Good News York by Growth Mode Content - GNY EP.148 | The Mayor's Ball

Episode Date: February 24, 2026

00:00 Welcome to the Mayors Ball 00:48 Celebrating Syracuse Talent 01:31 Longtime Friend Shares Memories 03:17 Deputy Mayor Offers Wisdom 04:48 Senator Rachel May Interview 06:30 Housing Development Plans 08:18 Mayor Owens Takes Center Stage 09:54 Honoring Her Mother 10:23 Big Projects and Housing 11:01 Roller Skating in Clinton Square 11:29 Message to Syracuse 11:55 Closing Remarks

I earned my degree online at Arizona State University. I chose to get my degree at ASU because I knew that I'd get a quality education. They were recognized for excellence and that I would be prepared for the workforce upon graduating. To be associated with ASU, both as a student and alum, it makes me extremely proud and having experienced the program, I know now that I'm set up for success. Learn more at ASUonline.asu.edu. You're listening to a podcast right now, driving, working out, walking the dog. If you're into podcasts, chances are you have something to say too.

With RSS.com, starting your own podcast is free and easy. Upload an episode and we distribute it to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and more. Track your listeners, see where they're from, and start earning from ads just like this. If you've been thinking about starting a podcast, this is your sign. Start your new podcast for free today at RSS.com. My name is Noah Chrysler. This is Good News York, and this is the 2026 Syracuse Mayors Ball. Come on.

This event is meant to bring together some of the community leaders here at Syracuse to get together for a night of entertainment. There's some cocktails, there's some local food. Looks like everybody's having a lot of fun, and we're going to have a lot of fun too. I'm in a rental tucks. Danny's looking great. He's got his gear. We're having a blast.

Tonight is about showing off the talent of Syracuse. From the music to the artists, to the vendors, to the food, everything is Syracuse homegrown. And so I said to Victoria, I said, I just want to thank everyone for being here. I want to thank the most for hosting us. And then I told her, I'm going to say five seconds worth of words, and then I'm getting out of way. Because if you know me, I'm going to be right there. So we have a ball, get the shoes off, enjoy some great things. Enjoy some great food and let's have fun, Syracuse.

I have known Mayor Owens since I was about 10 years old. Oh, cool. I've known her almost my whole life. We attended the same church. Got you. Tell us about Mayor Owens, what's she like, you know, at the function, like what is she the cool and, like, you know, what is she like behind the scenes?

Is she fun? I tell you what, she's a lot of fun. She's also a complete and utter professional. And I love that about her. My wife works for her at the Southwest Community Center. And she did so many great things there that got her to the point that she's here now. And I don't know anyone else more deserving. Wonderful.

Can you tell me about some of those great things? That's wonderful. I want to know more. Yeah. I mean, if you look at the programs that they have at the Southwest Center, she was very instrumental in actually implementing a lot of those programs. She's a person that cares deeply about the city of Syracuse, and you can tell. And she cares about, you know, not just the city, but the underserved communities in the city

and the folks that really need assistance and help. She cares deeply. You know, that's a passion of hers. And so I'm just super proud to be here in this moment and to celebrate, you know, the first black woman, first black mayor of the city of Syracuse. This is like such a historic thing. And I'm just proud to be a part of it, honestly. And just a fly on the wall.

I feel like a fly on the wall right now. I'm just here, you know? I love it. Awesome. Is there anything that you are especially looking forward to tonight? Or what was your favorite part of the evening so far? I want to see Mayor Owens on the dance floor getting busy. I don't know if anyone else said that, but I'm a dance with her.

If I see her on the dance floor, you better believe you're going to see me on the dance floor with her, okay? What brings you here tonight to the mayor's ball? Oh, Sharon, I shouldn't call her Sharon anymore. I should call her. Her honor. Her honor has been just a wonderful mainstay in doing wonderful work in Syracuse, as you know. And I've been very supportive of her for all of the years that she's done various things in Syracuse. And so we're very excited that she is the mayor. A matter of fact, about four years ago, I mentioned to her about running and that she should run for mayor. And she wasn't sure. that she was going to do that. Oh yeah? But I was sure that if she ran she would win. So we're here to celebrate. Very cool, very cool. So you were deputy mayor for a long time. Yes, not in Jersey City, New Jersey. Have you heard anything about Hudson County politics? Not particularly, maybe Google it. Okay, I will. I will. Just so as deputy mayor in Jersey City, did you learn anything, any lines of wisdom that you want to pass on to

Mayor Owens here? Oh, absolutely. The most important thing is to remember what got her here. because what gets her here will keep her here. Yeah. And, you know, a lot of people will come and pull on her for various kinds of things with different interests. But she's got to make sure that what she did to get her here, the interests of the city and the interests of the people at large. And the least one, because those who are influential and those who are rich and powerful, they can fend for themselves. But it's the least ones that have difficulty making, and government has to help them. I am here with Senator Rachel May.

How are you doing this evening? Great. Who is it? It's lovely here. Fantastic. What brings you to the mayor's ball? Well, I've been a supporter of Sharon from way back and just thrilled that she's our new mayor. And I knew it was going to be a fun time. Awesome. Fantastic. So from your experience as a senator, you know, is there any advice that you would give, Mayor Owens, as she, you know, she's just kind of started out here.

Any advice that you have for her during her term? You know, I've only been doing this for seven years myself, but I will say, you know, they're going to be setbacks, but you just power through them, remember who you are, always make sure you're doing, you're following your own instincts, and she's got great instincts, so I have faith in her. Very cool. Is there anything going on in Syracuse that more people should know about? Oh my goodness.

I feel like there are a lot of things. I was just talking with Pam from the symphony because they're getting ready to open the new auditorium in the steam school, which was a famous auditorium back in the day, and they're restoring it. So it's going to be this spectacular venue. So they want to play concerts there, and I think the students will be able to do their performances there. It's going to be a fantastic new addition to the city's entertainment world. And I'm really excited about that. It's kind of under the radar right now, but it's coming. Awesome, very cool.

So I watched Mayor Owens State of the City, and there was a lot of exciting things. What is one of her projects that you're looking forward to seeing take place here in Syracuse? Well, I do a lot of work on housing, and we really need more housing, more housing, more. affordable housing, more housing in places where people want to live where it's near public transportation and that sort of thing. And I think she really gets that and we're going to be working together well to make sure that development happens right here. It happens for the good of the people who are here, not for the good of, you know, investors

in overseas or something like that. I really think we're on the right track for that. Very cool. Okay. Give me the cheat codes. If I'm trying to get housing built in a city, what is like if you had to give me one piece of advice for how to do that and get it done,

make sure it's really good and really nice. What is some cheat codes that you got for me? Some advice. That's a good question. I mean, I think the city is streamlining, it's permitting process. It's trying to make it just faster, but we at the state are doing the same thing.

We're trying, if you want to build a big building, you should have to go through all the local permitting, but you shouldn't have to go through state environmental quality review if it's already permitted and it's in the kinds of places where we want new housing. So we're working on and the mayor I know is also working on bringing down some of the barriers to doing that. Very cool. Very cool. Well, wonderful. Is there any other messages that you want to send to the people of Syracuse and or to the mayor here tonight? Well, I do want to say Syracuse puts on a good party. This is a city that's on the rise and

You can see it here tonight and it's pretty exciting. So we are here with Mayor Owens. Mayor Owens, how are you doing today? Oh, my goodness, this is great. We started upstairs and we're down here now. We've got great music going on, great DJ, new band coming up. Everyone, the best part about this for me is that people who have never been to the most are here for the first time.

Absolutely. And I hope that means they're going to come back. I haven't been here since I was a kid and it's amazing. Many people don't realize that they use it for venues like this. I hope that this really garners business for the most. Absolutely. Fantastic. Okay, cool.

So what is tonight all about? And what do you hope people will walk away feeling? Tonight is about coming together, the eclectic diversity of Syracuse. We have people from all walks of life. This is the feel when I talk about the vibrancy of Syracuse. When I talk about the nightlife coordinator and the vibrancy of Syracuse, this is what I'm talking about. Maybe not dressed up like this all the time, but having eclectic different nightlife opportunities for people. This is what I'm talking about. I love it. Fantastic. Cool.

So for some people watching this, this might be like their first time like meeting you, right? So what do you want to, what do you want them to know about the type of mayor that you're trying to be for the city of Syracuse? So the type of mayor that I'm going to be is the sharing that I've always been. I've been in the community for almost 40 years. I was not looking for government. Government found me and found what I was doing in the community. I could do for government. So working for eight years, for three years, and then eight years for Mayor Walsh. I know where all the light switches are. Awesome.

So I don't need to find the right rule. I have a great team and we're hitting the ground running. Wonderful. Wonderful. So I watched your state of the city address and it was wonderful, but I noticed that you dedicated it to your mom, your pastor L. Daniels, your mom. So I was wondering, what is something

that she might have taught you that you still use today? Never forget about the people. Never. If we are blessed and I have been blessed to be able to do many different things, it is always not for myself, but for other people. And my green tonight is because this was their favorite color.

Oh, cool. How sweet. That's very sweet. All right, here we go. What are some of the big projects that you're most proud of right now and what should be people watching out for next? Well, people should be watching out. Housing, absolutely. We're looking to break ground at the old developmental center.

That's going to be 200 new units up there, townhomes up there. We're looking to hopefully move forward quickly on the golf field. the golf course on the southern tier to get projects going there. I just found out from the superintendent that 10% of our kids are actually classified homeless, so we're going to really hone into how we could get them out of hotels into stable housing. Wow, fantastic. So I did some time in Atlanta. I lived there for a few years, and while I was there, I got really big into roller skating. So I'm wondering, you know, this summer, when can I expect to be roller skating in Clinton Square?

I'm working with a Parks Commissioner now, and we're hoping that this summer that we will have figured out. I kind of put it out there, and now she has to figure it out. But I want to see a disco ball into flights and roller skating. Beautiful, cool. Last question here.

What's something that you want to say directly to the people of Syracuse that might be watching this? To the people of Syracuse, for many, we have always been the center of New York State, but now we are central to the vibrancy and what's happening in New York State. We no longer are the afterthought. We are the before thought, and we should embrace that and move our city forward.

Fantastic. Mayor Owens, thank you very, very much for your time. I appreciate it. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for watching. If you enjoyed this video, make sure you follow our page, Good News York. Make sure you subscribe on YouTube. And boy, oh boy, it really helps us out. If you could share this video with your network on Instagram, on Facebook, wherever you are, on TikTok, do it there.

You can share it all over. help us out. Thanks so much. Have a great day. I'm going to go hang out with the dinosaurs. You're listening to a podcast right now, driving, working out, walking the dog. If you're into podcasts, chances are you have something to say too. With RSS.com, starting your own podcast is free and easy. Upload an episode and we distribute it to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and more. Track your listeners, see where they're from, and start earning from ads just like this. If you've been thinking about starting a podcast, this is your story. sign. Start your new podcast for free today at rs.com.