The Oneonta Common Council didn’t hear any new proposals Tuesday, April 15 for the redevelopment of 27 Market St., but it did get an earful.
Presentations from local businesspeople Bryan Shaughnessy and Luisa Montanti focused more on what the city should not do, rather than what it should, leaving council members baffled and at times combative during a marathon meeting that stretched on for more than three hours.
Shaughnessy, who owns property at 20-22 Market St., presented a litany of facts and figures to the council highlighting the parking challenges and other issues facing downtown businesses, workers and residents.
The city-owned property at 27 Market St., formerly the site of the Oneonta Sales building, was converted to parking spaces following the city’s acquisition of the property and the demolition of the downtown parking garage across the street.
Shaughnessy restated his willingness to purchase the 27 Market St. property from the city at $10,000 above its assessed value, but his core message to the city was that they should do nothing — for now. He urged the council to hold off on any sale of the parcel until the transit hub project was complete and until the city’s comprehensive plan was updated.
“The future vitality of downtown depends on thoughtful planning, not on rushed decisions made without input from local businesses,” Shaughnessy said in closing.
Shaughnessy’s presentation was met with some confusion from the council.
“I was under the impression that we were here to hear an actual plan,” said Cecilia Walsh-Russo, D-Second Ward. “I hear speculation and a very fuzzy idea of what to do with the space, which is disappointing.”
The dialogue between the council and Shaughnessy got personal at times. After Elayne Mosher Campoli, D-First Ward, expressed concerns about a conflict of interest based on Shaughnessy’s current ownership of the adjacent properties, Shaughnessy said, “She’s obviously out to get me tonight,” leading to counter accusations from Mosher Campoli that Shaughnessy had been harassing her friends — a statement that was met with boos from the audience.
Shaughnessy, a resident of the First Ward, is a constituent of Mosher Campoli’s.
If Shaughnessy’s presentation was light on detail, a presentation by Southside Mall general manager Luisa Montanti was even more so. Montanti did not advance beyond her initial slide, and began by telling the council that her presentation “is not going to fill your current needs.”
Montanti lit into the council, drawing frequent applause from the crowd of about 80 people in the atrium of the Foothills Performing Arts Center.
Criticizing the city for what she described as a piecemeal approach to economic development, Montanti told the council, “You don’t care about what businesses think. You don’t know economic development. You shouldn’t be doing economic development.
“Our city is falling apart. It’s unclean. Main Street businesses are empty,” Montanti went on to say, and urged the council to put the matter of 27 Market St. to a public vote. “Right now, I don’t trust eight people making that decision.”
Montanti’s speech appeared to stun and frustrate the council.
“We were really expecting a proposal and not a speech,” Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek said.
“There is no proposal, because I’m telling you, developers are not coming to Market Street,” Montanti retorted.
The council is expected to vote on the sale of 27 Market St. at the council’s May 6 meeting.
Other business
While the council turned away from the controversial topic of the 27 Market St. topic, the sparks were not done flying. Following a recess, Drnek ceded his mayor’s remarks to city Finance Director Virginia Lee so she could address statements made by Gary Herzig and council member Len Carson in a Daily Star column, which was published April 8.
Lee spoke at length and at times with passion, defending herself and her department.
“I’ve never lied or misled any official and have immediately provided corrected or updated information,” Lee said. “The former mayor and a sitting council member are accusing me of being unethical. I am not part of a shell game. I take great pride in what I do. I will not allow anyone to defame me.”
Len Carson, R-Fifth Ward, left the meeting as Lee began to speak and did not return for the duration of the meeting.
Additional matters reviewed by the council included the approval of allocating funds to clear vegetation at the Oneonta Airport; the appointment of Henry J. Schecher as city assessor; the appropriation of funds for the Swart-Wilcox House Museum Barn project, and the completion of the city skate park and pump track.
Don Mathisen- D-Eighth Ward, spoke out against a five-year software contract, arguing that the matter should be reconsidered during the city’s budget discussions.
Walsh-Russo pushed back, arguing that the council had reviewed the contract during previous meetings and that the service, which would make services more accessible to city residents, was “of vital importance.”