Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox.
Subscribe to our newsletter here.

The Syracuse City Common Council voted unanimously to apply for multiple state-wide grants in an effort to support city law enforcement officers and expedite infrastructure projects across the city during its biweekly meeting Monday.

City councilors agreed to apply for the New York state Critical Infrastructure Grant on behalf of the Syracuse Fire and Police Departments. If approved, the grant would award $50,000 for new equipment to “supplement existing critical infrastructure assets,” according to the council’s agenda. The application process includes a risk assessment portion, allowing the city to better articulate their needs to state officials.

To receive funding, the city must demonstrate how the projects will address the 16 critical infrastructure systems, considered vital to functional society by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. These systems can provide services including energy production, communications and water treatment, among others.

If Syracuse receives the grant, New York state’s Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services would use state funds to identify critical issues in the region that have gone unaddressed due to other ongoing city projects.

Councilors also presented efforts to improve city traffic issues by increasing the budget of the NSEW Interconnect Project, a 2023 initiative to improve traffic light signal communication, by $2,250. The project was introduced to upgrade the interconnect system, a remotely controlled traffic signal communications system in the city, and is expected to lessen delays during rush-hour traffic.

Councilors also said the city’s Department of Engineering is constructing a city-owned aerial fiber optic cable that will be placed on the traffic signal interconnect over the Middler Avenue Railroad Crossing in an effort to strengthen city internet. Aerial fiber optic cables also minimize the need for underground digging when applying extra lining to utility lines, making them more easily accessible for maintenance.

Fiber optics efforts will also extend to the north after councilors agreed to allocate funding for the installation of aerial fiber optic cables on existing National Grid utility poles. The route will start along Lemoyne Avenue, Washington Square, Park Street, Wolf Street and Lodi Street and will end at Hiawatha Blvd West, where it enters an existing conduit system.

Other business:

• Councilors said the city applied for three other grants to support the Syracuse Police Department, which if awarded will go toward new equipment and software updates for the department.
• The council approved revocable permission for Syracuse University to construct, operate and maintain underground utility lines between Henry Street and Renwick Avenue. The university will need to pay an annual fee of $44.40 for the service.
• Fifteen thousand dollars of city funding will go toward psychological testing services for Syracuse police officers.

CLARIFICATION: A previous version of this article said funding from the Critical Infrastructure Grant will be used for infrastructure projects across the city. These funds will primarily be used for city police and fire department equipment purchases, supplementing city infrastructure assets.