Grains of Salt (v48): Performance Park

I'm trying to catch up on posts I had in draft last month, from before and after vacation, so thanks for bearing with me.

I saw a post on the Facebook page of the Near West Side Initiative (NWSI) announcing something called Performance Park.

Just want to introduce everyone to Performance park. This is a multi-use space created to promote health, recreation, arts and parking. The parking spots are going to be wide and include outlets so the space can also be used for farmers markets and even food trucks as well as promoting local entrepreneurship. A cultural space that's for everyone, and accessible to the community. Its also an expansion of our indoor performance space (SALTspace). We are looking to make this a Mecca of performing arts for members of our communities. The park will include: 87 parking spaces, Athletic equipment and surface solar power, sight lighting and security, Performance Stage and Built in viewing/seating areas, Onondaga county/save the rain storm water retention systems, Trees and Landscaping, and Community Art. 

Intrigued, I started digging around to see what other information I could find on this project. Before we get into that, though, here's some background on the NWSI.

The not-for-profit group got its start under the 'scholarship in action' umbrella of former SU Chancellor Nancy Cantor (who listened to me once, much to my surprise). Cantor spearheaded a number of collaborative projects with the City of Syracuse, including the Connective Corridor, the Warehouse building at the edge of Armory Square, and more. SU provided staff, support, and financing for the NWSI and helped guide the group for the first ten years, before pulling back in 2017.  Other founding partners included the Gifford Foundation and Home Headquarters.

The organization focuses on arts, literacy and technology in what's called the SALT District, which is now home to WCNY, our local PBS TV station and a broadcast hub for several other affiliated stations, the Gear Factory and other studio space, Skiddy Park, and much more.

Performance Park, it seems, has been part of the vision for a while now.  Here's a link to a 2015 design plan for the project, created by Locus Design + Communications, showing  2018 construction date.  From the plan,

What do you do with 77,000 square feet of vacant land adjacent to one of the country’s most innovative public broadcasting stations within one of the nation’s poorest neighborhoods?

The Near West Side Initiative saw the potential for massive impact, but they needed a vision they could present to others.  A vision that showed a socially/culturally positive community asset that also generated revenue for the NWSI.  

LOCUS created a multifunctional urban space that supports economic development of local small businesses, provides a place for neighborhood kids to hang out, and establishes a permanent outdoor performance venue for the city’s many different theaters and performance groups. 

It's got solar -roofed market stalls, rainwater collection, play areas including chess and ping pong tables, parking, performance space - it's a pretty cool design.

I'm not sure why construction didn't start when the proposal thought it would, or whether it was held up waiting for it to be approved by the Common Council, which is was in April 2017 - but what is important is that construction is now underway, and we can look forward to the opening of this new, innovative space in the not too distant future.