In a simple private swearing-in at Syracuse City Hall Wednesday night, Sharon Owens made history, becoming the first Black mayor of the city of Syracuse, with Syracuse City Court Judge Staci Dennis-Taylor administering the oath of office in the mayor’s office.
Owens then signed the official oath book of the city. After thanking God, her family and supporters, she said she’s ready to hit the road running.
“Let’s kick butt for this city!" Owens said to applause.
It’s been a smooth transition for the history-making administration. Owens only had to move boxes down the hall from her former office as deputy mayor to the mayor’s office. Many of her staff appointments are people she’s already been working with in the now-former Mayor Ben Walsh's administration. So after this weekend’s public inauguration at the Landmark Theatre, scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 3, she intends to get her staff together on Monday and begin talking about priorities for the city.
“Continue to be housing, continue to be public safety, continue to be our infrastructure, particularly lead replacement, making sure that we have had different conversations with department heads about how we want to move forward and do things," Owens said.
She also said she’ll get going on budget talks with the Common Council in short order. But there's something else that gives her the most anxiety right now.
"Moving snow," she said. "People have to get around the city, and the other day proved that we get our boatload of snow. And so that's important to me to make sure people can get out to make sure our people are safe and they're plowing."
Owens won the mayoral race in November with nearly three-quarters of the vote. While she has had months to prepare for her role as Syracuse’s 55th mayor, she said the weight of the moment didn't fully hit her until shortly before the oath. Afterward, she viewed her color portrait on the "Wall of Mayors," where it now hangs alongside the black-and-white photos of her predecessors dating back to 1848.
"I'd already seen this picture, but I had not seen this picture there," she said. "So it's surreal. It’s surreal."
