Plattsburgh Shock Therapy: Urban Renewal Like It's 1955 (Part 2)
2017-2018
A year has passed since Mayor Read has been in office and the city center project is moving forward despite its persistent unpopularity. Although other more promising projects have been included in the final DRI award, it is hardly a consolation since $4.3M of public tax dollars are being invested into a development that poses great dangers for Plattsburgh all while ignoring the public and suppressing their input in order to privatize public land.
The mayor's position on the city center mixed-use development has changed so drastically during this short period of time that it's hard to believe that Mayor Read and Candidate Read are the same person. Whereas Candidate Read warned that a large mixed-use development would "suck the life out of downtown" and stated that "it doesn't make a lot of sense to build a mansion" in the center of our city because "its foundations are crumbling," Mayor Read has proclaimed that the same development is akin to "putting up a bit of paradise." Furthermore, whereas Candidate Read's campaign focused on fighting the project and repeatedly warned that the DRI wouldn't be successful without public buy in, Mayor Read now claims that the state has mandated the development from the beginning--from the point when the city submitted its ideas for the project in its DRI application without consulting the public--making a mockery of both his campaign and the concerns voiced by the public over the past year and a half1.
The mayor's position on the city center mixed-use development has changed so drastically during this short period of time that it's hard to believe that Mayor Read and Candidate Read are the same person. Whereas Candidate Read warned that a large mixed-use development would "suck the life out of downtown" and stated that "it doesn't make a lot of sense to build a mansion" in the center of our city because "its foundations are crumbling," Mayor Read has proclaimed that the same development is akin to "putting up a bit of paradise." Furthermore, whereas Candidate Read's campaign focused on fighting the project and repeatedly warned that the DRI wouldn't be successful without public buy in, Mayor Read now claims that the state has mandated the development from the beginning--from the point when the city submitted its ideas for the project in its DRI application without consulting the public--making a mockery of both his campaign and the concerns voiced by the public over the past year and a half1.
Beneath this about-face and spin so egregious it's almost comical, the shock doctrine is at work. Just like in Poland in '89, it's being implemented by more than just the mayor and his administration acting alone. Solidarity's agenda was to a large extent rewritten by neoliberal technocrats hailing from the United States and was enforced by the IMF in exchange for emergency funding once the party came to power. In Plattsburgh, much of the development agenda is being written by technocrats that administer our region's corporate-welfare-industrial-complex and the plans are being enforced by the governor's office in exchange for what is essentially our own emergency funding. Read's recent claim that the state mandated the city center project all along no doubt has some truth, but the claim is simultaneously false: The shock doctrine has been and can be resisted, and is only inevitable to the extent that democratically elected officials and their constituents, overwhelmed in the face of a crisis, make it so.
We can glimpse some of Plattsburgh's new development agenda, which has no real regard for public participation, in the New York State Financial Restructuring Board for Local Governments' 2017 "Comprehensive Review Report" for the City of Plattsburgh. The report clearly views the city center project as a necessary development to return the city to solvency. The real agenda was also on display in my interaction with Gary Douglas, Co-Chair of the North Country Regional Economic Development Council (NCREDC), the main entity in the region that decides how to dole out public money, at one of the last DRI committee meetings. According to Douglas, from the governor's perspective, the DRI isn't really about doing what the people want; it's about doing big projects that will quickly leverage private investment rather than undertaking small incremental projects that will only leverage investment "very indirectly and over time." From this perspective, speed is the name of the game, not democracy or even organic growth, especially given that the city is insolvent.The parallel to Solidarity's drastic about-face mandated by the IMF in exchange for debt relief and emergency funding is striking. At the time, a Solidarity Party official even said of his recent promise to develop worker owned businesses, "if we had enough time, we might even be able to pull it off. But we don't have time."
It's telling that Douglas, who wasn't technically part of the DRI committee, showed up to the table after the public almost steered the DRI process away from including the city center project in December 2016. Although Read had recently campaigned against rushing the DRI process, it was clear that the governor disagreed and someone had to lay down the law in the last month of the planning process.
Yet, because Governor Cuomo's economic development agenda has been strongly criticized for its lack of transparency, back channel deals, and outright corruption, the governor's agents had to lay down the law and still make it appear as if the DRI's proposed use of public tax dollars was actually wanted by the public. After the last DRI Committee meting, the city, state, and their consultants nearly finalized a DRI report which stated that the city center development "received strong support from members of the public". The final DRI report scaled back the wording to "moderate support" after I objected, but the will of the public was still misrepresented both in this final wording and in the final award itself.
Yet, because Governor Cuomo's economic development agenda has been strongly criticized for its lack of transparency, back channel deals, and outright corruption, the governor's agents had to lay down the law and still make it appear as if the DRI's proposed use of public tax dollars was actually wanted by the public. After the last DRI Committee meting, the city, state, and their consultants nearly finalized a DRI report which stated that the city center development "received strong support from members of the public". The final DRI report scaled back the wording to "moderate support" after I objected, but the will of the public was still misrepresented both in this final wording and in the final award itself.
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| The Draft DRI Report falsely stated there was "strong public support" for the center city project. |
Click here to read part 3 of Plattsburgh Shock Therapy: Urban Renewal Like It's 1955
1)See the Mayor Read quote at the end:
As part of a state grant to explore parking alternatives in the City of Plattsburgh in anticipation of State-mandated development of the Durkee Street Parking Lot, the City had the consulting firm Carl Walker, Inc. conduct a parking study and assessment of the Downtown. The goal of the study was to provide the City of Plattsburgh with an inventory and assessment of how the current parking system benefits and fails all current users and how the City can increase its parking capacity and convenience.
The consultants conducted a number of public forums and shall soon issue a final report. Their interim recommendations represent a fresh approach to downtown parking. It includes an expansion of parking spots, mostly either free or a relatively modest day rate, resident spots, and metered convenience parking, likely with some period of free parking for a limited time as well. The public forums generally embraced this managed parking approach as a precursor to downtown development.
The consultants will recommend better access and a reduction in walking distance to the free parking behind the train station, expanded parking along Bridge and Durkee Streets with street widening and improved pedestrian access, and the expansion of downtown lots. The number of available parking spaces downtown will expand significantly, as will proximity parking for the various businesses located Downtown. For street parking, it is possible to create 14 new spaces along Bridge Street, in addition to the existing spaces, and 80 new spaces along the adjoining Durkee Street, to service the Coop, Ashley’s Furniture, and City Hall Place. In addition to 94 new on-street spaces, the expansion of two existing lots on Margaret Street have the potential for 303 new spaces. Upwards of 397 spots more than compensate for 289 spaces lost to Durkee lot development and greenspace.
These and other recommendations from the consultants will be further deliberated by the City’s Common Council. The Council will see the record of discussions during the eight public forums and stakeholders meetings, and will balance the needs of the general public and all the affected businesses. The City understands that for businesses to thrive and grow, ample and open parking must be provided, for residents and employees evening-long or day-long parking is needed, and for our visitors available spaces either free, at a low cost, or convenience parking must be included in a plan for parking management in Plattsburgh.
Mayor Read noted, “Our DRI team and consultants seemed to do the impossible. With the loss of spots mandated by the DRI proposal the State approved almost two years ago, they actually created more than 100 new spots downtown in locations that service our existing users even better. I could not have imagined a more positive result for all those who enjoy our downtown.”
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