An eyesore in the heart of Armory Square in downtown Syracuse is set to undergo a major renovation.
The owners of the Clinton Street Garage at 401 S. Clinton — between the Modern Malt restaurant and the Gilded Club bar — are working with city officials to demolish the above-ground parking decks and replace them with a mixed-use apartment building. The $22 million proposal would include 88 residential units that would sit above a 4,000-square-foot commercial building.
Eric Ennis, deputy director of the city’s Office of Neighborhood and Business Development, said officials are excited about the project. The Syracuse Industrial Development Agency, which first proposed the project several months ago, took another formal step forward Tuesday by approving a public hearing, the date of which has yet to be determined.
“This type of project, which currently addresses a largely dilapidated parking garage that is not being used to its full potential, embodies exactly what we are looking for when we look at downtown Syracuse,” Ennis said.
Most of the apartments will be offered at market rate; 11 apartments will be offered below market rate for people living below a certain wage threshold, as required by the city’s zoning code. With the housing crisis worsening, Ennis said housing of all kinds is urgently needed.
Garage owner John Funiciello of JF Real Estate said the move made sense for them after operating the property as a garage since about 2006. He said they closed the upper parking decks about a year ago out of an “abundance of caution” after determining there were structural concerns.
There are still parking spaces used by tenants of the surrounding apartments below ground, which will soon be decommissioned as construction begins to provide 89 parking spaces for future tenants of the future building, which will be called “The Clinton.” Funiciello said his team is in contact with nearby landlords to ensure their tenants find other parking options.
According to the documents submitted to the city, construction is scheduled to begin in December of this year. The goal is to have tenants move in in January 2027.
