Local officials, including Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh, spoke to Rep. John Katko (R-Camillus) at a town hall in the city to discuss replacement options for Interstate 81’s aging viaduct.

Walsh, who is in support of a community grid, said people are not informed enough about community issues before they make a decision.

“Every time we have these meetings, I find that there are still a lot of people that don’t have all the information they need to make an informed decision,” Walsh said. “We need to educate ourselves, educate our neighbors.”

New York state Sen. Rachel May, who is the chair of the state Senate’s Committee on Aging, said she wants a community grid in part so senior citizens can cross streets without worrying about a truck speeding through. She added that this will also benefit families with children.

Supporters of the grid at the Thursday town hall said that tearing down the highway and not replacing it with an underground tunnel will decrease pollution in the highway’s vicinity.  They also said that the grid will minimize cost, integrate currently separated communities, and that building a tunnel will take jobs out of the central New York area.

Those in support of keeping a highway running through Syracuse — whether by constructing an underground tunnel or by keeping the I-81 viaduct — said that removing the highway would damage businesses and reduce tax revenue from commerce.

New York state Sen. Bob Antonacci said he wants to work together to find a solution that pleases people who support either side, instead of being against each other. The audience booed him.

“The state decides what priorities they want to make,” Katko said. “They choose that priority in how much they get from the federal government. My job is to make sure the money gets there, which I’ve done.”

Another Syracuse resident said that when her 9-year-old son was born, the house they lived in was close to the highway.  Her family suffers from asthma, but her son has the worst case of it, she said. She, with many other supporters of the grid, said she worried about vehicles on the elevated highway continuing health problems to nearby residents, she said.

Multiple people in support of rebuilding the viaduct said that if a highway is not kept running through Syracuse, state commerce will be hurt and businesses will find it less profitable to stay in the city.

Joe Bright, president of Dunk & Bright Furniture, said for people traveling through Syracuse without stopping, there is a natural stopping point in Salina because of the town’s hotels and restaurants near the interstate’s exits.

Thomas Keck, a professor of political science at Syracuse University, said that creating an underground highway is too expensive for above ground renovations to be made afterwards. A tunnel does not do anything for the SU community, he added.

“Some of us are skeptical if the first 10 years and the money are devoted to a tunnel, what’s going to be left for a truly effective and well-planned grid?” Keck said. “One of the many advantages of the grid is integrating the University Hill employers with the rest of the community.”

Nelson Rodman of Baldwinsville argued more traffic will be running through the ground level if a community grid were implemented, which could lead to more pedestrian crashes.

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Several speakers on behalf of the grid mentioned that no construction firms in the central New York area have certification and specialized equipment that can dig a deep tunnel underground.

Supporters of the grid also said that constructing a tunnel is too expensive and the cost of maintenance, including pumping water from portions of the tunnel that run underwater, will need to be covered by the city. Katko said he does not want the city to be responsible for maintaining a highway that doesn’t support the city.

John Oliver, former chairman of the Trucking Association of New York, said trucks will have to start taking Route 41 through Skaneateles to go from south to west around Syracuse if the elevated highway was completely removed. It would increase costs for trucking companies through highway use tax, he said.  The only available truck parking accessible from northbound travelers would be a truck stop in Liverpool, he added.

Katko said in response that that he has heard from members of the Trucking Association of New York that trucks carrying hazardous materials would not be able to enter a tunnel.

Some grid supporters asked Katko if the money saved on a grid would leave more  money for other city infrastructure needs. He said that any money left over is specifically for highway funding and will be moved to cover other projects in New York.

Published on February 22, 2019 at 3:49 pm

Contact Richard: rjchang@syr.edu | @RichardJChang1