Should there be a consolidated Syracuse-Onondaga County government? (Skaneateles, Louisville: sales, buying)

[ckhthankgod]

Given the economy, population and educational factors, should the two entities consolidate? I believe that this was considered in the 1970's, but was voted down. Here is some information on the patterns of government in the county: http://lwvsyr.org/files/PatternsOfGovernment.pdf

Here is some more information: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sourc...rHHbpBcovvOO3w

SYRACUSE 20/20: Reports

[Sean®]

Well I live in a different County, I don't think you can even get there from here, but I read it.

Paints a pretty bleak picture for Syracuse indeed but no surprises.

Looks to me like Syracuse is flat arsed broke, the 'burbs got the money and the city wants to take it.

I can't think of a single thing the suburban people would gain, and neither can they as 75% think its a stupid idea.

Syracuse may get the last laugh though, by giving Destiny tax free status they can give sweetheart deals to stores and pull them away from suburban malls. Then again doesn't sales tax go to the County?? Wow Syarcuse may have really shot themselves in the foot after all.

[Urbanica]

Thats entirely the problem, its an us versus them attitude. The region is bound to fail if the city itself does. In the midwest/out west, it is done a lot better in terms of city/county consolidations. The Northeast is way too Balkanized to its detriment.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by Urbanica

Thats entirely the problem, its an us versus them attitude. The region is bound to fail if the city itself does. In the midwest/out west, it is done a lot better in terms of city/county consolidations. The Northeast is way too Balkanized to its detriment.

Good point and I dare say that there is a disconnect between county and city in many ways. It isn't Metro Detroit, but it is there.

[ss20ts]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

Given the economy, population and educational factors, should the two entities consolidate? I believe that this was considered in the 1970's, but was voted down. Here is some information on the patterns of government in the county: http://lwvsyr.org/files/PatternsOfGovernment.pdf

Here is some more information: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sourc...rHHbpBcovvOO3w

SYRACUSE 20/20: Reports

Who'd be footing the bill? The rest of Onondaga County? I could definitely see the residents tell the city to pound sand. I almost moved to that county and would have second thoughts if I had to pay for Syracuse. Clearly, they have financial issues and have for awhile. They haven't really done much to help themselves by giving away the farm for free. Yes, they're looking at sales tax instead of property taxes (ie DestinyUSA), but the county collects sales tax and redistributes it. Does Syracuse get back every dime they put in?

[ss20ts]

Syracuse has to play nice with some neighbors as well. It's not like their water comes from Onondaga Lake. Skaneateles residents surely don't want to pay for Syracuse's problems. Taxes in the village are already through the roof and into the clouds.

[urbanplanner]

Considering the state of the City of Syracuse finances, there is a huge opportunity to consider consolidation with the County. The County is in a far better position to manage local affairs. I think that consolidation will go a long way in marketing the area, considering the global climate we live in.

However, I doubt the local leadership is that enlightened to move forward (in a major way) anytime soon. There might be some consolidation of departments and services, but nothing on a grand scale. Don't look for Syracuse to become another Toronto, Louisville, Nashville, etc. anytime soon. I believe that there is a myopic view that dates back to the 1950's. Unfortunately, those at lower levels of government do not want to yeild their miniscule grip on power. As Urbanica points out, there is a us vs. them attitude.

Consider this un-related example, the city of Syracuse has lost approximately 75,000 people since its peak of 220,000 residents during the 1950's. Yet, the Common Council still maintains ten members; President; four at-large members; and five district council members. However, Plus, recent consolidation votes have failed, recently in East Syracuse regarding police. Comparatively, the City of Orlando has a much greater population with 6 City Commissioners and the Mayor, the City of Fort lauderdale (slightly larger than the City of Syracuse) has 5 members, including the Mayor.

Here is a nice summary by wikipedia on city-county consolidation:

Consolidated city

Point being, if leaders are not willing to consolidate their power at the municipal level, they are certainly not going to move forward with City-County consolidation. Here are some pros and cons of consolidation:




Pros:

• The larger the government unit making the purchases, the more buying power it can leverage to reduce costs.
• By consolidating government services under a single umbrella, waste and inefficiency can be reduced by the elimination of service duplication.
• Core cities benefit from the expansion of the tax base that supports their feature services and attractions.
• It's easier to promote a metropolitan area under a single "brand" name than under the names of multiple communities.
• The more opportunities for small-to-medium-sized bids and contracts, the healthier the environment for small businesses supplying those goods and services.

Cons:

• The larger the community, the harder it is for individual residents to influence elected leaders.
• The overwhelming tendency is for governments to become less efficient the larger they grow.
• The larger the governmental unit, the greater the prospects for significant corruption.
• The larger the government unit, the easier it is to hide or ignore problems in smaller communities contained within it.

I think the pros of consolidation far outweigh the cons, I think it needs to be pursued!