This is a (very brief, once again) summary of legislation discussed at the Binghamton City Council Work Session on July 22nd, 2024. These Requests for Legislation would be voted on at a later City Council Business Meeting.
RL 24-140: An Ordinance to amend the 2024 Engineering budget to adjust for budget transfer error. Presented by Kent Drake-Dreese, Director of Personnel.
- Summary: “Transfer funds from Admin. Assistant position in Engineering to Civil Service and Personnel Assistant position in Personnel.” A one-digit error on a previous RL caused an Engineering Dept. position to be paid for with money from the Personnel Dept. This legislation is correcting that error.
RL 24-141: A Resolution authorizing the Mayor to enter into an agreement for the Chenango River Levee Bat Survey. Presented by Ron Lake, Engineering. Expedited 7-0.
- Summary: The Dept. of Environmental Conservation mandated that a bat acoustic survey be done before updates are made to the trail behind Binghamton Plaza. Lake said a report indicating a negative effect on the bat population could delay construction.
RL 24-142: A Resolution to adopt record of activities for elected/appointed officials not working standard workday. Submitted by Chuck Robinson, Comptroller.
- Summary: This legislation is to establish the hours worked by the Mayor and three City Council members who opted in to self-reporting work hours so they can be counted towards retirement benefits.
RL 24-143: An Ordinance to amend the City Code Section 26(6) D to align with Open Meetings Law. Presented by Nate Hotchkiss, Councilmember.
- Summary: The City Council has had to push legislation to future Business Meetings and Special Business Meetings a few times because of minor technical errors. This ordinance is designed to prevent that.
RL 24-144: A Resolution authorizing the sale of 35-41 Charlotte Street to Charles Ackerman for $1. Presented by Nate Hotchkiss, Councilmember. Moved to Planning Committee (7-0)
- Summary: Real estate developer Charlie Ackerman is proposing to build 36 micro-units of housing on a vacant lot for extremely low-income residents. The property is currently zoned as Industrial. The project will be entirely for-profit, with Ackerman investing his own money with no grants or subsidies. Most of the rent will be paid via the state, which can pay a maximum of $401 per month. Ackerman is also planning to charge $100-150 on top of that. He is hoping to have construction done in 18-24 months via Signature Homes, a modular construction company in Pennsylvania and will apply for a PILOT tax abatement with the city. Ackerman compared the project to a boarding house, which he has operated previously, and plans to reach out to nonprofits who can provide services to residents after they move in. He estimates that the project will cost him $1,350,000 to build. “I’ve spent my career gentrifying places like this,” Ackerman said, specifically citing the Windermere building on Washington Street, which he converted to a frat house. Ackerman is looking to apply for a variance to cut the parking space requirement from 36 to 18, reasoning that most people living at the property would not own cars. Corporation Counsel Sophie Bergman is saying the property needs to be sold for more than $1 because it’s going to a for-profit entity. Council members are also planning to include a “claw-back” provision in the deed in case construction never happens.
- My Take: Housing like this is desperately needed in Binghamton. If Ackerman is true to his word and partners with nonprofits to help residents access services while actively maintaining the property, it could work out great and be replicated all over the city and increase housing options for extremely low-income renters. Unfortunately, this is a deal with the devil and the devil will be in the details. Ackerman noted that he has experience operating boarding houses, which he says are a “back-stop” for people who would otherwise have no options. While preferable to sleeping under a bridge, boarding houses are no one’s idea of quality housing. No one would choose to live in a space with twelve other people with one bathroom and one kitchen unless it was their only option. Landlords like Ackerman prey on renters’ lack of options and then – as he admitted – they’ll foreclose on those meager options as soon as they can turn them into something more profitable, like student housing. The plans for this project are much better than the traditional boarding house setup. Each resident will have their own bathroom and kitchen. Two of the units will be ADA compliant. Unfortunately, no matter how much Ackerman claims to care about unhoused people, we know the profit motive will eventually win out. The city council needs to meddle with this project to the maximum extent that Ackerman (a major Democratic donor) will allow: rent caps, eviction prevention, limited application requirements, etc. We just chased Isaac Anzaroot out of town and he provided a similar “service” to low-income residents.
Councilmember Cavanaugh reopened discussion on RL24-131: A Resolution authorizing an agreement with Fairview Recovery Service. This was introduced at the 6/24 Work Session to account for accidental overspending on services for unhoused people in the amount of $78k. Cavanaugh said this legislation was not signed out but there is a deadline to spend the money by the end of this month. This will be voted on at tonight’s Business Meeting.
The last two work session agendas have been extremely light. This is likely the result of summer vacations, but I wonder if it’s also because so much legislation has been tied up by corporation counsel in legal review.
See you all tonight at 6:00 for public comment and voting. Thanks for reading!