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Binghamton council holds Ross Park bond hearing, overrides veto and approves budget and operational ordinances
Summary
At its Feb. 12 meeting the council held a public hearing on a bond for Ross Park improvements, overruled a mayoral veto, accepted grants and approved budget adjustments and ordinances; one maintenance bill was held over for more information.
Binghamton City Council on Wednesday, Feb. 12, held a public hearing on a proposed bond ordinance for Ross Park and approved a series of budget and operational measures, including an override of a mayoral veto and several finance and public-works ordinances.
At a public hearing the council took comment on RL25-32, an ordinance authorizing issuance of bonds not to exceed $2,063,600 to fund capital improvements including paving the road into Ross Park Zoo and repaving the zoo parking lot. Phil (who spoke at the hearing) told the council that the Ross Park Zoo has secured more than $1.3 million that would be invested in a new Creekside learning center adjacent to the paved area and asked the council to vote in favor of the bond. Abby Kaiser and Kay and Ed Corcoran submitted written comments in support; the hearing was closed and the council scheduled formal consideration for the Feb. 26 meeting.
In other business the council voted 7-0 to overrule the mayor's veto on O24-11, an ordinance amending the 2025 clerk's office budget (the council held an executive session earlier to discuss legal considerations relating to the veto). The clerk read the mayor's veto letter into the record before council members discussed the matter.
Council members approved several budget and code items in roll-call votes: O25-05 (amendments to the 2024 sewage treatment budget to increase reimbursement and decrease personnel services) passed 7-0; O25-13 (an amendment to the water code regarding shutoffs) passed 7-0; and O25-16 (an amendment to the 2024 water budget for increased electricity costs) passed 7-0. The council held over O25-07 (a 2023 shared-maintenance charge to be applied to a 2024 TPW budget) after members said they had not received clarifying documentation on why the bill arrived late.
The council accepted a Bureau of Justice Assistance grant of $202,000 to purchase two police vehicles; that resolution passed 6-1. Council also authorized contracting with General Code to modernize the city's code and legislative publishing platform; the clerk and council members described the purchase as a long-sought technology upgrade to improve public access to local laws and internal workflows.
Public comment included opposition to an unrelated proposed agreement with Siemens; Michael Kosty submitted written remarks opposing the Siemens contract on grounds of cost, projected utilization and long-term debt implications. No action on the Siemens matter was on the Feb. 12 agenda.
Votes at a glance: see the structured actions list below for motion text, mover/second (if on the record), vote tallies and next steps. The Ross Park bond remains at public-hearing stage and will be taken up again at the Feb. 26 meeting.
The council also announced plans for public education and outreach tied to several measures and said staff would circulate additional information on next steps and timelines.
