News Blog
Week ahead: Events for the week of Monday, March 7
The Monroe County Legislature will hold a public hearing on County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo’s proposal to create a county Office of Public Integrity when it meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 8. Legislators will likely vote on the matter at the same meeting.
Under Dinolfo’s proposal, the public integrity office would examine county operations, including the operations and finances of specific county departments. It would have the authority to investigate concerns about county government raised by residents, make recommendations on how to improve county finances and operations, and file an annual report to the county exec and the Legislature.
The office’s director would be appointed by the county exec and confirmed by the Legislature. The director would serve a five-year term and could only be dismissed for cause. The office’s head would also have the power to subpoena records from companies doing business with the county.
Legislature Democrats have supported the plan, but said that it could do more. During Tuesday’s meeting, Democratic Legislator James Sheppard will introduce a package of amendments, which would:
The Rochester school board will hold a work session on the second phase of the schools modernization program at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 8. Board members will ask questions, hear about the program’s progress, and raise issues about the schools involved. The meeting will be held at the school board’s central office, 131 West Broad Street.
Linda Cimusz, interim superintendent of Rochester city schools, will hold a coffee and conversation meeting from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 10. The meeting is an opportunity for students, parents, and faculty to meet with the superintendent informally and to ask questions or seek help with a problem. The meeting will be held in the district’s central office, 131 West Broad Street. BY TIM LOUIS MACALUSO
"Transportation as the Leveler" is the topic of the next Reshaping Rochester lecture, which is from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday March 10, at Gleason Works Auditorium, 1000 University Avenue.
Arizona State Senator Steve Farley and Jacky Grimshaw, vice president for Chicago’s Center for Neighborhood Technology, will discuss the strategies that they have used to improve public transit options in cities such as Tucson, Chicago, and Memphis, and how these successes have improved access to jobs, health care and education. They will also discuss how a more robust public transit system could change Rochester.
Tickets are on sale for $15 per person, and $10 for seniors 65+ at cdcrochester.org/reshapingrochester.html. Students are admitted free with valid ID. Continuing education credits are offered. BY CHRISTINE CARRIE FIEN
Under Dinolfo’s proposal, the public integrity office would examine county operations, including the operations and finances of specific county departments. It would have the authority to investigate concerns about county government raised by residents, make recommendations on how to improve county finances and operations, and file an annual report to the county exec and the Legislature.
The office’s director would be appointed by the county exec and confirmed by the Legislature. The director would serve a five-year term and could only be dismissed for cause. The office’s head would also have the power to subpoena records from companies doing business with the county.
Legislature Democrats have supported the plan, but said that it could do more. During Tuesday’s meeting, Democratic Legislator James Sheppard will introduce a package of amendments, which would:
- Establish a selection committee to recommend a director for the office. The commission would consist of the district attorney, a police chief recommended by the Monroe County Association of the Chiefs of Police, an attorney designated by the Monroe County Bar Association, a CPA designated by the Rochester Chapter of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the chair of the county Board of Ethics.
- Give the office the authority to conduct criminal investigations if needed.
- The office would establish fraud control programs, inspections, and operational surveys so it can identify existing shortcomings that may lead to fraud or abuse later.
- Require that audit and investigation findings be made public.
The Rochester school board will hold a work session on the second phase of the schools modernization program at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 8. Board members will ask questions, hear about the program’s progress, and raise issues about the schools involved. The meeting will be held at the school board’s central office, 131 West Broad Street.
Linda Cimusz, interim superintendent of Rochester city schools, will hold a coffee and conversation meeting from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 10. The meeting is an opportunity for students, parents, and faculty to meet with the superintendent informally and to ask questions or seek help with a problem. The meeting will be held in the district’s central office, 131 West Broad Street. BY TIM LOUIS MACALUSO
"Transportation as the Leveler" is the topic of the next Reshaping Rochester lecture, which is from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday March 10, at Gleason Works Auditorium, 1000 University Avenue.
Arizona State Senator Steve Farley and Jacky Grimshaw, vice president for Chicago’s Center for Neighborhood Technology, will discuss the strategies that they have used to improve public transit options in cities such as Tucson, Chicago, and Memphis, and how these successes have improved access to jobs, health care and education. They will also discuss how a more robust public transit system could change Rochester.
Tickets are on sale for $15 per person, and $10 for seniors 65+ at cdcrochester.org/reshapingrochester.html. Students are admitted free with valid ID. Continuing education credits are offered. BY CHRISTINE CARRIE FIEN
