$85M Onondaga County aquarium on for close vote as lawmakers express doubts - syracuse.com

Critics of the proposal to build an $85 million aquarium start by saying how much they love the idea. Then, they roll out the unknowns.

Will it really attract as many visitors as Onondaga County Ryan McMahon's consultants say? Will it pay for itself or will county government have to bail it out? Will people who live here be able to afford the $21 ticket price? Do people even like aquariums anymore?

Despite the uncertainty, the proposal could move forward if 9 of 17 legislators say yes at Tuesday's full legislative session, which starts at 1 p.m.

On Monday, legislators were still making up their minds. The aquarium could sink or swim on one or two votes. And support for the aquarium does not run along typical party lines. McMahon cannot rely on fellow Republicans to carry his pet project.

Even Legislator Brian May, the Republican majority leader, said he has no idea what will happen or how he will vote.

"I'll decide tomorrow," he said. "That the aquarium can have an economic impact is something we can get behind in concept. For me, the funding and the operations are something I'd like to spend more time focusing on."

In committee meetings in the last month, legislators from both parties have repeatedly challenged the panel of experts McMahon has rolled out to make his best sales pitch. That includes Deputy County Executive Mary Beth Primo, Rosamond Gifford Zoo Director Ted Fox and David Bottar, executive director of the Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board. This is Bottar's third time in the past 25 years to make a case for an aquarium in Syracuse.

A consulting firm, which was paid $120,000 to study the concept, says the county should expect about 490,000 visitors each year. Half of those visitors would be people who live within a 20-minute drive, they say in a 220-page report.

It's just one of many facts the report states as fact, along with projections about hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in spin-off investment in the Inner Harbor.

Legislator Jim Rowley, a Republican and the former chief financial officer for the county, is not buying the numbers. He put the panel on the spot during the Ways & Means Committee meeting Friday.

"25% of the population has to come to the aquarium every year in order to make these numbers work, is that a true statement?" Rowley asked McMahon's marketing team.

"25% will come to the aquarium," Bottar answered, with an emphasis on the word "will."

"It will," Rowley repeated with some sarcasm. "How do you know?"

Bottar answered, "Because we retained the services of an expert in the industry, and they have presented detailed information…"

Rowley countered, "It's their data. It's tough to verify. You know what I'm saying? Why would I rely on one consultant to give me information and say that it's true?"

Other legislators have been quick to jump on the idea of an aquarium at the Inner Harbor, a property generations of elected officials have failed to develop.

Legislator Kevin Holmquist, R-Manlius, said he is convinced an aquarium has a chance of thriving in that spot. He said his questions have all been answered.

"I have confidence in the county executive," he said. "That makes a big difference. It just does."

Legislator Julie Abbott, R-Skaneateles, has said she believes the county has the right checks and balances to make it work. She also supports it because it has the potential to educate the next generation on the importance of good land stewardship.

"That really excites me," she said at the Planning & Economic Development Committee meeting.

That committee was the only one of three to take a vote last week after discussing the aquarium. The chairs of both the Facilities and Ways & Means Committees announced they would not take a vote. Critics suspected it was because the measure would fail.

At the beginning of October, McMahon asked the legislature to include the construction of an aquarium at the Inner Harbor as part of the county's $1.4 billion 2022 budget. Instead, legislators voted to set the money aside and allow more time to consider it.

McMahon's administration has argued an aquarium will boost tourism and generate income to spend on the county's core mission. The county executive estimates it could result in $796,000 in annual sales and hotel tax revenue. Sales taxes make up 52% of Onondaga County's budget.

The proposal is to build an 80,000-square foot aquarium on land the county would buy from Cor Development at Syracuse's Inner Harbor.

In addition to questioning attendance and revenue projections, legislators are also concerned about the lack of details about purchasing the property and managing an aquarium.

McMahon's administration has not said how much the property will cost. They are in negotiations with Cor Development.

It is not yet clear who would run the operations. The aquarium is likely to be run by a non-profit much the same as the county's St. Joseph's Health Amphitheater on Onondaga Lake.

There is also no design to talk about.

McMahon's team argues that he needs the spending to be approved in order to buy the property, hire a design team and look for someone to run the aquarium.

Legislators also have concerns about the way McMahon wants to finance construction.

McMahon has proposed paying for the aquarium with cash when governments typically issue bonds for construction.

The Covid-19 pandemic has put the county in a unique position, ending 2021 with a $60 million budget surplus. The county is flush with cash after receiving $89 million from the federal American Rescue Plan.

McMahon says the county should spend the cash it has rather than borrowing the money and paying interest.

There is another advantage to paying cash. If McMahon wanted to issue bonds for the project, he would need 12 votes from the legislature instead of 9.

"I've never seen a capital project of this size being funded this way," said Legislator Ken Bush, R-Jordan. Bush said he intends to vote against the proposal Tuesday.

Democrats have also questioned whether it makes more sense to borrow the money and spend more of the available cash on health care, social services and rental assistance.

If the six Democrats and Republicans Rowley and Bush vote no, just one more Republican needs to join them to kill the proposal. But not all Democrats, including Legislator Linda Ervin, the Democratic minority leader, have said how they will vote.

Even some Democrats have left the door open to a yes vote by saying how much they like the idea of an aquarium in Syracuse.

In 2014, Ervin changed her mind and cast the deciding yes vote for the county to build the amphitheater.

She said Friday she supported the amphitheater because her constituents wanted it.

"This time out, I don't have people coming to me and saying 'We want this'," Ervin said Friday. Ervin said Friday she would make up her mind on Tuesday.

There is no deadline that requires a decision to be made Tuesday other than McMahon's eagerness to get started.

McMahon said his team has answered the same questions over and over.

"If I hear one more time 'Love the project, but'," he said. "The buts are looking to stall the project one way or another."

The meeting begins at 1 p.m. in the legislature's chambers on the 4th floor of the Onondaga County Courthouse, 401 Montgomery St., Syracuse. It will be livestreamed on the legislature's Facebook page.

Read more about the aquarium:

Onondaga County Legislature could vote on $85 million aquarium next week, but support is fragile

Why build an $85 million aquarium in a pandemic? Ryan McMahon makes his case

In rare bipartisan move, legislators slow down Ryan McMahon's aquarium, sports complex ideas

Would McMahon's $85M aquarium reel in tourists and investments for Syracuse?

Contact Michelle Breidenbach | mbreidenbach@syracuse.com | 315-470-3186.