The republican candidate for Syracuse mayor is coming out swinging against her opponents now that the ballot is set for November. She’s calling out the democrat and independent candidates for their former roles in the Miner administration.
Laura Lavine says electing Juanita Perez Williams or Ben Walsh would represent a continuation of what she calls Mayor Miner’s disastrous record on higher crime, failing schools, and worsening poverty. Perez Williams served as the city’s top attorney for less than two years, and Walsh was commissioner of business development and executive director of the Syracuse industrial development agency for about six years.
“They were involved in the formation and implementation of the very policies that have created this mess. Neither Juanita Perez Williams nor Ben Walsh has a plan to fix the crises of Syracuse.”
Lavine made her remarks in front of the Nojaim Supermarket on West and Gifford streets, which will soon close after 98 years in business due to strong competition from the new price rite less than a mile away.
“This is one more indication of how difficult it is to do business here, [and] what happens when people get tax breaks for projects elsewhere. When I’m elected mayor, I will work with the business community to ensure that the cost of business comes down, or to ensure that communities like this don’t lose much needed businesses like their grocery stores.”
Nojaim also received tax breaks for an expansion three years ago, but Lavine dismissed it as too little, too late. She feels the Miner administration failed to assess the impact…
“What exactly was the purpose of starting a grocery store so close to this one, when this business has been serving the members of this community for years, and is a family-owned business, and now they’re going out of business.”
Lavine says she’d cut crushing fees and regulations, and invest in job training programs. She’s also proposing mayoral control of city schools for more transparency, accountability, and continuity in leadership.
