Syracuse, NY -- Syracuse city officials Thursday received documents that could advance a controversial lease of temporary classrooms at the former Syracuse Developmental Center. The documents ensure that the tax-delinquent owners of the Wilbur Avenue campus will drop their lawsuits against the city and pay back taxes totaling $1,325,000 when they sell the property to a new developer. Syracuse Corporation...
Syracuse, NY -- Syracuse city officials Thursday received documents that could advance a controversial lease of temporary classrooms at the former Syracuse Developmental Center.
The documents ensure that the tax-delinquent owners of the Wilbur Avenue campus will drop their lawsuits against the city and pay back taxes totaling $1,325,000 when they sell the property to a new developer. Syracuse Corporation Counsel Juanita Perez Williams has been insisting the owners provide the documents for weeks, despite the owners’ efforts to reach a tax settlement.
After days of difficult negotiations, the owners, Long Island-based Syracuse Resort Development Inc., provided the documents late Thursday afternoon. “We’ve provided the city everything they’ve requested,” Syracuse Resort official Irfan Syed said. “We may not have achieved the settlement we hoped for, but it’s all out of our hands now.”
Without the documents, Common Council likely would have voted down the 15-year, $28.2-million lease that would provide space for as 1,500 pupils displaced by renovations in a city-wide schools reconstruction program.
Council gave preliminary approval of the lease April 26 in a 5-4 vote, and is likely to vote on final approval Monday. Several councilors have other concerns, including the terms of the lease and the background of the proposed buyers. It is unclear whether council will approve the deal now that the documents are in hand.
Mayor Stephanie Miner has indicated the deal may be the best of a series of bad options. She has criticized the school district administration for negotiating a bad deal without city hall involvement and for not thoroughly investigating the proposed buyer, Health Consortium-USA.