County keeps lobbyist for $90K to advocate for funding at federal, state levels

ALBION – Orleans County has renewed a contract with Park Strategies to assist with advocating at the state and federal levels for funding and also to make the county’s voice heard about legislation that could help or hurt at the local level.

The county will pay Park $90,000 for 2024, the same rate since 2020. The agreement calls for the county to pay Park Strategies $5,000 a month for government affairs services at the federal level and $2,500 a month for government affairs services at the state level. The county first retained Park in 2015.

County officials say the relationship has paid off recently with millions in aid for broadband funding, and a $2 million grant through U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s office for a new building for the Emergency Management Office.

Park Strategies was founded by Al D’Amato, the former U.S. senator from New York. The firm assists county officials in setting up meetings with representatives from the state and federal governments. Park Strategies also makes the county aware of legislative that could be helpful or harmful to the county, and brainstorms ways to pursue funding for critical projects in the county.

In the past county officials have praised Park Strategies for helping to make the county’s case to the state Department of Transportation for canal bridges to be repaired. The state spent about $10.7 million recently to fix seven bridges.

The state also has repaved portions of the Lake Ontario State Parkway, committed to dredging harbors on Lake Ontario and also allocated funds to protect lakeshore properties from flooding.