S3,E24 - Sharon Owens, Ben Walsh, Rob Simpson

Katie Zilcosky | Host, Talk CNY:

This is Talk CNY, a semi-monthly podcast by CenterState CEO. We're an independent nonprofit committed to creating inclusive, equitable and sustainable economic growth in Central New York. Join us as we meet the people and explore the projects driving the regional economy forward. This is Talk CNY, presented by NBT Bank. I'm Katie Zilcosky, Director of Communications at CenterState CEO and your host for Talk CNY. The city of Syracuse will have a new mayor at the start of the new year. Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh reaches his term limit at the end of 2025, and current Deputy Mayor Sharon Owens will succeed him starting in 2026. CenterState CEO's great working relationship with the city of Syracuse has helped to advance key regional strategies that have positioned us for today's historic growth. On this episode of Talk CNY, presented by NBT Bank, CenterState CEO, president and CEO Rob Simpson takes over as host for a discussion with Mayor Ben Walsh and Mayor-elect Sharon Owens to talk about the work that's been done and the goals for the future.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Thank you, everyone, for joining us today for Talk CNY, presented by NBT Bank. Today, we have a very special episode. I'm really pleased to have two very good colleagues and friends here. Mayor Walsh, Mayor-Elect Owens, thank you both for joining us, and thank you for all the leadership you've provided to the city over the last eight years.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

Thanks for having us.

Great to be here.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Reflecting, this is an interesting moment of reflection, obviously a point of transition. Mayor, a couple of weeks left in your term, interested in hearing from you, your thoughts on that; and Mayor-elect, the opportunity for you to step into this next role and continue to provide the same level of solid leadership for the city that you've been driving over your entire career. I was thinking about this episode the other day, and one of the things that dawned on me that I think was really remarkable that the two of you did together at the beginning of your term was, you actually took some time as a leadership group to sit down and chart a vision for the city. I remember, at the time, in the corporate world and not-for-profit world, everybody has a mission statement and a vision statement, but you don't see that from municipalities. You both took the time to prioritize that. Tell us a little bit about why, what that process looked like, and what that North Star has meant to you over the last eight years.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

Yeah, so I'll start, and just say the two most important things that we did at the beginning of the administration. It's worth noting that Mayor-elect Owens was my first hire. We have literally been side by side every step of the way. We developed the team, and that was critical to getting the right team in place. And then we took some time, we went offsite, we actually went out to Highland Forest, and we had an offsite, and the next thing we did was we developed a vision statement. As you said, we wanted to have that North Star to guide us because one thing that we both knew from working in city government is that there are distractions every day, and there are emergencies every day, and you can be consumed by those if you don't occasionally pick your head up and keep your eye on the horizon.

To have that vision statement that allowed us to have a reason to do that. For anyone who's gone through that process before, a lot of wordsmithing for ultimately a short statement, but that statement has guided us, and it is for Syracuse to be a growing city that embraces diversity and creates opportunity for all. I'll break that down a little bit and would love to hear from Mayor-elect Owens, but the beginning of that statement, growing intentionally, we know by most metrics this city, this region, have not grown. At least up until recently, we lost population. We lost jobs. So we wanted to be ambitious about growth. Going to the end of the statement, we wanted to grow in a way that created, truly created opportunity for all. If we want to move the needle as it relates to generational poverty, we need to make sure that people in communities that have historically not participated in growth to participate and central to that vision statement, the way we do that is we embrace our diversity, we embrace the different populations and communities, acknowledge the challenges and the barriers that stand in front of some of them and ensure again that everyone benefits.

Did I get that right?

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

Yes. And I'll say that there's nothing about that vision that's changed.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

Right.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

Growing, embracing diversity, creating opportunity for all. I will just say, breaking news: we're changing "will" to "is." It is a growing city.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

Amen.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

And that has been because of all the work that we've done today.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

I think it's something that for many people in just an observation that I see in interfacing with community partners and business leaders and other elected officials, folks who've been in this work, in this community for a really long time, and the mindset shift to understanding that our reality has finally caught up to some of our ambition, not the complete ambition. We still have a lot of work to do, but we know just from the data that this past year Syracuse led the state of New York in job growth. What a remarkable thing to say. We haven't been able to say that in 35 years. So I love the fact that you're thinking about changing that, making it present day. How do you see that vision statement sort of continuing to carry into your term and your leadership as you build out your own team and chart your own course for the city's future?

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

Over the course of the campaign, there was always a comparison to myself and Mayor Walsh, and I never shied away from that. We were a team to really move this through with the other parts of our executive team, and the entire city entourage of hard city workers. I embrace the fact that we have a moment of continuity,

Let's continue what we're doing. Let's continue. We were at the groundbreaking and ribbon-cutting of six new houses on State Street, and five of the six have buyers. We were in there, really just talking about people turning to me, saying, "What now?" We're putting our foot on the pedal. We're not going to stop. We have set a foundation for some really great housing, economic development, and infrastructure movement that I'm not looking to change. I'm looking to add on. I'm looking to, and what I'm out here doing now is really speaking to those who are now because of this moment, looking at Syracuse, maybe some for the very first time, saying that if you're looking for a community that is not too small and not too big, that's us.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

The Goldilocks community. We're just the right size.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

If you want to pilot a model, come to Syracuse. We have gotten to the place where we understand because we've had to learn how we can be our own worst enemies if we're not collaborative. If we're not working together across government and industry. We're not going back down that road. I have great relationships through this man, who really taught us to rise above and to really work together. That is a continuation of what we're going to do.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

It's interesting to hear you reflect on the idea of people, maybe who haven't been thinking about Syracuse, who are just coming forward. I'm sure you get calls at City Hall, we get calls from people all over the country, in some cases all over the world, who are like, "Hey, something's happening there." We're interested in exploring what it might look like to invest or to build a facility, but we don't have to dial the clock back too far to a moment when we're struggling to attract investment, in particular, in parts of our community that have been historically disinvested in. I think this is one of the things as you both talk about in the vision that you set out, right? Opportunity for all. In the decade or so prior to the two of you taking office, we saw lots of positive developments. We saw some investments, we saw downtown start to gain a little bit of traction, a little bit of legs.

But the energy and the momentum in the center of the city and in some of our suburban locations, wasn't always reflected in our neighborhoods and our business corridors in the city. And it brings me back to that first sort of year that two of you were in office, this idea that you had around the Syracuse Surge and this South Side campus for the New Economy, right? Things that, at the time, I remember people were like, I have no idea what that is. So tell us a little bit about what that is and why you set out that ambitious agenda for parts of our community that have been historically overlooked.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

So again, it's central to the vision. We worked with partners like CenterState CEO to identify the opportunities in the New Economy, whether it's AI or Internet of Things or Uncrewed Aerial Systems. We started to look at how we could prepare, specifically, the city of Syracuse, that's who we serve, the residents of the city, to be competitive in that New Economy. That was the impetus behind Syracuse Surge. Our strategy for inclusive growth in the New Economy, and that led us to look at infrastructure investments, people investments and place investments that would position us. So you mentioned the South Side campus for the New Economy. Here we are sitting in this amazing INSPYRE Innovation Hub. Of course, you had The Tech Garden before it that was churning out innovative companies and entrepreneurs that we wanted to retain, not just in the region but in the city and in the core of the city and beyond that.

So that's how we engaged with the entrepreneurial community. We needed to make sure our young people were getting the skills necessary to be those next entrepreneurs and to work for those entrepreneurs. That was the impetus behind the STEAM School building off of the career and technical education programs that the Syracuse City School District had been excelling in and creating this center of excellence. This high school that would not only really focus on those areas but do it in a way that again, broke down barriers that brought city kids together with suburban kids and then the infrastructure investments, taking something as ubiquitous as streetlights that you would view as having one sole function and looking at how we can use that infrastructure to create a network of connectivity across the city. So all of that was done with an eye towards how do we make sure that the people in the places in the city of Syracuse were appealing both for those entrepreneurs and innovators coming that were homegrown out of this space and others around town, but also for companies like Micron or others that were considering where they wanted to be that they knew that this was a place where they could be competitive and attracting and retaining talent.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Mayor-elect Owens. I think one of the things that stands out to me is some of your experience prior to coming into City Hall, working in our neighborhoods and understanding firsthand exactly the level of disinvestment, but also the human toll associated with populations who hadn't felt as if their elected representatives were paying attention to their needs, perhaps before you came in. Now, as we sit here on the northern edge of the South Side campus for the New Economy, looking down southward into the city and the South Salina Street Corridor, you can see the STEAM School out the window right around the corner. There are a lot of other investments that have happened on this corner. Talk to us about what that means to you, and what you feel like that means to not only our neighborhoods but to our neighbors in this community to see investment in places where there hasn't been a lot of activity over the last 40 years.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

I like using analogies to simplify where my mind is going. And I always say downtown is a beating heart. You have to have a vibrant downtown, but the lifeblood of that beating heart is the neighborhood corridor, the business corridors. So whether it's South or North Salina, Genesee, both East and West Fayette, both East and West, Burnet or the Hawley area. These corridors through neighborhoods where people live and are going to walk out of a door and need an amenity or something that they're going to buy or congregate around is critical. And this amazing growth that's going on in our community will mean nothing, Rob, if people don't feel it. I say it all the time, in their purses or their wallets.

That is why I've been really proud of what we've been doing around workforce initiatives, getting people to work on the I-81 project. I did a podcast with one of the guys in the neighborhood who's home back from prison, and he's doing some real positive stuff. He talked about how he ran into four Pathway's guys who have probably been home about three years, and they were just saying the money that they're making, they're talking about buying houses. I'm never going back to that life again. That is what this is about. It's changing the trajectory of people's lives.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Yes. You and I just earlier today, we're over at the new ONRAMP training facility on West Genesee Street, and I had a chance to meet one of the graduates who will be graduating next week for the Pathways program and just listening to this young man talk about how the program's changed his life. Exactly right. That's everything. I think what you talked about, people walking out their front door, I think I'm fond of saying that the economy happens up at this macro level. It's like global trade and tariff policy and all these things. They do impact markets, but human beings experience it when they walk out their door. Walk out your front door, and what is that experience like? There are a lot of people in this town whose experience walking out their front door is looking at an elevated viaduct for a highway that was literally built through the heart of our community, ripped apart communities and left a pretty significant, not only physical change in our community, but a psychological one, I think.

No question as well. The two of you have a unique partnership, Mayor Walsh, you will forever be known as the mayor who oversaw the record decision to right what I think we all feel was a historic wrong of plowing that highway right through the heart of the 15th Ward and really destroying neighborhoods and entire communities of people in Central New York, particularly those African-American communities, middle class, African-American communities that were prominent in that area at the time. Talk to us about this. It was a long process. It was 15 or more years. It was constant advocacy. There were very well-financed partners in opposition to removing I-81 or rerouting it around the city. Talk to us a little bit about your experience and what it means to you to have been able to oversee that decision.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

Yes. It was a long time coming. It was not easy, but ultimately it comes back to collaboration and partnership. There was no way we were ever going to get true consensus on the issue of 81, but what we found was by establishing the Community Grid cooperative, by identifying allies in organizing, we were able to get a message out there that resonated with people. Part of it is this is a huge project, it's a huge change. And we were just talking earlier before coming on about some of the challenges with that change, some of the short-term inconveniences. But I think that when you can break it down into things that people understand, and you help people understand that keeping the highway meant elevating it and widening it and doing further damage to the community that has already experienced so much damage and helping connect people to the opportunities that would exist from the community grid.

Just breaking it down into things that people understand to Mayor-elect's point, helping them understand and see what it looks like when they step out the door and how it's different. So it was direct and deep community engagement, and it was coalition building and also alignment of leadership. Again, not every elected official in the community was in agreement, or every private sector leader, but a critical mass were, and we were aligned in our messaging. That's ultimately, I think, what the state and the federal government needed to hear to get over the hump, and I'm really proud of that.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Mayor-elect, tell our listeners, maybe, what it means to you to be able to be the mayor who will get to oversee the actual removal of that viaduct. Not just the decision, the culmination of the debate, but actually seeing the pieces of that viaduct come down and seeing our city knit back together.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

I've said this before, I'm putting on my sneakers, and I'm walking down to Almond Street, and I'm going to stand there. I have never known this city without that viaduct, so I'm going to take it all in and then put the finishing touch on the fact that the city of Syracuse needs to get the land along Almond Street so it can be properly, in a public manner, redeveloped to the best interest of this city. And that process, I think, did another thing for this community. It was such a big, overwhelming process, and community engagement and public input. It has empowered us to know what we want in our community around mobility.

Therefore, as we're, and the DOT has been an amazing partner, but now we're emboldened in understanding that we look at Harrison Street, as we look at Almond Street, as we look at Adam Street, what we need. And that is just not what the engineering script says, but what do we really need now on Adams Street, when we have the bus hub, the STEAM school, ITC, a new stadium going in, and tripling the size of McKinney Manor. We can't have the same road. We can't have the same width. So we have really been leaning forward and just really speaking in a collaborative but really assertive way about what we as a community know we need.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

I think one of the things that jumps out at me is not only is it representative of the community getting together and figuring out what they need, but it's also emblematic, I think, of what today's Syracuse can actually do. We not only charted what we needed, but we actually drove all the way through the finish line, got the outcome we needed, and we're going to be able to realize the benefits along the way. And if we can do that, there's probably nothing that we can't do. We will be back. We'll have more with Mayor Walsh and Mayor-elect Owens in just a moment. Right now, we're going to pause for a brief break from our presenting sponsor, NBT Bank.

Speaker 5:

I would recommend NBT Bank to any business. My name is Chris Polimino, and I'm the president of Atlas Fence. Chris had decided to purchase Atlas Fence from the previous owner. He had previous connections at NBT Bank. NBT Bank provided me equipment financing, doubling our entire production workforce. It's important to me as a business owner that the decisions of our banking relationship are made locally.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Welcome back to Talk CNY, presented by NBT. I'm CenterState CEOs, President and CEO Rob Simpson, here with Mayor Walsh, Mayor-elect Owens. We've been having a great conversation around where the city's been, where the city's going. We can't finish that conversation without talking about the impact of Micron. It's been consuming a lot of civic energy and debate. Mayor Walsh. Talk to us a little bit about what it was like to be able to engage in that process and to be able to see an economic victory of that magnitude for the Central New York that we all know is home.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

Almost hard to believe we have been economically traumatized for so long in this community. It's hard for people to understand that this is real, but it is real. I think one of the things that we can all be really proud of is that one of the driving factors, other than getting the site right and the financing right, was the alignment of leadership that we talk about. And I think that going forward, implementation is going to be just as hard as actually landing the deal. And it's critical that we maintain that alignment, and I think it's going to take this community and the city to places we've never seen before.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Mayor-elect. I love, as I listened to your post-election messaging, it's about the humans in the city. One of the things that was unique about Micron is they came in making some commitments to our community for hiring, for procurement, for being a good partner. Talk to us about what that means and how we ensure that we translate those commitments into real benefit for the human beings that call Syracuse and Central New York Home.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

In the mid-eighties and the early nineties, when we started transitioning economically from manufacturing, there was really no strategy for how those employees would transition to the computer age at that time. We can't make that mistake again. We have made the commitment not to do it. We are leaning in on training our folks and preparing them academically as well. The STEAM school is going to be a huge part of that to ensure that our folks are ready to take advantage of these opportunities. But I also always emphasize the people to understand that Micron is just not about the plant. It's about the residual economy. It's also about an opportunity for all of these new people to our community who are going to need someplace to shop, someplace to eat, someplace to hang out after work. There are just so many economic opportunities that go way beyond the shift that people work at Micron.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

As I think about the through lines of this conversation, one of them is collaboration. You've both mentioned it a lot of times. I think it is one of the reasons why we are where we are as a community, but talk to us a little bit about how you've seen that play out. One observation that I would make is that for an administration that is in the political universe, yours has been very apolitical, and I give you a lot of credit for showing up, doing the work and not getting dragged into some of the same political arguments that we've seen in the past. Talk to us about how you see collaboration having influenced where we are and where we're going.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

I'll just say a wise man once told me that, being my dad, politics is a means to an end.

The end is public service, and it's doing good, and it's making things happen. I think everyone needs to be focused on that. Politics is a reality that we have to deal with, and the Mayor-elect knows that painfully well after the past year, but it's a means to making things like we've been talking about happen. I think that the community needs to continue to support public officials who understand that priority. And again, as I mentioned earlier, the collaboration part is really hard. Everyone needs to stay focused. Stay aligned, and understand that we're not always going to agree, but always be willing to come back to the table and remember why we're doing what we're doing.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Mayor-elect, you use the term "rise above," which was one of the phrases from the Mayor's first campaign. How do you see the future of collaboration in this community and the role that you get to play now as our city's chief elected official in setting the tone for that collaboration?

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

My campaign was Maximize the Moment, and now I'm saying that that moment is turned into a movement, and that movement cannot continue to move forward unless we're working together. I've always been a person and I've gotten in trouble with this, I don't care what letter you have behind your name. If it is a political letter. If you are working to benefit the people of this city, then I'm all for working with you. If you are not, I'm going to get you there because it's all about how people live, work and play in this city.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

I couldn't agree more? Lightning round question. We've got time for just one last inquiry. I guess I want to close us out on a human note. These jobs are demanding. They require great sacrifice, personal sacrifice, family sacrifice and beyond. Talk to us, Mayor, about what it's meant to you to be in a position to step into a political leadership role and be a public servant in the community that you grew up in.

Mayor Ben Walsh | City of Syracuse:

It's been a blessing, but it's been all-consuming. To your point, it is something that takes a lot out of you, and it's hard to be a really good and effective mayor while being a really good and effective husband and father and friend. I think it's important to recognize that everybody makes sacrifices, and it's really critical to find that balance. But having grown up here, seeing the highs and lows of this city, and to see where we are in this moment, just truly special and something that I'm forever grateful for.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Mayor-elect. You now get to step into that chief executive role and, knowing full well the sacrifices that are required, talk to us about what it means to you to get to put that hat on every day and walk into City Hall with the collective responsibility shouldered of our community on your back.

Mayor-elect Sharon Owens | City of Syracuse:

First, I want to just acknowledge how magnificent our community is. Syracuse elected a Black mayor, and that just really speaks to who we are as a community. We've always called ourselves a welcoming community. It's right in our vision statement, and it's only words until we can see it manifested. We saw it manifested on November 4th. So I'm just proud to walk back into City Hall because I've been with this amazing man here who's taught me a lot of lessons to really continue to move this city forward, and working with you and other stakeholders here. Our best days are ahead of us.

Rob Simpson | CEO & President, CenterState CEO:

Vision, collaboration, leadership, hope and optimism. It's a good time to be in Central New York. 2025 is coming to a great close, and the good news is we have 2026 to look forward to. Thank you both so much for being here, for joining us on this podcast. Thank you all for listening and watching and tuning into Talk CNY, presented by NBT Bank.

Katie Zilcosky | Host, Talk CNY:

CenterState CEO's podcast Talk CNY, presented by NBT Bank, is available on all major podcast platforms or centerstateceo.com. Additional content and clips can be seen across CenterState CEO's social media channels. For new episode reminders, be sure to subscribe in your favorite podcast listening app and don't forget to leave a quick review or five-star rating. Thanks for listening to Talk CNY, presented by NBT Bank.