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Thank you for this
opportunity to present the City of North Tonawanda’s 2008
State of the City Address. I hope this address finds all
residents of the City of North Tonawanda, members of the
Common Council, and all city employees, experiencing a
happy, healthy and prosperous beginning of the New Year.
As Mayor, I have continued the long-time tradition of the
Mayor’s Office in having an open door policy to hear
whatever issues or problems that confront the residents of
North Tonawanda on a daily basis. Much of my day is often
consumed with speaking with constituents who either stop by
for a visit or call me on the telephone, with them knowing
that I will listen, and act on their respective issues or
problems. As I have stated numerous times, input by the
residents of North Tonawanda is very valuable in shaping my
own thoughts, ideas and policies that impact the whole
city. I will continue to welcome your visits and
telephone calls. To the residents of North Tonawanda, never
be afraid to reach out to my office, or the offices of any
elected official for that matter, as we were elected to
serve you as your tax dollars pay are salaries.
In a nutshell, the
City of North Tonawanda is financially stable. The city is
financially solvent as we are well with our New York State
Constitutional Tax Margin, reflecting approximately 51%of
our tax limit being exhausted. Our city accountant has
reported to this office that our bond rating from Moody’s is
an A3, one of the highest in Western New York. Even though
financial stability does exist, I can identify with comments
recently made by my counterpart in the City of Tonawanda,
Mayor Ronald Pilozzi, wherein he stated that it is becoming
increasingly more difficult to maintain said financial
stability. Just like the City of Tonawanda, our city is
also faced with costly state mandates, rising health
insurance and workers’ compensation costs, and a New York
State Retirement System that puts a tremendous burden on the
local taxpayer. With regard to health insurance
and prescription costs being paid by City of North Tonawanda
on behalf of its employees and
retirees, my office has recommended that we retain a health
insurance benefits and management
consultant to investigate different health insurance
coverage options and to prepare a Request
for Proposal to go into the open market with the hope of
obtaining an overall plan that will save
taxpayer dollars. It has already been suggested to both the
Mayor and Common Council
that the city may be able to save over $300,000 by making
changes to the City’s present
health insurance and prescription plans. Let us move
forward to investigate this possibility. I am
asking for the assistance of the Common Council in pursuing
this goal.
In order to keep
taxes stable while at the same time providing quality
services to the residents, economic
development within the city must continue to grow and
prosper. In 2007, city sponsored Economic
Development projects lead to the creation of 75 new private
sector jobs and it is anticipated
that this job growth will continue and not diminish.
Economic Development Loans on behalf of
the City of North Tonawanda have leveraged over $4 million
in private investment in the
city. In 2007, developer Anthony Kissling completed the
much anticipated purchase of the
Remington Rand Building for redevelopment to include a
quality restaurant, health club,
maritime museum, 51 live/work lofts, and interior parking.
Construction will begin in the Spring, with
the restaurant scheduled to open by the end of the year.
Additionally, funding has been secured for
park improvements in front of the building, as well as new
docking along the canal and the
creation of electrical and water services for boaters.
In other areas of
economic development within the city, we were able to
utilize Community Development funding
to allow for the build-out of the new Partners in Art
gallery. Recently, on the 9th
of February, approximately 300 people came out to view the
latest show on display. Furthermore, we
have worked with the City Niagara Falls and with Empire
State Development to secure the first
Empire zone in the County of Niagara outside of Niagara
Falls for the Ascension Industries
expansion project into the vacant building that formerly
housed American Rubber Products. We also
authorized an application to the Office of Small Cities to
secure financing for equipment purchase
and installation as part of the project. Ascension is in
the position to add 100 new employees over
the next three years. Additionally, this last fall the
city received funding for the demolition of
the long defunct incinerator on the corner of Walck and Erie
Avenues, addressing a long
time safety hazard.
Presently and
looking into 2008, the city has been working closely with
the Riviera Theatre in their expansion into a new
building on Main Street (the former Competition Transmission
Building … who incidentally
relocated within the City of North Tonawanda on Erie
Avenue). The project will include the creation
of larger dressing rooms, allowing the theatre to bring
larger and longer running shows, as
well as the construction of handicap accessible bathrooms
and a new Main Street lobby.
The city also
applied for and received funds to support the Lumber City
Development Corporation’s
purchase of 64 Webster Street (Teddy Bear Carpeting/Witkop
and Holmes Building). The
building will be renovated and converted into a 16 room
boutique hotel. This project is designed
to meet a lodging need that exists in downtown and
throughout North Tonawanda. Lastly,
the downtown facade program will support exterior work to
the former Frontier/Flanagan
Chevrolet Building on Main Street, leveraging close to $1
million in investment in the building and
a new business venture.
Another economic
development matter is the status of the Roblin Steel site.
With the recent filing of the
environmental easement as required by the State of New York
Department of Environmental
Conservation, the city is now able to offer for sale or
redevelopment the Roblin Steel property.
The Community Development Office has already issued and
advertised for Requests for
Proposals from real estate brokers for the marketing of the
property on behalf of the city. The year
2008 will be the year for the much anticipated action at
this site.
Along with
development within the city, the buzz of engineering
projects within the city are always a sign of
growth and improvement within a city. The City Engineer
gave a recent update to the Mayor
and Common Council on ongoing activities in the city. Just
some of the projects that are
planned to be moving forward in 2008 are as follows:
Deerwood Golf Course Pump Station
(Budget: $450,000), Niagara Riverwalk (Budget: $188,000),
Sweeney Street Canal Walk Docks (Budget:
$480,000) River Road Outfall/Boathouse Demolition (Budget:
$200,000), Main Street
Landscape Improvements (Budget: $300,000), Sherwood Avenue
Pump Station (Budget: $350,000), Durkee Bridge Reconstruction (Budget: 1.5 million), and
Meadow Drive Extension (Budget:
$2 million). These projects along with the proposed
Wal-Mart development, Walgreens
development and patios homes on Walck Road will undoubtedly
keep the engineering department and all
associated departments busy in 2008. Also, the three (3)
above referenced projects are all
projects that will serve to increase the city’s property tax
base, increase sales tax dollars, create
construction jobs and full and part-time jobs, and as to the
patio home project, will keep and/or bring
residents to live in our community.
In the
Water/Wastewater Departments, the North Tonawanda Public
Water System maintenance, record keeping and
housekeeping was rated exemplary by the Niagara County
Health Department in a recent report
in January of this year. Through the efforts of these
departments, the city received a one time
payment of $64,220 from NYSERDA for the institution of
energy conservation
measures. Capital Improvements were undertaken in
replacement of pumps, controls and operations at
the Water Treatment Plant that resulted in an annual savings
of over $69,000. The Wastewater
Treatment Plant has implemented improvements that have
translated into savings of over $25,000 a
year in energy costs due to improvement in plant heating and
roofing insulation. Purchasing natural
gas at the well and paying for gas transportation has
resulted in savings of over $48,650 for the year
2007. Cogeneration of electricity using methane gas
produced from the Wastewater Plant
Digester saved the city over $72,000 a year in electric and
natural gas costs. The Water/Wastewater
Superintendent continues to investigate energy savings
options such as wind and solar power to
reduce energy costs through NYSERDA as well as other
initiatives available.
In 2007, Water
Distribution repaired a record 56 main line water breaks,
performed over 1,143 service calls in
regard to water meter replacement, 544 service calls for
miscellaneous needs of our users, and performed
2,236 calls in regard to fire hydrant maintenance and
testing. Lastly, the Water Administration
has revamped the water meter reading system, providing for
more timely billing, resulting
in the capture of outstanding revenue, and also instituted
an easier on-line water meter reading
alternative for the consumer.
With regard to the
return of reader cards that has been a subject of some
concern, the intent was to increase revenue and
cash flow by having the water consumed by the city residents
billed on a current basis just
like all other utilities. This business solution is
anticipated to provide a one time increase of $800,000
in revenue and cash flow. Money already owed to the city.
This was all accomplished by not
increasing the water or sewer rates or by spending $3
million for the installation of
electronic meters. While viewed by some as an
inconvenience, the return to the separate reader post
card system that was agreed to by this office and the Common
Council at budget time, is
truly a cost effective option to accomplish the city’s cash
flow and revenue objectives. People
want the city run like a business and by reinstituting the
meter reader post card system, we are doing
just that by the city bringing in revenue in a timely
manner.
The Building
Inspector’s Office issued 1,648 Building Permits in 2007 and
collected $88,026 in associated fees.
In total, the fees collected in all by the Building
Inspector’s Office was in the amount of $189,666.
The amount of residential building in North Tonawanda
totaled $1,993,000. Furthermore, the
Building Inspector’s Office will be working with the Mayor,
the Common Council, and several
residents in attacking blight, removing nuisance properties,
and enforcing codes in the city,
by the creation of a Property Maintenance Task Force which
should be meeting in the near
future.
Other issues have
been highlighted in 2007 and will continue to be in 2008.
The City of North Tonawanda recently
entered into agreements with a new concert promoter to carry
on the tradition of Saturday evening
concerts on the canal and also with a new concessionaire for
the Deerwood Golf Course
Clubhouse. The new canal concert agreement addresses many
of the negative issues that surrounded the
former concert series and is economically fair to the city
and the taxpayer. The new promoter pledges
to work with the City of North Tonawanda and the Gateway
Harbor Committee and the
tenor of the contract negotiations has already borne this
out. The same goes for the Deerwood
agreement, as the new concessionaire has many new ideas to
improve service to he golfing public
and appears to be a good fit for this endeavor.
Additionally, some important improvements to the
golf course were the installation of the Pump House that
will allow the recreation
department to fully utilize the computerized irrigation
system, the conversion to electric carts in 2008, and
the course rates will being the same in 2008. There were
over 62,000 rounds of golf played in
2007. The Recreation Department and golf course staff
should be commended for their hard work.
The sale of the
Colonel Payne Community Center has taken an economic burden
off of the city. We are presently
leasing space from the Gersh Academy for our Youth Center
services and basketball
program. Although, I know that the Common Council and I
both agree that a new Youth Center, with
possibly a Senior Citizen Center component, is really the
desirable permanent solution. I will
continue to work with the Common Council and Recreation
Director to that end.
Police and Fire
protection, as always, is excellent and the residents should
be proud of their public safety employees.
Furthermore, roads are plowed and garbage is picked up to
the satisfaction of most people.
Although, not perfect, services provided to the taxpayer are
consistently solid and I will work with all
the departments and the Common Council to make sure that
they become even better. On that
note, the Common Council and I will continue to made road
repairs and infrastructure
repairs a budget priority this coming year.
In last year’s
State of the City Address, the recommended closing of
DeGraff Memorial Hospital by the New York
State Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st
Century, was something that I, along with
my fellow elected officials, promised to fight vigorously
against. Well, DeGraff Memorial Hospital
is remaining as our community hospital, and I would like to
thank all the elected officials,
city residents, DeGraff employees, and everyone who was
associated with keeping DeGraff in
North Tonawanda. Health care services are so important to
our community with our aging
population and constant need for emergency care. Thank you
to the management and all employees
of DeGraff.. We are happy and proud that you are staying
with us!
Regardless of the
above, there is still some unfinished business and new
business that needs to be addressed in the
year 2008:
1. Fighting for and
securing our reimbursement from FEMA for the 2006 October
storm cleanup costs. The
city did get a positive recommendation from the State
Emergency Management Office to FEMA. Based upon that fact, I feel confident that the
outcome will be positive for the city.
2. Continue to
fight for compensation via money and low-cost power from the
New York State Power Authority
for environmental and other related impacts to the City of
North Tonawanda caused by the Niagara Power Project.
Our Public P the
Eastern-Niagara Power Coalition to secure this compensation
through NYPA.
3. Assist in
bringing to the public for a vote at the next general
election the recommendations of the City Charter Review Committee so that
the voters may be heard on these
recommendations once and for all.
4. Continue to
push for the construction of Wal-Mart in our community. The
tax dollars, sales tax revenue, and
jobs are needed in our community. This matter has been
dissected and reviewed in all the
proper forums and within all legal requirements. It is
time that this matter be moved forward
proactively.
5. Work with the
Common Council in continuing the development of
Gratwick-Riverside Park through the
Niagara River Greenway Funding and to also work secure
monies from our local legislators
and other sources to help develop said park for recreational
use.
6. Aggressively
market and work towards developing the former Roblin Steel
Plant Site. This property can
become another key addition to our current economic growth.
7. And finally,
dedicate any additional State of New York AIM (Aide and
Incentives to Municipalities) monies to be received towards both needed
street and sidewalk repairs and also tax relief for
our residents.
In summary, I
would like to thank the Common Council, department heads,
city employees, and the citizens for there
assistance in making North Tonawanda a great place to live,
work, and raise a family. I ask
that we all join together in the year 2008 to make sure that
all the city’s goals are realized. Thank
you.
Sincerely,
Lawrence V. Soos
Mayor
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