. The City is
scheduled to mill and pave approximately 7 miles of streets in 2009, leading to the
estimated $290,000 annual savings. The $41,000 savings per mile is based on the fact
that cold asphalt recycling uses existing materials, which lowers the overall cost.
For more details on this issue, please click here
Keep Public Works Project Funds in the Community
On May 4, 2009 City Council approved a resolution to award Dewberry-Goodkind, Inc.,
a contract not to exceed $590,000 for professional/design services for the Front Street Gateway Project.
Both Delta Engineers and Shumaker Consulting Engineers, which are based in Binghamton,
expressed strong interest in this project and were both qualified to do the work.
Local government should award projects that are funded with local, state or federal
dollars to local firms whenever possible. Supporting local labor and local firms keeps
our tax dollars local, which benefits our regional economy. Both Delta and Shumaker have
demonstrated that they have the professional experience, local familiarity and expertise
to successfully design multi-million dollar public infrastructure projects in the City of Binghamton.
It’s extremely unfortunate that our region missed out on an opportunity to keep $590,000 local.
Without question these two firms have demonstrated their commitment to the City of Binghamton and
have established themselves as qualified to provide the type of design services required for the
Front Street Gateway Project. By utilizing local firms when possible we can maximize the financial
and economic impact of multi-million dollar state and federal funds that are earmarked for local
infrastructure projects.
For more details on this issue, please click here
It is important to expand and explore all forms of economic development for the City of Binghamton.
My positions on additional topics will be released as the year progresses.
High-Tech Manufacturing
I have outlined a 5-point plan to stimulate high-tech manufacturing in Binghamton:
- Re-introduce our city to the business community and reposition ourselves to succeed.
- Work with BU and BCC to attract and support emerging and innovative technologies.
- Use technology as a means for participants, and the city as a whole, to achieve or more swiftly accomplish their economic goals.
- Identify public or private land and buildings that can be used to lure business to the downtown area as space for innovation.
- Effectively market & create national and international technology relationships
For more detailed information on these points, please click here.