DRI Rezoning Approved by Fulton Council After Heated Public Hearing

FULTON—The June 11th council meeting raised many concerns about the DRI rezoning. Mayor Rice started his opening speech by saying, “The DRI Rezone Project is absolutely necessary and needs to be done now. Many of the other projects funded through the DRI cannot move forward without rezoning. The Rezone project is a funded project within the DRI.”

After 2 1/2 hours and 20 speakers, the DRI rezoning for the most part, most people accept the rezoning except for the Nestlé’s property and what to do with it. Several speakers from Operation Oswego County, Center State CEO, and Century 21 stated if nothing is done, investors will not invest in developing the area. Fulton must embrace the DRI rezoning so that it can move forward, upgrade the city infrastructure, and allow developers to build retail, manufacturing, and other such businesses. It also includes building apartment buildings. Some residents living around the Nestlé’s property are against this, speaking out passionately that they don’t want mixed-income apartment buildings in the same neighborhood as them.

Many speakers felt that mixed-income apartments would increase police calls and crime would increase. Mayor Rice tried to interject the statement, saying that sometimes the calls people are talking about are misrepresented. When you have more people living in an area, the calls will go up. Still, some of those calls are just a matter of somebody burning something in the kitchen and the fire alarm going off, and they’re not so much crime-related. When researching these calls are happening in rental property areas, they’re not always looking into the specifics of the calls.

At one point, Frank Catiglia asked questions from the C&S representatives. He barely let them answer; he seemed more to berate them than listen to their answers.

June 18th, the Fulton Council meeting and the public hearing continued from June 11th. Mayor Rice stated on the 12th that if you have spoken on the 12th, you will not be allowed to talk again on the 18th. Amelia Ray and Frank Castiglia wanted to speak again. Before the meeting was called to order, they wanted Mayor Rice to allow them to speak again. Here is the audio from their exchange. The people who are talking in the audio are Mayor Rice, Amelia Ray, and Frank Castiglia.

When the meeting was called to order and the public hearing relative to the DRI Rezoning, Chamberlain Jodi Corsoniti read a letter submitted by the President and CEO of Fulton Saving to support the DRI Rezoning. Ron Patrick spoke in support of it, too. Finally, Cathy Trowbridge made a statement.

After all the speakers had spoken, the council voted to approve the DRI Rezone resolution.

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