For this summary, we will report on the Civil Service, Finance, Legislation, and Community Development committee meetings. ‘Council Member’ is abbreviated as CM; ‘Council President’ as CP; and ‘Majority Leader’ as ML.

This week in the Civil Service Committee meeting, we learned that Mayor Brown appointed a new Chief of Diversity Officer – Darren Saxon. Saxon was previously the head of Buffalo’s Office of New Americans.

The committee discussed the appointments of two emergency service dispatchers. Council members wondered why these entry-level city employees are paid so little — $37,000 a year — compared to the more than $124,000 for the new Chief Diversity Officer salary. CM Nowakowski pointed out that essential roles like dispatchers and sanitation workers should be well-paying, middle-class jobs.

Kevin Kaufman, City Auditor, came to say that the Comptroller’s report on employees on paid leave would be available for discussion on December 19th.

The Finance Committee received the Comptroller’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for fiscal year 2022-2023, as required by the city charter. They also discussed the city’s proposed settlement for a victim for police recklessness. Representatives from the Comptroller’s office as well as the Department of Administration and Finance estimated that this will cost $8-$10 million dollars annually for the next five years.

The committee discussed the city’s contract at the Erie Basin Marina. The company that operates the marina, Smith Boys, is supposed to pay the city 20% of any profits over $80,000. For the last nine years, the company has paid Buffalo $1 per year, out of an annual gross revenue of about $900,000. They are also supposed to provide a monthly financial report to DPW, but DPW has never received a report from them. Kevin Kaufman, from the Comptroller’s office, recommended that the city should not renew this contract; right now, the city is liable for what happens at the marina, yet the city isn’t making any money.

Committee members again considered the status of American Rescue Plan funds. CMs Wyatt and Bollman objected to the mayor’s administration’s refusal to grant any ARPA money to small businesses that owe any back taxes, arguing that this was precisely the sort of expense the money is needed for. 

Several speakers from the Stop the Violence Coalition came to talk about the city’s denial of their application for ARPA funding. They work with families affected by violence as well as many Buffalo youth. “Let’s give kids a chance instead of putting them in jail,” said resident Kay Taylor.

Oswaldo Mestre, Director of Citizen Services and a project manager for the city’s ARPA funds, said that the total funding for violence interrupter organizations had been cut from $6.5 million to $2.5 million, and that the city was still identifying organizations and approving contracts.

In the Legislation Committee meeting, residents spoke in favor of regulating short-term rentals (e.g. properties listed on Airbnb). They argued that these units should be subject to the same oversight as hotels, including mandatory registration, inspections, mandatory liability insurance, and clear identification in marketing. CM Nowakowski supported their input and brought up concerns about their impact in historical districts.

In the Community Development Committee meeting, members discussed the difficulty of weighing residents’ needs for housing with landlords’ rights. CM Golombek expressed a preference for small “mom and pop” landlords as opposed to larger corporate landlords.