Syracuse Common Council Meeting on Housing Tax Exemptions - September 10, 2025
Syracuse Common Council Meeting on Housing Tax Exemptions - September 10, 2025
A public meeting was held on September 10, 2025, to discuss three affordable housing projects seeking tax exemption agreements and other city approvals. The meeting was chaired by a council member who noted the need to focus on the tax exemption agreement due to other commitments. Present were Commissioners O.J., Collins, President Hudson, Councillors Paniagua and Nave. Discussions centered on the Southside Renaissance housing project (52 units), a 51-unit project at 680 South Avenue by Keenan, and the La Liga West Side Village scattered-site project. Also discussed was the redevelopment of the former Johnson Vocational Center (51 units) into 138 units of mixed-income housing via a ground lease.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public comments or testimony were recorded during the meeting.
Discussion Items
- Southside Renaissance Housing (52 units): Commissioner O.J. provided an update on this mixed-use project (commercial downstairs, residential up) on the 15/1600 blocks of South Avenue, describing it as a partnership between local developer Charlene and St. Nick's Alliance. The project has been in development since 2021, with multiple HCR applications; the third submission is due the day after the meeting. The majority of funding will come from Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. The city has submitted letters of support to HCR. Councillors expressed strong support, noting the area needs quality affordable housing and that the project aligns with BRT corridor and other city investments.
- 680 South Avenue (51 units): Commissioner O.J. described this project by developer Keenan (formerly with Trinity) as a 51-unit, passive house standard building with structured parking, located across from the Price Rite supermarket. The site is in a floodplain, complicating development. Councillors praised the project for its amenities (grocery store, bus line, parks) and potential to lift property values in the depressed South Side. The developer intends to submit a LITECH application by the next day's deadline.
- La Liga West Side Village (scattered site): Discussed as a third project submitting by the deadline. Commissioner O.J. noted that La Liga has partnered with Acasia (a downstate developer) for affordable housing. The project involves scattered sites, and the council was informed that all three projects are competing for LITECH funding.
- Johnson Vocational Center (51 units): Commissioner Collins presented plans to redevelop the former H.W. Smith Vocational Tech site (200 Park Avenue) into 138 units of mixed-income housing with commercial space, via a 65-year ground lease for $1.025 million. The city will obtain an independent appraisal to support the value. The development team is Penrose (national) partnering with Hanover Ventures (local). The developer is working on financing and has not yet submitted a CIDA application. Concerns were raised about a party wall with an adjacent property and parking availability, but staff noted the area is walkable and no parking is required under current zoning. Councillors expressed concern about past projects stalling and urged diligence to ensure this project proceeds.
Key Outcomes
- The council expressed unanimous verbal support for the Southside Renaissance, 680 South Avenue, and La Liga projects, with the understanding that their official letters of support have been sent to HCR.
- No formal votes were taken during the meeting.
- The council directed staff to inform them once all three LITECH applications are submitted.
- For the Johnson Vocational Center, the council agreed to proceed with an independent appraisal before making a final decision on the sale/ground lease. Staff will return with legislation within the quarter.
- Commissioner Collins agreed to investigate why a remaining wall from a demolished factory is still standing on the Johnson site.
- The meeting was adjourned without further action.
Meeting Transcript
Because uh President Hudson and myself have to uh go to leadership, and I wanted to sort of like make sure we concentrate on this being a tax exemption agreement. I wanted to have a public meeting on this about three different pr uh three different projects that we're talking, we were going to talk about, and I think we'll start off. I got uh Commissioner O. J. here and Commissioner Collins, and I'm joined by President Hudson and uh Councillor Panag Panniagua and Councillor Nave. Uh so let's get started with uh the first one 52 is a Southside Renaissance housing. And if you can just elaborate on how far they're along as far as you're uh what you're aware of as far as the project goes, and maybe Commissioner Collins, if you can chime in on things that don't involve the tax exemption, the shelter tax agreement. Yeah, grateful to have Commissioner Collins here. Uh Matt O. J. Commissioner of Assessment. We've been working with um Charlie and N group um well, since before I was doing the work. I think uh Commissioner Clifford picked this up and handed this to me in in 2021, um, working through various iterations of this, um several properties on both sides of the 15 and 1600 blocks of South Avenue. Um good mixed-use project with commercial downstairs, residential up. Um I I think this is um in some ways creating some synergies with existing city policies and investments in the South Avenue corridor, future bus rapid transit corridor, neighborhood um starved for quality housing, certainly for affordable housing. Um we're wholly supportive of this development team has been working through this trying to get it to the point of economic viability. So this is the uh commissioner not to interrupt you, but this is the St. Nick's alliance. This and and yes, that that is I think um something they've worked hard to get to. And I think for our and we as we well know, they're uh they've done many, many projects, especially downstate. So St. Nix on the development, I mean they started off um a small entity in Brooklyn, but but on the development side, they have developed a lot of housing down there. And they currently manage I I want to say close to 3,000 units in the tri-state area. Um they are they are established. They've got a really good track record from a management perspective, and it seems like they've been good partners to to Charlene so far as well. Okay, so uh so this will be 75 units. Do we I know uh that this was uh they uh they originally went to not with St. Nick's, but they originally went and got we're in the LITEC line basically, and they just didn't have uh the application all together in order to avail this. Um this is their third crack, I think at HCR. Uh techni so depends on how you look at it. The the last they two years ago uh they submitted but did not have a uh uh an application that was considered because of uh missing the deadline for submission. So last year was their first technically true submission uh which got them uh review. And that was prior to St. Nick's Alliance joining. Uh since uh St. Nix has joined, it's uh become much much stronger. This is uh this is one of those instances where we've got a local developer and as we all have all you know, administration council and have been in agreement that as we grow as a city we want the uh the money that's generated here to to stay here. Uh and development's a really hard thing to do. So the fact that we've got a local developer who's now partnered with somebody that knows what they're doing. Uh we think third time could could really be the the right time for them with HCR. Uh so is the capital the original capital about more or less will be coming from St. Nick's, you think? I'm sorry, so then I'm not sure. I said as far as the capital to build the building the the buildings needed to do the project properly. Most of the capital is coming from the St. Nix people, you think. Well, the uh there's always private equity from the developer in there, but uh no, the the majority of the funding will be the the low-income housing tax credit. Okay. Uh that's always gotta be over 50 percent. And then uh there'll be uh other permanent lending sources that'll be in there.
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