Steve Kimatian wants to run Syracuse the company way.

‘I’ve spent my entire career managing people, hiring people, being responsible for tens of millions of dollars and being a good communicator,’ Kimatian said. ‘And that’s what we need in the mayor’s office.’

Kimatian, who spent 30 years as a TV executive, is the Republican candidate for Syracuse mayor. He is a political novice in Syracuse. But in the Sept. 15 primaries, Kimatian defeated Otis Jennings for the GOP mayoral nomination. He will face Democratic and Working Families candidate Stephanie Miner and Jennings, who is running on the Conservative Party ticket, in the general election today.

In Syracuse, Kimatian, 68, is best known for his long career in TV, as a lawyer and as a philanthropist. He worked as general counsel to Newport Television until he announced his candidacy for mayor in May. From 1998 to 2008, Kimatian hosted ‘With Steve On Sunday’ on WSYR-TV, Channel 9.

Kimatian grew up in Long Island, N.Y., and received his bachelor’s degree in English from Princeton University and a degree from Cornell Law School. His career has centered on broadcasting. He served as general manager for WJZ-TV in Baltimore, from 1974 to 1978 and was president of Maryland Public Television from 1982 to1986.

He’s a father of two who married his high school sweetheart, Janet. His family is close, literally. His granddaughter, Sarah Rose, and her parents live next door in the Sedgwick neighborhood in Syracuse. Kimatian is building her a playhouse, and he said he tries never to miss his son-in-law’s bike races.

Kimatian’s only other brush with politics prior to running for mayor was an unsuccessful bid 29 years ago for a seat in the Maryland General Assembly. He was the Republican candidate running in a predominantly Democratic city.

But that’s much like the election this time around. Syracuse Democrats outnumber Republicans 3-to-1, according to the Onondaga County Board of Elections. And in the run for campaign money, as of Monday, Kimatian had raised only $84,334 compared to Miner’s $546,118, according to campaign finance reports filed with the New York State Board of Elections.

This time around, Kimatian said, he’ll beat the odds. Kimatian and those who know him well are pitching him as the candidate who understands key issues, such as development, crime and the economy, and as the candidate who has leadership ability and a business-savvy background.

Many of his proposals and positions, Kimatian said, come straight from talks with voters. Others, he said, come from observing what has worked in nearby cities. He estimated he knocked on more than 2,500 doors campaigning in what he terms the ‘street race for mayor.’

Results of all that knocking include proposals like a curfew for teenagers age 16 and younger – part one of a six-part plan to cut down on crime in the city. The idea for the curfew initially came from people he talked with on porches and front lawns concerned about noise and violence after dark, he said.

On the issue of city development, Kimatian proposes to build up the Syracuse inner harbor with restaurants and shops to attract visitors. He also calls for creating a wireless broadband network for the city to make Internet access free or affordable for all Syracuse residents and businesses.

On education, Kimatian supports the Say Yes to Education program. But he also calls for more focus on counseling and teaching in elementary schools. He’s a proponent of charter and specialty schools and wants the city school district’s superintendent to sit on the mayor’s cabinet.

Those who worked with Kimatian or know him well speak mostly about his leadership, ethics and his reputation as a problem solver.

In 1977, for example, when Kimatian was the general manager at WJZ-TV in Baltimore, a new reporter had just signed on to co-anchor the evening news. Soon after the company hired her, the show’s ratings fell steeply. Kimatian switched her from the coveted nightly news spot, and moved her to morning and noon anchor.

‘She was upset,’ Kimatian said. ‘She wanted to leave. She wanted me to tear up her contract and I wouldn’t do it. I said, ‘You should stay with it.’ I said, ‘You will have your day.’ I had no idea of course she’d go on to what she has.’

That young anchor was Oprah Winfrey.

Theresa Underwood, vice president and general manager of WSYR-TV NewsChannel 9, worked with Kimatian for 14 years. Underwood said Kimatian is ‘the most ethical person’ she’s ever worked with in business.

‘Each and every day it was always about doing the right thing, whether it was for the viewer, the customer, or the staff, ethics and business was a top priority,’ Underwood said.

David Rubin, former dean of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, has been interviewed by Kimatian numerous times over the years. Rubin called Kimatian ‘perhaps the brightest broadcaster to come through Syracuse.’ Under Kimatian, Channel 9 broadcast the least sensational, and least self-promoting, newscasts in the market, he said.

Kimatian also wins praise for management from someone closer to home – his daughter Ellen Eagen, now a lawyer in Syracuse and his campaign treasurer.

‘He’s the type of dad where if you have some test to study for or some project and you’re running up against the 11th hour he’ll make time for you,’ Eagen said. ‘He’ll just say, ‘Look, calm down. We can get this done.’ He never panics. He never stresses. Things could start falling apart, he’ll just kind of pull them all together.’

Eagen and others pointed to the way Kimatian pulled together much of the planning and funding for the Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital in tight economic times. He chaired the Upstate Foundation during the hospital’s $20 million fundraising drive.

In addition to the Upstate Foundation, Kimatian has served as a board member for the Everson Museum of Art and a member of the United Way’s ‘Success by Six’ program. In 2001, he won the Salvation Army’s Community Team Spirit Award.

In the mayoral campaign, Kimatian said he has his work cut out for him. He’ll keep knocking on doors and campaigning until Election Day, he said, expressing optimism about the outcome.

‘They said I couldn’t win the primary and I did. They may say I can’t win the general but I will. When it comes down to it not many people vote pure party. There’s no Democratic way to govern a city, no Republican way,’ Kimatian said. ‘There’s just a right way.’

jmterrus@syr.edu

– A version of this story previously appeared at democracywise.syr.edu.

Published on November 2, 2009 at 12:00 pm