Syracuse Sun

We were invited yesterday by New York State to the Southwest Community Center located in Syracuse, to be part of piece of history for New York State, Syracuse and close to my heart, Oneida NY.

Director Brian Stratton of the Canal Corporation did a presentation of the awarded projects for Oneida’s DRI along with Syracuse.

It is my honor and privilege to be part of the NY State DRI Program. I would like to thank Governor Kathy Hochul for choosing Oneida to be part of this historic initiative.

There are so many people to extend our gratitude to: Governor Kathy Hochul, Director Brian Stratton of the Canal Corporation, he is the same gentlemen that came to Oneida last year on December 7, 2021, to let us know we were awarded the $10,000,000 DRI Grant. Thank you also to my Co-Chair Kipp Hicks from the Madison County IDA, our Local Planning Committee, Paul Marco from OC3, Talas and Northbound Properties, Abbey Woodcock, Owner Callee 1945, Fred Meyers Chairman of the Planning Board/ZBA, Matt Roberts, Madison County Supervisor and Co-Owner of Sherrill Manufacturing, Michelle Ironside Kinville of Ironside Funeral Home, Jeanie Gleisner of CNY RPDB, Steve Potter of Community Bank, Mary Parry VP Operations at Oneida Health, Matt Carpenter, Superintendent of the Oneida City School District, Hank Leo, CEO YMCA of the Greater Tri-Valley, Brandee Dubois, Madison County Supervisor, Luke Griff, Director of the Recreation Department, Lee Ann Wells, Oneida City Comptroller, Jeff Rowe, Oneida City Engineer, Barb Henderson, Economic Development, Chris Henry, Director of  Oneida Planning and Development, the Department of State, and the Central New York REDC.

A special thank you goes to a few people who have worked so hard and diligently to get the DRI application done and on time, and with their efforts, we were awarded the DRI.  Cassie Rose, retired Oneida Planning Director, Barb Henderson – Economic Development and Paul Marco, citizen, and private investor in the City of Oneida. Without these three people I would not be here today giving you this fantastic information and being part of this historic, game changing financial investment in downtown Oneida. 

With both government and private partnership this is the single largest investment in Oneida’s history.

Thank you to each and person involved in this entire project. With your hard work and dedication to the City of Oneida, we will be seeing a bright and prosperous future.

And now I would like to share with you the awarded projects:

**Increase the City’s Walkability and Bikeability                     

$1.521 million

Improving Downtown Infrastructure and Streetscaping 

Improve streetscape and pavement to portions of Main St., Broad St., Madison St., Farrier Ave. and Vanderbilt Ave., with bicycle infrastructure added to Sconondoa St. 

 **Expand Business and Housing Opportunities by Redeveloping and Repurposing Existing Buildings 

Reimagining the Vacant Hotel Oneida             

$2.9 Million

Rehabilitate the iconic hotel to provide new downtown mixed-use space including several apartments, a restaurant/pub and a banquet space. 

Restoring and Upgrading the Devereaux Building              

$1.569 Million

Restore and upgrade the Devereaux building into a mixed-use residential, retail and commercial redevelopment.  

Redeveloping the Lerman Building for Commercial and Residential Uses                  

$1.141 Million

Redevelop an underused building to leverage all 20,000 square feet, including the creation of townhouse-style apartments and commercial spaces, and expand the existing Oneida CoWorks space to include new offices and a conference room. 

Developing a Downtown Business Assistance Fund                      

$600,000

Create a matching grant fund for façade improvements and interior improvements, including heavy equipment and permanent installations. 

The fund will be administered by Madison County. 

Establishing a Form-Based Zoning Overlay District                       

$100,000

Create a form-based code and overlay district for the DRI area to ensure that future development meets the aesthetic intent of the city. 

**Improve Public Spaces and Amenities    

Upgrading Facilities at Veteran's Memorial Park                 

$1.059 Million

Install an ADA Splashpad and a Pickleball court on the Veteran’s Field campus and implement repairs/upgrades for the bathhouse facilities. 

Develop a new memorial area at Veteran’s Memorial Playfield to honor veterans from various armed forces. 

Developing Area Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) Soccer Fields                  

$760,000

Build soccer fields and parking areas on former flood sites to encourage downtown area sports.

FEMA has already approved of these uses being built on this site. 

 Merry Christmas Everyone!

Original source can be found here.