Three candidates for Syracuse mayor agree Syracuse University has an obligation to support the city and praise Nancy Cantor, SU’s previous chancellor, for investing resources outside of the university during her tenure.

One candidate, Republican Laura Lavine, said she didn’t have enough information about the university’s programs in the city to respond.

But all four candidates — Lavine, Howie Hawkins, Juanita Perez Williams and Ben Walsh — said they want to work with SU administration to help Syracuse. The city has one of the worst poverty rates in the country, according to census data, at a time when the current SU administration could be looking to dial back on high direct investments into large city projects that were characteristic of Cantor.

At an open forum last month, Vice Chancellor and Provost Michele Wheatly said SU has to remain aware of the surrounding city but that student community engagement is “up for development.”

“We need to document and assess whether or not this is adding to the experience,” she said.

Under Cantor, who championed community engagement and made it a priority during her tenure, the university was at the center of several community partnerships that directly benefited the city.

She launched the Near Westside Initiative, a nonprofit that leverages SU’s resources for the west side of the city; the Connective Corridor, a partnership that gives SU students access to buses traveling downtown; and Syracuse Say Yes to Education, a nonprofit that aims to help students graduate high school.

Cantor also spearheaded the construction of The Nancy Cantor Warehouse, a building in downtown Syracuse that houses the College of Visual and Performing Arts’ School of Design, as well as the Office of Community Engagement and Economic Development, known as CEED.

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Since the university bought the building in 2005 and spent $13.9 million on renovations, The Warehouse has become a symbol of SU’s efforts to bridge the gap between the university and city. In a February 2016 interview, Marilyn Higgins, vice president of CEED, said The Warehouse has already spurred economic growth in the area.

But some at the university questioned Cantor’s focus on the city during her tenure, arguing she should have focused inward. And today, Syracuse’s mayor will have to deal with a university administration that isn’t investing in large-scale community engagement programs.

Instead, SU is prioritizing spending on the student experience, academic programs and campus infrastructure, per the priorities laid out in Invest Syracuse, SU’s $100 million fundraising initiative. Community engagement is not mentioned anywhere on Invest Syracuse website.

Mike Haynie, vice chancellor for strategic initiatives and innovation, said in a statement that it would be “inaccurate to suggest that our investments have somehow decreased as that is simply not the case.”

He added the university is currently doing a deep dive into the findings of a community impact assessment and will soon share the results with the public.

Here is how each of the candidates said SU should help the city.

Juanita Perez Williams

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Perez Williams, the Democratic candidate for mayor and the former associate dean of students at SU, said the university needs to do more to help revenue flow into the city, even though that may be difficult financially.

At the same time, Perez Williams acknowledged the city has “failed” on returning Cantor’s investment into the city by not necessarily providing the “same resources and contributions to university life.”

Perez Williams said the relationship between the city and the university should be mutually beneficial — and both need to do more to accomplish that.

“If we can get to an understanding of what we’re both gaining, then perhaps we’ll see more contributions and resources from the university to help our city grow.”

Howie Hawkins

Annie Schwartz | Contributing Illustrator

Hawkins is a mainstay in Syracuse politics, running for more than 20 offices in the past three decades for the Green Party. He’s lost every time.

Hawkins has a detailed plan for exactly how the university can help the city. He wants SU to set up a series of cooperatives focusing on solar panel manufacturing, urban farming and laundry services. Under his plan, SU and Upstate University Hospital — more commonly known as the “Eds and Meds” industries — would invest money and use services provided by the co-ops. In return, the co-ops would provide jobs and allow employees to own equity in the cooperative.

This exact model is being used in Cleveland, Ohio, with buy-in from Case Western Reserve University.

Since SU is tax-exempt while using city services such as law enforcement and roads, Hawkins said the university “owes the city some contribution.”

Ben Walsh

Annie Schwartz | Contributing Illustrator

Walsh, the independent candidate for mayor, worked for the city as the deputy commissioner of neighborhood and business development when Cantor was chancellor. He said he saw firsthand how programs such as the Near Westside Initiative and Say Yes to Education improved the city.

Walsh added that fiscal challenges may prevent Chancellor Kent Syverud from making similar investments into the city like Cantor, but noted that — in his experience — Syverud is committed to engaging with the community but with a “different approach that’s still emerging.”

“Programs that Syverud initiated during his time, from all the work to support our veteran community to increasing our research capacity at the university, can have direct benefits to the city,” Walsh said.

Laura Lavine

Annie Schwartz | Contributing Illustrator

Lavine broke from the other candidates and did not praise Cantor’s efforts, saying that perhaps increasing the amount of investment into the city “was not efficacious” for the university. She added that before she could make a judgment on the university’s financial relationship with the city, she needed to see specific numbers or data.

But she did say there is room for partnership between the city and SU, especially when it comes to retaining students after they graduate and using resources from the university to reduce poverty.

“I do certainly see a role for higher education for engaging with the community,” Lavine said.

Additionally, Lavine brought up the possibility of asking tax-exempt nonprofits that use city services, such as SU, to pay a fee for some services as a way to benefit the city.

Published on October 9, 2017 at 11:22 pm

Contact Rachel: rsandler@syr.edu