Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc

James V. Breuer, Chair Merike L. Treier, Executive Director

DOWNTOWN COMMITTEE OF SYRACUSE, INC.

November 18, 2014 CenterState CEO Conference Room 3:00 p.m. 115 West Fayette Street

Meeting Minutes

Attendance

Members: Vice-Chair Fiorito, Messrs. Doucette, Carroll, Tripoli, Maxwell, Howard, Nutting, Fisher and Koolakian; Ms. Gagliano

Staff: Mss. Holbrook, Finch, Reed, Sherlock and Treier; Mssr. McFadden

Guests: Larry Leatherman - MOST Nader Maroun – Syracuse Common Council David Carne – Pyramid Chris Borncamp – Cushman & Wakefield Mark Seefeldt – The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co.

I. Welcome and Approval of September 16th’s Meeting Minutes Mr. Fiorito welcomed guests and members present. Mr. Fiorito asked the board for a motion to approve the September 16th’s Meeting Minutes. Mr. Howard motioned, Mr. Koolakian seconded; the motion was unanimously approved.

II. Financial Report as of October 31, 2014

Ms. Treier provided the financial report as of October 31, 2014 and noted that under Income, the Franklin Street and Herald Place parking lot revenue are performing ahead of last year. She also noted under Expenses that the Operations and Admin line reflect a partial payment of audit services. Ms. Treier stated that the Environmental Maintenance Salary and Fringe expense line is higher because there were three paychecks for the month of October. The Security Salary and

Fringe is also sharing a higher amount due to the additional hours being worked by John Marcon. Ms. Treier stated that the Special Projects Line under the Economic Development reflects a project undertaken to communicate the impacts of a street level vs. a highway alternative for the Interstate 81 Project.

Vice-Chair Fiorito asked for a motion to accept the financial report subject to audit. Mr. Koolakian moved and Mr. Howard seconded. The motion was unanimously carried.

III. Perseverance Park Ms. Finch presented an update on the Re-Design of Perseverance Park. She reported that SURA (Syracuse Urban Renewal Agency), the owner of the land has established an advisory committee to lead this project. A postcard has gone out to local architects, artists and landscapers to come up with an iconic design and something which will be a destination attraction within Syracuse. Deadlines for proposals is December 22nd. The committee will review the ideas presented and will select 3-4 teams to make a formal presentation to the jury established for the project. The winning team is expected to be announced in January 2015. A public forum will also be established to obtain feedback on the design. The work is planned to start in summer 2015 and will need to be completed by December 2015. It is a $2-$4 million project and will be funded through grants and donations from the REDC, Community Foundation ($30,000), Gifford Foundation ($5,000), Connective Corridor ($200,000), ArtPlace and YourTown (NEA). Mr. Koolakian inquired if Perseverance Park will be considered a “green area” and how will it be transformed? Ms. Finch replied that the majority of the concrete parcel and green space on that block is owned by SURA and it is the hope that One Lincoln Center will partner to incorporate some of their space into the overall plan. Mr. Maxwell commented that he was pleased with the progress of the project and is working with other city officials to identify additional funding opportunities. Ms. Finch added that announcements are expected on the REDC awards mid-December for project funds. Mr. Fiorito asked if there will be any County involvement, and Mr. Fisher informed the board that the County is not yet involved.

Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc.  November 18, 2014  Page 2 of 7 IV. Holiday Promotions A. Small Business Saturday Ms. Holbrook discussed the Downtown Committee’s promotion of Small Business Saturday which will be held on Saturday, November 29th. Local downtown businesses were asked to participate in this effort. Various promotional items such as bags, button pins, and welcome mats will be available to downtown businesses who want to participate. The stores can take advantage of this promotion to offer special deals. Mr. Fiorito asked if this was the first time that the Downtown Committee is participating in Small Business Saturday. Ms. Holbrook responded that the Downtown Committee did promote the event last year, but this is the first year as a community organizer. Mr. Koolakian inquired if this is in conjunction with American Express. Ms. Holbrook noted that it is, but the stores are not required to accept American Express cards. Mr. Howard suggested asking parking lot operators to participate.

B. Downtown for the Holidays Ms. Reed reported that the downtown holiday decorations will be installed prior to Thanksgiving. She noted that the Downtown Committee has executed a four-year contract with Able Events. The pole decorations will be similar to year’s past and new tree treatments will be added to the trees in Armory Square Park. The Downtown Committee will also be running its holiday commercial on Time Warner Cable TV.

Ms. Reed announced the new Downtown Holiday Trail promotion. This will combine all of the holiday activities taking place in downtown into an easily readable map. Participating businesses will receive a decal for their window to indicate their location as a “stop” on the trail. The Downtown Holiday Trail will be promoted through posters, advertising on social media and editorial coverage.

The Clinton Street Tree Lighting is scheduled for Friday, November 28th. The Chittenango High School Choir will be performing at the Landmark Theatre after the Tree Lighting. There will also be a free family film at the Landmark which is sponsored

Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc.  November 18, 2014  Page 3 of 7 by B104.7, the City and the Downtown Committee. Ms. Reed also noted that the downtown security team will be working Monday through Saturday through Christmas.

V. Downtown Committee of Syracuse 40th Anniversary Ms. Treier announced that in 2015, the Downtown Committee will be celebrating the 40th Anniversary of its formation. It will be a year-long celebration with different promotions each month, including a birthday party in the month of May when it was originated. The goal of the event is to get more people connected to downtown and what it has to offer. Ms. Treier distributed a list of monthly events to the board and asked them to let her know what they might like to add to the schedule. Ms. Treier invited members of the Downtown Committee Board to participate in the planning process. Mr. Fisher recommended the assistance of Kelly Carr of the OnCenter.

VI. Security Discussion Ms. Treier reminded the Board that the Downtown Committee sent a letter to the Mayor and she has responded. She noted that while Tom Campanie is out, John Marcon will be working additional days and the Syracuse Police Department has dedicated two additional officers downtown. Ms. Treier recently met with the Homeless Taskforce Coalition to better understand the resources available to deal with some of the street issues the city has been having. At this meeting Ms. Treier was also able to meet with the Commissioner of Social Services, the Rescue Mission and the founder of My Father’s Kitchen. A takeaway from this introductory meeting seemed to be that not enough outreach services existed to track/monitor the homeless. The Downtown Committee feels there is an opportunity to establish the position of a dedicated downtown social/case worker to build trust with the hard to reach homeless population and work with law enforcement to monitor these individuals and get them into services and off the streets.

Ms. Treier followed up with Gary Mann, the new Outreach Coordinator at the Rescue Mission, who will be a good partner for Downtown Committee staff to contact when they notice new homeless individuals or encampments.

Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc.  November 18, 2014  Page 4 of 7 This past week, Ms. Treier met with Khalid Bey, 4th District Common Councilor, who is supportive of the Downtown Committee’s efforts to advocate for increased police coverage and address concerns from its business constituents. Mr. Bey is researching potential legislation that could help address the negative street behavior (loitering, panhandling, etc.). Ms. Treier also reported on a meeting with the County’s Office of Mental Health and noted that there may be a partnership opportunity with their office to address some of the issues being faced. The Downtown Committee is also researching other cities as to how they have addressed these types of problems and are sharing relevant examples with the City.

Ms. Treier commended Mr. McFadden for monitoring street lamp performance and communicating to the City and National Grid when there are outages which could affect safety perception.

Vice-Chair Fiorito thanked Ms. Treier for reaching out to the agencies regarding downtown security and to form partnerships. Ms. Treier noted that the agencies are also working with the Downtown Committee to develop better communication tools.

Mr. Carroll inquired as to how effective outreach is and what can be done better. Ms. Treier responded that the thought is to have a dedicated downtown caseworker to build relationships and provide follow through for an individual, essentially to act as a liaison for the systems. Mr. Carroll noted that there is a meeting Wednesday to continue discussions on how to intercede with the homeless. He also commended Ms. Treier on prodding the system to bring awareness and address the issues.

Mr. Nutting expressed the necessity of funding and having the right person to call. Mr. Doucette added that only certain behaviors need to be addressed, particularly drug dealing which is against the law. Mr. Tripoli asked what the crime statistics are. Ms. Treier noted that she working with Deputy Chief Thompson to obtain crime statistics. Mr. Carroll added that they are working on rotating police to handle drug arrests. Mr. Tripoli noted he has personally seen more loitering and was approached at least four times on a recent walk. He encouraged the “Just Say No to Panhandling” program to educate the public.

Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc.  November 18, 2014  Page 5 of 7 Mr. Doucette noted that more and more people are coming downtown, and incidents are becoming magnified which is having a negative impact.

Mr. Tripoli expressed his concern over buildings on Montgomery Street. Ms. Treier noted that the building owners will be signing a “No Trespass” affidavit so the Syracuse Police Department will have the power to remove loiterers from the property.

Mr. Doucette inquired if it is possible to get walking beats in the evening which is really needed.

Mr. Tripoli commented that we can expect more crime as more people come down and that the cameras will have some impact once installed. Ms. Treier reported that the grant that is helping to fund the cameras has to be reviewed at the ESD Board Meeting in December. The cameras are scheduled to be installed in spring 2015.

Mr. Tripoli inquired how we can increase security. Ms. Treier responded that it is key to have the Syracuse Police Department presence as the population is growing, and a pro-active approach is needed. John Marcon was brought in to increase the Downtown Committee part- time security force. It can take up to five months to train and equip a new officer. Paying for an off-duty officer is not financially obtainable unless there is Mayoral support to increase the Downtown Committee budget. The suggestion was made to look into a strong partnership with the County Sheriff’s Department. Mr. Koolakian asked how we engage more manpower walking the streets. Mr. Doucette added that our people are limited in what they can do and have to call the SPD for assistance. Ms. Treier noted that our Security is supplemental to the SPD and we need that partnership.

Mr. Leatherman agrees with Mr. Doucette that if we don’t get our arms around this growing security issue, we could fail downtown. We need to change the perception of an unsafe downtown.

Ms. Treier noted that as the Downtown Committee goes into a new budget season, she wants to create a budget committee for the allocation of resources and have more conversations with the Mayor’s office. She asked for volunteers.

Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc.  November 18, 2014  Page 6 of 7 VII. Public Comments Mr. Maroun commented that he believes that retired police officers can be available for extra security. Mr. Maroun noted that they are reviewing how other parts of the city such as the Westcott neighborhood are funded for their street patrol. He also noted that the Parkside Commons patrol is currently contracted with the City police.

Mr. Carroll suggested setting up a caucus with the city councilors to get their feedback on panhandling. Mr. Maroun replied he would be happy to set this up.

VIII. Other Business and Adjourn With no further business before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 4:30 p.m.

Next Board meeting: Tuesday, January 20th at 3:00 p.m. (SDODC) Location: CenterState CEO, 115 West Fayette Street

Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc.  November 18, 2014  Page 7 of 7