Syracuse Common Council Receives I-81 Viaduct Project Update - December 8, 2025
Syracuse Common Council Receives I-81 Viaduct Project Update - December 8, 2025
On December 8, 2025, the Syracuse Common Council received a detailed update from New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) officials on the I-81 Viaduct Project. Presenters included Scott Butler, Mike Ryan, and Betsy Parmley, joined by Councilmembers Nave, Gathers, Hudson, Hogan, and others. The update covered progress on Phase 1 contracts, the upcoming Phase 2 design, environmental and health protections, local hiring achievements, and planned community art installations.
Discussion Items
Phase 1 Contracts
- Contract 1 (Cicero): Nearly complete; interchange open with minor cleanup before year-end, and a small bridge on South Bay Road to finish in spring.
- Contract 2 (Valley/DeWitt): Roundabouts at Brighton Avenue open; three of four legs of new East Glen open; I-481 to I-81 south connection expected by early 2025. Old East Glen will be abandoned and turned into a driveway.
- Contract 3 (Inner Harbor): Replacement of Bear Street, Court Street, and Spencer Street bridges; reconstruction of North Clinton Street; new shared-use paths and decorative lighting. Spencer Street Bridge targeted to open before year-end. Northbound ramps consolidation: Pearl Street on-ramp remains, North State Street ramp removed.
- Contract 4 (Krauss/Irving): New on/off ramps at Krauss; reconstruction of Krauss and Irving Avenues, converting both to two-way. Low Dye Street bridge work delayed due to winter, expected completion soon. New storm trunk line installed along Erie Boulevard.
- Contract 5 (South Side – viaduct removal start): Excavation for new business loop northbound; roundabout at Van Buren; railroad bridge shift (New York Susquehanna). Construction beginning on removing southern viaduct section.
Phase 2 Contracts (Design Phase)
- Contract 6: Reconstruction of I-690 from Leavenworth Ave to Irving; removal of I-690 to I-81 connections; new West Street interchange (at-grade intersection); reconstruction of Erie Boulevard; shared-use paths and bike lanes; new creek walk on west side of Onondaga Creek. Decorative lighting and tree planting included. Traffic will be maintained westbound; eastbound detoured for about 1.5 years. Design is 30-40% complete; design-build proposals with alternative concepts being reviewed.
- Contract 6A: Separate stormwater trunk line (8.5x12 ft box, ~20 ft deep) to separate stormwater from combined sewer, removing ~85 million gallons of water per year from the Metro plant. Reconstruction of local streets and sanitary sewers included.
- Contract 7 (Sister to 3): Reconstruction of I-81 from Butternut north; consolidation of northbound ramps; shared-use path from contract 3 to Hiawatha; overlook near Lodi. Design starting in 2026.
- Contract 8: Reconstruction of Almond Street; removal of remaining viaduct; conversion of Harrison and Adam Streets to two-way; installation of remaining trunk line; bike lanes and sidewalks.
Traffic and Community Impact
- Traffic studies for 270+ intersections show all operating at Level of Service C or D (acceptable for urban areas).
- Diesel trucks, 7% of traffic but 30% of pollutants, will be rerouted off the business loop, projected to reduce respiratory hazards by 30-40% long-term.
Environmental and Health Protections
- Class B containment for bridge paint removal; construction curtains to contain dust and noise; water trucks for dust suppression.
- Noise and air monitors installed at 13 locations along Phase 1 project limits.
- Tip sheets distributed; poison control hotline (with registered nurse) and referral to Syracuse Community Health Center for residents with respiratory issues.
- Archaeological monitors, including Native Nation monitors, on all excavation sites.
Local Hire
- 15% of work hours to be performed by City of Syracuse residents or Onondaga Nation members.
- Since 2023, 288 individuals from these areas have worked on contracts; 188 retained continuously. Of those, 96 had a recognized barrier to employment.
Community Artwork
- Concepts for murals on concrete walls at various locations (e.g., Krauss Ave, north side) are being developed. NYSDOT is seeking public feedback via website and working with the Public Art Commission to use local artists (unprecedented for DOT).
Key Outcomes
- Council received the update with questions answered. No formal votes or decisions were taken.
- Next steps: Phase 2 design continues; contract awards expected in spring 2026; planning commission and council will be asked to approve street name and alignment changes (e.g., East Glen, Court Place) as contracts progress.
- Council was encouraged to use the I81 Connect app for construction updates and to provide input on mural designs via the project website.
Meeting Transcript
Transportation um to give us an update on the I-81 Viaduct project. Um I'm joined by Councillor Nave, Councillor Gathers, Councillor Hudson, Councillor Hogan, uh, Scott Butler, Mike Ryan, and Betsy Parmley from the Department of Transportation. Uh we have a PowerPoint and some handouts. I will hand it right over to the three of you. Great. Go for it. Thank you, Counselor. All right, we're gonna kind of click through uh PowerPoint that you have in front of you, kind of give you an update on our phase one contracts, give you an update on phase two, which will be starting next year, um, and then some other things that we're doing in the community um with health protections, local hire and others. So we always start with the first, we have two phases of work. Uh first phase is to build out the infrastructure we need to remove the viaduct. So that consists of five contracts, one, two, three, one and two are designed build, and they are one's in Cicero, the others in the valley in DeWitt. Contract three, which is the yellow is in the inner harbor area. Um contract four is that blue, creating the new on and off ramps at Krauss and reconstructing Krause and Irving Avenue, and then contract five is in the heart of uh the South Side, bringing and creating the business loop and bringing it down to grade. That's phase one. Phase two, we'll go through is the reconstruction of 690, some sewer and water improvements along Erie Boulevard and Salina Street, and then seven is a sister contract to three, and eight is the removal of the viaduct and the build out of Almond Street. So contract one up in Cicero. Uh we are as close as we can be to completion of this phase. So the in the interchange is open and operational. We have a few little minor things to clean up before the first of the year, and then we'll come back in the spring to finish a small bridge on South Bay Road. Um and finish that work. But most of and if not phase, you know, contract one is mostly complete. So that first one that we started in February-ish of 2023 is now at its completion. Contract two, which is uh the southern interchange area in the valley. Um we're getting closer and closer each day to having other parts of the infrastructure open. As many of you know, we've been putting in roundabouts uh at at both ends of Brighton Avenue. Those are open and not fully operational, but they are open and operating. Um we have three of the four legs of the new East Glen open. Um these are just some images just so you can see some of the infrastructure from when we started in the fall of 23 23, removing uh that spaghetti in the middle of now. We're getting close to having uh 480, what is currently 481 to 81 south. That should be open, hopefully by the first of the year, if not pretty soon after. That has to be complete before you can start the actual teardown up closer to the city. Correct. Okay. As you can see next to J Quith was the old bridge and the old uh East Glenn Avenue. We've obviously shifted that uh on this image, obviously shifted it to the left. That will uh produce an action by the planning commission and the council to accept that move. Um just to put that on your radar, that will be coming as we get closer to completing this contract. Um, which we believe the city or the administration has decided they'll abandon and tr create East Glen Old East Glen into a driveway, new East Glen will remain East Glen. Moving on. Any and by the way, if you have questions, just stop us. Um contract three is the inner harbor. This is where we're replacing the Bear Street, Court Street, and Spencer Street bridges, fully reconstructing uh North Clinton Street. Um Mike helped me out. What else are we doing? So we're fully reconstructing North Clinton Street. Um is also being pretty much fully reconstructed. Uh the new port place. Uh we're um realigning where Port Bridge, uh, where Court Street Bridge, how it comes in at a very large angle today. We're straightening that out as you can see in that picture, and that's gonna connect to the the original alignment of Court Court Street or Court Place. Uh we're also replacing the Butternut Street Bridge and the Spencer Street Bridge at the minute.
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