State announces completion of $1.5M Cayuga Culinary Institute in Auburn

AUBURN, N.Y. — Work has finished on the $1.5 million Cayuga Culinary Institute in Auburn, which will serve as a dedicated space for the new culinary arts program at Cayuga Community College this fall.

The project’s work included renovating part of the Plaza of the Arts in downtown Auburn. The city’s $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award in 2018 helped fund it, the office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.

The New York State Department of State also awarded $800,000 for the project, which involved renovating 2,250 square feet of leased space in the Plaza of the Arts building at 161 Genesee St. in Auburn.

Interior renovations included creating instructional and event space, as well as building out and fixing equipment for a commercial-grade kitchen and café.

State and local officials held a formal-opening ceremony Wednesday.

The new culinary program will offer an associate degree. Affiliated with Cayuga Community College, the program has already received 30 applications for the fall semester and will begin offering non-credit culinary courses for community members this month, Cuomo’s office said.

“The Downtown Revitalization Initiative was an essential element in our vision of creating a Culinary Institute to prepare our students for successful careers in the flourishing hospitality industry,” Brian Durant, president of Cayuga Community College, said in a release. “Graduates of our Culinary Arts program will be in excellent position to launch personally and professionally fulfilling careers that also support the continued growth of our region’s private industries.”

Auburn — which the state describes as the second largest city in the Central New York region — was named a third-round DRI winner in July 2018.

“The Downtown Revitalization Initiative has allowed the city of Auburn to see significant investment in our downtown and we are proud that the Cayuga Community College Culinary Center is the first project to reach completion,” Auburn Mayor Michael Quill said. “Having this new Culinary Center will be a huge boost to our downtown’s west side and most importantly the center brings a first-class training facility to be at the use of our community college students so that they may be trained to be the future leaders of the hospitality industry of the Finger Lakes.”