Cuomo’s legacy includes gun law, gay marriage, feuds – The Livingston County News
(TNS) – New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who announced Tuesday that he will resign in two weeks, leaves a legacy as a champion of liberal ideals who reached the peak of his popularity during the coronavirus pandemic.
Ultimately, his accomplishments as a three-term Democratic governor may be overshadowed by the sexual harassment scandal that led to his downfall.
Cuomo, 63, at the urging of progressive Democrats, pushed through a series of landmark policies and reforms during nearly 11 years in office.
In 2011, Cuomo signed into law a bill he pushed to legalize same-sex marriage. The new law made New York the largest state at the time to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry.
Two years later, Cuomo convinced some reluctant Republicans in the state Senate to support the SAFE Act, one of the nation’s toughest gun safety laws.
In 2019, after Democrats gained full control of the state Legislature, Cuomo signed a landmark climate change law that set some of the nation’s toughest standards to cut greenhouse gas emissions and increase use of renewable energy.
In Central New York, Cuomo pushed a CNY Rising strategy to grow the region’s economy through tourism and other initiatives that built on the region’s strengths.
As part of that strategy, Cuomo authorized more than $100 million in spending to expand and modernize the New York State Fairgrounds in Geddes, helping to boost attendance by more than 40 percent over five years.
Those improvements included a new $63 million Exposition Center, a new RV park, new front gate and Bridge Street entrance, a redesign of Chevy Court, demolition of the aging grandstand, and a $38 million project to improve access for cars and expand parking.
Locally, Cuomo developed a close working relationship with Joanie Mahoney, a Republican who served as Onondaga County executive, at the same time he engaged in a bitter feud with Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner, a Democrat.
Cuomo never forgave Miner for publicly criticizing him over what she viewed as his insufficient aid to the state’s struggling cities like Syracuse.
As the feud escalated, Miner blocked a deal between Mahoney and Cuomo that would have allowed a politically connected local developer, Cor Development, to build a $500 million stadium in Syracuse as a replacement to the Carrier Dome.
Two Cor Development executives were convicted in 2018 on federal corruption charges related to their state business dealings. A former top aide to Cuomo and a disgraced lobbyist were also convicted in the federal corruption case.