The Debrief Podcast

Election Day is a week behind us, but that doesn’t mean results are final. While we did get some updated information on a couple local races Monday, big questions remain – like will a smooth transition of power occur? On a special mid-week edition of The Weekend Debrief – Josh Durso and Ted Baker answer listener submitted questions from local elections, discuss the micro-cluster mitigation strategy announced for parts of the region, and look at the future of policing and PILOT programs.

On Wednesday, Leslie Danks Burke said that she was not conceding in the State Senate race shaping up in the 58th District. It includes a chunk of the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes.

After Election Day there were more than 33,000 ballots to be counted. 

Democrats outnumber Republicans in the absentee ballot category by a two-to-one margin, and with the challenger facing a 20,000 vote deficit -- absentees could be a deciding factor.

It's not a lock, but FingerLakes1.com spoke with the Democrat as her team waits for absentee ballots to be counted next week.

Has Election Day or this election cycle brought added stress into your life? If it has you're not alone.

The American Psychological Association recently found that more than two-thirds of U.S. adults - 68% - say the 2020 presidential election is a significant source of stress in their life.

MVP Health Care Behavioral Health Medical Director Dr. Dawn Gonsalves says that this year has definitely brought on more stress - whether it be due to the pandemic, economic worries, or outright election stress.

There are ways to manage that stress, though, which is important given that results will likely not come as quickly as some may have hoped. Another reason for strong coping skills is that seasonal stress or anxiety - brought on by the holidays or winter - could intersect in the coming weeks with election stress.

Senator Tom O'Mara has represented the 58th District of New York since 2010. A decade later he's still energetic about the community he serves. 

Earlier this week we caught up with Democrat Leslie Danks Burke, as part of our spotlight on the 58th District, which includes Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tompkins, and Yates counties. 

Today on The Debrief Podcast, a conversation with Sen. O'Mara about his time in office, the approach he's taken through the pandemic, and what he hopes can come next for the Southern Tier, which has not only been a hotspot for COVID-19 clusters -- but truly devastated in recent years economically.

Dr. Steven Schulz says getting a flu shot is even more important this year, than it has been in the past.

He's the Pediatric Medical Director for Rochester Regional Health's Monroe County practices, as well as Finger Lakes Medical Associates, which has offices in Geneva and Penn Yan.

A recent poll by CS Mott Children's Hospital in Michigan found that one-out-of-three parents do not plan to vaccinate their children for the regular flu. He says there are two main reasons for this, one of which is purely precautionary - as parents and people in general - try to avoid doctors offices.

However, the flu shot is crucial in an ordinary year in preventing or lessening the intensity of millions of cases every season. Today on The Debrief Dr. Steven Schulz on the importance of the flu shot, and the safeguards in place at local medical offices in the region.

Leslie Danks Burke is running for New York State Senate in the 58th District again. It's not the first time, but she says challenging incumbent Republican Tom O'Mara was necessary.

"We need our elected leaders to lead, and they need to have an effective plan for making that happen," Burke said in an election preview appearance on The Debrief Podcast. "This district has real needs, and the people who call the Southern Tier home need real leaders in Albany."

Funding schools, connecting families via broadband in underserved, rural communities, and delivering wins for the small business community are her priorities this time around. While they aren't significantly different than the first time she ran for Senate - New York has gone through quite an evolution in the process. The state faces a multi-billion dollar deficit, which she says cannot be made up through gutting schools, and families that rely on crucial services.

"There has to be a better plan; and I'm prepared to go to Albany with one," Burke added.

This month in our spotlight of the Montezuma Audubon Center in Savannah, Wayne County, Chris Lajewski discusses the mid-to-late fall migration patterns, the water fowl species that can be found on the thousands of acreage in Seneca and Wayne counties, as well as a couple crucial events coming up.

One involves a drive for volunteers, and the other involves an important discussion about HABs on one local lake that has seen little HABs activity.

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Event Spotlight

Happy Owl-ween Goes Virtual: Happening Saturday, October 31st from 10-11:30 a.m. Celebrate Halloween by joining us for a virtual presentation about the owls that can be found in New York State. Some live here year round and some just pass through during migration. Stay tuned for some special feathered friends who will join us as well. The Zoom link will be sent in a confirmation email. Space is limited and pre-paid reservations are required. Fee: $5/person, $15/family. Click here to register.

HABs Spotlight on Onondaga Lake: Audubon’s Onondaga Lake Conservation Corps is proud to welcome David A. Matthews, Director of the Upstate Freshwater Institute, for a presentation about the water quality of Onondaga Lake and other New York State lakes. The presentation will take place on Saturday, November 7 from 9 AM – 10 AM at the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science and Technology in Syracuse, NY. Fee: $5/person. Click here to register.

A closer look at upcoming elections with big time local implications, a discussion about the future of medicine after an announcement by Finger Lakes Health and the University of Rochester Medical Center that they would be working together, and the controversial story about an Auburn family that was told they would need to return to the school district if they wanted to continue learning (remotely or otherwise) in their hometown.

FingerLakes1.com News Director Josh Durso is joined in-studio by Finger Lakes Morning News Host Ted Baker (on Finger Lakes News Radio) inside the FL1 Studio.

The duo also discusses Governor Andrew Cuomo's recent flip-flopping on travel restrictions to neighboring states. He said this week that it's possible the state scrap the 14-day quarantine mandate, and move toward something 'testing-based'. A handful of local businesses were fined $50 in Cayuga County, too. What about the COVID cluster linked to block parties in Ontario County and the future of one local fire department in Seneca County? All of those topics, and more are up for discussion on The Weekend Debrief presented by FL1 News.

In early-October The Parrott Hall Coalition announced that Crawford & Stearns, Architects and Preservation Planners LLC, working with engineering firm Klepper, Hahn & Hyatt, are creating stabilization and roof replacement documents for the first phase of Parrott Hall’s rehabilitation. It was a big step, but only part of the true progress taking place at the property that could have easily been demolished if not for local, grassroots efforts. The Coalition announced that Clinton Brown Company Architecture, pc will be completing a feasibility study for Parrott Hall. The project is being funded through the Preservation League of New York State’s prestigious Donald Stephen Gratz Preservation Services Fund, as well as a grant from The Landmark Society of Western New York’s Preservation Grant Fund. In the summer of 2019, the City of Geneva finalized a license agreement with the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) to manage Parrott Hall along with the private nonprofit Friends of Parrott Hall. The Preservation League and Landmark Society have joined a memorandum of understanding to their coalition partners stating their support of this preservation initiative. Members of the coalition were granted access to the building in June 2019 and they promptly began working together to assess the building and prioritize emergency repairs. The stabilization efforts that are now getting underway are the first step toward bringing this historic landmark back to active use.

Today on The Debrief - a look at where things stand now with Parrott Hall, and what's next for the historic property along North Street. Bob Seem, Vice President of Friends of Parrott Hall and Erin Tobin, Vice President for Policy & Preservation with the Preservation League of New York State give an update on the project, and what local and regional support has meant to it.

On Tuesday FingerLakes1.com hosted a live-streamed debate between two candidates for New York State Assembly District 131. The district, which includes Ontario and Seneca counties has had a single representative for two decades. At the conclusion of 2020, Assemblyman Brian Kolb will retire, and could be succeeded by Democrat Matt Miller or Republican Jeff Gallahan.

Miller and Gallahan will debated the issues inside the FingerLakes1.com Studio in Seneca Falls. It was moderated by FingerLakes1.com News Director Josh Durso.

The debate was sponsored by Midey Mirras & Ricci, the Finger Lakes Personal Injury Attorneys.