Batavia to receive $700,000 in stimulus funding

Isn't that a state road? And I thought I read a little while back that the state was repaving it.

I agree with Beth...Is there more to the story...I though we were going to get money to redo sidewalks and repave city streets...I hope that 450 thousand dollars get us more than that...Rte.98 is a state road...I think Howard should change the headline to read State uses money to repave State road..

You have no control over how or where the money is spent that's how socialism works.

Mark,
I am with you. This is nothing for us. I thought it was going to be for side streets, sewer work, or sidewalks also.

Mark, there are many different grant/stimulus offerings. The grants that we applied for were not part of this round. We have positioned or are in the process of positioning ourselves to receive our share of many different offerings to come. These include Restore NY, COPS, Broadband and the water/infrastructure offerings that you are talking about that will take care of our side streets.

I also don’t care to comment on the political spin or the ideology of the federal government providing stimulus money. Our role in local government is to make sure our city is positioned to receive its fair share of anything that is being offered.

Stimulus money will be used for something gas taxes should have already easily paid for?

Terry im with you.. i thought thats what gas taxes were for..the state spent a couple of months last summer just redoing the sewer grated on oak street..the road dosent seem like it needs repaved to me..Charlie when will we know whats in it for the city of Batavia..Broadband is Time Warners issue..I hope Cops dosen't mean hiring more police and paying for them later..Whats restore NY all about..

Mark, that would require a pretty long explanation of a pretty confusing system. Howard has the tape in the link above where I tried to explain what I know, which will probably help.

The other grant opportunities are something we are going to go over at Monday’s Council meeting. Jason has prepared a lot of information and I don’t want to pretend to be an expert before I have heard him out. Why don’t you come on down and listen to the presentations? It sounds like they are going to be pretty interesting. (Well, maybe interesting is the wrong word?)

Terry, you need to talk to someone in the state or national level about the pro’s or cons to stimulus money and what they do with the gas taxes. That’s pretty far above my pay grade.

Thanks Charlie......

How does fixing roads and stuff stimulate me??? Sure it is safer for those that drive on them but it does nothing to me to make me go out and spend money! It is Me and millions of other TAX PAYERS that buy stuff that stimulate the economy not this and that little add on for peoples checks like my unemployment it is not enough because the gap between the rich and poor is just too big plus the economy is just too messed up.

I can say one thing is at least I will have nice roads to walk or bike on with an empty wallet.

;)

Tom G

Mr.Mallow,
You stated that some of the stimulus money
might go to the Havester Ave.Buildings,aren't they
owned by the Mancuso family?
Afew years back Tom Mancuso wanted the GCEDC
to purchase his buildings,and he'll keep operating
them?Is Mr. Mancuso looking for another hand out from
tax payers dollars?If so,how about sendings some of that money my way for my home improvements.
Charlie,how bout using some of this money to
give relief to us tax payers,and keep the tax and fees
increases down.

It sure would be nice to see it the $$$ go directly to the people and not this way.

Hey,
Walking and biking ,NO CHARGE AND FEES!!!!!!
You can do it on an empty wallet,
for how long?.Thats the question.......

Mike, you know just as well as I do that this state money can only be used for the purposes they intend it to be used for.

If we can use this state money locally to attract some jobs to the only open industrial property we have in the city, I’m all for it. As for Mr. Mancuso, if the man is willing to invest his personal money and take a gamble on the future of our city, why throw stones? How about we respect the man for having enough business sense to make a go of things in this economy?

As for our empty wallets, they are going to stay that way unless smart business people just like Mr. Mancuso pull this economy up. Don’t hold your breath waiting on government to fix anything, its not happening. Government can’t create jobs but, it might be able to build a road to access some land so, a private business man would be willing to invest some of his own cash into putting some people to work.

Hey Charlie,
Isn't that's why Mr.Mancuso wants some
of that stimulus money,"Fix up" his crumbling
buildings? Why can't he open his own wallet?
His wallet isn't empty!
Is Mr.Mancuso going to lure companies in
there that pay $15. or $7. an hour jobs?
Maybe that stimulus should go to the "smaller"
struggling business owners in Batavia.
Tommy,you can stop holding your breath.

P.S. I HOPE NONE OF THIS $700,000 IS GOING
TO "BATAVIAS' FINEST" BACK PAY.AND THE OVER
PAIDED NON-UNION CITY EMPLOYEES RECENT PAY RAISES???

Mike i like the way you think...You see it the same way i do..700,000 dollars to repave oak street is a waste,That street is in great shape compared to others in Batavia....
We have alot of other worst streets and roads around here..Were is homeowner relief.I forgot we had to give out raises and car allowances...

Sorry, I’m not about to participate in the general negativity in this thread, there is a lot more good in the world than bad. Government is not the answer to or the source of your problems. To believe otherwise is delusional and will only serve to keep you from solving the real problems in your life. I suggest going for a walk with your spouse or playing catch with your kids today. If that isn’t your cup of tea, join a community group or volunteer for some community service. Try your best to make tomorrow even better than today.

It’s a beautiful day outside and we all have a lot going for us.

Happy Easter!

Hey Charlie,
I'd go for a walk,but it's to depressing looking
around this city ,homes and buildings for sale and
vacant, some crumbling.Thinking, whats here for my kids? Maybe I'll take a ride to the buffalo area instead.
By the why, Charlie aren't you part of our
local government? And you never replied to my issues,
so I might be on the right track?
I got it!You're running for a county seat,so
you want to take care of Mr. Mancuso,he might be
your ticket? CHRISTAIN IN 2010!
P.S It's not negativity,it's corruption!

P.S It's not negativity,it's corruption!..Its Three Democrats in a room in Albany deceiding who gets what,and who pays for what..It very corrupt on a state level..

Mark, I don't debate State politics. I don’t complain about things I can’t solve or have any impact on.

Charlie do you really think Oak street is in bad shape and in need of a total resurfacing.I drive on it and don't see that road is falling apart,In fact i think its in better shape than most streets in the city..

Mark, Oak is a state road. They fix it when they see fit. They won’t give us the money to spend somewhere else so, why talk about it?

Batavia to receive $700,000 in stimulus funding...thats what i though we were talking about...thats what this blog was about...my 2 cents..

People in govt are out of touch with us that is the truth.
We have excellent ideas they have hyporcritical ideas. Remodel the Harvester building? For what?
What the long term goal? Will there be jobs?
Will they be good paying jobs?
Grant money is buy vote money. And grant money sometimes isnt use for what its supposed to be used for.
Id be careful and look down the road to see what this money should be used for. I do believe the taxpayers should get a break because that is our tax money too!
Grants, loans, funds, its all the workin people money.
Seems they forget who' payin there way so they can eat filet mignon and the tax payer can eat hamburger(not that I eat that, but you get mydrift)
Im tired of the whole charade.

Thats what was supposed to happen when they built the new city hall. More business. Where is that business?
Do you really think businesses are going to come to Batavia? I wouldnt hold my breath. Yes there are lots of good people here. Lots of good memories. But look at the BIG picture, all of the US is in a plight. Take off your rose colored glasses. Tell people who have lost there jobs how much hope to hold on to by staying here. Havent you noticed the emptiness on a Saturday afternoon?
Brockport has more activity on their downtown streets. Blahtavia is an echo of a memory that once was life. Had they listened to Sam Pontillo Jr. to build the GCC technolgy center downtown, things may be different. But things really dont look so well now.

"Broadband is Time Warners issue"

The Broadband grant that Charlie mentioned has little to do with Time Warner.

As far as this entire thread goes, I'm with Charlie and Howard. Get up, do something, and quit bitching. Go buy and read "Starting a Business for Dummies" and knock yourself out.

The problem with the Harvester Ave (or Central Corridor) project is that there is no sign anyone will come after the city tax payer bails out this area.

Once the buildings are leveled, how much property tax income will be lost? Will the site owners promise, in writing and with penalty, to continue the present dollar amount and index it to any tax rate increases if they take my money?

Who will pay for any environmental studies and then clean up? That isn’t going to come cheap. Does the owner have the money for this? If not, the property could sit vacant for decades and we get nothing for our money. Do we have the name of any business who has said they would come it we make the area “shovel ready”, or even expressed an interest?

Mary is right, the City tax payer took a beating with the new City Hall. We were told that if we only spent millions on it, business would fight to come downtown and into the City Center (Mall). Millions of dollars later, it still has not happened. We were told to spend millions on a ball park and business would want to move here, they didn’t. There are other examples, but the point is, “they” have not been right yet.

If State and/or Federal money are used, so be it, but no more city money. If they say that without city money, there is no project, then fine, no project. We just spent a few hundred thousand dollars on studies for stimulus projects and have not seen any return on our investment yet. Let’s wait and see what happens with that plan before the taxpayer goes not the hook for Harvester Ave.

I agree with John on this...Example ..Kodak tore down most of Kodak park because it wasn't being used . So to lower their
assessment, they tore some buildings down..Whats to say that by taking down those buildings on Harvester won't have the opposite effect ,and lower the amount they pay now in taxes..

Mark,
That's my point. We could dump thousands of dollars of city money into this and all we would get is a lower tax base. That's not a great plan. Let private money do this.

You guys need to read the plan or at least Howards post before you come to a conclusion without a real understanding of the proposal.

“lift the assessed property tax value of the area from $800,000 to anywhere from $3 million to $5 million”

http://thebatavian.com/blogs/howard-owens/city-may-seek-25-million-stat…

I did look at it and didn't like what I saw. I don't care what the owner does, just don't do it with my money.

This is the kind of thing that has the Town worried if they merged with us.

I just noticed three houses being torn down on Main street next to the Aldi plaza..Someone told me they are going to build a group home there..Is that more property off the tax rolls....There have been a few comments left on this thread about people complainting about how our tax money is being spent, and that we should get a book and start our own business..Is that the answer,go start your own business..We are giving a opinion ,that this seems like a bad way to spend tax payers money..City streets , sidewalk repair and sewer are government problems.Those come first.Thats what i understood the city was going to get stimulus funds for and why we need to spend 450,000 dollars for the plan to do it..Shovel ready was the word of the day i heard.....Now were talking broadband,cops program and Rehabing old buildings ...Do you really think people on Swan and Harvester want to see there assessments go up because the city claims their property is worth more because they torn down a few old building..Why not just hand out 10000 dollars to each homeowner in Batavia so they can up date their own property,sure would get more bang for your buck that way..Think of all the local jobs that might create..

There are a ton of new factory space all over New York that sits empty,so let build some more and see if they come here..I want to see tax payers spend money on that..

The City DPW workers are not “slugs”, there are not really all that many of them and they work hard. In the winter, after the snow starts coming down, the first thing you hear is “where are the plows, where are the plows”? And, there out there. There out there also in good weather fixing water lines, sewer breaks, trimming trees and fixing pot holes. They are a lot busier than you think and who ever told you they have a no lay off contract?

The City used to come around and identify sidewalks that needed to be fixed. The DPW would fix your sidewalk and added the bill to your taxes over a set period of years. They also hired companies to help them do the work. If you wanted, you also had the option to pay your own private contractor to fix your sidewalk if you thought that was a better deal for you.

This system worked great. The problem with the sidewalks was that everyone wanted something for nothing and some council members, to get reelected, promised the city would pay the cost from now on, not the property owners. Something for nothing. Where did they think the city was going to get the money? Of course the city had no money for this, they would have to raise taxes to do it, and so they just never fixed anything.

Now look, even you want something for nothing. You say use stimulus money, a one shot deal. Sure, use it if you can get it, but the only way to fix the problem correctly is to go back to the old way. Add the cost of repairs to the property tax over a period of 10 years.

But, if they went back to the home owner paying, you would hear screams all over town and you know it. Everyone still wants something for nothing. Where will the money come from for repairs, year after year? Don’t blame the DPW workers for this.

Mr. Delplato - How in the world can you say that the DPW employees are slugs? They are the backbone of the City. When you are sleeping they are working rain, snow or shine. You want the streets clear in the winter. You want the flooded roads cleared. God forbid we get an ice storm. How disrespectful can you possibly be? The equipment they operate doesn't fix itself. The parks and streets also don't take care of themselves. I appreciate the concern that taxes keep going up in the City. There is no easy fix to that situation. That however doesn't make the employees slugs. You need to step up to the plate and apologize.

Mr. Del Plato,

I would pay good money to see you put to work with the DPW during the middle of winter and in the middle of summer, plowing the roads, fixing water main breaks, and repaving roads.

I'm quite sure that you wouldn't be so quick to run your mouth afterward.

Mike,
I bet that's what your boss said, lay him off. You don't sound like you enjoyed that. You said you had a "union" job. What do you say to the people who say unions caused the problems? Or make fun of union members standing around because it was not their job to sweep up around them? Or union members being paid even when not working?

The DPW guys don't just drive around, but do drive from job to the other as the jobs are assigned. How did you think they got there?

Ms. Del Plato,

Can we please get back on the stimulus
money issue? I got my popcorn ready!

Thank you.

Mr. Delplato,

That stimulus money is a loan that my children and grandchildren will have to pay for their entire life. I may be a naysayer on this one but I am very reluctant to hold out hope that it will turn the economy around. The infrastructure jobs it may create will be short lived in duration. Those people will then have to fight once again to put food on the table when the jobs run dry. Plus they are jobs that need some specialty knowledge. I as a soon to be unemployed paramedic don't have the credentials needed to apply or get one of those jobs. This stimulus bill has far too much pork in it. I am not saying that President Obama made a bad choice, I am just saying that he should have held the line as he claimed he would in his campaign. How many times did I hear him state that he wanted to eliminate pork barrel spending in DC. Right out of the gate we get this. I am tired of hearing that this company and that company want bailout money. We gave it to the banks and look what they did with it. I live in a very modest house. I have finally seen the end of the light when it comes to credit card debt. We as a society have to realize that life is not a free credit card ride. You need to be held accountable for your spending. This stimulus package just makes it ok on a government level. They are telling everyone by their actions that it is ok to be foolish. We will bail you out.

Part of this Harvester Ave plan has the city using its business loan money. This money is intended to be lent out, at a small interest rate to business (and one social club) and when paid back, it is lent out again; a revolving fund. The way I read this plan, it has us giving this money as a grant with no repayment. Where will the money come from to lend out to others? And why does this scheme get a grant instead of a loan with a fixed rate or return and a fixed repayment date?

If this is such a good idea and such a sure thing, why haven’t they ever been able to get private money to invest in this?

The stimulus money is out there, we had no say. We and our children will be paying this back for decades, so if we can get some for Harvester, great. But no city money. No loans, no grants, none. This we can control and I vote no.

Rather than bitch about what's wrong, why not figure out how to start a business? That was your quote Howard,Is that the answer to us on here that don't want to see our taxes wasted .So what's the point of adding our thoughts on a matter thats anti anything..Because some don't agree with your ideas ,thats bitching...

''As far as this entire thread goes, I'm with Charlie and Howard. Get up, do something, and quit bitching. Go buy and read "Starting a Business for Dummies" and knock yourself out.'' Is this an insult ,should it be removed..

Thank you Mr.Owens................

Take a ride and see for yourself....

Chelsea's post reminded me of this. What is the status? We are almost 1/4 of year past this announcement.

Remember how fast government works when you are relying on them for that heart transplant that you need for not following their prescribed diet.