Development in and Around Syracuse Discussion

[shandeezy7]

Wallpaper is making a comeback, isn't it?

Oh yeah it has been for a while. I don’t want to even know how many thousands my FIL spent on wallpaper in his recent reno/redecoration.

 

[KellySyracuse]

wallpaper can go straight to hell

 

[KellySyracuse]

Subscriber exclusive, I posted the details

Syracuse’s century-old Snowdon Apartments sold for $3M

The once grand apartment building has been home to indigent tenants for decades.

www.syracuse.com

"Syracuse, N.Y. -- The Snowdon Apartments, which started out more than 100 years ago as a luxury apartment house but later became one of Syracuse’s most infamous welfare hotels, has changed owners for the first time in half a century.

A deed filed with the Onondaga County Clerk’s Office shows that a limited liability company bought the six-story, 179-unit apartment building at 422 James St. for $3.4 million on Aug. 3.

The company, 422 James Street LLC, bought the building from the family of the late Russell Phelps, of Binghamton.

Public records show the limited liability company was formed on March 14, with its registered agent listed as Juan Contreras and its principal address in the city of Mount Vernon in Westchester County.

Phelps bought the building in 1975. He died at age 105 on Feb. 25.

Greg Loh, chief policy officer for Mayor Ben Walsh, said Friday that city officials have had no contact with the new owner and have no information on what the buyer’s plans are for the building.

Designed by famed Syracuse architect Archimedes Russell and built at the entrance to lower James Street from downtown, the building is named after its first owner, Walter Snowdon Smith.

It originally was a high-end apartment building for the well-to-do, with only a few rooms on each floor. But by the 1960s, the building fell victim to urban decline and turned into a hotel for transients.

By the 1970s, it had turned back into an apartment building, this time for indigent tenants, convicted sex offenders and mental health outpatients. Its once spacious rooms had been cut up into nearly 200 units, with the residents of each of its six floors sharing a common bathroom at the end of the hallway.

Crime, including stabbings and shootings, became common at the Snowdon. So were fire calls. In a 10-month span in 1988, firefighters were called to the building 164 times, mostly for false alarms but occasionally for real fires.

Still, hints of the building’s early days remain -- original tin ceilings in a first-floor corridor, hand-plastered walls, and “S” embedded in the floor of the lobby."

 

[OttoMets]

...

The company, 422 James Street LLC, bought the building from the family of the late Russell Phelps, of Binghamton.

Public records show the limited liability company was formed on March 14, with its registered agent listed as Juan Contreras and its principal address in the city of Mount Vernon in Westchester County.

...

The RP-5217, however, was signed by a Greg Purdy of Hopewell Junction.

I hope it isn't this Greg Purdy of Hopewell Junction: One year later: Charges against 12 mid-Hudson Jan. 6 suspects

These guys have allegedly been in contract for 18 months or so, and it was rumored last fall that some of their principals were, shall we say...well, basically the sorts of people who'd appear in that Times Union article.

Will be interesting to see how it all develops. It's a special property that's both a drain on the blocks around it and a necessary evil - where else can the POs check up on several dozen sex offenders all at the same address?

 

[KellySyracuse]

Will be interesting to see how it all develops. It's a special property that's both a drain on the blocks around it and a necessary evil - where else can the POs check up on several dozen sex offenders all at the same address?

I've often thought the same thing but it's a shame because it's such a beautiful building on the outside. I can't imagine what the inside looks like though and wonder if there truly is only one bathroom on each floor still.

 

[Ghost]

The RP-5217, however, was signed by a Greg Purdy of Hopewell Junction.

I hope it isn't this Greg Purdy of Hopewell Junction: One year later: Charges against 12 mid-Hudson Jan. 6 suspects

These guys have allegedly been in contract for 18 months or so, and it was rumored last fall that some of their principals were, shall we say...well, basically the sorts of people who'd appear in that Times Union article.

Will be interesting to see how it all develops. It's a special property that's both a drain on the blocks around it and a necessary evil - where else can the POs check up on several dozen sex offenders all at the same address?

I used to live near there. I love that building. I mean, not the tenants, but that building is dope ah. Do they include any pics of the inside anywhere? It's gotta be awful, but still......

That Kasson Place down the street was pretty cool too.

 

[Cheriehoop]

I've often thought the same thing but it's a shame because it's such a beautiful building on the outside. I can't imagine what the inside looks like though and wonder if there truly is only one bathroom on each floor still.

Where are all these inhabitants in the Vincent Apts, the James St Skyline apts, now Snowden will go during renovations is a huge question. Also will these renovations gentrify and price these complexes enough to permanently move these people out of the downtown area away from hospitals, services etc.

 

[KellySyracuse]

I used to live near there. I love that building. I mean, not the tenants, but that building is dope ah. Do they include any pics of the inside anywhere? It's gotta be awful, but still...

That Kasson Place down the street was pretty cool too.

there weren't any pictures of the inside included with the article and I don't see it posted for sale online either

 

[KellySyracuse]

Where are all these inhabitants in the Vincent Apts, the James St Skyline apts, now Snowden will go during renovations is a huge question. Also will these renovations gentrify and price these complexes enough to permanently move these people out of the downtown area away from hospitals, services etc.

You make a good point. I would have to imagine the cost to completely renovate the Snowdon to make it habitable for anything other than what it is today would be quite expensive.

 

[Ghost]

You make a good point. I would have to imagine the cost to completely renovate the Snowdon to make it habitable for anything other than what it is today would be quite expensive.

What happens if a building is marked historic in Syracuse or the US? Maybe nobody knows, just curious. They do that in Ottawa all the time - then you have to renovate under specific guidelines.

 

[xc84]

there weren't any pictures of the inside included with the article and I don't see it posted for sale online either

Try here

SyracuseHistory

SyracuseHistory. 179,642 likes · 12,336 talking about this. Sharing stories, unlocking mystery and evoking pride in Syracuse, New York since 2013.

www.facebook.com

 

[OttoMets]

I've often thought the same thing but it's a shame because it's such a beautiful building on the outside. I can't imagine what the inside looks like though and wonder if there truly is only one bathroom on each floor still.

It's an odd mix of apartments and SROs. Definitely way more of the latter, but there are multiple shared bathrooms. I've never set foot in the place personally, but my staff who've been through are of the opinion that the bones are good and a lot of original finishes are in place.

 

[OttoMets]

Where are all these inhabitants in the Vincent Apts, the James St Skyline apts, now Snowden will go during renovations is a huge question. Also will these renovations gentrify and price these complexes enough to permanently move these people out of the downtown area away from hospitals, services etc.

Throw in the number of people the Syracuse Housing Authority has to relocate for Blueprint 15 reconstruction. And of course the slow gobbling up of SROs and cheap working-class apartments around downtown over the last couple decades, which is what you touched on: lot of low-wage folks who work downtown or on the Hill and make the economy go but no longer have a close-in place to live. We were close to a crisis point before the Green situation popped up and it's way worse than that now.

 

[OttoMets]

What happens if a building is marked historic in Syracuse or the US? Maybe nobody knows, just curious. They do that in Ottawa all the time - then you have to renovate under specific guidelines.

Specific guidelines, historic tax credits (up to 50% of rehab costs), and likely some significant local abatements as well. Definitely doable, though it's still an uphill battle in third-tier NE markets, with everything very expensive but rents not as high as they'd need to be to make a project viable on its own.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Iconic Syracuse German restaurant is reborn with pizza (and sauerbraten)

Location just south of SU campus reopens just in time for the fall semester.

www.syracuse.com

 

[KellySyracuse]

Iconic Syracuse German restaurant is reborn with pizza (and sauerbraten)

Location just south of SU campus reopens just in time for the fall semester.

www.syracuse.com

I'm glad to see this place reopen and hope they make a go of it

 

[shandeezy7]

 

[KellySyracuse]

This is great news for the neighborhood. I hope it's a first step to rezoning that part of N. Salina and Wolf St.

Syracuse wins shutdown of strip club accused of creating a neighborhood nuisance

State Supreme Court Justice Rory McMahon ruled in favor of the city’s request to revoke the special use permit for Lookers Showclub.

www.syracuse.com

"Syracuse, N.Y. — A judge ordered the closure of a long-operating strip club embroiled in litigation with the city of Syracuse.

State Supreme Court Justice Rory McMahon ruled from the bench Friday in favor of the city’s request to revoke the special use permit for Lookers Showclub, a strip club that has operated since 1992 at 1400 N. Salina St.

The city sued the club and its owner, Kevin Quinn, in March, claiming the business was violating the conditions of its permit by staying open too long and by operating on Sundays."

 

[xc84]

This is great news for the neighborhood. I hope it's a first step to rezoning that part of N. Salina and Wolf St.

Syracuse wins shutdown of strip club accused of creating a neighborhood nuisance

State Supreme Court Justice Rory McMahon ruled in favor of the city’s request to revoke the special use permit for Lookers Showclub.

www.syracuse.com

"Syracuse, N.Y. — A judge ordered the closure of a long-operating strip club embroiled in litigation with the city of Syracuse.

State Supreme Court Justice Rory McMahon ruled from the bench Friday in favor of the city’s request to revoke the special use permit for Lookers Showclub, a strip club that has operated since 1992 at 1400 N. Salina St.

The city sued the club and its owner, Kevin Quinn, in March, claiming the business was violating the conditions of its permit by staying open too long and by operating on Sundays."

cancel culture

 

[SWC75]

Where do you go now if you want to take your clothes off?

(Or watch others do so?)

 

[tptcuse]

Where do you go now if you want to take your clothes off?

(Or watch others do so?)

HOF's M...well, you know.

 

[OburgOrange]

 

[shandeezy7]

New downtown wine bar brings ‘big city’ experience to Syracuse

Wines by the glass will range from $10 to $100

www.syracuse.com

 

[KellySyracuse]

New downtown wine bar brings ‘big city’ experience to Syracuse

Wines by the glass will range from $10 to $100

www.syracuse.com

Looks interesting, I see they're right on the corner by the parking lot on Walton and open 7 days a week. I'll stop in there on a Sunday afternoon to check it out.

 

[shandeezy7]

Looks interesting, I see they're right on the corner by the parking lot on Walton and open 7 days a week. I'll stop in there on a Sunday afternoon to check it out.

My dream would be for that parking lot across the creek from there to be developed into something that included a brewery or bar of some kind with a deck/patio on the side overlooking the creek. Is that too much to ask for?