FedEx Rep. Says Proposed Genesee St. Plan Will Not Hurt Deliveries

Whether or not downtown Genesee Street becomes a two lane road, there is one group of people who may not be too concerned about a change.

"It does appear that they're going to put in special sections for the buses and the delivery vehicles, so we'll be able to have the same access to our customers as we did before,"

That was the Operations Manager, Mitch Cornish, with FedEx Express in Oriskany.

He says if the City's proposed plan moves forward, there would still be spots for his drivers to park so they could make their deliveries without losing any time.

"I think we're still going to be able to do a good job for our customers out there," Cornish said. "I was a little concerned [at first] that maybe they were going to push us off onto a side street."

He also sees how a two lane road could be feasible in a city like Utica. Similar layouts have popped up in other cities like Syracuse, where they have performed quite well. The addition of a bike lane is also not a bad idea, although Cornish says his drivers will have to keep their eyes open to avoid accidents.

Mayor Rob Palmieri has been presenting his Genesee Street plan at community meetings for the past few weeks, but says nothing is completely set in stone.

But, Palmieri's attempts have been heavily contested by Council members Frank Vescera and Jim Zecca.