Residents Oppose Tax Hike, Request More Transparency
Monica Calzolari, MBA
Enrollment Marketing Communications Expert I Problem solver
by Monica Calzolari
The Nov. 19 Oneonta Common Council meeting attracted about 25 concerned citizens, the equivalent of a full house. There were twenty motions on the agenda. The council debated issues for more than four hours.
Just before 10 p.m., the council approved the proposed 2025 budget and voted to exceed the tax cap. By this time, only three members of the audience remained. Two were city employees, Brian Knapp, the fire chief, and Chris Yacobucci, Director of Public Works.
These meetings are livestreamed for remote viewing and recorded for anyone to watch after the fact. ?
Mayor Mark Drnek preempted some of the concerns with a speech near the beginning of the meeting which started about 6 p.m. He addressed the vacancy of the seventh ward Common Council member.
The seat was vacated in September by Bryce Wooden. Mayor Drnek recommended Michael Forster-Rothbart on Nov. 19, weeks after his first nomination was rejected. Forster-Rothbart has lived in Oneonta for 15 years and owned his home in the seventh ward since 2011. ?? ?
The Council will have two weeks to consider this nomination and will vote to accept or reject the Mayor’s recommendation on December 3.
Mayor Drnek also made a public apology to Carolyn Marks who was sitting in the audience. She obtained approximately 137 signatures from members of the seventh ward to fill this vacancy.
Drnek acknowledged Marks’ service to the community. He said, “On a personal note…
Carolyn, you are as dedicated a citizen as I have ever met. You attend every meeting
and you will volunteer when no one else does.”
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He explained, “Because Carolyn Marks has gone on the record as being against this sale (of 27 Market Street, the temporary parking lot across from Foothills), I can’t further complicate the decision by making it a required 6 of 7 “yes” votes for passage. Carolyn does not share my vision for the city, which is her right.”
There are eight wards in the city of Oneonta represented by eight elected Common Council members. When a seat is vacated between election cycles, the Mayor has the privilege of nominating who fills the seat.
Mayor Drnek said, “It is my obligation to nominate the candidate that I believe will be open to all sides, all points of view, and make a well-considered decision in every case and of every initiative.”
There is an opportunity for the public to speak at the beginning of each meeting. Marge O’Mara, a resident of the seventh ward, spoke in support of Carolyn Marks. She also asked many questions concerning the impact of the debt service on the city’s budget from the controversial Market Street Project.
Virginia Lee, Director of Finance, provided the following numbers in an email on Nov. 23. She said, “The City is receiving nearly $10 million in grant funding for the construction of the new Transit Hub.? The local portion is approximately $1million, a return of 9 to 1 for the community. The $6.5 million will fund the local portion of the Parking Garage Demolition, construction of the new 47 Market Street parking lot, the reconstruction of Market Street and Water Street.”
Drnek said, “And speaking of Water Street…This is important. Those businesses have been devastated by months and months of endless construction.”
He is referring to tearing down the multi-level Water Street parking garage, another controversial topic. He said, “The construction and roadwork on Water and Market is just about finished.”
Drnek announced a celebration scheduled for Dec. 6, noon -2 p.m. hosted by the Otsego Chamber of Commerce. ?
Lisa Montanti, General Manager of the South Side Mall, was the second and only other member of the community to speak publicly on Nov. 19.
She pleaded, “Council vote down this budget!! And stop spending money! …Major cuts have to be made. It is the most difficult part of budget management but in order for you, who we the citizens voted for you, entrust and ask you to make these extreme changes.”
She made accusations about “the lack of transparency…excessive spending…inefficiency…political motivations...and unrealistic revenue projections.”
Montanti said, “The citizens of Oneonta demand and deserve a budget that has a plan of action to address all non-essential spending, that’s physically responsible after making essential cuts that address the root cause of the problem which in essence is a very large city staff and administration.”
The 2025 tentative city budget totals $20,571,061. This tentative budget increased $1,187,614 from the 2024 adopted budget, or 6.1%.?
Including vacancies, the city of Oneonta employs 205 employees including police, fire, bus drivers and maintenance workers. The 92-page budget is posted on the city’s website for all to see. Wages and benefits are 70.57% of the 2025 general expenses.
Lee, Director of Finance, confirmed, “We currently have 139 full-time positions, 6 of which are vacant;? 48 part-time, 11 of which are vacant;??9 seasonal, 8 of which are vacant (usually filled in the summer). The 205 total includes 9 elected officials.”
Lee stated, “The City was struggling to recruit and retain talented and skilled employees due to the low salaries…Salaries were adjusted with Council approval, via union contracts or other agreements, to bring the City’s salaries to approximately 90% of the market median.”
Increasing salaries and all associated fringe benefits has been controversial since expenses exceed revenues.