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This is Rochester
 
   A summary of noteworthy news about Greater Rochester government
 
  More from early 2019

City Council adopts dynamic staffing for fire stations

June 18, 2019 -- Rochester City Council has approved dynamic staffing for firefighters over union objections.

Under the new policy, the Rochester Fire Department will spread out crew members to other fire halls when any firefighters call out of work. In the past the city used overtime to fill that spot.

While the union said the move is unsafe, city officials pledged response times will still fall within an acceptable range.

Singletary approved as Rochester police chief

June 18, 2019 -- Rochester City Council approved La'ron Singletary, 39, as the city's new police chief.

Mayor Lovely Warren selected the former deputy chief for the job in April and he had been serving in the job on an interim basis.

Singletary has been in the Rochester Police Department for 19 years.

Schools question to be added to November ballot in city

June 18, 2019 -- City of Rochester voters will go on the record in November with whether they want Rochester City Schools to be taken over by the state.

Rochester City Council voted 5-3 to approve a measure to amend the city charter, a move required before the matter could be put to voters. The proposal was put forth by Mayor Lovely Warren earlier this month.

Though Rochester residents will vote on a referendum on whether the New York State Education Department shoul temporarily take over schools, the vote is non-binding because Albany lawmakers have the final say.

Cuomo planning on $300 million in shoreline improvements

June 10, 2019 -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo pledged $300 million for shoreline improvements along Lake Ontario in light of substantial flooding for the second time in three years.

Cuomo said the newly impaneled Lake Ontario Commission co-chaired by Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Howard Zemsky and Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos will develop a plan to improve waterfront infrastructure with help from local municipalities that will match 15 cents for every dollar the state spends.

"We can't do this every two years," Cuomo said during a stop in Rochester. "We don't have the funding to do this every two years."

Cuomo has said the plan is to "redesign and re-envision a different type of shoreline" that protects against flooding. Proposals from the eight lakeshore counties are due to the commission by Labor Day to be assessed and prioritized.

Cuomo says International Joint Commission should pay

June 8, 2019 -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants the International Joint Commission to reimburse the state for costs associated with Lake Ontario flooding.

In a press release, Governor Cuomo said New York committed over $100 million to repair shoreline properties in 2017 and is facing substantial expense again this year.

Cuomo believes the IJC had been aware of the "present danger from the massive snowpack and the likelihood of continued rains into the spring of this year" but continued to follow procedures that have been ineffective in lowering lake levels. He said record-breaking water levels in two of the past three years show that the controversial Plan 2014 is not working.

Some experts have contended there is no water management system that would eliminate flooding.



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