JetBlue to keep twice-daily, nonstop flights from Syracuse to Orlando

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — JetBlue Airways’ (NASDAQ: JBLU) twice-daily, nonstop flights from Syracuse Hancock International Airport (SYR) directly to Orlando International Airport (MCO) will continue. The Syracuse Regional Airport Authority (SRAA) and JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) announced the extension on Dec. 9. JetBlue increased the frequency of its daily nonstop flights to Orlando to twice-daily earlier […]

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Road projects set for upstate areas to boost resiliency

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier, Subscriber Only

GEDDES, N.Y. — Work to enhance the resiliency of state highways is set for selected roads in Central New York, Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier, and the North Country. Gov. Kathy Hochul has announced $100 million for road work in 70 locations in New York state that have been impacted by extreme weather. Marie Therese Dominguez,

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GEDDES, N.Y. — Work to enhance the resiliency of state highways is set for selected roads in Central New York, Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier, and the North Country.

Gov. Kathy Hochul has announced $100 million for road work in 70 locations in New York state that have been impacted by extreme weather.

Marie Therese Dominguez, commissioner of the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), on Dec. 4 announced the funding in the Art and Home Center at the New York State Fairgrounds in the town of Geddes.

The road work will begin this upcoming spring, Dominguez noted in her remarks.

With project support from the federal Infrastructure and Jobs Act, crews will repave a total of 551 lane miles of state highways in every region of the state, to revitalize New York’s aging infrastructure, Hochul’s office said.

After the storms are over and the winter weather has subsided, the NYSDOT turns its attention to rebuilding roads and repairing the damage that’s left behind after a harsh winter, Dominguez said in her remarks.

“And with the impacts of climate change becoming even more severe, that workload has been increasing,” Dominguez said. “What does that actually mean? … What it means is that beyond the freeze and thaw cycle, we are experiencing more impacts of not just freezing and thawing but also wind, flooding, downed trees … all of the things that we now see all at once … intense rainfalls, intense snowfalls in tighter periods of time than we’ve seen before.”

Joining Dominguez for the announcement were New York State Assemblyman William Magnarelli (D–Syracuse), who chairs the Assembly’s transportation committee and New York State Senator John Mannion (D–Geddes), who will succeed Brandon Williams as the U.S. Representative in New York’s 22nd Congressional District, effective Jan. 3.

Targeted projects

In its announcement, the state listed the projects by region, and the following are a few examples of the highways targeted for work.

Central New York

The Central New York region has eight projects, including a $1.8 million effort to resurface Route 174 from Lee Mulroy Road to Main Street in Marcellus and from Main Street to West Genesee Street in Camillus.

Another funding award involves $500,000 to resurface Route 931B (State Fair Boulevard) — from Route 297 to Pump House Road in the town of Geddes.

The eight projects also include $1.6 million to resurface Route 104 from the Cayuga County line to Route 104A in the town of Oswego and town and village of Hannibal in Oswego County.

The other projects involve:

• $2.2 million to resurface Route 26 from Vrolyk Road in the town of Georgetown to Eaton Brook Road in the town of Eaton in Madison County.

• $600,000 to resurface Route 13 (Cortland Street and Utica Street) in the village of DeRuyter in Madison County.

• $1.3 million to resurface Route 104 from the Mexico East Village line to Interstate 81, Town and Village of Mexico, Oswego County.

• $2.1 million to resurface Route 5/20 from the Seneca County line to Route 326 in the town of Aurelius in Cayuga County.

• $684,000 million to resurface Route 26 from the Broome County line to Route 41 in the town of Willett in Cortland County.

Mohawk Valley

Among the three funding awards in the Mohawk Valley is a $2.1 million project to resurface Route 20 from Beaver Creek Road to Brothertown Road in the town of Sangerfield in Oneida County.

The Mohawk Valley projects also include $1.1 million to resurface Route 5 from Mary Street to Tilton Road in the town of Palatine in Montgomery County, as well as $1.1 million to resurface Routes 20 and 28 in the village of Richfield Springs and town of Springfield in Otsego County.

Southern Tier

The nine projects in the Southern Tier include $2.3 million to resurface Route 38 from the village of Newark Valley to the hamlet of Berkshire, in the towns of Newark Valley and Berkshire in Tioga County.

The other projects in the region involve:

• $1.1 million to resurface Route 26 from Overlook Drive to the Cortland County line in the town of Triangle in Broome County.

• $2.3 million to resurface all four ramps and the rest area at Exit 37 on Interstate 86 in Steuben County.

• $250,000 toward resurfacing Route 415 and Route 352 in Steuben County.

• $2.3 million toward resurfacing Route 961M in Chemung County.

• $1.7 million to resurface Route 11 from the hamlet of Castle Creek to Joyner Road in the towns of Chenango and Barker in Broome County.

• $876,000 to resurface Routes 10 and 23 in the village of Stamford and town of Harpersfield in Delaware County.

• $534,000 to resurface Routes 30 and 206 in the hamlet of Downsville in the town of Colchester in Delaware County.

• $1.5 million to resurface Route 320 from Route 12 to County Road 29 in the towns of Norwich and North Norwich in Chenango County.

North Country

In the North Country, the 11 project awards include $1.3 million to resurface Route 11 from the east village of Gouverneur line to Bristol Road in the town of Gouverneur in St. Lawrence County.

The projects also include:

• $989,000 to resurface Route 3 from the Oswego County line to Hessel Road in the town of Ellisburg in Jefferson County.

• $965,000 to resurface Route 58 from the hamlet of Fine to Route 23 in the towns of Edwards and Fine in St. Lawrence County.

• $285,000 to resurface Route 184 from Route 10 to Route 812 in the town of DePeyster and the village and town of Heuvelton in St. Lawrence County.

• $330,000 to resurface Route 3 from the hamlet of Great Bend to the bridge over the Black River in the town of Champion in Jefferson County.

• $505,000 to resurface Route 374 from a point 0.3 miles west of Sunset Road to Church Pond Road in the town of Dannemora in Franklin County.

• $479,000 to resurface Route 421 from Warren Point Road to Route 30 in the town of Piercefield in St. Lawrence County.

• $597,000 to resurface Route 58 from Route 23 to Harmon Road in the town of Edwards in St. Lawrence County.

• $2.4 million to resurface Route 73 from the Cascade Mountain Trailhead to Liberty Hill Lane, town of North Elba in Essex County.

• $927,000 to resurface Route 190 from the Franklin County line to a point 1.6 miles west of Brandy Brook Road in the town of Ellenburg in Clinton County.

• $1.1 million to resurface Route 374 from the hamlet of Brainardsville to the village of Chateaugay in the towns of Bellmont & Chateaugay in Franklin County.

Annual Lights of Love campaign to benefit repairs to Crouse clock tower

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Health Care, Nonprofits, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Crouse Health says the clock tower on which the lights are displayed in its annual Lights of Love campaign will benefit from this year’s effort. The clock tower needs some repair work done. The health system held the lighting ceremony on Dec. 2. The family of the late New York State Senator

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Cornhill Project looks to revitalize Utica neighborhood

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Mohawk Valley, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

UTICA, N.Y. — A project spearheaded by the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties will create more than 100 apartments along with commercial and community space as part of an effort to revitalize Utica’s Cornhill neighborhood. The Cornhill Project — an initiative that also includes People First, Mid-Utica Neighborhood Preservation Corporation, Collective Impact Network,

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The Cornhill Project — an initiative that also includes People First, Mid-Utica Neighborhood Preservation Corporation, Collective Impact Network, and the City of Utica — is the response to outreach from a neighborhood that feels forgotten and left behind as economic development reaches other parts of the city, says Project Manager Tyler Hutchinson, who also serves as the Community Foundation’s business process manager.

The project got its start about nine years ago, he says, when the community began reaching out. In response, the Community Foundation engaged with the community to find out what residents felt was missing in the neighborhood and to collaboratively develop a solution.

“The biggest thing was lack of resources,” Hutchinson says. That includes things like access to healthy and fresh food, dealing with blight, and access to services without having to travel outside the neighborhood. As a whole, the community expressed a desire for a centralized location to provide those things and help bring the community together.

Partnering with the city and other organizations, the Cornhill Project has developed a plan to address those issues through the creation of two “impact centers” in the neighborhood.

James St Impact Center — The Cornhill Project, spearheaded by the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties, plans to build two impact centers in the Cornhill neighborhood of Utica, adding apartments, community space, a business incubator, a grocery store, and more to the area. The centers will be located on West Street and James Street.
RENDERINGS CREDIT: CORNHILL PROJECT

The West Street Impact Center, to be located at 1115 West St., will provide a space for various agencies to operate from and bring services to Cornhill. The James Street Impact Center, to be located at 313 James St., will focus on young professionals with programming centered around business and healthy living with workforce housing on the upper floors.

Combined, the centers will create more than 100 apartments along with 30,000 square feet of commercial and community space with other features including a business incubator, an arts/media studio, a gym/wellness facility, and a neighborhood grocery store.

“Right now, we are in the process of financial closing,” Hutchinson says. It’s a competitive process through a variety of funding streams, and the Community Foundation is waiting to hear back from the state and other funding streams to get a closing timeline. “Everything points to closing at the end of 2025 with shovels in the ground in 2026.”

In the meantime, work on West Street to demolish existing structures has begun, and the Community Foundation is actively working on other components of the project, says Hutchinson.

One of those components is a recreation trail that incorporates the neighborhood’s history via art. The Community Foundation is working with both Utica and the Oneida County Planning Department on the trail along with local artists and resident historians to help capture and celebrate the area’s history.

Project organizers are also working to remain connected to the community and keep the community engaged and involved during the process, says Kayla Ellis, business communication manager at the Community Foundation.

The foundation held a community dinner in October to update residents on the project and regularly posts updates on the project’s social media pages.

“There’s so much hope in that neighborhood now,” Ellis says.

The organization is also very focused on activating space as soon as possible and is working to find space in the Cornhill neighborhood for services and programming from various agencies, Hutchinson notes. The foundation hopes to collaborate with other organizations to bring in services to address issues such as youth violence as soon as it can. Those services can then transition to the impact centers once they open.

The key to the entire project is collaboration — between the residents, the foundation, its project partners, and other organizations.

“It’s exciting to see everybody working together, and everybody has that hope,” Hutchinson says.

FLLT acquires land near wildlife management area

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, New York News, Nonprofits, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

CATHARINE, N.Y. — The Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) has purchased 30 wooded acres in the town of Catharine, located adjacent to the Connecticut Hill Wildlife Management Area (WMA). Located off Oak Hill Road, the property shares a boundary with a section of the Finger Lakes Trail that follows along Cayuta Creek. “This latest project

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CNY closed home sales fall nearly 19 percent in October

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Mohawk Valley, Small Business, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

But housing inventory, new listings increased SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Realtors closed on the sale of 716 previously owned homes in October in the six-county Central New York area, down 18.9 percent from the 883 existing homes they sold in the year-ago month, according to a recent housing report from the Greater Syracuse Association of Realtors

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But housing inventory, new listings increased

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Realtors closed on the sale of 716 previously owned homes in October in the six-county Central New York area, down 18.9 percent from the 883 existing homes they sold in the year-ago month, according to a recent housing report from the Greater Syracuse Association of Realtors (GSAR).

Pending sales fell almost 27 percent to 541 this October from 739 in October 2023. That foreshadows further declines in closed home sales in the next couple of months.

“The Central New York housing market tends to slow down during the final months of the year and 2024 was no exception,” Nancy Quigg, GSAR president, said in the housing report that the association issued on Nov. 20. “There is positive news for buyers in the October data as the number of newly listed homes and overall housing inventory rose, which translates to increased choices as they look for their dream home. Moderating price growth also helps buyers find their next home within their target budget.”

The total inventory of homes for sales in Central New York jumped nearly 38 percent to 1,616 this October from 1,174 a year prior. New listings rose 5.6 percent to 908 in the latest month from 860 in October 2023. Months supply of inventory increased to 2.5 months in October from 1.7 months a year earlier.

“The increase in housing supply will help buyers going forward and position our housing market for growth in 2025,” said Reginia Tuttle, GSAR CEO, adding that Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, recently forecasted a 9 percent gain in national home sales for 2025. Yun also predicted that mortgage rates would fluctuate between 5.5 percent and 6.5 percent. “We believe … Central New York’s housing market is primed to participate in this projected growth, especially as projects such as Micron move forward.”

The October median sales price of $226,000 in the CNY region represented an increase of 0.4 percent from $225,000 in October 2023.

GSAR is the trade association representing more than 2,200 realtors in Central New York. All data is compiled from the Central New York Information Service and includes single-family residential activity in Cayuga, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, and Seneca counties.

Guthrie’s Cortlandville health-care campus is now open

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Health Care, Southern Tier, Subscriber Only

Guthrie Clinic collaborates with Cortland firm on the new facility CORTLANDVILLE, N.Y. — The Guthrie Cortland Renzi Health Campus at 4057 West Road in the town of Cortlandville opened to patients on Dec. 9, following its formal-opening event on Dec. 3. The health-care provider says it worked on the project with the McNeil

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Guthrie Clinic collaborates with Cortland firm on the new facility

CORTLANDVILLE, N.Y. — The Guthrie Cortland Renzi Health Campus at 4057 West Road in the town of Cortlandville opened to patients on Dec. 9, following its formal-opening event on Dec. 3.

The health-care provider says it worked on the project with the McNeil Development Company of Cortland, “bringing new life” to the former JM Murray Center, “choosing to redevelop a vacant property that holds fond memories” for the Cortland community.

“They say it takes a community to raise a child. I like to say it takes a community to raise a community,” David McNeil, owner of the McNeil Development Company, said in the Guthrie announcement. “We have got to continue working together to provide the resources that make a community healthy. Our health care organizations need to provide a high level of quality care in our community, so our residents do not have to travel. There is no one person that can do it by themself.”

The 32,000-square-foot Guthrie Cortland Renzi Health Campus will initially offer imaging, lab, walk-in and expanded primary-care services in a primary-care clinic named in honor of Deborah and Stephen Geibel, according to a Guthrie Clinic announcement.

Beginning this spring, the new space will include multiple specialty-care services, including orthopedics, general surgery, plastic surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and pain management. The facility also will be home to a telemedicine hub, expanding virtual access to Guthrie experts from across its health system.

Cortland–area donor Nicholas Renzi has pledged $1 million to the new facility, which placed the Renzi name on the health-care campus.

“At Guthrie, we invest when and where there is a need, and we will continue to do so, because we understand the challenges of accessing health care in rural communities,” Edmund Sabanegh, president and CEO of the Guthrie Clinic, said in the announcement. “Through generous gifts such as Nick’s, we’re able to set the standard for rural health care across the nation by delivering innovative, compassionate, and accessible medical services tailored to the unique needs of rural communities.”

At the time of his retirement in 1994, Renzi was serving as senior VP of Pall Corporation, per a Jan. 7, 2021 article on the website of the Central New York Community Foundation. Pall Corp. operates a facility in the Cortland area.

“It has been a privilege and a pleasure to support this new health campus project,” Renzi said in the Guthrie announcement. “The consolidation of existing Guthrie medical services into one building together with the requisite support services is a major step in making The Guthrie Clinic a leader in the Cortland community. For a small town, we have health care facilities that are well suited to service the needs of our people in terms of the breadth of services, availability of services, and the competency of the medical professionals and staff.”

The nonprofit Guthrie Clinic — which is headquartered in Sayre, Pennsylvania — describes itself as a multispecialty health system integrating clinical and hospital care along with research and education. It has six hospital campuses and a network of outpatient facilities across 13 counties.

Mohawk Valley Realtors donate to military program at Sitrin

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Health Care, Mohawk Valley, Nonprofits

UTICA, N.Y. — The Mohawk Valley Association of Realtors (MVAR) recently presented more than $17,580 to Sitrin for its military program. The Sitrin program provides

Ithaca celebrates completion of three housing developments

Construction, Design & Real Estate, New York News, Nonprofits, Southern Tier, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

ITHACA, N.Y. — New York State Homes and Community Renewal completed a new housing complex with 118 all-electric homes in Ithaca’s Northside Neighborhood and the rehabilitation of two outdated Ithaca Housing Authority properties in a $75 million project. The project preserves and adds to the city of Ithaca’s public-housing options, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced.

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The project preserves and adds to the city of Ithaca’s public-housing options, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced.

The project included three housing communities — Northside Apartments, Overlook Terrace, and Southview Gardens.

Overlook Terrace, developed by 3d Development Group and the Ithaca Housing Authority, has five residential buildings with 10 apartments. Southview Gardens has four residential buildings with 26 apartments, a community building, and a laundry/mechanical equipment building. Northside Apartments has 17 buildings with 82 apartments — 12 more than the original development demolished to make way for it — and a community building.

Work at Overlook Terrace and Southview Gardens included mechanical and electrical upgrades; upgraded laundry facilities; new windows, roofs, doors, and flooring; and updated bathrooms, kitchens, and appliances.

The apartments are available for households earning up to 60 percent of the area median income.

“Redeveloping these properties was about more than just renovating buildings,” Ithaca Housing Authority Executive Director Brenda Westfall said in the announcement. “It’s about revitalizing communities, preserving affordability, and creating opportunities for families to thrive. Each improvement we make is an investment in the future, ensuring that everyone has access to safe, dignified, and sustainable housing. It’s a commitment to equity, stability, and the wellbeing of our entire community.”

All three developments are highly energy efficient and all electric. Some of the energy-efficiency measures included in the project are heat-reflective roofing systems with tapered insulation, Energy Star-rated appliances, energy-efficient lighting, and low-flow plumbing fixtures for a projected total energy savings of 15 percent.

State financing for the project included $10.6 million in permanent tax-exempt bonds, federal low-income housing tax credits that will generate $29.7 million in equity, and $18.8 million in subsidies from New York State Homes and Community Renewal. The project also received
$1.5 million through Homes and Community Renewal’s Clean Energy Initiative program, $9.3 million from the Ithaca Housing Authority, $300,000 from Tompkins County Community Housing Fund, and more than $90,000 from Ithaca Urban Renewal.

“The Ithaca Housing Authority’s Northside Apartments project provides a much-needed infusion of high-quality affordable housing in Tompkins County,” Tompkins County Legislature Chair Dan Klein said. “A lack of affordable housing is at the root of so many issues in Tompkins County. The county is proud to be a small piece of the financing puzzle that brought this project to fruition.”

LeChase Construction adds project manager

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — LeChase Construction Services, LLC recently announced the addition of Noah Gillette as a project engineer, based in its Central New York region. In this role, Gillette will assist project managers and superintendents by managing documentation and helping direct the efforts of project teams during the preconstruction, construction, and post-construction phases of assigned projects,

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Targeted projects

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