By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
OLEAN — In his State of the City Address Thursday, Olean Mayor Bill Aiello said it is time to pivot toward solutions to the city’s problems — “solutions that
will guarantee our community’s vibrancy for the next
generation.”
The mayor listed an inventory of residents’ concerns compiled by city officials from social media, brainstorming and Council minutes. Included are: Crime, homelessness, decaying neighborhoods, taxes, infrastructure — especially potholes — wastewater treatment, the local economy and activities for young adults.
Aiello gave a tip of the hat to his predecessors, including former mayors William O. Smith and John J. Ash, whom he called mentors, and cited many of their contributions. Also, he noted former mayors James Griffin and Linda Witte, continue to serve the city in volunteer capacities today, respectively, as chairman and secretary of the Charter Review Commission. Aiello also cited accomplishments of former mayors David Carrucci and Bill Quinlan.
“These mayors found solutions to the problems they faced
and gave us great building blocks for the future,” Aiello said.
“The problems that plague a small city like Olean are
extremely complex.” Aiello said. “To solve them we need an All Hands effort. Olean is fortunate — we have a good group who are committed to our community.
“That group includes the Common Council. I pledge to
continue to work with them to refurbish our infrastructure, keep the tax rate at a minimum, and make our community safer,” he said.
The Olean Police Department is working hard to contain an increase in crime, the mayor said. In 2024, police handled almost 27,000 service calls and made 1,040 arrests on 1,790 charges including 252 felonies, 1,060 misdemeanors, 265 violations, 166 city ordinances and 47 DWIs.
The Street Crimes Unit made 22 arrests for drug sales and possession, leading to 101 felony charges. Most were released due to bail reform. Drugs seized included fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, prescription pills, and combinations of fentanyl and heroin. “Many of the arrests originated from neighborhood complaints,” Aiello said.
“The Police Department’s Drone program has proven to be quite an asset,” the mayor said. Over the past year, the officers deployed the drone on 16 cases and used it to observe when officer safety was a factor.”
Aiello said, “The Civilian Review Board is up and running.” It had one referral to investigate in its first year.
The Olean City School District worked with the City of Olean and the Olean Police Department to add a second School Resource Officer in the Olean Intermediate Middle
School, Aiello said. “We now have a SRO in the Olean High School and in the Olean Intermediate Middle School.
We also have Special Patrol Officers in Washington West
Elementary School, Eastview Elementary School and one
is shared by the High School and Olean Intermediate
Middle School.”
Fire Department ambulance and engine call volumes reached record highs in 2024, Aiello said. More than 3,400 ambulance calls was a 5% increase over 2023, and engine calls were up 15% to 2,168 calls.
With a spike in homelessness, Aiello said, “We are taking a hands-on approach to the subject. We put together a task force of professionals who understand the problem and how it affects both the community and the individual struggling with homelessness. The task force will continue to meet in 2025.”
Neighborhood blight continues to be “a problem that we do not take lightly,” Aiello said. “Revitalization started in our business district but it is moving into the neighborhoods.”
Aiello announced receipt of a $1.2 million state grant for park facilities based on a vision Alderman Vernon Robinson Jr. presented for Marcus Park. “We took that vision to Mari Howard, the CEO of InTandem, to form a partnership.” Under the agreement, InTandem will fund a new inclusive playground for the park.
When completed, Marcus Park will have new accessible restrooms, picnic area, a fenced in dog park, a neighborhood ball field. A shared use path will connect the park with the Allegheny River Valley Trail.
The city’s new Comprehensive Development Plan
will be completed soon, Aiello said. With a $150,000 Smart Growth Community Planning and Zoning Grant “we will be able to update the Zoning Code to plan for future development, revise key regulations and rectify discrepancies between the new Comprehensive
Development Plan and the existing zoning code.” Updating the Zoning Code “will help jumpstart revitalization in our neighborhoods,” he added.
The mayor congratulated Keri Kerper and the Community Development staff for securing these grants and others for a total of $2,125,000 for the city,” Aiello said.
The city’s Code Enforcement has been working with Community Development and the Cattaraugus County Land Bank in an all out effort to fight blight, Aiello said. Two buildings were ordered demolished due to safety concerns. The department opened and investigated 520 complaints and ordered 505 remedies. There were 105 orders requiring third party contractors. “Codes also completed 423 inspections, and issued 384 permits for a total project value of over $11 million,” he said.
Aiello said that while city officials are working hard to keep costs down, inflation continues to be a problem. State Retirement System costs are increasing this year, but health insurance premiums are dropping by 3%.
Aiello thanked Assemblyman Joseph Giglio and State Sen. George Borrello for sponsoring legislation in 2024 to implement a city occupancy tax that was signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul. Proceeds of about $100,000 a year will be used for tourism and economic development.
The taxable value of property in the city showed an increase for the third straight year, the mayor said. . “This
has been a challenge as most new commercial
construction is not on the taxable roll due to PILOT
exemptions granted by the Cattaraugus County Industrial Development Agency,” he said. In addition, this is the first year of the Cymolai-Hy PILOT, which reduced the taxable roll by $6 million.
Home values averaging $110,000 are nearly the same as in 2023. The City Clerk’s office reported 557 births and 407 deaths.
Aiello noted a city milestone as the Olean City Cup Softball Tournament will celebrate its 50th anniversary in August. In 2024, the city marked the 25th anniversary of the Women’s bracket being added to the City Cup Softball Tournament.
The Recreation Center had a boom year in 2024, with both advertising and usage having increased significantly. A portion of the advertising money goes to Olean Youth Hockey. The August to March skating season, the longest ever, drew 10,000 participants during public skating sessions, the mayor said.
We had the longest skating season ever—August through
March with 10,000 customers participating in public ice
skating sessions.
Olean has received a $700,000 state grant for repairs to the city pool at War Veterans Park and held a groundbreaking last month for a splash park adjacent to the pool for which the city used American Rescue Funds.
The city also received a $75,000 grant from Giglio for a new roof at the Bartlett House, which continues to host many events including Victorian Christmas and Visit With Santa.
Aiello said the City’s Department of Public Works last year milled and repaved 3.4 miles along 14 streets, replaced 100 feet of 15 inch sanitary lines and 200 feet of 24 inch storm sewer, refurbished two city water wells and removed one from service.
Thanks to a $1 million grant from Rep. Nick Langworthy, Aiello said the city will be able to repair a failing wall at the water treatment plant. In addition, the city was able to install new lighting funded by a grant of $400,000 from
Cattaraugus County, at fields 8 and 9 in Forness Park. The Public Works Department has some unfinished work to complete this year, the mayor said. The projects include:
finishing the South Union Street portion of Walkable
Olean, upgrades to the airport and the water filtration
and distribution system, levee accreditation, improvements to the Buffalo Street underpass and the lead service line replacement project.
Aiello said the city “is very conscious of our position on the
Allegheny River. We are working to alleviate the problem
of the storm water overflow during extremely heavy
downpours. I will work diligently with the Common
Council to find a solution and secure the necessary
funding to put an end to this problem.”
“As we look for solutions to the problems that confront
our small city, I know that I can depend on inspired
groups of talented and committed people who, while
working together, will help Olean overcome any
difficulties and complications that it faces,” Aiello concluded.
The council re-elected Ward 5 Alderman John Crawford as president. City Judge Nicholas DiCerbo Jr., administered the oath of office to Crawford, Ward 1 Alderman Lawrence Bennion Jr., and Ward 3 Alderwoman Jennifer Forney, who were re-elected in November.
This is a link to the mayor’s 2025 State of the City Address:
