In a Common Council meeting, Mayor Billy Barlow’s proposal to increase the rental permit fee was approved; after a 5-1- 1 voting result.

Mayor Billy Barlow says the proposal will make the “landlords accountable and pressure them into maintaining their property and treating their tenants fairly.”

According to the proposal, the new fee is $150 dollars for a three year period, which is five times more expense than the current $30 fee. This new fee will become effective as of October 1st.

The last time the fee was increased was back in August 22nd, 2005.

The Mayor says they will be adding a new code enforcer next year; saying that with all of the new expenses and upgrades in the code enforcement department; he believes that it will improve the department and the inspection process.

Some property owners in Oswego have spoken out against the new proposal, saying it would have made more sense if the penalties for landlords that were in violation of the city code; were increased.

Mayor Barlow says there will be more amendments added to the city charter regarding code enforcement. He says this proposal is only the beginning of his campaign to crack down against negligent landlords.

by Ilyssa Weiner

Oswego, NY- Fashion at Oswego’s first ever Fashion Week kicked off on Apr. 1.

Imani Cruz created Fashion at Oswego in 2014 after realizing there weren’t any fashion organizations on campus. She was influenced by designers in New York City and Paris.

“I kinda took it upon myself to think ‘You know what? It’d be cool if like we went around campus and took photos of people that were dressed really nice,” she said.

“The week is all about taking pride in how you appear and your appearance,” she said. “By creating Oz Fashion Week, we could light up some fire under students to dress nice just for one week.”

The week started with a pop up shop showcasing outfits created by up-and-coming designers from places such as Syracuse and Ithaca.

Rashaad Holley, a grad student at Buffalo State, is the creator of “Vingt Cinq Rashaad” and one of the designers at the pop up shop. His brand comes from a song lyric about not living past 25 years old.

“I take that and revert it into a positive direction and give people like myself inspiration to ascend as opposed to look at a ceiling and be limited,” Holley said.  

With the success of the pop up shop, Cruz is very positive about Fashion at Oswego’s future.

By Savannah Malerba

OSWEGO, N.Y.– SUNY Oswego has many clubs that students can join on campus, but some are harder to find than others. The Oswego Odyssey is a small club of writers who write blogs focusing on topics that appeal to college students and the Oswego community.

The Odyssey is a national online platform where contributors across the United States write long form articles and create videos. The content that shows up for each reader is tailored to their interests.

Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Oswego Odyssey Brooke Lehr said she has been writing for Odyssey since her freshman year; two years ago. She said the reason why she loves the Odyssey is because it is an outlet for her to share her opinions with people and she is happy to help people share their ideas as Co-Editor-in-Chief.

Oswego Odyssey contribuer Corey Cesare said she joined the club at the start of the semester because she loved writing. Cesare said since joining, she has found success on the platform with one of her articles getting over 3,000 views which according to Cesare is “a big deal!”

Lehr said that the Odyssey looks great on a resume because it shows writers persuasion skills by trying to persuade readers with their views and also shows commitment by posting consistent weekly articles for a national platform.
If you are interested in joining the Oswego Odyssey writers or interested in more info, please email odysseyatoswego@gmail.com.