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The Syracuse City Common Council authorized Mayor Ben Walsh’s Syracuse Housing Strategy at its Tuesday meeting, allowing the city to move into the implementation phase of the proposed roadmap to address the ongoing Syracuse housing crisis.

The council voted unanimously to approve the plan, which aims to improve housing conditions throughout the city by investing in middle-income neighborhoods and stabilizing “distressed” areas. The council previously planned to vote on the plan during its Aug. 12 meeting, but councilors opted to delay the plan pending the collection of community feedback from all affected neighborhoods.

Councilors also briefly discussed another previously-held vote on the potential designation of 727 Comstock Ave., a former Syracuse University fraternity house, as a locally protected site.

The council pushed back its vote for a second time during Tuesday’s meeting due to SU withdrawing its initial demolition application for the property, syracuse.com reported. SU’s demolition plans led the Syracuse Landmark Preservation Board to seek protected site status for the 119-year-old vacant mansion.

The council also approved several other initiatives at the meeting, including a provision honoring the memory of Syracuse Police Officer Michael Jensen, who died in the line of duty in April.

Syracuse Housing Strategy

To accomplish the goal of investing in middle-income neighborhoods, the Syracuse Housing Strategy includes multiple grant programs, including subsidies for beautification projects and home improvements.

The strategy is based on findings from the Syracuse Housing Study, a one-year study that began in 2022. As the study found that Syracuse has significant market and affordability gaps, the plan focuses on addressing conditions in residential neighborhoods.

During the council’s Aug. 12 meeting, Councilor At-Large Rasheada Caldwell said she received multiple reports from Syracuse community members that residents of neighborhoods in the city’s upper east side were not aware of the strategy. The vote was pushed back, and the city held an additional public forum ahead of Tuesday’s meeting.

Comstock Avenue decision delay

A vote to potentially designate 727 Comstock Ave. was listed in the initial meeting agenda for Tuesday, but District 2 Councilor Patrick J. Hogan said during the meeting that the agenda item was to be held. Syracuse.com reported that the council opted to hold the vote after SU withdrew its initial May demolition application for the property.

The university initially planned to demolish the property as part of its plans to construct a proposed 4-to-6 story student residence hall on the 700 block of Ostrom Avenue. The plans featured multiple building wings, with one five-story wing extending over the lot where 727 Comstock currently stands.

Both the SLPB and the Syracuse City Planning Commission voted in favor of recognizing the vacant mansion as a local protected site, in June and July, respectively. Councilors also raised concerns about the university’s plans during an Aug. 15 meeting with the council’s economic development committee.

The council will now push the vote pending a conversation with city attorneys, who will determine if the protected designation process will have to move back to the SLPB now that SU has withdrawn its demolition application.

SU has submitted a new dorm proposal to the city, according to syracuse.com. The newly-proposed plans have decreased the residence hall’s occupancy and no longer include the Comstock Avenue wing. The SCPC will review the new proposal during its next meeting on Monday, Sept. 9 at 6 p.m.

Recognition of Michael Jensen

Councilor At-Large Chol Majok began Tuesday’s meeting by stating the council’s decision to honor Jensen, one of two officers killed while confronting a suspect after a traffic stop. The other officer killed in the incident was Onondaga County Sheriff’s Lt. Michael Hoosock.

Before Jensen and Hoosock’s deaths, the Sheriff’s Office and Syracuse Police Department had not seen an officer killed in the line of duty in over three decades.

SPD Chief Joseph L. Cecile spoke in honor of Jensen’s legacy during the meeting and urged the council to honor Jensen’s duty.

Majok said the council came to a unanimous decision in favor of honoring the fallen officer.

Other business

• The council pushed its vote on whether to opt into the New York State Good Cause Eviction Law, which states that landlords are subject to various limitations on seeking to remove a tenant from a residential unit.
• The council authorized the sale of four used Department of Public Works pickup trucks to local non-profit Ukraine 1991 Foundation for transport to the city of Irpin, Ukraine, a sister city of Syracuse.
• The council voted to fund initiatives for promoting STEM education to middle school and high school students in the Syracuse City School District. The funding will be in an amount not exceeding $20,000.

Published on September 3, 2024 at 9:27 pm

Contact Madeline: mmgoodhe@syr.edu