The budget hearing drew a single speaker. Before the regular session, the council held a public hearing on the 2027 budget. Blair Genther was the only resident that spoke. He thanked the council and the treasurer for their work and said the city does a good job controlling costs, coming in under budget year after year. His concern was sustainability. He said the budget again leans on savings to cover what appears to be a structural deficit, a pattern he traced back to 2015. He pointed to cities like Saratoga Springs and Amsterdam facing tax increases of 25% to 40% percent, and said Rome is vulnerable to the same thing if its savings run out. He also raised the cost of upgrading the sewer plant and replacing lead water lines, saying the debt payments on that work will run into the millions. Chobani will help, he said, but it will not close a deficit he put at around $6 million. He asked the council to have a plan, even if that plan is a large increase.

The treasurer agreed the pattern cannot last. During his report, Adams responded directly. He said the proposed budget uses about $3.5 million of fund balance and that "obviously that can't go on forever," so Genther was correct on that point. He added that the city does not expect to spend all of it as the year goes on, describing the full amount as close to a worst case. On water and sewer, Adams said the largest share of upcoming debt comes from the big infrastructure projects, including sewer plant improvements that will be partly financed with bonds and carry very large costs. He said the city is pursuing grants and will be talking with Chobani to keep the burden on taxpayers as low as possible. He noted that the mayor and his staff cut about $1.3 million from the budget, and said there are discussions about increasing revenue that not everyone knows about yet. He called balancing the budget an almost impossible job, with residents stretched and the city's own costs rising.

The budget stays on the table, and the public can sit in on reviews. Councilor Dursi, who chairs the finance committee, thanked Adams and Genther. He said the council works closely with the treasurer's office and the city's auditors, looking at fund balances, capital projects, borrowing, and revenue. He explained that the city effectively manages four separate budgets, since water customers, sewer customers, and residents inside and outside the city's inner district each pay into different funds. Dursi said the council spends about a month reviewing the budget line by line, and invited residents to two review sessions next week, one on parks and recreation at 4:30 and one on codes at 5:30, both downstairs at City Hall. The budget ordinance remains tabled until the council votes on it.

A committee update on streets, bridges, and Chobani. Dursi reported on the public works committee, which met earlier that day for about an hour and a half. He said the street paving program is down to fewer than 12 streets and will move into East Rome soon. Work continues on Park Drive, and three bridge projects are under way this year and next: South James Street and Merrick Road, both paid for with grants, and Golf Course Road, which is not grant funded but costs considerably less. Other projects include Pinti Field and roof repairs at the police station and City Hall paid for with insurance money. Dursi urged residents to self-report their water service lines for the lead line inventory, and said that "contrary to popular belief," Chobani is still coming.

A young resident got her street added to the paving list. Public Works Commissioner Guiliano told the council about a petition a girl of about seven or eight gave to the mayor asking the city to pave Russell Avenue. She and her friends rollerblade around their neighborhood, and Russell Avenue was the one stretch that kept them from completing a loop. Guiliano said engineering looked at it and added that section to the proposed 2027 paving program. He wrote her a letter explaining what the city did and sent along maps and a few city souvenirs. "If somebody has an issue, come to us," he said.

The council borrowed for fire equipment and a demolition. Members approved $240,000 in bonds to buy firefighting equipment and apparatus, including turnout gear. They also approved $73,613 in additional bonds for demolishing the former 701 Lawrence Street building, raising the project's estimated cost from $25,000, the amount authorized in 2021, to $98,613. A councilor asked which building the money was for, and Adams confirmed it was 701 Lawrence Street. A separate cost increase for environmental cleanup at the same site was approved in August.

A snowplowing agreement with the county was tabled. At Guiliano's request, the council tabled an agreement under which Rome would plow and salt about 15 miles of county roads inside the city for the next two winters. The county would pay $7,245 a mile this season, about $108,700 in total, and $7,600 a mile next season, about $114,100. No reason for the delay was given at the meeting.

The city formalized roads and land off Turin Road. The council authorized the mayor to accept about 1.43 acres off Turin Road from developer James Cilente, completing an arrangement first approved in 2005. Under that deal, the city built water, sewer, and road connections for Forest Lane and Ironwood Drive, with the cost assessed to properties in the area. Cilente now plans to sell the remaining lots to a developer for a larger housing project, which requires paying off the remaining $45,000 assessment in one payment. The streets have been maintained by the city for years, and the agreement makes their transfer official. A councilor thanked corporation counsel and the public works commissioner for moving along a project that had been in the works a long time.

Traffic changes, including a fix to Elm Street. The council amended the Elm Street parking ordinance it passed in September. Councilor Reilly explained that an old map showing two-hour parking on the north side was carried over into his request by mistake. With the correction, Elm Street matches the rest of the street: no parking on the south side and unrestricted parking on the north side, subject to winter rules. The council also approved a "Stay Right" sign on the Floyd Avenue access road and a stop sign at Mary Street and East Thomas Street.

Other business. The council appointed Amy Mellace and Theresa Gualtieri to the Board of Assessment Review, approved $4,595 to replace a parks department trailer that will no longer pass inspection, and agreed to host one Madison-Oneida BOCES student in an unpaid internship through June. A cannabis dispensary on Erie Boulevard West filed notice that it plans to renew its license. Bobbie O'Brien of Rome Clean and Green announced a citywide Halloween decorating contest, with a winner in each ward, as a first step toward reviving the city's beautification program in 2027. She also promoted the Rome Historical Society's night at the museum. A $2.32 million federal grant for Kessinger Dam remains tabled while a final federal review is completed.