On Thursday, Auburn City Council heard a resident press officials on uncollected property taxes and unpaid parking tickets, then held a detailed discussion on the city’s tax collection and foreclosure process and plans to overhaul its website.
City Clerk Chuck Mason opened the meeting with announcements, including that the next regular Planning Board meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall. Mason also announced registration was open for a spring electronics recycling event set for March 21, 2026, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Fingerlakes Mall, with preregistration required.
Proclamation and public comment
Mayor Jimmy Giannettino read a proclamation recognizing February as National Parent Leadership Month, and Jared Georgi accepted it and thanked the mayor and council, saying his wife has worked in the community for years and emphasizing parent engagement.
During the “public to be heard” portion, James Udall of 106 Osborne St. urged the city to increase income limits for the senior and disabled tax assessment discount program. Udall said the council had previously discussed shifting $750,000 “from the seniors and the disabled to the rest of the taxpayers,” and argued the city could address the issue by improving collections — citing what he said was one property owner owing $171,000 over 18 properties and $600,000 in unpaid parking tickets. Udall asked what the city was doing “proactively” to collect outstanding debts.
Minutes approval and City Hall reporting
The council moved to approve the Feb. 12 meeting minutes, and the discussion turned to how meeting minutes are prepared. A council member raised concerns that questions asked during presentations were not reflected in the written minutes and suggested adding brief summaries or timestamps pointing viewers to the archived video. Mason said council minutes are not transcribed verbatim and are prepared to meet Open Meetings Law requirements, with the city maintaining video recordings as part of the official record.
City Manager Jenny Haines reported one bid opportunity for professional services for the Auburn Police Department’s STRIVE program, due March 6.
In council reports, Councilor Craig Diego said he attended a Rachel May town hall meeting, continued work with a self-defense class at St. John Paul II private charter school, and visited Harriet Tubman Residential Center, where he said an advisory board was being formed to help reintegrate youth. Diego said the director cited a statistic that “88%” of youth who spend one night in a secure facility later go to prison.
Giannettino also said he had recently been a guest on “Inside Government” at Cayuga Community College and thanked “Mr. Cosentino,” staff and students in the School of Media Arts for continuing the program.
Tax collection policy discussion
Treasurer Robert Gauthier, Haines and Corporation Counsel Nate Garland presented on the city’s tax collection timeline, including city bill due dates (installments due July 31 and Jan. 31) and county installments due Feb. 28 and April 30, followed by delinquent reminder notices, publication of delinquent properties, and a tax sale held the third Wednesday in June.
The presentation also outlined foreclosure procedures and terminology, including that tax foreclosure is pursued for taxes more than 18 months delinquent and involves title searches and notices.
During discussion, Haines and Gauthier described the lack of a formal installment agreement policy and reviewed a Cayuga County installment agreement approach as a reference point, including discussion of potential terms such as a 24- or 36-month repayment period, monthly payments and a 10% down payment requirement, with the taxpayer needing to stay current on new bills.
Website update and parking app figures
Mason told the council the city’s website was being updated and moving to a CivicPlus site, with a “new look,” and that ADA compliance was part of the change. The presentation listed a timeline with a site switch planned for mid-April 2026 and a shift from the current Granicus agenda system by June 30, 2026.
Mason also discussed the Pango pay-to-park app and cited figures showing $46,133.35 in Pango parking revenue for calendar year 2025 and $4,034.09 in January 2026, with 2,496 parking sessions that month.
Executive session
Near the end of the meeting, Haines requested an executive session for one matter related to potential litigation, three related to collective bargaining and one related to the employment history of a particular individual.
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