News Blog

County Legislature Democrats have submitted legislation that they say would encourage new mothers to continue breastfeeding after they return to their county jobs. 

Sponsored by Democratic Minority Leader Carrie Andrews, the legislation would designate specific rooms in most county-owned buildings for employees and the public to breastfeed or pump. The rooms would have locks, an electrical outlet, and chairs.

The measure would benefit county employees, Andrews said during a press conference this morning, as well as members of the public who have to wait in county facilities such as the Department of Human Services. 

Under existing law, the county must provide space for employees who want to breastfeed or pump, but only on an as-needed basis. And the county does appear to follow the law, Andrews said. But a dedicated room would be more encouraging, she said.

"We certainly have an opportunity to do more here," she said.

City Hall has a designated breastfeeding room, and many private companies — Kodak and Paychex included — also have them, she said.

Andrews has introduced similar legislation in the past, and it was promptly dismissed by the Legislature president. This time, her proposal was has been sent to the Legislature's Agenda/Charter Committee, which meets at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 25.

Until now, the Rochester Joint Schools Construction Board has remained relatively quiet the face of accusations of wrongdoing in the first phase of the $1.2 billion schools modernization project. (There is an FBI investigation, but details are scant.) 
 
Much of that concern has come from City Hall. Mayor Lovely Warren demanded specific changes to the draft legislation for phase two of the project to, she said, strengthen oversight and protect taxpayers. 

But, citing misinformation reported in the media, the RJSCB pushed back on the rumors and innuendo yesterday in this brief written statement:

"There have been some recent incorrect statements reported in the press concerning the federal government investigation of allegations of wrongdoing in connection with the School Facilities Modernization Project, including possible wrongdoing by the Board’s former Independent Compliance Officer."

"The FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office have informed the Board that they consider the Board to be the victim of any such wrongdoing. As such, the FBI and the U.S. Attorneys’ Office have kept the Board apprised of the status of the federal investigation. They have not identified the Board’s Executive Director, Tom Renauto, or the project’s program manager, the Gilbane Building Company, as suspects in the investigation. In fact, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has provided the Board with assurances that Mr. Renauto is merely a witness, as opposed to a suspect, in the investigation. The suggestion that the FBI is investigating the program manager and Executive Director is contrary to the information we have been provided by the government."

The Rochester Joint Schools Construction Board

Thomas Renauto
Executive Director
Rochester Joint Schools Construction Board

Several years ago, a narrative took root about the Rochester school district: low graduation rates and inept management are largely due to adults who are putting their interests above what's good for students; jobs for adults are more important than the needs of students became a well-worn refrain.

The position, a not-so-thinly-veiled reference to the Rochester Teachers Union and school board members, was used to try to sell mayoral control and the expansion of charter schools.

This week, Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren and City Council President Loretta Scott used the full weight of their political positions to threaten funding for the second phase of the $1.2 billion schools modernization project. Citing alleged criminal wrongdoing and mishandling of the $325 million for the first phase of the project, they lobbied lawmakers for 11th-hour changes to the legislation that they say will improve oversight and protect taxpayers. 

Warren and Scott got their way, though we still don’t know if lawmakers in Albany will approve the funding for the second phase of the project. The vote should happen on Thursday. 

That’s not to say that Warren’s and Scott’s concerns are't legitimate or that they aren't concerned about the welfare of city students. But let’s be clear, a large component of this dispute was about protecting construction jobs for adults in this community. Some people have described the entire project as the biggest jobs bill to ever hit the city. And there’s some truth to that. 

Warren and Scott should be concerned about bringing more jobs to the city; that’s partly what they were elected to do. The Rochester school district employs thousands of adults annually. And money that passes through the district employs thousands more. No, they aren’t all for people who live in the city, but many are.

Let’s stop pretending that education isn’t big business, especially in the Rochester economy. 

Child and consumer product advocates have been trying for the last few years to get the State Senate to pass the Child Safe Products Act. The legislation would eventually ban a list of toxic chemicals in children's products.

Tomorrow is the last day of the Senate's session, and the legislation's supporters have been making a last-minute push for a floor vote.

The Assembly has already passed the legislation twice. And Rochester-area Senators Ted O'Brien and Joe Robach — one a Democrat, the other a Republican — are among the bill's 34 co-sponsors. The bill's primary sponsor is Senator Phil Boyle, a Long Island Republican, and more than half of the Senate co-sponsors it. The legislation would most likely pass if brought to the floor.

And yet, the Senate leadership isn't bringing the bill to the floor. An article published this morning by the state political news site Capital provides a likely explanation:

"The American Chemistry Council has spent considerable amounts of money to lobby against the Child Safe Products Act, state records show. The group spent at least $160,000 last year to fight a variety of bills, but paid particular attention to the Child Safe Products Act, according to records filed with the Joint Commission on Public Ethics."

The article also says that lobbyists have been "staking out legislators outside the Senate chamber for the last few days." 

The International Joint Commission has sent a report to the United States and Canadian governments recommending its Plan 2014 for managing Lake Ontario and St. Lawrence River water levels. The two governments have to approve the plan before it can go into effect, and the commission expects to receive responses from the US and Canada in coming months.

The commission is a US-Canadian group that handles issues involving water bodies shared between the countries. For almost 15 years, the commission has tried to develop and advance a modern plan to manage Lake Ontario and St. Lawrence River water levels. The levels are regulated via the Moses-Saunders hydropower dam on the St. Lawrence River, and the current approach uses a plan implemented in the early 1960's.

In a conference call this afternoon, US and Canadian commissioners said that Plan 2014 balances the interests of hydropower operators, the environment, commercial shipping, recreational boaters, and shoreline property owners. The previous plan didn't take the environment into consideration and, as a result, important coastal wetlands have been damaged.

"No regulatory plan can satisfy the needs of all the interests all of the time," said US Commissioner Dereth Glance said during the conference call.

It appears that an agreement has been reached to settle a last-minute political dispute that threatened funding for the second phase of the Rochester school district's massive construction project known as facilities modernization. 

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren and City Council President Loretta Scott complained via letter to state lawmakers yesterday that their proposals to improve oversight and implementation of the $1.2 billion project were ignored, and that the bill was submitted without their knowledge. Warren said the proposals are necessary to safeguard taxpayers' money. 

State Assembly member Joe Morelle said that much of what Warren and Scott were asking for is redundant and that the project must proceed for the sake of the district's students. 

Facing a midnight deadline Tuesday for bill amendments, Morelle and Warren reportedly negotiated into the night. And Warren, Morelle, Scott, and State Senator Joe Robach released this statement moments ago: 


(Tuesday, June 17, 2014) — Following a series of productive conversations we are pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement on the incorporation of additional amendments to legislation authorizing Phase II of the Rochester School Facilities Modernization Program.

These amendments incorporate several of the recommended changes to the bill that the Mayor had advanced, including: reinstating the Independent Compliance Officer (ICO) as a non-voting member of the Joint Board; providing for a criminal offense should any person submit a false report to the Joint Board; and also, providing the Mayor will the ability to approve the contract of the program manager.

We have long recognized public education as a great socio-economic equalizer, and by coming together and forging a compromise we are demonstrating our unified commitment to ensuring a brighter future of our children and their families. The agreement reached now paves the way for the legislation to be brought to the floors of the Senate and Assembly for a vote. Ultimately, the children of Rochester have won the day.

With the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival getting under way this week, it’s fitting to acknowledge one of the greatest jazz vocalists of the 20th century, Jimmy Scott. He was hardly a household name, but he should have been. Scott, who died last week at age 88, was small in physical stature, but is often credited with influencing music giants such as Frank Sinatra, Marvin Gaye, and Nancy Wilson.

Scott’s distinctive voice — an almost androgynous, breathy sound — was believed to be the result of Kallmann syndrome, a health disorder that left him small and boyish-looking. Perhaps his biggest hit, “Everybody's Somebody’s Fool,” is a haunting, punch-in-the-gut piece that’s almost impossible to forget.

Scott’s career seems almost tailor-made for a music biopic. He started in the early 1950’s and performed with jazz legends such as Billie Holiday. But his career paused in the early ‘60’s, partly due to disputes over recording contracts, and some critics at the time thought his sound was too feminine. He appeared on some recordings with other jazz artists, but often wasn't credited. He continued to sing, but he earned his living through a series of low-paying jobs.

In the early 1990’s, Scott’s work was rediscovered and he appeared on a couple of film soundtracks. Film director David Lynch featured him on the TV show Twin Peaks, and a few albums followed.

Scott’s voice probably wasn’t for everyone. It was poetic and it took time to absorb what he was communicating. I’m especially fond of “Why Was I Born?” It’s a rather ironic question, since there will surely never be another Jimmy Scott.

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren and City Council President Loretta Scott sent a letter to the State Legislature today, slamming the first phase of the $1.2 billion modernization project in the Rochester school district. And they say they are opposed to the Assembly bill seeking $435 million to begin the project's second phase. 

The letter says that there are serious concerns about broken timetables, the handling of funds, and other aspects of the project's first phase. And Warren and Scott say that their recommendations for changes to the draft bill for the second phase were ignored. "Instead, the bill was filed without her [Warren's] knowledge," the letter says. 

The letter also says that the bill should prohibit former members of the Rochester Joint Schools Construction Board, the organization charged with oversight of the project, from assuming the role of executive director and advisory staff for at least two years after they resign or are replaced.  And the bill should prohibit money from the second phase of the project being used for cost overruns on the first phase, the letter says. 

Assembly Majority Leader Joe Morelle's letter responding to Warren and Scott is attached at the bottom of this post.

The schools construction project, considered the largest in the city's history, has been fraught with delays from its inception, much of it occurring during multiple changes of superintendents and mayors. Last month, Warren confirmed that the FBI is investigating some of aspects of the first phase of the project, and that she has reservations about moving forward.

Rochester schools Superintendent Bolgen Vargas and the Rochester school board have urged that funding for the second phase of the project move forward; stating that delays would cause serious problems. But State Assembly member David Gantt has stated that he will not support the bill while the FBI investigation is under way. Gantt led passage of the bill through the Legislature for the first phase of the project.

Amended City of Rochester FMP Ltr to NYS Delegation (1) (1) by Banditman1

J Morelle to City of Rochester Re FMP 06 16 14 by jmouleatcity

Disability rights advocates from Rochester will hold a vigil and press conference at Senator Joe Robach’s office, 2300 W. Ridge Road, from noon to 5 p.m. on Monday, June 16, over the Nurse Practice Act. The press conference is at 1 p.m.

Advocates want state lawmakers to amend the act to implement the Community First Choice Option. They say the change would ensure that any senior or person with a disability who is eligible for institutional placement would have the option to receive services and supports in the community.

But political feuding between the governor and the Senate is preventing action on this matter, advocates say. BY CHRISTINE CARRIE FIEN


The public has an opportunity to speak with city schools Superintendent Bolgen Vargas at an open forum at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, June 17.

Many participants say they value the opportunity to have a direct conversation with the superintendent. The meeting will be held at the district’s central office, 131 West Broad Street.

City school board commissioners have followed Vargas’s lead and will hold their own open forum at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 19. The meeting will also be held at the district’s central office, and it will be followed by the board’s monthly business meeting at 6:30 p.m.

Expect a large number of teachers at this month’s board meeting. The Rochester Teachers Association recently filed a grievance against the district over problems involving testing. BY TIM LOUIS MACALUSO


The International Joint Commission, the bi-national organization that oversees water bodies shared between the US and Canada, will submit its Lake Ontario levels plan to both federal governments.

At 11 a.m. on Tuesday, the commission will publicly release the Plan 2014 report. It’ll also hold a webinar for reporters.

Last summer, the IJC collected public comments on the plan. The report it’s submitting to the governments takes those comments into consideration, says IJC spokesperson Frank Bevacqua. The governments will respond to the report, he says.

The IJC proposed Plan 2014 in June of last year. It’s based on a previous proposal, Bv7, which aimed to restore some natural variability to lake levels. Environmental groups say the approach will help restore damaged coastal wetlands, which provide habitat, improve water quality, and help reduce shoreline erosion.

Lake levels are regulated through the Moses-Saunders hydropower dam in the St. Lawrence River and Plan 2014 added in “trigger points” for action during extreme high or low water levels. During periods of extreme high levels, the dam operator would be able to let more water out of the lake and into the St. Lawrence Seaway. During low levels, the operator would be able to let more water into the lake.

Shoreline property owners and the elected officials who represent them have opposed Plan 2014 and the proposals preceding it. They say that the proposed changes would result in more property damage and that they wouldn’t be adequately compensated for those damages. BY JEREMY MOULE 

Nearly 13 percent of Monroe County residents are at risk of going hungry, according to a recent report from Feeding America, a national food bank network and advocacy organization.

Rochester’s Foodlink, which is part of Feeding America’s food bank network, distributed some local figures from the national organization’s Map the Meal Gap report yesterday. Across the 10 counties that Foodlink serves, 12 percent of the population is “food insecure,” says the study. In other words, about 150,680 people across the region have limited or uncertain access to adequate food, says a press release from Foodlink. That’s an increase of 15,170 compared to last year, Foodlink says.