Oneida removes limits on taxis

By Jolene Cleaver, The Oneida Daily Dispatch

POSTED: 11/19/14, 9:55 AM EST | UPDATED: 4 DAYS AGO

ONEIDA >> Among myriad actions at Tuesday’s Common Council meeting, councilors voted to allow an unlimited number of taxi companies in the city.

Councilors voted in favor of repealing a portion of city code that set a maximum number of taxis permitted in Oneida.

Previously, Fred Edick, owner of Oneida Taxi, pointed out that the number of taxis operating in the city went against the city charter, which stated there should be one taxi for every 1,000 people.

There are currently four taxicab companies that service Oneida, according to the City Clerk’s Office: Dad’s Taxi; Oneida Taxi; Star Taxi; and A Better Cab.

Mayor Max Smith said competition, rather than regulation, should determine which cab companies remain in the city. Smith said if council regulated the number of cab companies - which all have multiple taxis - in the city, it would be like telling Martino’s Pizza “that they could not have a (pizza) restaurant in the city because there were already four.”

Common Council will soon enter into a second round of budget work sessions, where some cuts will be made to the draft version of the 2015 city budget.

Departments that have discussed their budgets with council include the police and fire departments, city assessor, chamberlain, clerk, comptroller, civil service, recreation and planning department.

Upcoming budget meetings, to be held in the common council chambers at 109 N. Main St. in Oneida, are as follows:

• Tonight at 6:30 p.m. – Water, hydrant, Department of Public Works, sewer;
• Monday, Nov. 24 at 6:30 p.m. – Further budget discussions.

Currently the proposed budget calls for $1.2 million to be taken from the reserve fund in order to balance out; however, Tuesday night Common Council members noted that the final draft of the budget is still a work in progress.

The current draft budget can be seen online at: http://oneidacity.com/wp-content/uploads/preliminary2015-Budget.pdf

In the draft budget, a proposed $1.9 million capital project would include the replacement of two vehicles -- a 21 year old fire truck, and a 14 year old rescue truck -- plus extrication equipment and breathing apparatus at the Oneida Fire Department.

During a public comment portion of the Tuesday meeting, Fred Cianfrocco, a property owner in Oneida, called on the council to not spend more money, and questioned the purchase of a new fire truck, saying that it had just been replaced in 2009.

Detailing the department’s vehicle replacements since 2008, Oneida Fire Chief Kevin Salerno tells the Oneida Dispatch that in 2008, the city replaced a 45-year-old custom Hahn pumper due its age. This replacement was bought through a grant from FEMA.

In 2010, the city replaced a 26-year-old custom pumper that had a cracked frame.

“In 2015, I am requesting to replace a 21-year-old commercial pumper that has frame that has been cracked and repaired since 2009 and is now in even worse shape,” Salerno said.

The council has also been exploring funding options for new equipment for the Oneida City Police Department, including radar guns, laptop computers for inside the cars and other equipment; in addition to different funding options for police cars and additional staffing.

Speaking during a public hearing on the draft budget Tuesday night, Officer Steven Lowell, the vice president of the Oneida PBA, reiterated previous sentiments expressed to the Common Council about the need for the replacement of aging equipment and patrol vehicles that are often plagued with mechanical failures.

Separately, Lowell told the Dispatch, “We are severely under-staffed compared to other cities with smaller populations sizes by at least six positions. This places increased work loads on all personnel and is a detriment to the quality of service.”

Lowell said, “Increased work loads cause fatigue, delayed response times, increased overtime and several critical officer-safety issues.”

Information provided by Oneida City Police indicates that the city of Oneida- both inside and outside districts- is roughly 22 square miles, and that the department has 23 officers, all full time. In addition, 2010 census records show that Oneida has a population of 11,390.

In contrast, the city of Fulton, in Oswego County, clocked 11,896 residents in the 2010 US census, and is 3.8 square miles of land (.9 square miles is water). According to information from the Fulton Police Department, there are 34 police officers.

However, this doesn’t take into account each city’s operating costs.

In other action, council voted to send a letter to the state Department of Transportation, state Sen. David Valesky and Assemblyman William Magee stating opposition of the community to the removal of the traffic signal at the intersection of East Walnut Street and Lenox Avenue.

At a recent public hearing on the matter, residents spoke out in opposition to the light’s removal, citing safety concerns. State DOT officials said that while the light will be removed at a later date, the state is currently working on a plan to redesign the portion of 365A that runs through Oneida.

By late winter, DOT officials have said they will prepare to present plans to the public which will include safety features such as a two-way stop and pavement markings. Common Council members also added that they would like to see more study take place on the issue, but added that they had not yet seen any plans from the DOT.

http://www.oneidadispatch.com/general-news/20141119/oneida-removes-limits-on-taxis