Common Council Passes Eight Ordinances, Debates Property Enforcement and Police Shortage at Meeting

UTICA — The Utica Common Council convened Wednesday evening for its regular meeting, passing eight ordinances and generating spirited debate over vacant and derelict property enforcement, a proposed park restroom bill, and a growing police staffing crisis. The meeting, held at City Hall, drew participation from department heads, legal staff, and members of the public.

Before the formal session began, council members and city officials engaged in an extended discussion — running well over an hour — on two proposed ordinances that would establish new registries for vacant and derelict properties in the city.

Assistant Corporation Counsel Mark Chieco, who drafted the legislation and argued cases in city court daily, anchored the discussion. He explained the rationale behind separating the two registries. "Just because a property is vacant doesn't really make it derelict," Chieco said, noting that the previous vacant property statute treated compliant and non-compliant property owners with the same harsh fee schedule. "The people who are taking care of their properties, just because they don't have a tenant in there or they can't get a business to move in or they need to rehab it — they deserve better than that."

Chieco described a city struggling with chronic recidivists who, in his words, "thumb their nose at the code officers." He argued the derelict registry — which would apply only to properties accumulating three or more separate code violations within a 12-month period, with at least two left uncorrected — was a necessary tool. "You have to make it hurt before they comply," he said.

Codes Commissioner Marquis Phillips echoed those frustrations, citing the enormous resources devoted to problem properties. "40 to 50 percent of my officers' time is on buildings like this," he said. He acknowledged the administrative burden the new registries would create — estimating that within the first month, 70 to 100 properties could be placed on the vacant registry alone, with a sweep already having identified 234 potential candidates before staff stopped counting.

Councilwoman Katie Aiello pushed back on the Assistant Corporation Counsel's characterization of the registry fees as something other than a revenue mechanism. "Revenue is revenue, whether it's $13,000 or $100,000," she said, after Councilmember Colosimo-Testa noted that under the proposed fee structure, 65 known vacant properties would generate $13,000 — compared to $106,000 under the old pricing. Aiello said she supported the legislation but wanted the vacant housing fees set higher, arguing that the city incurs real costs — police, fire, DPW, and codes — every time officers respond to a neglected or abandoned building.

Councilmember Samantha Colosimo-Testa singled out a well-known example: the former Popeyes building near Oneida Square, owned by out-of-state investors. "They're from San Francisco. They bought the building for $750,000. They can take harsh. The rest of the neighborhood suffers."

Majority Leader Jack LoMedico raised the challenge of the city's roughly 30% poverty rate. "A lot of these people really don't have the money to fix them," he said, suggesting the council look at directing some CDBG funding toward homeowners who cannot afford repairs — an idea he said could be explored in next year's budget process.

Phillips noted a critical limitation in enforcement: out-of-state owners and faceless LLCs. "You're not going to serve a warrant in Wisconsin," he said. "Establishing registries allows us to charge for the resources we're putting into that property." Chieco noted that recent state law now requires LLCs to disclose members when recording deeds, giving the city more tools to identify responsible parties.

Despite widespread agreement on the need for action, Aiello closed by reiterating her position: "I think the vacant housing registry prices are too low. If they don't increase, I'd vote no as it currently stands."

Ultimately, the council agreed to bring the ordinances to a vote that evening, with Councilmember Betar indicating he had an amendment ready.

The council passed seven of its eight new ordinances unanimously, 9-0.

Ordinance 1 authorized a $45,000 budget transfer to fund tenant income verification expenses. Ordinance 2 authorized the sale of ten surplus Utica Police Department vehicles — a correction was noted during the meeting, as the ordinance's title had erroneously said "five." Ordinance 3 extended the city's moratorium on battery energy storage facilities for 90 days through June 15, 2026, while staff finalizes zoning legislation. Ordinance 5 allocated $3,171,522 in federal CDBG 51st Year funds across dozens of community programs, including housing rehabilitation, senior services, neighborhood streetscapes, and shelter organizations. Resolutions 6 and 7 confirmed the appointments of Olivia K. Dixon and Mia L. McKennon-Jimenez as Commissioners of Deeds, both county employees. Ordinance 8 authorized a $48,805.64 budget transfer to cover outstanding invoices from January through March 2026 across departments including Public Works, Parks, Animal Control, and Street Cleaning.

Ordinance 9, an E&A transfer related to a previously approved paving bond, was moved to committee after Councilmember Colosimo-Testa said she had unresolved questions about how the transfer interacted with existing budget account lines. "I'm going to vote it down and I don't want to do that," she said, requesting time to consult with a judge on the matter. A special meeting was set for April 21 at 6:00 p.m., with a committee meeting to follow at 6:15 p.m.

Ordinance 4, Councilmember Heather Wasielewski's proposal requiring city park restrooms to be open a minimum of four hours per day between Memorial Day and Labor Day, was moved to committee after a tense exchange. Councilman Joseph Betrus, Jr., whose district includes Proctor Park — one of the primary parks at issue — said he had never consulted on the legislation and raised public safety concerns about unsupervised facilities. "I don't think we need needles where kids go," he said, adding that he had received numerous constituent complaints about Proctor Park over the years, but never about bathroom access specifically.

Wasielewski defended her proposal, noting she had heard significant community demand for open restrooms and had consulted with Police Chief Williams and Parks officials beforehand. "This isn't a luxury — this is an amenity," she said. "We have seniors who use the parks. We have children who use the parks, and they have to go into the woods or go home." Council President Lomedico acknowledged the legislation's merits while agreeing to send it to committee to allow for fuller discussion. A committee meeting was scheduled for May 6 at 5:00 p.m.

Ordinance 16, establishing the new Derelict Property Registry, passed 9-0 after Councilman Betar successfully moved an amendment to Section 2-6-418, which governs the appeals process. The amendment added a 120-day deadline for the Public Safety Commissioner to hear and decide appeals of registry placement — addressing a concern raised earlier in the meeting about the absence of a clear timeline.

Ordinance 15, the companion Vacant Building Registry ordinance, also passed 9-0. Aiello, despite her stated reservations about the fee levels, voted in favor. "This is something I've been wanting to see implemented for years," she said. "I will be voting yes on it even though the prices I think are lower, and hopefully that's something we can revisit in the future."

Public comment opened with Francis Brown, a regular attendee, who raised concerns about access to the city's CDBG citizens participation process, the recent sale of land near MLK Park for $100, and proposed changes to the public comment rules under Ordinance 11.

Howard Potter, co-owner of A&P Master Images on Water Street, addressed the council about ongoing problems in the parking area behind his business — including littering, trespassing, and overflow parking damaging the pavement. Potter said his staff of 25 employees regularly encounters adults urinating in the lot and disrespectful behavior from out-of-town visitors. He urged the council to consider a constructive solution: allowing the city and county to run a drainage pipe through an adjacent parcel his business owns, which he said could open up 50 to 70 additional parking spaces. "We're a tax-paying business that gives 110% every day," Potter said. "That's all we're asking for."

During the petitions and reports segment, several council members raised concerns that mirrored themes from the earlier committee discussion.

Councilman Robert Burmaster (Ward 2) echoed Codes Commissioner Phillips: "I just can't believe people can't pick up the garbage in their own yard. It's springtime. Just pick up your yard."

Councilman Frank Carcone (Ward 4) said he and Councilmember Colosimo-Testa had recently toured the police department and were impressed by its technology programs. But he struck an urgent tone on staffing. "We're not going to have policemen. We're just not going to have them — and it sounds like it's sooner than down the road," he said, pointing to starting salaries well below those of neighboring departments such as Oneida County, the State Police, and Rome. He also raised the five-year city residency requirement for new hires as a potential barrier. "If you don't get applications from the city and we have to fill positions, we have to think about doing something with that."

Councilman Betrus Jr. (Ward 6) pushed back on perceptions that North Utica receives preferential treatment from city government. "People say North Utica gets special treatment — I say we don't get enough," he said, noting the neighborhood lacks curbs and storm drains, which complicates even basic tasks like disposing of green waste.

Councilmember Colosimo-Testa called for a dedicated committee meeting on police retention, suggesting the council needed more than the time currently set aside. "How are we retaining police officers? What can we do as a council to help the police department?" She proposed a session tentatively set for the following Tuesday at 6:00 or 6:30 p.m.

Police Chief Mark Williams, returning to the council table after an absence, delivered a frank assessment of the department's recruiting struggles. He noted that the most recent written exam drew 125 candidates — down dramatically from 300 to 500 a decade ago — and that some applicants signed up solely to satisfy unemployment requirements with no intention of taking the test.

"I've got to fill roughly 19 positions in the near future," Williams said. "I only have seven candidates. Even if I offer each one a conditional offer of employment, historically I'll probably end up with only four because three will fail the medical or psychological testing."

He warned that heading into the summer — the department's busiest season, which includes the Boilermaker Road Race, Fourth of July, and the Tunnels to Towers Race — the department could be down 22 to 24 officers when accounting for long-term injuries and other absences. "We may have to cut some services going forward," he said, "and we're going to do our very best to make sure we provide the best policing to our community."

The meeting adjourned following the conclusion of legislative business. A full broadcast of the pre-meeting and meeting can be found at the YouTube link attached to this article.