building a tactical revitalization plan for downtown albany

Page 2
Supporting Public Projects
Our Experience and Qualifications
Eric Mower + Associates’ Public Relations and Public Affairs ranks in the top 50 PR firms in the US (out
of more than 10,000) according to PR Week, the leading industry journal.
With four of our seven offices in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany, EMA possesses extensive
community relations, public affairs and issues management experience across New York State to a
degree unmatched by any other PR organization. With nearly 30 professionals based across Upstate
New York, our statewide presence makes us uniquely qualified to support clients on all types of issues,
especially those facing difficult community or regional issues or those that are closely tied to local and
state government initiatives and activities.
Our clients succeed when the communications, legal, regulatory, political and operational functions are
all functioning as part of a coordinated team – sharing information and ideas, participating in strategy
development and working together to execute a winning plan. As Ben Franklin said after signing the
Declaration of Independence, “We must all hang together, or most assuredly we will all hang
separately."
The scope and depth of some recent EMA engagements best illustrates our qualifications:
The I-81 Challenge – Syracuse NY
EMA was retained by the Syracuse Metropolitan Transportation Council (SMTC) to handle all outward
public communication in order to conduct a public outreach and involvement effort for the
redevelopment of the I-81 Corridor on behalf of the New York State Department of Transportation.
SMTC is the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization [MPO] for the Central New York region.
Since 2010, The I-81 Challenge has advanced the community discussion about the future of I-81, the
elevated interstate highway cutting through the heart of the city of Syracuse. Information about the
existing conditions of the highway and the regional transportation system is being collected and an
understanding of the community’s values, goals, and ideas developed through a regional public
involvement process. All of this information will be used to generate a wide range of options for the
future of the highway and a set of criteria for evaluating them.
The I-81 Challenge is widely recognized as the most inclusive and most comprehensive public
information and public involvement initiative ever conducted in Central New York. Public involvement
has numbered in thousands of citizens participating in forums, open houses and community group
gatherings. In contrast, the original 1960s construction of I-81 was done with no public involvement,
and left behind a legacy of bitter feelings as entire neighborhoods were destroyed to make room for the
Interstate.
The I-81 Challenge is composed of three separate but integrated efforts focused on developing a clear
understanding of the current conditions of the I-81 corridor, the full complement of potential options for
improving the corridor, and the potential impacts of any course of action. The efforts include:
The I-81 Corridor Study - a review of the highway’s existing conditions and issues and an analysis of
potential options (including those suggested by the public) for the future of the corridor.
Eric Mower + Associates | Public Relations + Public Affairs