McMahon, Kinne debate county issues leading up to next week’s elections

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Incumbent Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon and challenger Bill Kinne participated in a debate Wednesday, hosted by CNY Central, just days before the general election on Tuesday.

McMahon, a Republican, and Kinne, a Democrat, discussed topics like the closing of the Jamesville Correctional Facility and the building of the $85 million aquarium in Syracuse’s Inner Harbor. Both candidates also addressed their past experiences and qualifications for office during the debate, which was streamed on NBC3 and cnycentral.com.

“We have been through a lot together,” McMahon said. “And at the same time, these partnerships between us and you are driving extremely successful results. Jobs, opportunity, pathways out of poverty. The future is bright.”

Kinne said although he acknowledges the county’s success under McMahon’s leadership, he believes he can do a better job by encouraging transparency with county residents and listening to their wants and needs.

“I’m about helping people. I’m about working with people. I’m not going to jam things down your throat. I’m going to explain to you what’s going on,” Kinne said.

Kinne said another reason he’s running is to provide an alternative to McMahon.

Both candidates previously discussed their policies at a town hall forum on Sept. 5. They also participated in a debate on Oct. 24.

McMahon has consistently pushed for the aquarium project, which was approved by county legislators in August 2022. He said his vision is to attract more people to the Syracuse area, which he believes could make the area “good enough” to compete with urban hubs like Boston and Baltimore.

In opposition to the aquarium project, Kinne proposed instead allocating its funding to other areas, such as improving public schools. He also pointed to a nearly $6,000 promotional video regarding Micron that heavily included McMahon. (The marketing firm that produced the video was the same company that produced McMahon’s TV advertisements for the 2019 election, syracuse.com reported.) Kinne said the video was an example of McMahon unwisely handling people’s tax dollars.

“Even the Republican legislature was against the aquarium, three members voted against it. So it’s just not Bill Kinne being a Democrat being against it. Three Republican legislators voted against it. He wasn’t able to sell it to his Republican colleagues. He’s not able to sell it to the community,” Kinne said.

Both candidates also discussed whether the Jamesville Correction Facility should be closed. McMahon argued that it should be consolidated with the Justice Center jail in downtown Syracuse since the Jamesville Correctional Facility is not housing many inmates and the Justice Center jail is understaffed.

Kinne opposed this plan, saying there is limited space at the Justice Center jail for more inmates.

He also proposed an idea concerning the Onondaga Lake Parkway Bridge, where multiple accidents have occurred due to oversized trucks hitting the bridge. Kinne said since the bridge cannot be raised, the county should instead raise the road itself so that truck drivers would be able to instantly determine that they can not fit under the bridge, therefore resulting in fewer accidents.

McMahon countered this, proposing that by narrowing the lanes and creating traffic calming measures, vehicles would move through the corridor more slowly.

Both candidates said they want to work in the interest of what is best for the county by forming strong relationships with their communities. Early voting started on Saturday and will continue through this Sunday.

“The future is bright,” McMahon said. “The Onondaga County comeback is real … this is our Erie Canal moment. We are ready for it, and we are just getting started.”