City Auditor and Mayoral hopeful Minch Lewis today expressed his sympathy for the thousands of North Side residents who have been under a drinking water advisory this week. In talking to voters he met while knocking on doors this afternoon on the Northside, Lewis articulated his frustration with declining resources for the Department of Water:
“This crisis did not have to happen,” Lewis said. “For years the City has transferred funds out of the Department of Water budget to underwrite general operating expenses. Unfortunately, the residents of the Northside paid the price this week, because of the mistakes of City Hall. The bottom line is the City’s infrastructure has crumbled because of the poor financial management of City Hall. The only way to ensure that problems like this don’t re-emerge is to implement multi-year budgeting.”
Lewis is the only Mayoral candidate proposing a developed multi-year budget. His budget includes a multi-year capital campaign to rebuild the City’s infrastructure in all neighborhoods, fully fund the Department of Water—and pay for it. This is yet another example of the new type of leadership Minch Lewis will provide as Mayor of Syracuse.