This week on In Focus, a look at how the Salt City’s innovative history inspired its 54th mayor to forge his own path. In the latest installment of our “Day in the Life” series focusing on upstate politicians, JoDee Kenney sits down with Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh to talk about the mayor’s family’s history in Salt City politics, his approach to hot-button issues like crime, and Syracuse’s future. Walsh is an Independent, but comes from a family of former Republican lawmakers, including U.S. Representatives William F. Walsh and James T. Walsh — the former also serving as Syracuse mayor. Walsh, now in his second term, says he didn’t like politics as a child, but soon found himself drawn to a different political identity than that of his father and grandfather — embracing what he calls his “public service DNA.”
As mayor, Walsh has had to deal with many of the same problems that his fellow mayors across the state have been dealing with — like a rise in violent crime. The mayor says this kind of crime is rooted in socioeconomic conditions, something that holds true for cities across New York — and he says addressing those conditions needs to be part of the solution. When it comes to gun violence, Walsh is firm in his belief that there are too many guns in the United States. He says he’s spoken with Rochester Mayor Malik Evans about how to address “ghost guns,” describing them as an incredible challenge to deal with.
Mayor Walsh says one way to decrease crime is by creating more opportunities to lift people out of poverty —- which is why the city is investing in initiatives like Syracuse Surge, which invests in tech infrastructure with the goal of creating pathways to local careers in high-tech manufacturing. Walsh is also excited about Micron Technology’s announcement that it plans to invest up to $100 billion in building a mega chip manufacturing plant in the suburbs of Syracuse, which, over the next 20 years, could lead to 9,000 jobs that can be filled by workers trained through the Syracuse Surge program.
With three more years left until his term limit, Mayor Walsh says he has a lot more he wants to do in the Salt City.
You can hear all about it when you watch this “Day in the Life” episode of In Focus via the video player above. And be sure to tune in for a look inside the biggest issues impacting Upstate New York, on In Focus with JoDee Kenney — every Sunday on Spectrum News 1.
