“Partnerships” was a term Acting Buffalo Mayor Chris Scanlon used several times while assessing his State of the City and his vision for Buffalo.
From snow removal efforts, to support for Buffalo Public
Schools, to providing much-needed mental health services.
“My administration will continue addressing the growing mental health needs of our residents. We're partnering with Erie County, the Erie County Medical Center, the Sheriff's Department, and other agencies to address the mental health crisis in our community. This partnership will break down barriers to treatment, increase services, eliminate stigmas, and lead to better outcomes,” Scanlon said.
Among the new initiatives Scanlon is pursuing is establishing three new city offices, the Office of Emergency Management and Resiliency, the Office of Innovation, and the Office of Gun Violence Prevention. He explained that those offices are being created through a restructuring of City Hall, at no additional cost to taxpayers.
“So, we've just moved positions around. We've taken our Chief Innovation Officer, made him the head of an Office of Innovation, and working with department heads, each department has identified someone as their innovation lead. This is to break down the processes, eliminate the silos that operate in government, the existing government too often. So again, that's just one example of how we've done with the three departments, moving people around,” Scanlon said.
Establishing a Buffalo parking authority is also among Scanlon’s pushes. He believes it's a way to find additional revenue outside of property tax increases.
“I'm also asking for legislation to create the Buffalo Parking and Mobility Authority, which will eliminate redundancy in our parking operations. Most importantly, it will be fiscally solvent, saving taxpayers millions in capital repairs each year. There are examples of successful parking authorities across New York State, and it's time that we join our peers in implementing best practices,” Scanlon said.
The city of Buffalo owns around 7,000 vacant properties or roughly 3,000 acres of land, according to the Partnership for the Public Good. They vary in condition, and most are in disadvantaged neighborhoods on the East Side. Scanlon says he's making it a priority of his new Planning Director to redevelop those long-forgotten properties.
“We are making it easier for people to buy vacant lots so that they can build more homes in the city,” Scanlon said. “Under the leadership of our new Executive Director, Nadine Marrero, the Office of Strategic Planning is putting vacant lots back on the tax rolls, working with partners across the city to develop city-owned land into new housing units, and strengthening our neighborhoods.”
Scanlon is running for a full four-year term as Buffalo mayor. He'll enter a June primary against the likes of State Senator Sean Ryan, the Erie County Democratic committee's endorsed candidate, plus other major opponents like Former Buffalo Fire Commissioner Garnell Whitfield and University District Councilman Rasheed Wyatt.
