BY JIMMY LAWTONNorth Country This Week

OGDENSBURG — City officials agreed to delay work on Ogdensburg's Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) until early 2027, citing the demands of the city’s ongoing Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) process.

City Manager Fonda Chronis told council members the city recently received state financial support to update its LWRP plan, which he intends to use as a broader comprehensive planning effort. However, after discussions with state officials and reviewing the city’s current workload, he said delaying the start of the project may be the most practical option.

“The capacity of the city to be able to handlehandle multiple planning projects at one time is a real consideration,” Chronis said. “It seemed to me that it would make sense potentially to postpone the LWRP until the beginning of January.”

Under the DRI schedule, a call for projects is expected this summer and likely will remain open through July or early August, Chronis said. A local planning committee will then evaluate proposals and make recommendations to the state through October. State-funded consultants will prepare a final report and recommendation package, after which the city’s primary planning role in the DRI process would largely conclude.

Mayor Michael Tooley supported that approach, noting that council had earlier identified updating the LWRP as a high priority but that the city’s $10 million DRI award changes the equation.

“I think it makes it a challenge to focus on both those projects and programs at the same time,” Tooley said, pointing to the time commitments required of city staff and community members who may be asked to serve on planning committees.

Council members agreed that staffing and public participation capacity are legitimate concerns, though Councilor Dan Skamperle expressed disappointment in the shift.

Skamperle said the city is “in dire need” of a comprehensive planning effort and he would have preferred to see that work begin before the DRI process. 

Councilor Donna Trimm said “we can't do more than we can do” and supported prioritizing one major planning initiative at a time.

Tooley also said the New York State Department of State, which is administering both programs, had indicated that staggering the two planning efforts would be an effective way to manage staff workload and public participation. 

He noted the DRI timeline has already slipped several months because local planning committees could not begin work until DRI awards were announced statewide, a process delayed by the late adoption of the state budget.

Council ultimately reached consensus on allowing the city to focus on the DRI process first before launching the LWRP update, with work expected to begin around January 2027.

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