Rome Common Council approves donations, property sales and $3.3 million tornado funding; one councilor dissents on property sale

The Rome Common Council on June 11 approved a slate of routine donations, property sales, a capital-project increase tied to tornado cleanup and other administrative ordinances, with one councilor recording a dissent.

The council accepted four donations: $10,000 from NYSTEC for the Fourth of July fireworks (resolution 87), $860 from Utica Mack for summer film screenings at Franklin Field (resolution 88), $430 from the Rome branch of the NAACP for a June 20 movie screening (resolution 89) and $5,000 from Worthington Steel to support the Erie Canal welcome block party on July 17 (resolution 90). All four resolutions were approved by voice vote.

The council approved several ordinances including: authorizing the mayor to enter an agreement with Michael Berth for purchase of 1030 East Dominick Street (ordinance 9798); authorizing sale of city-owned Parcel 518 Robert Street for $1,501 (ordinance 9799); authorizing sale of city-owned Parcel 605 Floyd Ave for $2,000 (ordinance 9800); placing a "Do Not Block" sign in front of 120 East Bloomfield Street (ordinance 9801); amending the tornado damage capital project to increase it by $3,300,000 (ordinance 9802); authorizing two easements on Palmer Road for National Grid electrical upgrades (ordinance 9803); and approving an agreement allocating PILOT payments involving Chobani LLC, the Oneida County Industrial Development Agency, Oneida County and the Rome City School District, amended in council to refer to a "manufacturing and distribution center" (ordinance 9804). The council also removed and approved ordinance 9788, amending Rome Code of Ordinances chapter 80, article 19, section 80-19.4 (site plan review), as recommended by the planning board.

Most measures were approved by unanimous voice vote or by unanimous-consent procedure. Ordinance 9798 (sale of 1030 East Dominick Street to Michael Berth) carried with one recorded dissent. Councilor Smith explained her "no" vote on 9798, saying, "My vote is not against mister Berth. I want it to be perfectly clear, nor his professionalism. My vote is about making the best decision, not just for the present, but for the future growth of our city," and noting the state Department of Environmental Conservation was preparing and investing about $1,000,000 to clean the contaminated property and expressing concern about reestablishing an auto repair shop at that location.

Councilor Anderson spoke in support of ordinance 9802, saying the city had received $3,300,000 from the state toward tornado-damage cleanup and that the award would allow the administration to solicit bids for continued cleanup work.

Several procedural motions — including dispensing with the reading of the minutes — were approved by voice vote. Where the record shows only voice votes, the council did not provide a roll-call tally in the transcript.

Votes at a glance (items recorded in the meeting): - Resolution 87: Accept donation $10,000 from NYSTEC for July 4 fireworks — approved by voice vote. - Resolution 88: Accept donation $860 from Utica Mack for Franklin Field film series — approved by voice vote. - Resolution 89: Accept donation $430 from the Rome branch of the NAACP for a June 20 movie screening — approved by voice vote. - Resolution 90: Accept donation $5,000 from Worthington Steel for the Erie Canal block party (July 17) — approved by voice vote. - Ordinance 9798: Authorize mayor to enter agreement to sell 1030 East Dominick Street to Michael Berth — carried; Councilor Smith recorded a no vote and explained her concerns about contamination and the site’s suitability for an auto repair business. - Ordinance 9799: Authorize sale of city parcel 518 Robert Street to buyer for $1,501 — carried. - Ordinance 9800: Authorize sale of city parcel 605 Floyd Ave to buyer for $2,000 — carried. - Ordinance 9801: Authorize placement of a "Do Not Block" sign in front of 120 East Bloomfield Street — carried. - Ordinance 9802: Amend tornado-damage capital project, increase by $3,300,000 (state funds) — carried; council discussion noted the funds will allow solicitation of bids for cleanup. - Ordinance 9803: Authorize two easements on Palmer Road for National Grid electrical upgrades — carried. - Ordinance 9804: Authorize agreement approving alternative allocation of PILOT payments involving Chobani LLC and local taxing entities; amended in council to add the words "manufacturing and" before "distribution center" — carried. - Ordinance 9788 (removed from table): Amend Rome Code chapter 80, article 19, section 80-19.4 (site plan review); approved as presented from the planning board.

What the record shows and what it does not: the council used voice votes and unanimous-consent procedures for most items; the transcript records only one named dissent (Councilor Smith on ordinance 9798). Where roll-call tallies were not read into the record, the council did not provide a recorded yes/no count in the transcript.

Next steps and context: the $3.3 million state award for tornado damage (ordinance 9802) was described by Councilor Anderson as enabling the city to go to bid for cleanup work. The PILOT allocation for Chobani (9804) was amended on the council floor to read "manufacturing and distribution center," a change agreed to by council members and by the corporation counsel on the record.

Evidence from the meeting transcript is cited below in provenance.