Cayuga County plans to keep other workforce services available during a statewide unemployment insurance system shutdown next month, rather than close its workforce center entirely, Employment and Training Director Kelly King told legislators Tuesday.
The warning came during back-to-back Government Operations and Planning and Public Works committee meetings Oct. 13. Members also advanced economic development funding, a wind project easement, a grant-funded solar installation and staffing requests. Those resolutions remain subject to full Legislature approval.
Officials reported progress at Auburn’s new DMV office, explained how emergency calls were handled during a recent Verizon outage and outlined preparations for the November election.
Workforce center prepares for service interruption
King said the state’s unemployment insurance system will shut down at 5 p.m. Nov. 2 for an upgrade expected to take nine to 12 days.
During that period, claimants will be unable to file new claims, certify for benefits or use unemployment insurance telephone services. The state Department of Labor says payments will be delayed, but eligible claimants will receive the benefits owed to them after the upgrade is complete and they file or certify in the new system.
King said the state had proposed closing the local center completely. She instead intends to restrict access to the public unemployment resource area while keeping the building open for other programs and customer assistance.
“I think that it’ll be more agitating to people when they come in and they can’t come in and talk to anybody,” she said.
King said the restricted area is expected to remain closed through November and December while staff prepare for the transition and possible complications. That local access plan extends beyond the state’s projected nine- to 12-day system interruption.
Staff would continue serving customers through other programs and could arrange laptop access where needed, she said. The Department of Labor is exploring a security contract, but arrangements were not yet settled.
Committee Chair Robert Shea supported keeping the building open for services staff can still provide.
King also said a proposed workforce partnership with Oswego County is unlikely to begin in January as previously hoped. State officials want Cortland County to have another partner before Cayuga separates from its current arrangement, leaving the change on hold.
The committee advanced a separate request to fill a part-time workforce development program assistant position following a retirement. The proposed job would be limited to 14 hours a week, carry no county employee benefits and be funded entirely through state and federal sources.
Economic development and energy projects advance
Planning and Public Works members supported an $18,000 agreement with the Cayuga County Industrial Development Agency for a shared economic development website and customer tracking system.
The first-year cost includes design, setup, hosting, maintenance and software services through Camoin Associates. The proposed agreement would begin Nov. 1.
Planning Director Kari Terwilliger said the system would help agencies coordinate assistance for people starting, expanding or relocating businesses.
The IDA director said economic development organizations have been sharing information through meetings, emails and phone calls since the former Cayuga Economic Development Agency closed. A common website would give businesses a central place to find help, while the internal system would allow agencies to track projects and results.
Those results could include businesses assisted, jobs created or retained and private investment, he said.
The committee also advanced a proposal distributing the remaining $34,000 from the county’s $150,000 economic development allocation:
- $7,000 to the county IDA.
- $7,500 to the Cayuga County Development Corporation.
- $19,500 to the Small Business Development Center.
The money would reimburse legal work, loan underwriting, technical assistance and other services already provided to businesses.
Members separately supported an option and easement agreement with Agricola Wind LLC for underground utility lines across county highway property in Venice.
The proposed agreement includes a 50-foot easement and an additional 25-foot temporary construction easement. Agricola would pay $2,500 annually during the option period and $5,000 annually after issuing its construction notice, with the latter payment increasing 2% each year.
Highway Superintendent Brian Soper clarified that the agreement concerns utility lines crossing county property, rather than road use. He said the developer could route around the property if the county declined.
A solar project also moved forward. The committee supported awarding a contract for a small array at Emerson Park costing no more than $76,415, funded entirely by a state Energy Research and Development Authority grant.
Parks Director Doug Dello Stritto described a roughly 17-kilowatt system occupying about 800 square feet near the agricultural museum. The county would own it, and he said it would require little ongoing maintenance.
Soil and Water Conservation District Director Doug Kierst reported another $2.61 million in state awards for two farm projects. Including landowner contributions, the projects total approximately $4.8 million and will improve waste storage, runoff management and agricultural waste treatment.
Emergency communications and election preparations
Information Technology Director Tom Bunn said a recent Verizon outage lasted approximately 16 hours and affected older telephone connections, including lines serving the county’s emergency communications operations.
He attributed the problem to Verizon equipment rather than technology inside the 911 center.
Officials said emergency calls were diverted to Seneca County, where a Cayuga dispatcher later worked with a computer to enter information for local dispatchers. They reported no delay for people calling 911.
The backup facility could not resolve the problem because its telephone connections were affected by the same outage.
Bunn said the county is working toward a new Motorola VESTA phone system and a transition from analog service to network-based connections. The project includes coordination with Oswego County and additional redundancy to support emergency communications during failures.
He also reported that Cayuga completed the final onboarding step for state cybersecurity monitoring. New York’s Joint Security Operations Center can now analyze logs from critical county systems and alert local staff to suspicious activity.
Bunn said the shared services reduce the need to purchase comparable tools independently and estimated savings at roughly six figures.
Government Operations members advanced three technology agreements:
- A $160,792 consolidated Black Creek support agreement for jail management and security systems covering Jan. 1, 2027, through March 31, 2028.
- A $69,986.20 Lantek contract upgrading access controls on 25 doors at the county mental health building.
- A $46,488.04 renewal for 362 NetMotion licenses supporting secure remote connections for county staff and participating municipalities.
Bunn said the mental health resolution corrects an earlier authorization that provided project funding without specifically authorizing the vendor contract.
Election Commissioner Ken Warner, meanwhile, said the Board of Elections is training roughly 250 temporary workers and coordinating with law enforcement on election-day safety.
Warner said workers have expressed apprehension about the election. He described bipartisan handling of results, controlled access to equipment and records, and chain-of-custody procedures.
He also reported that the county responded to a subpoena seeking records concerning two voters, withholding Social Security and motor vehicle identification numbers. He did not identify the voters or establish the purpose of the request.
DMV, veterans and winter staffing
County Clerk Kristine Lytle reported a busy opening celebration at the new DMV office at 25 Dill St. in Auburn.
She said computers were operating successfully and staff had incorporated customer-service practices developed during the office’s temporary stay at the Public Safety Building.
Parking at the new location is shared with other businesses in the commons, rather than reserved exclusively for DMV customers, she clarified.
Government Operations also supported transferring $23,000 in unused part-time salary funding within the Veterans Service Agency to Joseph P. Dwyer program activities.
Veterans Director Kevin Swab said the money could support breakfasts, wellness activities and access to the Cayuga Museum’s wartime exhibit. He urged veterans and surviving spouses to contact the agency about benefits, describing outreach to a widow whose husband had not pursued assistance during his lifetime.
Planning and Public Works advanced highway staffing requests covering three heavy equipment operator positions, five medium equipment operator positions and six seasonal operators. The proposed seasonal rate is $30 an hour, without benefits beyond those required by law.
Tourism Director Courtney Kasper reported that visitor spending increased modestly in 2025, with food and beverage spending reaching $39.9 million. She said the office is using visitor data to target fall and winter campaigns, including agritourism and outdoor recreation.
Shea asked the tourism office to explore further support for major fishing events and local car shows.
The committees’ resolutions are prepared for consideration at the Oct. 27 Legislature meeting. A proposed gender-based violence policy was marked pulled from the Government Operations agenda and did not receive a vote Tuesday.
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