[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6037533,"mediaKeyId","3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7","parentId",3863179,"title","Council advances public-safety fee resolution to committee after amendments to involve assessor, controller and IDA","audioSeconds",5415,"startMs",1027000,"endMs",6442000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7&start=1027&end=6442","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7/thumbnail_1027000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6037533/Utica/Oneida-County/New-York/Council-advances-public-safety-fee-resolution-to-committee-after-amendments-to-involve-assessor-controller-and-IDA","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6037533-9bf268804a2fc99df67dc11fa0cb519f/orig.mp4?Expires=1771198195&Signature=oe~r43o1aRYv1lvt4oEfVLpUqYbQX9cZuwwBiqqUk9fhMtUBy2gXFM3yIXjgP6u0~ZWA1cHLVQ5geSS4EJIT0lMiX4uAm8ZkDp1txY8RB~lEjsg9cofjkuIkpXMPpJH4QTBV301ZBUKF2VSAcvfF4JGMdOuNnme0J6VXvPLNzqe~Dw~Ufe2~cQJ4I48Ef-Eoyr8FALzuXsZSQn-eUV3YSStKUigq35PPF2x7p5wyRjr8uvYnu4pe50CSC6LdlfYgODaIgyf8H75cl8DFXiD0qXVOKxX8dxbD1BUTWxlN0XQQ8mW68TdSEg7WJcPAGDYiTDkd9ceSv--sl1ntNfkF7g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Utica","date","2025-04-03T00:00:00Z","article","The Utica Common Council advanced a resolution asking city financial offices and economic agencies to study a proposed public-safety fee and placed related ordinance language into committee after members amended the measure on the floor.

Councilmember Joseph Beatrice introduced a resolution and said he had circulated a letter outlining his plan. Beatrice told colleagues the objective is to identify a fee structure that would charge entities not paying their share of public-safety costs while providing credits to property owners already paying taxes.

On the floor the council amended the resolution to request a corresponding financial analysis from the city assessor, the economic development department, the Utica Industrial Development Agency and the city comptroller. The council also moved to strike the word “universal” from the ordinance title and body, so the measure will be considered as a “public safety fee.” The amendments were adopted on the floor.

Councilmembers discussed basic design questions: whether revenue would be placed in a dedicated public-safety fund or the general fund, and how to credit property taxpayers who already contribute via property tax. Beatrice said an early goal was to have the assessor and comptroller provide data so the council can evaluate cost and implementation options. He suggested the Utica Industrial Development Agency and economic-development staff might help reach negotiated arrangements with large institutions.

The chief of the fire department and other public-safety stakeholders said they had not been broadly briefed before introduction; the chief later said he received the proposal only after it was circulated to council members. Council members agreed the ordinance portion should go to committee so staff offices can prepare financial analyses and stakeholders can be heard before any final action.

No fee or rate was adopted on the floor. The council adopted the resolution as amended to request studies and sent the ordinance to committee for further work, where staff will prepare fiscal impact analyses and the council will consider possible exemptions, credits and implementation mechanics.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Utica Common Council Meeting April 2nd, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Utica Common Council amended and advanced a resolution asking city financial offices and economic-development agencies to study a proposed public-safety fee, and placed the related ordinance into committee for further work.","taxTitle","Utica, Oneida County, New York","taxId",3680,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6037538,"Council schedules public hearing, seeks mandatory planning-board referrals to comply with MS4 rules",5801,557000,6358000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7&start=557&end=6358","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7/thumbnail_557000.jpg","/articles/6037538/Utica/Oneida-County/New-York/Council-schedules-public-hearing-seeks-mandatory-planning-board-referrals-to-comply-with-MS4-rules","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6037538-e71e1117d969ccce5eab2df116eddd13/orig.mp4?Expires=1771198195&Signature=Hh-iUNT44C5zJZ1b0LqlIjwlFrdie73LoB6E50kJEmJ70J2bHoRC~ckXl30nFnqAp14I88~sYPqPnx8HXN~hU6HvpAhQlFUkev4UrK5sNEJ-2aj5~aP9vpyz5GijNE5qGqbV0fZ4dzHsxRX8AO84JhsmnU15c-eOWSle6FqXd1aia~k0k5gGMXcEgHUydQqnSpN6t-RzuW42qrsBgBSm2hVhPu5dBdRCIjC63~vl91nxKJm8209nM7ygc9xKVSz4HQuMIvqwDYFUoIhrJNCyWsZFMn4ArV~MgY3itMXa5ocXm97BG33NKk0L8nCkErApsuWbFiM-107vv7n1rtrthA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Utica Common Council scheduled a public hearing and moved related ordinance language to committee after members and staff discussed requiring planning-board referrals to address new MS4 stormwater rules.

Deputy City Engineer Nick Breidenbacher told the council the draft language updates how the planning board coordinates with city departments to comply with MS4 (municipal separate storm sewer system) regulations imposed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Breidenbacher said the changes are intended “so everybody's in compliance” with the new rules.

Council members focused on a single-word change in the zoning ordinance’s site-plan referral language: replacing “may” with “shall” so the planning board is required, rather than permitted, to consult the engineering department and other city offices on each site-plan application. One councilmember argued that mandatory consultation will satisfy EPA requirements and ensure departments such as public works, codes, stormwater management and public safety are notified of planned projects.

The council also debated which offices should be included in the referral list. An amendment offered on the floor added the Department of Public Works, the city engineer, the commissioner of codes, the stormwater management officer and the City’s public-safety department to the list of required consultees and asked that representatives of federal, state and county agencies and designated private consultants be included as needed.

The resolution providing for a public hearing on the zoning amendment directed the city clerk to publish notice and set the hearing for the council’s first May meeting (the resolution text as amended listed May 7, 2025). Council members voted to place the ordinance language and hearing schedule into the committee process for fuller review before any final adoption.

Council members asked that the referral language read fluently and consistently (for example, calling it an ordinance “amending section 2-29-315” rather than “adding” the section) and requested that the Department of Public Works be explicitly included where practical. Staff confirmed that some department representatives already receive plan copies for larger projects, but the amended text would require distribution for every site-plan application.

No final amendment to the zoning code was adopted on the floor; the council will hold the required public hearing before committee consideration and final vote.","The Common Council set a public hearing for a zoning text amendment that would require the planning board to consult specified city departments on site-plan reviews, a change presented as necessary to meet MS4 stormwater requirements from the DEC and EPA.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6037543,"Utica council refers ordinance on fire-department composition after debate over assistant chief post",1921,429000,2350000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7&start=429&end=2350","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3863179-240c62fa4226d67e2f14660feb1a20b7/thumbnail_429000.jpg","/articles/6037543/Utica/Oneida-County/New-York/Utica-council-refers-ordinance-on-fire-department-composition-after-debate-over-assistant-chief-post","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6037543-ff5a36e6abb154f1db7366b2383c2f1c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771198195&Signature=SrAwLP9fwEEV6~4LLIB1y~-9omIC18I0b3pt7-Ja3oF3ygZ7TTAzsp1GKK2kwFAluMEpWhT5v1V1O9ah12dfPuZ37dh-WDgy6GRngSKjshbiXcYT8SE7VYL9QNIqd2eES-oxhIixwQF0aPV4MX4vCHl1by5~crz4Nl99MlajCLpSvC4xnf-T1Zv4-j1JKQu9rtzIeCb9u0vHXHxw3R0tRdj~dmZdMdy4WIQipnEYEE-jpFDQXILgNP2h5HE3WsAIWu63IiEPjYDdPfKQnMYyH9v6L2mSwFvf4~0jR81ODD-yPmhGEUP5jyvU03bXqMJyneHIpDYDCbIJmOXwWrKh-Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Utica Common Council voted to refer proposed ordinances that would change the composition of the Utica Fire Department to committee after extended debate and a letter from the mayor’s office outlining legal limits.

Council members opened discussion on an ordinance described on the agenda as “amending the composition of the Bureau of Fire.” The item was placed in committee for further review and public comment; a formal ordinance text will be reviewed at the committee stage before the council considers final action.

The city’s fire chief urged the council to retain the assistant fire chief role. Reading from a prepared letter, the chief asked council members to “support the retention of the assistant fire chief position,” noting the position’s role in overseeing day-to-day operations, training, interagency coordination and major-incident command. The chief said Utica’s fire department responded to “over 16,800 calls for service within the city” last year and described the department’s operational staffing as “lean,” with most personnel assigned to operations.

A communication from the mayor’s office shared with the council next argued the assistant fire chief position could not be abolished under the city’s existing collective-bargaining agreements unless three specific conditions were all met: the position must be vacant, the city must abolish its ambulance service, and the department complement must be reduced to 75 members. The administration’s memo said the department currently has a complement of 132 members and operates an ambulance service; therefore the office concluded the council cannot lawfully eliminate the assistant fire chief under the current contract without reducing staffing by 57 positions and ending medical transport services.

Council members discussed alternatives the administration suggested in its memo, including eliminating a vacant chief fire marshal position and adding a second fire marshal to shift administrative workload while maintaining operational staffing. Several council members said they wanted the issue vetted in committee so the council could review the contract language, the administration’s recommendation, and impacts on public-safety operations.

No ordinance amendment or abolition was adopted on the floor. Instead the matter will be considered in committee, where council members expect to review the mayor’s memo, the collective-bargaining agreement language, the civil-service job descriptions cited by the administration, and testimony from the fire department.

The council also recorded public comments and questions from members about chain-of-command authority and the role of unions and contracts in determining department staffing. Several members said they sought clarity from the city attorney and the Board of Estimate before supporting any change. The mayor’s office invited council members to contact the mayor with questions about the recommended alternative of reallocating the vacant chief fire marshal slot.

The council’s decision to send the item to committee means no immediate change will be made to the fire-department complement; further action requires committee review and, if the committee endorses an ordinance, a future council vote.","A proposed ordinance to amend the composition of the Utica Fire Department was sent to committee after a lengthy council discussion that included the fire chief and a mayoral communication highlighting collective-bargaining constraints on abolishing the assistant fire chief position.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Council advances public-safety fee resolution to committee after amendments to involve assessor, controller and IDA

Council schedules public hearing, seeks mandatory planning-board referrals to comply with MS4 rules

Utica council refers ordinance on fire-department composition after debate over assistant chief post