Syracuse Industrial Development Agency Board Meeting – August 28, 2026
Syracuse Industrial Development Agency Board Meeting – August 28, 2026
The Syracuse Industrial Development Agency (SIDA) held its August board meeting on August 28, 2026, with all board members present. The meeting covered project extensions, local access policy waivers, a new project application, financial updates on the Carousel Center, and a compliance issue with the McGuire project.
Consent Calendar
- Minutes of June 16, 2026: Moved by Ricky Brown, seconded, and unanimously approved. No changes or abstentions.
Discussion Items
- Extension for 101 North Salina Street (Post Building): The project sponsor (Chuck) requested an extension of the agency’s appointment from August 31 to December 31, 2026, to complete interior renovations converting the atrium into 29 apartments. The project had originally been awarded $648,000 in state and local sales and use tax, and that amount has not been exceeded. The sponsor noted they are operating under a temporary certificate of occupancy (TCO) and expect a full certificate in two weeks; 29 units are nearly fully leased, with pre-leasing starting for the second phase. Motion by Ricky, second by Ken, unanimously approved.
- Waivers for Northside Genesee Project: The project team (Otis Toluca of Huber Brewer Construction) requested three waivers of the local access policy:
- Holland Property Management (Lake George, NY) for architectural siding – $2.2 million (3.4% of total project costs). No local companies bid on the complex siding work.
- Lakeview Lawn and Landscaping (Canandaigua, NY) for landscaping – under $44,000 (<1% of costs). No local firms responded due to capacity issues; one other bid came from Watertown.
- Shades Unlimited (Wilkes‑Barre, PA) for window shades – $33,000 (2% of costs). No local firms bid. Each waiver was approved by separate motions (all by Ricky, seconded by Ken) with unanimous ayes.
- New Application – Pop Resort LLC (842 West Beldon Street): A proposal to adaptively reuse the former Popcorn Supply building into 36 residential units (28 one‑bedroom, 8 studios). 10% of units will be affordable (mixed‑income), and the project will pursue historic tax credits. Parking is provided on an ancillary lot not part of the financial assistance. Developer Tim noted the project team includes Pinkney Hugo, with construction likely starting late 2026/early 2027 and completion expected by mid‑2028. The board authorized a public hearing for September 15, 2026. Motion by Ricky, second by Ken, unanimously approved.
- Pyramid/Carousel Center Financing Update: Sue reported that in June 2026, the lender (holder of subordinate commercial debt on Carousel Center) initiated a sale of that debt through a competitive bid. Pyramid Management Group LLC (an affiliate of the mall owners) was awarded the winning bid. The subordinate debt is behind SIDA’s PILOT bonds, protecting bondholders. SIDA is working with Pyramid, the bond trustee, and the bond insurer; talks are ongoing, and if board consent is needed, a special meeting may be called. No board action taken at this meeting.
- McGuire Syracuse Project Compliance Issue: Sue outlined that the McGuire dealership renovation project (closed in 2016) has had repeated non‑compliance with notification requirements. In December 2024, the company filed a certificate of conversion from a limited partnership to an LLC without SIDA’s consent. After the board retroactively approved that change in January 2025, the company’s counsel failed to file the required memorandum with the county clerk until August 2026, and the filing was rejected. The board discussed a strongly worded letter to the principals, to be drafted by the chair, and requested an update at the next meeting (September 15, 2026). No formal motion was made; the board concurred with the approach.
Key Outcomes
- Vote: Unanimously approved minutes from June 16, 2026.
- Vote: Unanimously approved extension for 101 North Salina Street to December 31, 2026.
- Votes: Three separate unanimous votes approving each local access policy waiver for the Northside Genesee project.
- Vote: Unanimously authorized a public hearing for Pop Resort LLC on September 15, 2026.
- Directive: The chair will send a letter to the principals of the McGuire project regarding compliance, and an update is expected at the September meeting.
- Next Step: The board may consider a special meeting for the Pyramid debt transfer if consent is required.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning. I'd like to welcome you all to the August board meeting of the Syracuse Industrial Development Agency on this bright August morning. Um I will call the meeting to order starting with a roll call of the board members. I am Kathy Murphy. Ricky Brown. Thank you. All members are here. Proof of notice was properly served. And our first order of business is the minute approval or any changes to the minutes of our previous board meeting on June 16th. Minutes were included in your packet. Is there a motion? Make a motion. Move to approve by Ricky. Second. All in favor. All right. Opposed abstention. Motion carries. Thank you very much. First item on the agenda is a new business item for 101 North Salina Street. Good morning, everyone. Um in your agenda is a resolution seeking an extension of your agency appointment for this project. You may recall that this closed in May of 2025. This is the ongoing renovations to the post building at 101 North Salina. They are converting what I call the atrium uh piece into apartments, and they are well underway. Um but due to because of the existing structure and the um way in which they had to undertake the renovations, they ran into some delays and some supply chain delays. So they are simply asking for an extension of their appointment from August 31st to December 31st of this year to allow them time to complete the interior renovations. I will note that they were originally awarded um $648,000 in state and local sales and use tax. They have not exceeded that number. Anything to add? Just that you were operating under a TCO right now, so we should have our full C of O in two weeks. So we're you know, we're almost there. We've got most of the apartments lease that we have available. Just need a couple more months to do punch list items and finish it up. So we're right at the finish line. Just need a little extra time. I haven't seen inside, but I will say the outside looks terrific. Thank you. Yeah. Anybody wants a tour, let me know. I do. I'll take the up. We like to ours. Did you say that you were fully leased? No, we we've leased most of the 29 units that we have available. We still have a couple more to lease there, and we're starting to pre-lease for the uh second piece, which we're gonna you know, open when we get the C of O. Great. Yeah. Any other questions? Thanks so much, Chuck.
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