Exploring Upstate Cities:

A Dialogue in Practice and Theory

presented by the Center for Ethics and World Societies and the Upstate Institute

April 28, 2006

Opening Remarks

M. Anne Pitcher, director, Center for Ethics and World Societies

Panel One: Building Community Together:

University and Community Partnerships

Colleges Supporting the Community

Glenn Gaslin, Morrisville Auxiliary Corporation

University of Vermont Burlington Partnerships for Community Development

Richard Schramm, University of Vermont

Union Schenectady Initiative: Empowering Our Neighbors

Gretchel Hathaway Tyson, Union College

Moderator: Jill Tiefenthaler, director, Upstate Institute

Panel Two: Placemaking in Upstate Cities: Urban Greening

Studio in Landscape and Urban Ecology

Emmanuel Carter, Faculty of Landscape Architecture, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Stop Making Sense! The Case for Communication

Diane Shoemaker, Deputy Director of Community Development, and Christian Mercurio, City Forester, City of Rome

Urban Growth and Urban Forest Benefits

Dave Nowak, USDA Forest Service

Urban Greening in the City of Utica

Dave Short, City of Ithaca

Moderator: Greg Owens, senior forester, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Keynote: Revitalizing Upstate: A View from Carolina

Luke Bierman, director, Institute for Emerging Issues, North Carolina State University

Panel Three: Restoring and Reinventing Upstate Cities: Urban and Community Development Strategies

Upstate Cities & Community Development: A 'quick summary' of the last century in U.S. urban & community development

Ray Bromley, University at Albany SUNY

Strategy, Leadership and Investment: Critical Components in the Successful Revitalization of Three Upstate New York Communities

Rob Camoin, Camoin Associaties

Bringing the Jobs Back Home: Commuting is a Waste Part One & Part Two

Peter Cann, Madison County Industrial Development Agency

Moderator: Caryn Tomljanovich, Upstate Institute

Tour of the Village of Hamilton

Sue McVaugh, mayor of Hamilton

Panelist Biographies

Luke Bierman is the Director of the Institute for Emerging Issues at the North Carolina State University where he also is appointed to the Political Science Department with the rank of Associate Professor.  Trained as a lawyer and political scientist, Luke earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in Political Science at the State University of New York at Albany, a J.D. at the Marshall Wythe School of Law of the College of William and Mary, and a B.A. in American Political History at Colgate University.  At the Institute, which is characterized as a “think and do” tank, Luke is responsible for all aspects of the operation, including strategic planning, communications, development and policy.  The Institute brings together leaders from business, higher education and government to develop innovative public policy that addresses the most pressing issues of the region. 

Ray Bromley is a Professor at the University at Albany.  He has taught and practiced planning for 30 years and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners.  He is particularly interested in community development and neighborhood revitalization, housing policy, small business promotion, and the history of ideas in planning.  Ray was born in Britain, got his Bachelors and PhD degrees from Cambridge University, and worked ten years at the University of Wales in Swansea before moving to the U.S. in 1985.  He has authored and edited a wide range of articles and books on planning and international development.  

Rob Camoin formed Camoin Associates based on the belief that successful economic development requires the gathering and interpretation of market data and the development of initiatives that are supported by its findings.  Rob’s areas of expertise include commercial and industrial market analysis, business expansion, economic development and strategic planning. He has a B.A. in economics and finance from St. Bonaventure and a Master’s Of Urban Planning from SUNY Buffalo.

Peter Cann has been director of the Madison County Industrial Development Agency for the past ten years.  During this time, he has helped existing companies prosper and expand, managed an incubator to encourage start up businesses and worked to attract companies from outside the region to Madison County.  He is actively involved with Madison County Habitat for Humanity, the Chittenango Rotary and the CNY Chapter of the NYS Forest Owner Association.  He holds a B.S. degree from Northeastern University and an MBA and M.S. from Syracuse University.

Emanuel Carter is Associate Professor and Director of the Master of Landscape Architecture Program in the Department of Landscape Architecture at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science & Forestry (SUNY-ESF). A product of  Philadelphia public schools, Professor Carter received the Bachelor of Arts in Government (international relations) and the professional Master of Regional Planning from Cornell University. Eleven years of professional practice included positions with the Ithaca Department of Planning & Development, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Recreation Conservation, Chase Architectural Associates (Syracuse, NY) and the Syracuse Department of Community Development.  Professor Carter has been at SUNY-ESF since 1985  

Glenn Gaslin is the general manager of the Morrisville Auxiliary Corporation, a New York not-for-profit corporation affiliated with Morrisville State College. The  Auxiliary corporation provides most of the non-academic support for the college, including retail operations, dining services, ice rinks, computer services, data and telephone/cell services, Nelson Farms, Dairy, cable, laundry, and  a village restaurant. The mission of the corporation is to serve the college, the student body, and the local community. Glenn is a retired Air Force officer who flew F-4 and KC-135 air craft, as well as commanding engineering and services units in the Middle East and Southeast Asia. He also served eight years at the Air Force Academy.

Gretchel Hathaway Tyson is the Director of Affirmative Action and Community Outreach at Union College. Dr. Tyson received her Bachelors degree from Manhattanville College, NY, her Masters degree from Yeshiva University, NY, and her Doctorate in Social Work from the University of Pittsburgh, PA.  She has had extensive experience volunteering on local boards of directors of non-profit organizations such as the WMHT Educational Public Television and Radio and is the past board president of the Family and Child Services of Schenectady.  As part of her community outreach role, she is responsible for the coordination of community programs for the Union-Schenectady Initiative sponsored by Union College and the Kenney Community Center. Dr. Tyson teaches in the Sociology Department at Union College and her research interest includes child physical and sexual abuse, teenage abuse, marital rape and spousal abuse.

Sue McVaugh has been the mayor of the Village of Hamilton in 2005. She served as a Village of Hamilton Trustee from 1996-2005.  She is currently employed at Community Action Partnership for Madison County and is an active collegiate field hockey and lacrosse umpire. 

Christian Mercurio is the City of Rome's Urban Forester and enjoys board positions on two local downtown revitalization organizations. Prior to relocating in New York, Christian has previously practiced forest management with the USDA Forest Service in New Mexico, managed a retail nursery & landscape company in North Carolina, and worked as a forester for the State of North Carolina in Asheville. He holds a B.S. in Forest Resource Management from SUNY ESF.  

Dave Nowak has worked for the USDA Forest Service since 1989.  Currently, he is the Project Leader of a research unit of the Northeastern Research Station, located in Syracuse, New York. The mission of the research unit is to understand and quantify the effects of urban forests and their management on human health and environmental quality.  Dave has worked at the Chicago Urban Forest Climate Project and is a recipient of the American Forests Urban Forest Medal.   His current research includes investigating national and local urban forest structure, health and benefits, determining the effects of urban trees on air quality, developing tools and models to allow urban foresters to sample and quantify management needs.  He has a PhD in Urban Forest Ecology from the University of California at Berkeley.

Greg Owens is a senior forester with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) responsible for public lands management and planning in Madison and Chenango Counties. He is a board member of Southern Madison Heritage Trust and vice president of NYS Urban and Community Forestry Council. He has previously worked with the US Forest Service, Peace Corp/ Dominican Republic and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. He studied landscape architecture at City College of New York and forestry at Syracuse University.

Anne Pitcher is a Professor of Political Science, a Presidential Scholar, and the Director of the Center for Ethics and World Societies at Colgate University.  The Center’s theme for 2005-2006 explores the tensions and complementarities among cities, citizenship, and modernity not only within the United States, but also in city spaces as different as Sao Paolo and Bombay.  A member of the Colgate faculty since 1990, Professor Pitcher’s own research examines the impact of political and economic reforms on urban areas and residents in southern Africa.  Her latest work traces the car trade in postwar Luanda, Angola.

Richard Schramm is in the Department of Community Development & Applied Economics at the University of Vermont where he teaches courses in economics and community development. He previously taught in Business, Planning and Policy programs at Columbia, Cornell, Tufts, MIT, and Goddard College. He is a Campus Compact Northern New England Service-Learning Consultant and the recipient of the Vermont Campus Compact 2004 Excellence in Linking Community & Academics Award.

Diane Shoemaker is Deputy Director of the Department of Planning and Community Development for the City of Rome. Working with the National Trust for Historic Preservation's National Main Street Center, Ms. Shoemaker helped initiate the Rome Main Streets Program, a City-assisted grassroots approach to downtown and waterfront development. Ms. Shoemaker presently serves in an advisory capacity, or as a board member for a number of community development organizations including: Rome Clean & Green Rome Up & Running and the REACH Microenterprise Center; Mohawk Valley Genesis; and the NYS Urban & Community Forestry Council. She has a BA in Communications from Edinboro University and is a Grantsmanship Center and Leadership Mohawk Valley (LMV) graduate.

Dave Short has been the City of Utica Parks and Recreation Commissioner for the past seven years. Before that he served as the City Principal Planner and a Landscape Designer for Utica's downtown beatification programs. He is a member of the New York State Urban Community Forestry Council, New York State Recreation and Parks Society, and a member of Central New York ReLeaf. He has an Associates Degree in Civil and Construction Technology, a Bachelors Degree in Urban Studies and Planning.

Jill Tiefenthaler is Associate Dean of the Faculty and a professor of Economics, as well as the Director of the Upstate Institute at Colgate University. A member of the Department of Economics since 1991, Professor Tiefenthaler focuses her research and teaching on economics of the family. She was appointed Director of the Upstate Institute in July 2004. She has recently been engaged in several projects aimed at improving the well-being of low-income families in Madison County including a study on the impact of welfare reform, a USDA-funded project to increase food stamp participation, and the VITA tax preparation program. She graduated from Saint Mary's College and went on to earn her MA and PhD in economics at Duke University.

Caryn Tomljanovich is project consultant for the Upstate Institute. She works with community groups and local governments to develop and implement strategic plans and write grants . She has a B.A. in economics from Connecticut College and an M.P.P. in public policy from SUNY Albany.  Prior to working for the Upstate Institute she worked for the Partnership for Community Development and the Worker Ownership Resource Center in Elmira NY.  She has worked on numerous microenteprise and community development projects throughout Upstate New York.