Common Council - Regular Meeting

Good evening. This is a regular session of the Rome Common Council. The date is May 27th, 2025, and the time is 7 p.m. Mr. Seelig, please call the roll.

Councilor Spruce. Present. Councilor Morris. Present. Councilor Fazio.

Present.

Councilor Smith. Here. Councilor Riley. Present. Councilor Gersey.

Present.

Councilor Spraglia.

Present. Please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. INVOCATION WILL BE OFFERED BY THE CHAIR. GOD OF TIME AND ETERNITY, MAY OUR DECISIONS TODAY CONSIDER NOT ONLY THE PRESENT BUT ALSO THE GENERATIONS TO COME. LET US BUILD A LEGACY OF INTEGRITY. AMEN. This point, the meeting is now open to the public. You have an opportunity to appear before the council and present your views concerning city affairs. If you wish to speak, please step up to the back microphone, say your name and address, and limit yourself to five minutes. Also, please sign in on the speaker sheet. We are ready for our first speaker.

Bobby O'Brien, Rome Waterways and Trails. Good evening, everyone. President Nash, counselors, city staff, and members of the community. I am just here quickly to ask about Ordinance 9875. Having just come from spending a couple of hours out on the trails cleaning them up, if there could be a little bit more information about the contract, that will be let for a dolomite group for a construction staging area that is right next to adjacent and hopefully not on top of the new west rome trailhead and the date that it's listed as ending is july 15th and that is the day before we receive over 600 cyclists right along that trail. So I have some concerns that it runs on time and they're gone and it's clean and there's no problems and that there won't be any obstruction to the Erie Canalway Trail while they are there starting in June. So if I could just get a little bit more information on that so I can ensure and let people know that everything's going to be okay. Thank you.

Next speaker, please. Is there anyone else wishing to speak? Public session is not closed. The chair will entertain a motion at the reading of the minutes of the preceding session be dispensed with and that they be approved. So moved. Councilor Smith. Second. Councilor Sparaglia. Moved and seconded. Any discussion? All in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Carried. Communications.

The Rome Historical Society financial report for quarter ended 12-31-25 has been received and filed in the city clerk's office.

Board of City officials.

Mr. Emiliano, would you like to address? President Nash, thank you. Members of the board, members of the council, I'm sorry. Mr. Selig, do you have the attachment for 9875, that shows the map.

Not with me, but I can pull it up right here on the PC.

Okay, well, it won't be part of the record then, correct? Oh, but the map, President Nash, the map clearly shows the area that Dolomite will be confined to, and I will make sure that the contractor understands that critical date. They told me that they would not be using that staging area, that as long as that, But I gave them a few extra weeks in case their project went over. So it's just one subcontractor of theirs that's doing the guide rail installation. So it won't be aggregate. It won't be equipment. It'll just be the galvanized guide rail that's laying there while it's not installed. But if we can reference that map that shows a specific area that they'll be confined to in this agreement. And it's not on the trailhead proper. Good. Thank you. Okay, thank you, Commissioner.

Anyone else? Report of counselors. Officer Spraga. Yeah.

Yes, President Nash, members of the council, members of the public. I would like to clarify ordinance number 9870. I emailed Commissioner Giuliano this morning as I had some questions regarding that. I'm gonna read from his email, which basically lets us know what's going on. The inventory database that will be included in this $1 million spending is mandated by the EPA, not by the city of Rome for reporting purposes. Also included in this bond request is the planning necessary to meet EPA demands in the preparation of establishing a plan to replace the existing lead that is on our public water system in Rome. This initial $1 million expenditure, if passed, does not include any replacements of any service lines. We are still working on compiling the data that will point us in the direction of starting the replacements in the second quarter of 2028. And this is commissioner Giuliano speaking at this time. I do not know the total number of lead service lines, nor the estimated cost of these replacements. We've tried over the past 18 months. Some of the more feasible methods of tracking down this information, but we have received very little correspondence with the public during the self-inspection phase. We literally literally have received over 200 self-reported water services out of a total of 10,000 within the city. City of Rome has received no federal or New York State grants to offset any of this first $1 million bond. I am currently completing the last steps for the yearly submission of grants for this and other projects from federal sources. The grants deadline is May 29th with award notices going out near the end of August. When the replacement of a lead service is required, the burden of expenses are on the city of Rome for the public side, which is to the curb box, and on the private owner for the private side, which would be from the curb box into the home. He's also attached a copy of the postcard that was mailed, and like I say, there was 10,000 SERVICES AND WE TRIED OUR BEST AND WE ONLY GOT 200 RESPONSES. SO APPARENTLY WE HAVE TO GO FORWARD WITH THIS. AND I WOULD ASK FOR YOUR SUPPORT ON THAT ORDINANCE. THANK YOU. NEW SPEAKER THANK YOU.

ANY OTHER? FOR THE COMMITTEES. AND RESOLUTIONS. NUMBER 66. resolution determining that the proposed lead service line inventory project as a type two action for purposes of the new york state environmental quality review act move it second council dorsey moving second at the end discussion all of the favors say aye aye opposed number 66 is carried resolution number 67.

Authorizing the Mayor to submit the 2026 Community Development Block Grant, ZDBG, annual action plan to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for review and approval.

Move it. Councilor Dorsey. I second. Councilor Riley. Move to second it. Any discussion? Councilor Dorsey.

President Nash, members of the Council, I just wanted to let everybody know that the committee, including myself and Councilor, um ramona smith have have um worked on this for a little for a good bit of time this is something that has to happen yearly um and this is all stemming from uh cdbg well extending from the great society program of the 60s where the federal government is giving us money to help with slum and blight and other other ways um things that we do include economic development, some facilities improvement, including bettering sidewalks for low to moderate income areas, slum and blight, and other public services. Part of the public services we went through, and as a community, as each of you know that there is a group of citizens that come together from all the wards to discuss what these community actions or public services should be, including stuff from, I want to say, I can't remember off the top of my head now, pre-K type things through Rome Art Community Center, some funding through other things like Rome Cleaning Green and such like that. So this is a great way for the city to actually take back some money, not nearly as much money as the federal government requires us to spend on lead pipes, but this does help in some small way, and I would hope you support it. Thank you.

Thank you, Councilor Dersing. Any further discussion? All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Resolution number 67 is carried. Resolution number 68.

Authorizing creation of a capital reserve account and the general fund for retirement contributions.

Move it.

Council Sparaglia.

Second.

And Council Fazio. Move and second it. Any discussion? All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Resolution number 68 is carried. Ordinances. Ordinance number 9870.

authorizing the issuance of $1 million bonds of the city of Rome, Oneida County, New York, to pay the cost of lead service line inventory.

Move it. Councilor Sparaglia. Second. Second. Councilor Riley. Unanimous consent. Councilor Mortis. Second. And Councilor Sprace. Ordinance number 9870 has been moved and seconded. Unanimous consent has been moved and seconded. All those in favor of unanimous consent say aye. Aye. Opposed? Unanimous consent is carried. Any discussion? All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed? Ordinance 9870 is carried. Board's number 9871.

Authorizing the closing of streets for the Connected Community Schools event.

Councilor Fazio? Second. Councilor Smith? Second. Councilor Spry? Second. And Councilor Spry? Or some 9871 is moved and seconded. The unanimous consent moves and seconded. All those in favor of unanimous consent say aye. Aye. Opposed unanimous consent is carried. Is there any discussion? That I believe was July 17th. Yep. I know it's correct. All in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Or some 9871 is carried. Or some 9872.

authorizing the placement of no parking anytime sign at the entrance on gulapi court. So move.

Councilor mortis. Second. Councilor fazio.

Unanimous consent.

Councilor sbaraglia. Second. And councilor smith. Orange number 9872 has been moved and seconded. Unanimous consent has been moved and seconded. All those in favor of unanimous consent say aye. Aye. Opposed unanimous consent is carried. Any discussion? All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed? Orange number 9872 is carried. Orange number 9873.

Authorizing the placement of one-way signs on Globby Court. Move it.

Councilor Smith. Second. Councilor Riley. The item is consent. Councilor Sparaglia. Councilor Spruce. Orange number 9873 is removed and seconded. The item is consent. It's removed and seconded. All those in favor unanimous consent say aye. Aye. Opposed, unanimous consent is carried. Any discussion? All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, ordinance number 9873 is carried. Ordinance number 9874.

Authorizing the placement of no parking, no stopping, no standing Monday through Friday between the hours of 8 o'clock a.m. and 4 o'clock p.m. signs on Island F from Wood Street to the dead end.

Move it. Councilor Riley. Second. Councilor Mortis.

Unanimous consent.

Councilor Spruce. Second. Councilor Fazio. Orange number 9874 has been moved and seconded. Unanimous consent has been moved and seconded. All those in favor of unanimous consent say aye. Aye. Opposed unanimous consent is carried. Any discussion? All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Orange number 9874 is carried. Orange number 9875.

authorizing the City of Rome to grant a temporary workspace permit to Dolomite Group for the purpose of a construction staging area. So moved.

Councilor Mortis. Second. Councilor Fazio. Councilor Riley. Second. Councilor Sparaglia. Ordinance number 9875 has been moved and seconded. Unanimous consent has been moved and seconded. All those in favor of unanimous consent say aye. Aye. Opposed unanimous consent is carried. Any discussion? All in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed, orange number 9875 is carried. We are leaving the two ordinances on the table, pending planning board. I'll give them back to us. Does the chair entertain a motion to adjourn? So moved. Councilor Smith? Second. Councilor Spray. All in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed? We are adjourned. Thank you all for coming tonight.