Rome has serious fiscal problems. The savings are declining. The deficit is structural. The debt is growing. Nine episodes documented all of it. But the popular complaints about Rome tell a different story than the data does. The season finale puts three complaints next to the actual numbers and compares Rome to the ten cities it most directly competes with. The results may surprise you.
Rome held a public meeting in December 2025 to shape a 15-year parks plan affecting every neighborhood in the city. Seven communication channels. Two public meetings. Two dozen people showed up. This episode is about why, and why the responsibility for closing that gap belongs to both sides.
Rome is considering a major long-term financial commitment for the Legacy Center, a proposed recreation complex on Floyd Avenue. The feasibility study that was supposed to answer the operating cost questions hasn't surfaced in the public record. So we built our own model. Rome deserves to see the actual numbers before anyone signs anything.
Rome's median home sale price grew 77% between 2020 and 2025. Rome's median assessed value grew by $400. New York State says Rome's assessments are running at about 42 cents on the dollar of actual market value. This episode walks through what that gap means, who it affects, and what the three paths forward actually cost.
Rome has been naming catalysts for nine years. They mention the grants, the developments, and the projects that were supposed to change the city's trajectory. This episode goes back and asks a simple question: what did they actually produce? From the first DRI grant to Woodhaven, here's what the budget record shows.
Your property tax bill is doing a lot more than taking your money. This episode breaks down exactly what Rome's piece of that bill funds. We talk about who gets it, what they do with it, who makes the decisions, and what a decade of those decisions actually looks like when you put it on a chart. General fund only. The basics, finally explained.
The Rome City School District runs a $165 million budget, which is nearly three times the size of the City of Rome government. This episode looks at what the school’s audited financial statements actually show, including a $344 million unfunded retiree healthcare liability, a fund balance that may exceed what is allowed, and six significant audit findings, one of which received a one-word management response.
When a building is worth $50,000 and a new roof costs $15,000, the math doesn't work. And the person in the cold apartment waiting for someone to answer the phone gets the same experience whether the landlord won't fix it or genuinely can't. This episode also looks at what the city is doing about it; what's working, what the data suggests is missing, and who has been buying Rome's tax-foreclosed properties since February.
Chobani is bringing a thousand jobs and $1.2 billion in investment to Rome. Everyone says it's amazing. I wanted to find out if the math actually backs that up, so I built a ledger. Everything Rome gets. Everything Rome will likely pay. And the picture is surprising. Are my numbers right? Only the engineers will be able to tell us. But this video is a great place to start.
On March 26, 2026, Mayor Jeff Lanigan held a public town hall at City Hall. I went. I took notes. And I walked away with questions. In this video I break down where Rome actually stands as of that meeting. I’ll walk you through the four priorities the Mayor laid out (Chobani, the Legacy Center, public nuisance and community safety, and the parks plan) and tell you exactly what I still need to know before I feel good about it.