Development in and Around Syracuse Discussion

[IthacaMatt]

There was a contingent of people that opposed demolishing the War Memorial and building new backed by some veterans that claimed it as a historical site. Unfortunately the county folded like a cheap suit instead of planning for the future, much like they're currently doing with the I81 rebuild

The idea that people are still talking about a tunnel is freaking idiotic! It's all about campaign contributions from Congel. That's the primary thing keeping that alive.

Did you read the engineering report that talks about the salinity of our ground water near the lake being 3 to 4 times more salty than ocean water? Unless they build the entire tunnel with stainless steel, it's going to corrode. Boston's major problem with the Big Dig was that salt water kept seeping into the concrete and causing it to break up. This tunnel is going to be far worse. It's a financial disaster waiting to happen.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

I was in there a couple days ago at the Fair. It's a big metal shed with seating for about 1000 people and a hockey rink that has too much space around it, if you were actually thinking of this as a replacement for the War Memorial for the Crunch. SRC Arena, up at OCC, has more seating. It's clean, but it's just a cement slab floor, bathrooms and a nice entrance. That's what you get for $64 MILLION ???? Geeez, I am in the wrong business! I should be doing government work. FFS!

4000 seats. And the rink is temporary.

 

[OttoMets]

I was in there a couple days ago at the Fair. It's a big metal shed with seating for about 1000 people and a hockey rink that has too much space around it, if you were actually thinking of this as a replacement for the War Memorial for the Crunch. SRC Arena, up at OCC, has more seating. It's clean, but it's just a cement slab floor, bathrooms and a nice entrance. That's what you get for $64 MILLION ???? Geeez, I am in the wrong business! I should be doing government work. FFS!

And -- wait for it -- it's not fully accessible. In 2018. The state built a brand-new building, apparently without a feasibility study and with no idea if there's demand for this type of space, and couldn't spring for automatic doors at the entrances or fire doors that open to ramps rather than staircases. It's a PITA for someone pushing a stroller, but horrible for someone in a wheelchair.

Also, it doesn't match any of the architecture on the rest of the site.

But mention a stadium project in downtown (where 99% of successful cities have built their ballparks) and apparently that's an outlandish boondoggle as far as the county legislature and county exec's office are concerned.

 

[MaxwellCuse]

The idea that people are still talking about a tunnel is freaking idiotic! It's all about campaign contributions from Congell. That's the primary thing keeping that alive.

From an outsider's perspective it sometimes appears that the Congel family's presence in Syracuse has been as much a liability as a benefit to the community.

 

[jr4750]

From an outsider's perspective it sometimes appears that the Congel family's presence in Syracuse has been as much a liability as a benefit to the community.

I think some would argue its been way more liability...

The idea that people are still talking about a tunnel is freaking idiotic! It's all about campaign contributions from Congell. That's the primary thing keeping that alive.

This exactly. This would be a massive mistake, costing way too much money, and pushing a project that should have already been done, back at least another 10+ years. The city has made great progress over the years. However, it has also certainly been held back by certain misguided actors. Protecting a mall (I for one having never believed that people would stop going to Destiny because the commute would take them an additional 10 minutes) at the expense of a city is beyond idiotic.

 

[IthacaMatt]

4000 seats. And the rink is temporary.

Well, they clearly didn't have all the seats pulled out then. The place looked half empty.

 

[Newhouser]

We didn't and don't need the venue at the Fairgrounds as it is built. It's a big barn with no meeting or break out space, no locker rooms, a cement floor and is going to smell like horses. That said we also don't need a stadium downtown for the Mets. I don't trust their commitment and don't believe they amp up the attendance to make it worthwhile. IMHO that money can be used for improvements elsewhere

 

[Scooch]

I mascotted for the Chiefs (hence my handle on this site) when they were still at MacArthur and I was dumbfounded that a new stadium wasn't built downtown.

It was a total mess getting it built and opened, but they put a new ballpark in downtown-ish Hartford 2 years ago. In terms of attendance and throwing off pre/post game business to the surrounding area, it has been a big success. Such a waste that Syracuse likely won't do the same.

 

[Trueblue25]

We didn't and don't need the venue at the Fairgrounds as it is built. It's a big barn with no meeting or break out space, no locker rooms, a cement floor and is going to smell like horses. That said we also don't need a stadium downtown for the Mets. I don't trust their commitment and don't believe they amp up the attendance to make it worthwhile. IMHO that money can be used for improvements elsewhere

Id argue, regardless of the mets commitment, a downtown stadium would offer a more promising future and further economic benefits, than spending more on NBT would or has.

 

[Trueblue25]

I mascotted for the Chiefs (hence my handle on this site) when they were still at MacArthur and I was dumbfounded that a new stadium wasn't built downtown.

It was a total mess getting it built and opened, but they put a new ballpark in downtown-ish Hartford 2 years ago. In terms of attendance and throwing off pre/post game business to the surrounding area, it has been a big success. Such a waste that Syracuse likely won't do the same.

Went to school in buffalo, the downtown stadium there has solid attendance and hosts a number of HUGE annual events that bring a lot of money to the downtown. This includes but is not limited to my favorite, the buffalo chicken wingfest

 

[MaxwellCuse]

I mascotted for the Chiefs (hence my handle on this site) when they were still at MacArthur and I was dumbfounded that a new stadium wasn't built downtown.

It was a total mess getting it built and opened, but they put a new ballpark in downtown-ish Hartford 2 years ago. In terms of attendance and throwing off pre/post game business to the surrounding area, it has been a big success. Such a waste that Syracuse likely won't do the same.

I'm looking forward to seeing the Yard Goats' stadium in the not-too-distant future. Also following closely my original hometown's plan for a downtown stadium for the Worcester Red Sox. Projections for the cost of that 10,000 seat stadium near Kelley Square run about $100 million. I am afraid that if Syracuse goes the route of a rehab of the north side stadium the Mets will be looking for a new city to park their Triple A affiliate in 7 or 8 years. Don't get me wrong. I want Syracuse to hold onto their baseball team. But if it has to go elsewhere I wouldn't mind seeing it in a brand new riverside park opposite the State capitol building in Rensselaer.

 

[OttoMets]

I'm looking forward to seeing the Yard Goats' stadium in the not-too-distant future. Also following closely my original hometown's plan for a downtown stadium for the Worcester Red Sox. Projections for the cost of that 10,000 seat stadium near Kelley Square run about $100 million. I am afraid that if Syracuse goes the route of a rehab of the north side stadium the Mets will be looking for a new city to park their Triple A affiliate in 7 or 8 years. Don't get me wrong. I want Syracuse to hold onto their baseball team. But if it has to go elsewhere I wouldn't mind seeing it in a brand new riverside park opposite the State capitol building in Rensselaer.

Yep. It's really difficult to keep a minor-league baseball team in the black. It's more difficult when the stadium is totally removed from the vibrant parts of the community. That's why almost every other city has drawn the stadium closer to that neighborhood (rather than the other way around, crossing fingers and hoping that the stadium location will draw vibrancy).

Why would the special snowflakes with Onondaga County think that Syracuse is different from every other market in the country? It's not rocket science.

 

[cuse10]

We didn't and don't need the venue at the Fairgrounds as it is built. It's a big barn with no meeting or break out space, no locker rooms, a cement floor and is going to smell like horses. That said we also don't need a stadium downtown for the Mets. I don't trust their commitment and don't believe they amp up the attendance to make it worthwhile. IMHO that money can be used for improvements elsewhere

If you build a new stadium in a prime location (the old Kennedy Square site where the proposed SU stadium would have been) and lock them into a 25-30 year lease tied to the construction of a new park, it will be worthwhile IMO in the rehabilitation of the city and county. Of course, there are larger problems that need addressing, so there goes my point.

 

[KellySyracuse]

I mascotted for the Chiefs (hence my handle on this site) when they were still at MacArthur and I was dumbfounded that a new stadium wasn't built downtown.

It was a total mess getting it built and opened, but they put a new ballpark in downtown-ish Hartford 2 years ago. In terms of attendance and throwing off pre/post game business to the surrounding area, it has been a big success. Such a waste that Syracuse likely won't do the same.

I've been to that ballpark, the Hartford Yard Goats. It's actually really, really nice. I was there for an after work function so we had a suite near home plate on the 3rd base side. There were a couple of pay as you go lots so parking was easy. There was a full bar on the 2nd floor, all the food vendors were on the 1st level. I would love to have NBT stadium retrofitted like this park but that won't guarantee that people will show up given its location.

 

[310Pigpen]

I was in there a couple days ago at the Fair. It's a big metal shed with seating for about 1000 people and a hockey rink that has too much space around it, if you were actually thinking of this as a replacement for the War Memorial for the Crunch. SRC Arena, up at OCC, has more seating. It's clean, but it's just a cement slab floor, bathrooms and a nice entrance. That's what you get for $64 MILLION ???? Geeez, I am in the wrong business! I should be doing government work. FFS!

It’s nice but I couldn’t believe for $64 million that that’s all you get.

 

[cuse10]

It’s nice but I couldn’t believe for $64 million that that’s all you get.

How did it cost $64 million? Who pocketed that money? It is not a $64 million facility.

 

[kirbivore]

It was a great show. I went with my son because we were in town for a lacrosse tournament that weekend. Bought lawn tix last minute. The 2 hours of the show itself were fantastic, everything else about it was awful.

I can't believe people say SPAC is a great venue. Even for its kind, it stinks. I've been to many shows at a similar place in Mass (used to be Great Woods, not sure what corporate name is on it now) and everything about it is much better, from traffic to food to facilities.

When I lived there in the aughts it was the Tweeter Center. Now it's the Xfinity centers

 

[Orangepace]

They're building an "urban" Wegmans in Reston near the new Silver Line expansion. Supposedly it will be similar to the Wegmans in Chestnut Hill (MA)... which is fine. Nothing particularly special. Growing up with Wegmans in Syracuse, I was spoiled. But what made me a huge convert was the seafood bar at the Wegmans in Leesburg (VA). Back in the day... oysters for $1, the best blackened mahi mahi sandwich, and craft beers on draft for wicked cheap.

Not sure where they're building it in Reston yet. I do know they have one going in Tyson's Corner in the CapOne campus.

 

[shandeezy7]

It’s nice but I couldn’t believe for $64 million that that’s all you get.

I have to think that the accelerated timeline to get that thing up in a year contributed to the high price tag.

 

[OttoMets]

It’s nice but I couldn’t believe for $64 million that that’s all you get.

Yep. It's a big pole barn with a lobby.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Amphitheater fans livid when buses stop before rain-delayed show ends

 

[310Pigpen]

How did it cost $64 million? Who pocketed that money? It is not a $64 million facility.

Probably someone in Albany if I had to guess.

 

[CuseOnly]

You don't care about the public good because...revenue. Got it.

And you care about the "public good" meaning when it is something that you like and are interested in.

98% of Syracusans could care less about the trail just like 98% of the area could care less about minor league baseball in a terribly located stadium that cost several millions of dollars.

I would like hard numbers of how many people use the trail before anyone spends another dollar on it. I am guessing that more people go to one concert at the AMP than actual people that use the trail in a year.

 

[Shrmdougluvr]

So, there’s an Adult World Outlet on Erie. Somehow it wasn’t referenced in this thread.

 

[shandeezy7]

Sidearm Sports, which runs 1,100 college websites from Syracuse, makes big move