Welcome to our weekly Buffalo Common Council update! Here, we summarize the most interesting information from Buffalo Common Council meetings. We will also include information from meetings related to our Community Agenda items. This week, the Common Council held four meetings, but our attention will focus on three: The Finance Committee Meeting, the Education Committee Meeting, and the Legislation Committee Meeting. The Finance Committee concerns all matters about the budget and issuance of bonds. The Education Committee focuses on issues relating to teachers, schools and school property, training, and the Board of Education. The Legislation Committee concerns all matters relating to local laws, ordinances, and general legislation, except for civil service matters.

During the Finance Meeting, the Deputy Comptroller reported Buffalo is prepared to receive $300 million in federal stimulus funds. The Common Council stated that although this would help solve some of Buffalo's funding issues, it will not solve all of them. The Council also noted that the federal government designates the stimulus funds for a particular purpose. As a result, Common Council will not be able to allocate the funds freely.

During the Education Meeting, Dr. Will Keresztes, Chief of Intergovernmental Affairs, Planning and Community Engagement for the Buffalo Superintendent, told the Council they would be releasing the next phase of the school reopening plan when medical and scientific advisors conclude their safety assessment. Multiple members of the Muslim community came to the meeting to request halal lunch options in Buffalo schools. Dr. Keresztes stated they are putting a team together to survey parents and include their children's names in the lunch roster for halal dietary restrictions. The program begins next September.

Pat Curry presented on the Governor's Excelsior Automotive Technician Task Force. Their task is to achieve five goals: end auto repair tech stigma; increase enrollment and capacity of auto technology programs; expand and improve academic programs; incentivize careers in auto technology; and identify partners to help achieve these goals.

During this week's two-and-a-half-hour Legislation Meeting, Parking Commissioner Kevin Helfer and Public Works, Parks and Streets Commissioner Mike Finn returned to the Common Council to answer questions about the School Zone Safety Program. Commissioner Helfer denied the program is discriminatory by asserting that the school zone cameras do not take pictures of drivers. Therefore, he said, it is impossible to tell who is driving the vehicles before the fines are issued. Commissioner Helfer says the program's purpose is to slow people down and make streets safer, and it is working. The Commissioner also stated the program complies with all applicable laws. Commissioner Helfer appealed to the authority of the professionals involved in creating the School Zone Safety Program, but did not name those professionals. He challenged the validity of Peter Rizzo's independent review of the program, also questioning his professional experience, qualifications, and credentials. However, the Commissioner did not provide any evidence or documentation to the Council to refute Mr. Rizzo's data findings or presentation.

Common Council Members discussed waiting years to receive requested traffic calming measures in each of their respective districts. The Council then asked Commissioner Finn who decided where to put the cameras. He answered that City staff in the Department of Public Works looked at crash data, traffic volume, and risk data and applied state laws and regulations to decide where to install the cameras. The City of Buffalo Assistant Corporation Counsel said she believes the camera program RFP clearly stated that the City was supposed to base camera location on data it gathered that they provide to the vendor, Sensys Gatso, to install the cameras. However, she also stated that she had never seen or looked at the RFP.

After Erie County Clerk Mickey Kearns voiced his opposition to the camera program, Peter Rizzo responded to Commissioners Helfer and Finn's commentary on his presentation. The Council asked both Commissioners to meet with Mr. Rizzo two weeks ago, but neither met with him after he requested meetings. Mr. Rizzo restated his credentials before refuting Commissioner Helfer's claims, stating once again that the program is more about revenue generation for the City than traffic safety. Mr. Rizzo denied the idea that the cameras are not discriminatory by pointing to the peer-reviewed spatial analysis he performed that shows the camera placement is predominantly in communities of color. Mr. Rizzo pointed to page 10 of the RFP, where it states that the winner of the bidding process – in this case, Sensys Gatso – has authority to decide which Buffalo Public Schools receive speed cameras. The company's ability to decide camera locations allows them to place cameras in high traffic school zones rather than high crash school zones; advocates have pointed out the company would make more money in these busy zones rather than focusing on crash rates alone.

Mr. Rizzo also pointed to page 14 of the RFP, showing that Sensys Gatso had the authority to control the School Zone Safety Program's press and public education efforts. Mr. Rizzo also cited this as ethically problematic considering the company is foreign-owned, for-profit, and takes a 28% cut of every traffic fine from infractions captured cameras.  He pointed out that the City stated its intention to expand the program outside of school zones on page 8 of the RFP, which is problematic considering the various issues with the current cameras. Mr. Rizzo suggested that Common Council decide whether it wants the cameras at all and that each specific Council Member has the power to determine whether the cameras are in their district. He also reiterated his suggestions from his previous presentation and requested that the Council legislate universal crosswalk striping in Buffalo, and ensure traffic signage adheres to city code. 

Multiple residents and representatives from organizations also spoke to the Council, asking for an end to the Speed Zone Camera Program, asking for more investment in Just Streets traffic design and traffic calming infrastructure. Diane Elze pointed out that 38% of Buffalo children live in poverty, making the $50 speeding tickets directly detrimental to the children in the area. Jalonda Hill spoke about her personal experience with traffic dangers as both a pedestrian and on her bike. She pointed out that the city budget only dedicates $37,000 in funding to traffic striping when other similarly populated cities dedicate millions. Justin Booth from GOBike agreed with Jalonda and Diane in his comments and added that the City should assess a person's ability to pay. He also stated there should be non-monetary enforcement measures available to residents, such as community service.

PPG Community Research Colleen Kristich spoke about the cameras problematic placement. Her analysis found eight of the 20 cameras the City placed are in low-risk traffic zones, and only four are in high-risk traffic zones. High-risk zones are those with high traffic volume and high crash numbers per year, with low-risk zones being the opposite.

City resident and attorney Peter Reese challenged the hearing process for appealing fines from the school zone cameras as he believes it creates a conflict of interest. Mr. Reese stated again that the judge and prosecutor of the appeal are the same people, and their job includes generating revenue from fines. Mr. Reese also challenged the validity of all the tickets issued since the program began, stating they do not comply with state laws concerning the readability of information required to be on the ticket and provided evidence supporting his claims to Common Council. As an attorney, Mr. Reese also refuted the authority of the Commissioner – who is not an attorney – to interpret the law in favor of the program without providing citations or evidence. The Council tabled the issue pending a meeting between Mr. Rizzo, the Council, and the Commissioners.

Lastly, on a separate issue, Matt Kent from the Foundation for Fair Contracting returned to update Common Council on city contractors violating the City's Apprenticeship law. In August 2020, Matt provided evidence that some contractors were not in compliance with the law, legislation that requires Buffalo construction contractors with contracts above $100,000 to make an effort to employ apprentices residing in Buffalo, and provides specific percentage and hour requirements for apprenticeship work. Commissioner Finn checked and confirmed in November 2020 that a contractor was not in compliance and canceled the bid in response.  Matt Kent implies that the City of Buffalo only enforces the Apprenticeship Law when the Common Council pushes the Commissioner to enforce it. Common Council entered an executive session to discuss the Apprenticeship Law enforcement due to a pending investigation. In that same executive session, the Common Council also discussed an inquiry into BPD interaction with bail enforcement agencies because of a pending against the City regarding that interaction.

Need more than just a summary? Contact us at info@ppgbuffalo.org, or find full meeting information and schedules here: http://buffalony.iqm2.com/Citizens/Default.aspx