The debate over the proposed Syracuse city-county merger, explained

For months, a policy-heavy debate has raged on in Syracuse as local officials and prominent business leaders clash over a proposed government merger.

Consensus, a citizen group founded in 2014, has recommended the city of Syracuse government and Onondaga County government consolidate.

Essentially, this proposal would merge the city and county governments into one legislative body. Consensus claims a merger would save more than $20 million in government costs each year.

Government consolidation is a hot-button issue. While 105 consolidation referendums were held across the United States between 1902 and 2010, only 27 passed, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Opponents of the proposed merger in Syracuse say it will disenfranchise minority groups and burden residents with more debt and obligations. Proponents say a merger would streamline government services and save money.

Other cities with consolidated governments include Philadelphia, Nashville, Tennessee and Indianapolis, to name a few.

Consensus originally urged local leaders to hold a referendum on the merger this November. That effort stalled out, though, due to time constraints, said Cornelius Murphy, one of Consensus’ co-founders, in a recent interview.

All of Syracuse’s 2017 mayoral candidates oppose Consensus’ proposed legislative consolidation.

What would legislative consolidation do to Syracuse?

Picture the Syracuse city limits. Driving north up Interstate 81 you see a green “City of Syracuse” sign, right? Now, just picture that sign vanishing. There’s no more border.

The Onondaga County border would, in effect, become the Syracuse city limits. So driving north on I-81, if the legislative consolidation passed, you would technically enter the city at the edge of Cortland County.

Syracuse is currently spread across about 25 square miles of land. If the city and county consolidated, Syracuse would be spread across about 800 square miles of land.

The population would spike from 145,170 to 467,026, according to U.S. Census data collected in 2010.

That would make Syracuse the 35th largest city in the U.S. To put that in perspective, Syracuse would have a population greater than St. Louis, Missouri or Tampa, Florida.

Under the Consensus plan, a merger would establish a new legislative body with 29 districts and four at-large representatives. The legislative body would include 33 legislators and a single executive. Nine out of the 29 districts would be drawn in combined, city-suburb “hybrid” districts.

The Syracuse Police Department and Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office would merge. Village and town courts would be unified to establish a regional court system. Mayoral candidates Juanita Perez Williams, Ben Walsh and Howie Hawkins support most of Consensus’ shared services recommendations.

They just oppose the legislative merger. Republican candidate Laura Lavine, though, has said she does not support the entire report because Consensus members neglected area school districts in

If a merger referendum passed, officials would also reduce and redraw service areas for fire departments.

Why does this matter to me?

Consensus members claim the city is at a crossroads.

During a debate over the consolidation held at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs this spring, Consensus representatives painted a grim picture: Syracuse is facing sluggish economic development and high poverty rates coupled with a fleeing population.

“The statistics show that we are a community in trouble both in Syracuse and Onondaga County … It’s time to take action,” said William Byrne at the debate. Byrne, chairman of the Byrne Dairy board, supports the merger.

A merger would fundamentally reshape local government services, political discourse and structure across the area. Some officials say this is needed. Others, like Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner, vehemently disagree.

Bea González, vice president for community engagement at SU, served as one of 19 Consensus members who helped publish the merger recommendation. González told The Daily Orange in 2016 the merger is just one solution for modernizing government, not the only solution.

Daily Orange File Photo

What other cities have consolidated governments?

The short answer is: there’s no official number.

Definitions of what government consolidation is range from institution to institution. The Syracuse merger would technically establish a metropolitan government.

Metropolitan governments, for reference, are responsible for arranging area-wide services such as water, electricity and sewage, among other things.

The National League of Cities, though, has said there are 34 total city-county governments in the U.S.

Some large cities that have consolidated include: Indianapolis; Jacksonville, Florida; Kansas City, Missouri; Louisville, Kentucky; Nashville, Tennessee; New Orleans; and Philadelphia.

Many successful mergers have occurred in the South and Midwest. In Georgia and Virginia, dozens of governments have consolidated at the local level. Small, sparsely populated counties have merged services with municipalities.

The first full consolidation referendum to pass in the U.S. was in 1963 in Nashville.

“Nashvillians decided to do something different than the rest of the country and become more efficient government and a stronger community,” said Nashville Mayor Karl Dean in a 2015 article published by the National League of Cities.

Where does Syracuse University fit into all of this?

SU Chancellor Kent Syverud has indirectly helped push the merger, The Daily Orange found in a report published earlier this year.

New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo awarded the central New York region $500 million through the Upstate Revitalization Initiative in 2015.

Tucked away in that $500 million is $25 million earmarked for Consensus’ efforts with “government modernization.”

In a plan developed by the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council, Consensus is listed as one of the council’s signature investments.

As co-chair of the council, Syverud pushed for the Upstate Revitalization Initiative, The Daily Orange found, indirectly supporting the program with funds set aside for Consensus.

Syverud stepped down from the co-chair position in August 2016.

Who supports the proposed merger? Who doesn’t?

Miner and Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney are pitted against one another: Miner strongly opposes the merger proposal, while Mahoney favors it.

Earlier this year, the mayor criticized Consensus’ final recommendations report for neglecting schools. The citizen group has not proposed a school district merger.

Mahoney, meanwhile, has supported the consolidation efforts. As part of a state-mandated initiative introduced by Cuomo, Mahoney this fall successfully pushed forward a shared services plan that would consolidate overlapping services between county towns and villages and save an estimated $5 million each year.

The county executive has said this plan will also establish a Greater Syracuse Shared Services Council.

“(The council will have) the benefits of a consolidated government because it puts the buying power together inside that entity, but also addresses the concern people have, the desire to keep certain identities,” Mahoney said. 

Cuomo is currently pushing service consolidation across the state. The Democratic governor’s initiative requires each county outside of New York City to come up with a plan, like Mahoney’s, to reduce duplicated government services.

Colin Davy | Staff Photographer