December 13, 1959

Well, this blog has been looking a bit like a time capsule, hasn't it? Unfortunately, a busy fall with work and school required me to put it on hiatus for a few months. Let's see, what did I miss? Studies of Downtown? Studies of Downtown? Studies of Downtown? As the saying goes, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Of course, a few blogs on syracuse.com took on the look of a time capsule these past few months as well. Memories of Elmwood and Skunk City have flooded the site since late summer. Not only is it refreshing to see any 200+ comment blog on Syracuse.com that isn't dominated by 199 crude and ignorant statements, it's wonderful to get caught up in all of the remembrances of Syracuse past, especially those of the Downtown holiday season. South Salina Street crowded with shoppers! Department store Santas! Lest we think that these memories are just sentimental nostalgia, let's read from a December 11, 1959 Herald-Journal article about downtown Syracuse:

At Edwards crowds of children and grownups gather to see and hear the Chipmunk Trio sing with Santa at the gail[y] decorated piano. The Christmas-at-home setting features a green tree decorated in monotone red balls; and in a miniature apartment, the waltzing mice fascinate the children...Across the street, Chappell's facade is festooned with evergreen ropes between two giant candelabra. The windows are decorated with white snowy branches against a background of red velvet curtains....Continuing along Salina Street, Witherill's windows have red candelabra entwined with rosettes of pine needles and red Christmas balls...Dey's marquee is decorated with giant red and white striped candy canes and a colorful Christmas tree, and the windows are framed with silver ferns. The smashingist is the window filled with imported mechanical puppets...Grant's marquee holds a giant neon candle with the words 'Good Will,' banked with Christmas trees. A white fairy queen tops the turntable loaded with toys of every description..."

And that's just the half of it! Flah's, Addis Co. and many more were festively decorated for the holidays! By golly, it's enough to make me want to jump into the Edwards rocket and fly straight back to the 1950s Syracuse!

But as the saying goes, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

DOWNTOWN IS PEOPLE

Or, "What Happens to Business Happens to Everyone."

Advocates of the "why worry about Downtown" and "let Downtown solve its own problems" philosophies should ponder the General Electric Company's well-known phrase about what happens to business.

Downtown is a complex, multi-faceted necessity. It creates the great business radius which extends across Central New York and into Canada.

Syracuse in December 1959, was, in many ways, the exact opposite of Syracuse in December 2008. The Syracuse University football team had an undefeated season and was named the top team in the nation. Merchants expected a "crackerjack of a Christmas" with record holiday sales, due to people earning and saving more than 1958, little inflation, and easier credit (Syracuse Herald-Journal, December 1959). Edwards, Chappell's, Witherill's, Grant's, Dey's, Flah's and the Addis Co. actually existed. And yet, sprinkled in among the ads for $14.95 holiday dresses at Flah's and $20 combat rifles at Dey's in December 1959 was a very different type of holiday ad: strongly worded warnings from the Downtown merchants to save downtown before it was too late.

What happens to hurt our Downtown -- through neglect, through deliberate action, or through indecision -- affects every taxpayer, every parent, everyone who draws his livelihood from anywhere in our great community.

1959 Downtown Syracuse was also a Downtown in decline. The $14.95 dresses at Flah's were sold at both the downtown and Shoppingtown locations. Witherill's may have celebrated 71 years in business with an expansion of their Downtown store in 1959, but would open an additional branch in Camillus Plaza five years later. A proposal for an elevated highway through Syracuse had been revealed one year earlier. All the while, Syracuse city leaders responded much like the children in Edwards department store: fascinated with every new idea that waltzed into their view. At the same time plans for the new Community Plaza were being unveiled to the public (highlighted by a new Public Safety Building, because nothing says "community" like making your new city centerpiece a jail), city council leaders were taking field trips to Toledo and Kalamazoo, only to return and declare that a pedestrian mall would save Syracuse: "With the same sort of co-operation and enthusiasm [as Kalamazoo, Michigan], I feel sure we could have a mall on Salina Street that would not only add to the attractiveness of our downtown, but would act as a stimulus to our core area business." (Councilman-at-large Allen F. Martin, Syracuse Herald-Journal, November 10, 1959). Another group visited Pittsburgh, and declared skyscrapers and parks were the answer, noting "the amazing thing about the Pittsburgh renaissance is that there never has been a construction master plan." (Syracuse Herald-American, November 1, 1959). Still others felt Syracuse should look a little closer to home, declaring that Rochester's Midtown Plaza would result a similar rebirth of our downtown. Out of this chorus of opinions grew the the Downtown Syracuse Association, a group of downtown merchants focused solely on "emphasizing the importance, availability and facilities of Downtown Syracuse as a place for shopping fun and services." (The Post-Standard, July 12, 1959). Members included such businessmen as John Fitzgibbons, president of Dey Brothers, Ralph Brucker, general manager of Grant's downtown store, and Charles A. Chappell, Sr., president of Chappell's.

IT HAPPENS TO PEOPLE

Downtown is people. Not just stores. Not just banks. Not just real estate. If you take the people out of Downtown (for instance, by making it much easier and cheaper to build office buildings in a dozen other places), you effectively empty not only Downtown office buildings, but stores, restaurants, theaters, all the facilities which help make our community "metropolitan."

The merchants who formed the Downtown Syracuse Association perhaps knew better than anyone the problems facing Downtown Syracuse. November 1959 saw the opening of the "Oswego Boulevard Expressway," a 14-mile stretch of Interstate 81 leading north from Downtown. While suburbs such as Bayberry initially touted its proximity to Downtown Syracuse via the expressway as a selling point ("Bayberry is now just two traffic lights away from South Salina Street!" a November 1, 1959 Post-Standard ad proclaimed), these same suburbs quickly realized that they could build their own shopping centers, complete with free parking. So it is understandable that the issue the Association took up as their cause, the one that brought the group and Mayor Henninger to verbal blows and prompted the Association to place a series of pointed editorial-style ads in a newspaper in December 1959, was the fear of the creation of a second downtown. What is slightly more perplexing is that they thought this new downtown would be located on James Street.

When you depopulate Downtown of its daily office force, you first eliminate or endanger jobs. Fewer customers and clients mean few sales, fewer business transactions. This in turn means fewer salesclerks and stockbrokers, fewer stockmen and fewer waitresses. The thousands of men and women who work Downtown today see their jobs threatened, as others have seen them go.

In October 1959, the Downtown Syracuse Association expressed their vehement opposition to the rezoning of a three-block area of lower James Street from residential to commercial. While the merchants supported the construction of new apartment buildings in the 500, 600 and 700 blocks on the street (such as a proposed 6-million dollar, 21-story apartment building on the corner of James and Lodi, the present Regency Tower), as it would create a residential inner ring around Downtown, they expressed concern that if offices were allowed to build in the area, a "new downtown" would be set up that would detract from the real downtown, especially considering that tax assessments for office space on James Street would be dramatically lower. As Charles Chappell stated at an October 1959 hearing about the issue, "It is rare indeed to find a city with two downtowns and for good reason...You cannot destroy or duplicate downtown either by accident or on purpose and let the city survive." (The Post-Standard, October 8, 1959).

What particularly offended the merchants was that it was the city itself that was proposing the rezoning. Attorney John T. Smith, representing the Association at a December 15, 1959 hearing, said "Syracuse is the only city in the United States that is deliberately flouting and disregarding the views of its merchants," explaining that the "city administration constantly makes statements of what it is doing to revitalize downtown...at the same time it is setting up an office district to help its deterioration and break down its tax base." (Syracuse Herald-Journal, December 16, 1959). At the same December hearing, Charles Chappell urged the City Planning Commission to take a "longer look" at the rezoning proposal, and to consider the larger picture: "What we do now will influence us for many years to come; if downtown is no good, the rest of the city will be no good. We're going too fast. Too many things are going too fast. I'm worried that we'll do the wrong thing in the wrong place." (Syracuse Herald-Journal, December 16, 1959)

One week later, the Common Council approved the rezoning.

DOWNTOWN MUST BE WHERE PEOPLE ARE

When you evacuate Downtown--and make it difficult for people to drive, ride or walk Downtown, too--you begin to drive stores out of business, or at least out of the city. First little vacancies show up. Then medium-size businesses go. Finally Downtown's "big stores" are alone in their trouble. They, too, must go where there are people to buy. They must earn enough to pay the rent, to pay for goods, to meet payrolls, to pay taxes, even return a small profit. Today many Downtown Syracuse businesses do not.

While there may have been Christmas cheer for the downtown stores, there was not much cheer for the political and economic views of their owners. In a December 1959 television report focusing on the deteriorating Downtown, Mayor Henninger warned downtown merchants "Get off your seats and do something about your own situation." (Syracuse Herald-Journal, December 21, 1959). Ironically, this came on the same day as the Planning Commission's rezoning approval, prompting the Association to release a statement charging the mayor with a conflict of interest. Public support wasn't much better, as evidenced by several letters to the editor at the time:

"This is the first time the writer has ever written to a newspaper, so please excuse my 'English,' however the attempts of certain selfish, downtown store owners to stop the progress of Syracuse makes my blood boil. The attempts of this self-interested group to prevent competition to increase the value of their own property or increase their own business by asking the city of Syracuse to prevent other property owners from developing their own property is clearly unconstitutional...All cities are extending outward, and new business areas are developing, but not in Syracuse. If the downtown property owners had their way, there would never be any new buildings in Syracuse, unless they sold their own real estate at an excessive profit..." (The Post-Standard, December 31, 1959)

"The 'Downtown Rejuvenation' or whatever the merchant-inspired politicians choose to call it is more than I can swallow. It would appear that we have some pretty ignorant citizens in Syracuse, for it couldn't be more obvious that the taxpayer is literally subsidizing the downtown merchants. I'd like to know whether I could ask the public to move my hot dog stand (if I had one) because the location and parking facilities were outdated or inadequate? I firmly believe that business is business and that if the merchants downtown can't make a go of their businesses, it's not up to us to remodel the city so they can. The shopping centers seem to do all right." (The Post-Standard, September 1, 1959)

This last letter touches upon what was the greatest concern of the Downtown Syracuse Association: taxes. According to the City Planning Commission's annual report, "Downtown area assessments have had to be raised steadily since 1946 by a larger percentage than for the rest of the city...Despite downtown Syracuse's ideal location, it has benefited little or not at all from the growth in the metropolitan area. It is true that downtown still attracts many retail customers, but unfortunately, not many more than 10 years ago. In a word, downtown Syracuse is static." (The Post-Standard, November 1, 1959)

As more businesses closed Downtown, the properties became less valuable, and the assessed values should have decreased. However, this was not the case, and in November 1959, eighty-seven downtown merchants started legal action against the city in an attempt to get their assessments reduced by 40 percent (after asking for a 10 percent reduction earlier in the year and being told by city officials that "it couldn't be done."). As the group itself stated, "The taxes being assessed [on] land and buildings have little or no relationship to their real value in today's market...We may be in error, because nobody really knows what Syracuse taxes should be now. There hasn't been a comprehensive evaluation of properties here in umpteen years, although other cities our size provide for either continuous or regularly scheduled reassessments. We urge again that this revaluation program be started without delay. Today would be fine." (Syracuse Herald-American, December 20, 1959). Yet in the face of increasing taxes, decreasing income and a "today" that seemed nowhere in sight, it became much easier for many downtown merchants to simply relocate to the suburban shopping centers.

As your city decentralizes, the transit crisis intensifies. For people who must work in areas [far] from the center of the city, this is an immediate and personal problem, for Downtown is the easiest one place in town to reach. Soon transportation will be everyone's problem, for the prediction has been made that Syracuse will be without mass transit in a decade. A strong Downtown is essential to efficient transit operations.

The true debate of 1959 wasn't between the Downtown Syracuse Association and the City Administration or residential and commercial taxpayers. The real conflict could be defined by how one felt towards Charles Chappell's statement at that December zoning hearing:"if downtown is no good, the rest of the city will be no good." The merchants of the Downtown Syracuse Association believed that Downtown was the heart of the city: without it, the city could not survive. And yet, for many others, Syracuse was a community of suburbs: Downtown was a mere vestigial organ that evolution had rendered obsolete. Since 1959, Syracusans -- and its natives located elsewhere-- have fallen into one of these two camps. It is with some amazement that I have read recent comments about the recent recession not noticeably hitting Syracuse as quickly as other cities. What exactly does this mean -- fewer foreclosure signs in the suburbs? Or is it because there have already been hundreds of vacant properties the center of the city for the past 30+ years? Or how about the building that once housed my grandfather's West Onondaga Street pharmacy -- the one he proudly owned and operated from 1937-1970 -- that eventually became a corner store notorious for drug sales of a different sort, closed by the city in mid-90s as a local nuisance, only to reopen and burn down in a suspicious fire in 2001? This is a Syracuse that is beyond foreclosure; save for the trips down memory lane, it has simply been forgotten.

These Downtown problems can be coped with, but only if there is a new realization in Syracuse that what happens to business really does happen to everyone...not just to "Downtown"...not just to "businessmen." If you read this newspaper, you, too, have a personal stake in Downtown Syracuse. (Downtown Syracuse Association Advertisement, Syracuse Herald-American, December 13, 1959)

The Downtown Syracuse Association had hope for Downtown Syracuse, and perhaps this ultimately caused their downfall. On December 18, 1959, the Association placed another editorial advertisement in the Post-Standard, headlined with "Why Emphasize the Down in Downtown?" The downtown merchants wanted to be a positive voice for Downtown, claiming "people--people who shouldn't--have asserted the city's central business district is beyond help, and they've taken some actions which indicate they believe what they say....One thing needs to be clear: we didn't ever say it. We don't believe Downtown Syracuse is headed for disaster, and we're through being attacked every time we try to prevent further erosion of Syracuse's great economic asset....Downtown Syracuse is due for a revitalization and a greatness which will make the current city look like Cossit's Corners...We are for Downtown Syracuse -- We think it's great, and can be greater."

So there was hope when Downtown merchants did have a crackerjack of a holiday season in 1959, with Edwards Department Store having their most successful year ever. Post-Standard business columnist Bernard S. Newer claimed that "downtown needs some vitamins...it would be foolish not to admit it. But there is still plenty of life and charm left in the main drag." (The Post-Standard, December 25, 1959). There was hope that the 1959 razing of three "century-old buildings" (the Metropolitan Building, the Malcolm Building, and the Fobes Building) and the construction of the First Federal Savings bank on the lot would prove "Downtown Syracuse is the greatest shopping center that could possibly be built...Syracuse has a bright future. It will continue to prosper and grow, and with full coordination and steam ahead it can't miss" (The Post-Standard, January 3, 1960) . The new bank building barely survived a decade, torn down to make way for the new Edwards store, which went bankrupt two years later, but fear not! Because now there was hope in the new Syracuse Mall, pedestrian malls (again), and, after the failure of the Syracuse Mall, another new shopping mall. So maybe now, with the recent foreclosure of the Hotel Syracuse project, we're at the best place we could possibly be, which might be to say, hopeless. As Charles Chappell Sr. warned, we've done the wrong thing in the wrong place countless times, in the hope of turning Downtown around. We've learned, as a city and a country, that gimmicks fail. But we also know that if idea is smart enough, determined enough, exciting enough, and most importantly, well-executed enough, hope can rise again. And, for once, win.

September 14, 1952

It's a shame, isn't it? Just when a problem in Syracuse is at its worst, a movie title has to come out and remind us of the glory days. Bob Costas announced on Football Night in America last week that "hard to imagine...back in the fifties and sixties, the 'Cuse was a...powerhouse," only to be followed minutes later by an ad for the film with the title across the screen, driving the point home. The only relief is that this movie title is going to disappear rather quickly once it opens, especially when "The Express" muscles its way through the crowded box office in a few more weeks. That's right: while Syracuse celebrating the star-studded premiere of the Ernie Davis biopic in the shadow of the embarrassing Syracuse football program, others of us were discovering how the downtown parking dilemma might have been influenced by a Liverpool street named Lakeview Terrace*.

On September 14, 1952, a special National Home Week section in the Syracuse Herald-American announced the opening of a model home in a new housing tract just off of Old Liverpool Road. Sold by Fazio Real Estate, the homes were the most recent built by Attilio Giarrusso, who had developing the area since the forties. The 208 acres of land, which had once been a central location of salt production in Syracuse (and named Galeville after Thomas Gale, who was once the largest manufacturer of solar salt in the United States as well as the last man to manufacture salt from the brine of Onondaga Springs), had been sold to the Melvin brothers in 1941, who in turn sold 90 acres to Ono-Lake Homes--a four-person enterprise headed by Giarrusso--in 1942. According to a February 15, 1942 Syracuse Herald-American article, during the first phase of construction, 500 one-family "Victory Homes" were built on the tract for a total cost of $2,500,000. The $4,450 homes could be purchased with a $450 down payment, with the remaining $4000 mortgage (insured by the Federal Housing Authority) payable at $33 a month for 20 years. The houses were to be on "lots not less than 50 by 125 feet" and "on the first floor of each house [would be] a living room, two bedrooms, kitchen with dinette and a modern bathroom." The land, which had been most recently used for "farm purposes," was to "be laid out in winding drives, with lots of various shapes... ten different house facades [had] been chosen, which, with different paintings, [would] give variety to the homes." The contractors had long-range plans to build up to 1,400 homes on the 90 acres, and there was no doubt that all could be sold, as Syracuse had a housing shortage of at least 2,500 by the mid-forties (Syracuse Herald-American, May 19, 1946). Ten years later, the area was growing even more rapidly with the opening of the General Electric plant at Electronics Park, so Giarrusso offered more luxurious housing options. Built on "the landscaped slope above Onondaga Lake Parkway," the Lakeview Terrace ranch homes were 70 feet wide, 28 feet deep, on a lot 160 feet wide by 100 feet deep. According to an October 26, 1952 Syracuse Herald-American ad, the features of the Lakeview Terrace homes included:

• Large Living Room with Fireplace
• Three Bedrooms
• Glass Tiled Bathroom
• Hot Water Baseboard Heating
• Custom Birch Cupboards in Kitchen
• Full Basement with Fireplace
• Flagstone Patio
• Two-Car Garage

All this could be yours for $27,500! ($227,353.40 in 2008 dollars)

Now Giarrusso had been correct in predicting the demand for homes in the area, but $27,500? How was it that when the same October 26 real estate section advertised houses in Fairmount Hills priced from $9,800 to $12,500 and Fayetteville for $12,500, a ranch home with a view of polluted Onondaga lake was fetching twice as much as others for sale in the Syracuse suburbs? Were "Custom Birch Cupboards" the granite countertops of the day? Perhaps it was due to the other fact mentioned in the September 14 ad: an announcement for "The New Galeville Shopping Center."

Galeville had long had a grocery store, but a suburb wasn't truly a suburb until it had its own "shopping center" (i.e. strip plaza). The ad itself states "a convenient shopping center for this rapidly growing community is badly needed." Not only did Attilio Giarrusso and Anthony Fazio plan to build a 25 store shopping center on a parcel of land opposite the entrance to Lakeview Terrace, but they also offered this extra bonus to potential home buyers and shoppers: a 1000-car parking lot.

Now, you didn't need any electronic wonders from General Electric to realize that the approximate distance from the furthest parcel of land on Lakeview Terrace to the site of the potential shopping center was 1/10th of a mile. According to Google maps, that's a three-minute walk. Or, if driving to the 1,000-car parking lot, a staggering 47 seconds.

The American Dream, as it was being sold to thousands of young Syracuse couples in 1952, was a home that would be a 47-second drive away from a shopping center. True, I do believe this proximity will eventually lead to a revival of inner ring suburbs in light of increasing gas prices, but this was hardly the thought back in the 1950s. In fact, while the site of the future Galeville Shopping Center was caught up in a court battle with Galeville Grocery in early 1953 (Arthur Tucci, owner of Galeville Grocery, obtained a court order to stop work on the center, claiming that part of the property was a right-of-way; the judge later denied Tucci's request for a permanent injunction), construction began on another shopping center one-half mile (ten minute walk) down Old Liverpool Road. The Liverpool Shopping Center opened on November 5, 1953, complete with a Market Basket supermarket, Carl's Drugs and relatively measly 300-car parking lot.

So when Syracuse has been considering 3 minutes too long to walk for fifty-five years, it's no wonder that parking situation in downtown seems terrible. Even if, say, there were actual stores and attractions downtown, it has been ingrained in the Syracuse (and American) psyche for over a half-century not to walk three minutes when a 47 second drive will do. And while Galeville Grocery apparently has been holding strong since 1888, the truth is that most stores that offer 1000-plus parking are never going to offer any sense of history of the city, or more important, identity. Could an orange carpet premiere have been held at any theater in Syracuse other than the Landmark? I mean, would you really want the takeaway image of Syracuse to be a orange carpet rolled down through the Food Court and up the escalator to the movie theaters at Carousel Center?

It's unclear to me whether the Galeville Shopping Center ever came to be, or at least how it was originally conceived. A September 11, 1955 Syracuse Herald-American article mentions that one of the buildings in the "group store development of Attilio Giarusso" had been bought by contractors Frank Malvasi & Fred Vicari, who in turn leased it to the Lakeview Recreation Center. The 12-lane bowling alley burned to the ground ten years later, on December 30, 1965. Malvasi & Vicari also leased a plot of land on the corner of Old Liverpool Road and Beechwood Road to Sun Oil Company in late 1955 (The Post-Standard, December 4, 1955), and there is a Sunoco station operating on the site to this day. Liverpool Shopping Center is now known as Liverpool Plaza, with a Family Dollar in the former Market Basket location. And my Google Maps Street View shows that the homes of Lakeview Terrace - as well as the many "Victory Homes" throughout the surrounding neighborhoods--are still there as well. So when those residents grab some snacks from their Custom Birch Cupboards and sit down in their Large Living Rooms to watch the Syracuse football game this week, they may be so upset that they want to throw their television set in their one of two Fireplaces. To which I suggest: try a three-minute walk instead! Not only will you advance more yards than the team has for the entire season, but you can burn off steam much like the salt kettles that once defined Syracuse, long before football ever did.

*If it wasn't clear enough, I am referring to the title of the film only.

August 25, 1957

Is it me, or does the idea of burying a time capsule at the New York State Fair seem like a bit of an oxymoron? I mean, how nostalgic can it be to unearth a decades-old time capsule when the top pop groups of the era are most likely playing at Chevy Court or the Grandstand? I know, I know, the person who started a blog to lament the loss of Syracuse past disrespecting the 162 year old fair is a bit of an oxymoron itself, but to me, growing up, it always seemed what the Fair was passing off as tradition came across more like lack of imagination. I suppose if Syracuse--or my life--had been hard-charging and chaotic for the other 50 1/2 weeks of the year, then I could have appreciated the sameness of the Fair experience as a constant, like classic comfort food, but as Syracuse itself seemed static and stuck in (post-urban renewal) time during my childhood/teenage years, the Fair came across as a celebration of the safety of routine.

Plus, it signified the end of summer, and that always sucked.

In 1957, though, the Railroad Committee of Central New York had change on their minds, and decided to have at least one new exhibit for 2007 - the opening of a time capsule. According to an August 25, 1957 article in the Post-Standard, the Committee expected to receive predictions of American life and rail transportation in the year 2007 from President Eisenhower, New York Governor W. Averell Harriman, and leaders of New York State industries and government. To make certain that the capsule was not lost, the rail committee would "place a marker and moving hooks on the cement encasement."

As far as I know, this time capsule was not unearthed at last year's Fair (Bowzer's Ultimate Doo Wop Party notwithstanding). Perhaps this is because, unlike the last time capsule discovery (which has since been duly noted by the Onondaga Historical Association), it's rather questionable whether this time capsule was even buried. There are no further mentions of the capsule in any newspaper. Also, the article specifically states that predictions were "expected" from various leaders. As the 1957 fair began five days later after the publication of this article (August 30-September 7, 1957), shouldn't they have had this information by August 25?

It's probably just as well that it wasn't dug up (or even buried), because what a midway buzzkill it would be to have to hear predictions of high-speed and maglev trains criss-crossing the country at speeds up to 300 mph. On the other hand, train travel was well on the decline by 1957, as the Interstate Highway System had been authorized the year before, and the automobile was the main means of passenger transport. The trolleys in Syracuse had been gone for fifteen years. The Cold War was in full swing: the capsule itself was made of Pyroceram, so that "neither termites nor hydrogen bombs [would] be a threat to destruction." Given that August 1957 was a mere three months prior to the Sputnik launch, and that the theme of the 1957 NY State Fair was "today's youth--tomorrow's industry" (Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 29, 1957), it's quite possible that the leaders of the time saw grander transportation visions, such as:

• "vertical landing and takeoff of all vehicles" (A prediction for transit in the the 1970s by Metropolitan Development Association president John Searles, The Post-Standard, January 27, 1969)

• A downtown Syracuse heliport, to make possible rapid transport to downtown from Hancock Field, as "it seems a safe prediction by 1970, local helicopter service will be possible between Syracuse and such nearby communities as Rochester, Oswego, Watertown, Utica, Binghamton, Ithaca, Elmira, Geneva, Canandaigua and others."(Councilman Williams S. Andrews, quoted in the Syracuse Herald-American, April 18, 1965)

• "Underground or overhead railed mass transit systems or improved buses, with flexibility to run on tracks or normal highways." (John Searles, with more predictions for transit in the 70s, The Post-Standard, January 27, 1969)

• A statewide network of monorails, establishing "rights-of-way throughout the state, following major highway and railroad routes." The system, as proposed by Utica warehouse operator Gale A. Lytle, Sr. and Syracuse engineer John J. Barry, would operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with shuttle buses running from downtowns and suburban areas to monorail stations. Lyle believed that the high-speed system would serve 80% of the New York population, and could travel from Buffalo to New York City in a little over three hours. There would be two major routes: one connecting Albany to Buffalo (and Canada), and the other would be a "scenic route" that would run through the Adirondacks from Utica to Montreal using the old Pennsylvania railroad right-of-way. Lyle and Barry thought that the monorail could be completed in two to three years, using highway contractors working on highway projects that would be cancelled in order to build the monorail. (The Post-Standard, June 17, 1971; Syracuse Herald-American, February 17, 1974)

• A station-wagon rigged with railroad wheels, riding the Erie Lackawanna tracks from the State Fairgrounds through downtown and out to Jamesville during the evening commute, as part of an experiment for the importance of commuter rail transit spearheaded by Democratic candidate for city Common Councilman-at-Large Lee Alexander. Reporters rode along in the station wagon (substituting for a rail car) for "a ride so easy it was dull." Alexander expressed concern that the "Onondaga Interchange," then under construction, would only be the beginning of a city covered with highways and traffic jams. According to Alexander. Erie Lackawanna officials expressed a willingness to lease the tracks, and money was available under the National Transportation Act. (Syracuse Herald-American, October 16, 1966).

• "Budd cars", available for loan from manufacturers, used on an experimental basis on the New York Central and Erie Lackawanna tracks. In a direct request to City Council President Roy D. Simmons, Councilman-at-Large Lee Alexander asked that a special Council committee be named to study the the "transportation crisis," as "a mass transit system capable of moving thousands of people through the city comfortably and efficiently...[was a] necessary factor for the survival of metropolitan centers such as Syracuse." The cars could be purchased via federal government funds specified for such a purpose, and inexpensive parking areas could be established in the suburbs, allowing commuters to ride the train for a reasonable fare into downtown. Alexander further stated that "a city's failure to provide a mass transit system compels the use of autos as the only means of transportation. If the auto remains the only available means of transportation, then we can expect greater reductions in our tax rolls as more and more space is devoted to highways and parking lots." (The Post-Standard, January 4, 1967, Syracuse Herald-Journal, February 13, 1967)

• As "an insurance for the future," doing studies on the steps that need to be taken for acquiring the existing railroad rights-of-way and holding them in case they are ever needed. (The mass transit committee of the Greater Syracuse Chamber of Commerce, Syracuse Herald-American, January 29, 1967)

• Purchasing abandoned railroad rights-of-way and saving them for future use. If not used for transit purposes, rights-of-way could be used as "hiking trails, bicycle and bridle paths and for other recreation purposes." (A request made by seven state senators to Governor Rockefeller, The Post-Standard, March 24, 1967)

• Reestablishing the trolley routes, but with electric trackless trolleys - buses with electric motors that receive their power from overhead wires, as the original Syracuse trolleys did. County Legislator John J. Haley believed that with increasing gas prices, people would be driving less, and diesel costs would be prohibitive for buses. New water-powered electricity generating facilities under construction in Canada would mean cheaper electricity for Syracuse, and capital costs of building the overhead wires could be supported by a Federal grant through the Urban Mass Transportation Administration. (The Post-Standard, February 27, 1980)

• A light rail system from northern Oswego and Onondaga communities to downtown Syracuse (Centro chief Warren Frank, discussing the future of transit in Syracuse, Syracuse Herald-Journal, June 19, 1980)

• A monorail or "series of gondolas" that would travel between the Carrier Dome, Hotel Syracuse and downtown. Under Centro chief Warren Frank's plan, the monorail could start travel through the Hotel Syracuse (similar to Disneyworld's monorail), as well as fifth floors of the Carrier Tower and MONY tower. Stops would then include the Civic Center and the War Memorial, before moving on to the hospital complex on Adams Street, and the Carrier Dome, "perhaps into a lobby." Several skybridges would also be built across Warren Street, to tie into the skybridges crossing South Salina Street. Eighty percent of the system would be built with federal dollars, and the rest with state and local funds. (Syracuse Herald-Journal, March 20, 1979)

And even if the ideas weren't similar to these, you have to think that if all the President, Governors, and leaders of industry could come up with was Amtrak and OnTrack, they wouldn't have bothered with the state-of-the-art time capsule. Civilization is destroyed due to a hydrogen bomb, and a failing/failed rail system is what would be left as a blueprint for transportation to any possible future generations?

Exactly fifty-one years after the time capsule mention, the Post-Standard once again printed an article regarding rail and the New York State Fair. In Sean Kirst's column on August 25, 2008, several Syracusans discussed their hopes and dreams for Syracuse with Kirst at this year's Fair. Once fairgoer lamented the loss of OnTrack, which he felt "with a little more imagination, could have been a tool to energize downtown." Democratic candidate for Congress Dan Maffei expressed a wish for a high-speed rail line between the Upstate cities and New York City. While Mr. Maffei's campaign slogan is a "A New Congressman, A New Direction," the wish for a high-speed line between the cities, is, unfortunately (as you can read above), not very new at all. But perhaps this time, the new direction can be this: before the speeches, before the studies, head to the Center of Progress at the New York State Fair. Not the building with the Ginsu knife and shower cleaner demonstrations, but the true Center of Progress: the location of this time capsule, if there's the slightest chance it is there. Unjaded by fifty years of mass transit rejections and failures, perhaps these buried predictions can get us on the right track again.

August 23, 1981

There's a fine line between euphoria and mania, and the American media has certainly crossed it with the Michael Phelps phenomenon. Eight gold medals in one Olympics is an amazing feat, but why does this mean that Michael Phelps is suddenly the Greatest Olympian and/or Athlete Ever? How are we to compare what Michael Phelps has done in the pool to what Tom Brady does on the football field, or Tiger Woods on the golf course? And how can we compare a sport that allows for one athlete to win eight medals, when the majority of Olympic sports only have one opportunity for one medal (including the ten-event decathlon)? Have we reduced the measure of athletic greatness to the amount of hardware and magazine covers an athlete receives? Are we simply saying that the greater the spectacle, the greater the achievement?

What is indisputable is that every Olympics needs its narrative, and Michael Phelps has certainly provided it for this games. Given that Syracuse is also currently searching for a storyline, perhaps we should also take a moment and ask, what is the measure of greatness for a city? Arenas? Bruce Springsteen concerts? Arenas that can host Bruce Springsteen concerts? While we all may have a hungry heart for The Boss and similar big-name events, we also occasionally bite off more than we can chew. Case in point: the NFL exhibition game between the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles in the Carrier Dome, August 23, 1981.

1981 was a banner year for sports in Syracuse. Not SU sports necessarily (SU football had a 5-6 record, leading to the resignation of seven-year coach Frank Maloney), but the Carrier Dome was transforming Syracuse into a nationally-recognized sporting venue. By August 1981, Syracuse had hosted a Sugar Ray Leonard-Larry Bonds welterweight title fight (attended by 21,000 and broadcast on HBO), the National Sports Festival and the Empire State Games, not to mention record-setting crowds for SU football and basketball. So when it was announced in March 1981 that the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles would be playing their third (of four) preseason game in the Carrier Dome, the news seemed to be earning Syracuse a reputation as, in the words of a Post-Standard editorial headline on July 16, 1981 headline, a "Sports Fans' Paradise." The Eagles were the reigning NFC champions, having lost to Oakland in Superbowl XV the past January. The Saints, unfortunately, had earned their nickname "the Aint's" the season prior, having lost 15 of their 16 regular season games. But the offseason had brought a new coach, O.A. "Bum" Phillips, as well as the top draft pick, 1980 Heisman Trophy winner George Rogers. There were stars on both sides of the field, including Eagles QB Ron Jaworski, Saints QB Archie Manning, Eagles cornerback Herm Edwards and coach Dick Vermeil. For 12 (endzone) or 16 (sideline) bucks, Syracuse had an incredible opportunity to see the NFL live in action, or so thought industrialist and philantropist J. Stanley Coyne, who underwrote the matchup as a charity game for ARC. For all ticket sales above the cost of upfront expenses, the profits would go to ARC. A tally of these expenses:

• Guaranteed payment to Philadelphia Eagles: $150,000
• Additional payment to the Eagles if the stadium sold out: $25,000
• Guaranteed payment to New Orleans Saints: $150,000
• Travel expenses for both teams: $70,000
• Payment to Syracuse University (for dome rental, ticket-handling, busing and promotional expenses): $127,000
• Miscellaneous expenses (advertising, etc.): $40,000
• Syracuse Herald-Journal realizing on March 26, 1981 that having $562,000 in upfront costs for a charity game would require a minimum attendance of 35,000 to generate at least a $10,000 donation to ARC: priceless

What's striking is that Coyne, an entrepreneur who started his business during the Depression, entered into this obvious losing proposition. While the National Sports Festival could be considered a loss leader due to the long-term investment and exposure, the same could hardly be said for a one-time game that was intended to raise money for a charity. Disappointing developmentally disabled children in front of a national television audience doesn't exactly sell a city to the nation. Perhaps Coyne had been inspired years earlier by the Cerebral Palsy Clinic games of the late 40s/early 50s (organized by attorney Lionel Grossman), when near sell-out crowds of 22,000 attended NFL exhibition games at Archibold Stadium, including the final 1953 matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and then-national champions Detroit Lions. Given the increase in Syracuse population in the thirty years since, as well as the increased popularity of the NFL, Coyne may have assumed that the Dome would easily sell out 50,000 seats. Coyne flew Bum Phillips up to Syracuse for two press conferences, flew newspaper reporters down to New Orleans for a series of pre-game articles, and commissioned sculptor Buck Warren to carve a 25-foot high, 7 1/2 ton rose to carve out of California redwood as a gift to the Rose Bowl, to be presented during the Eagles/Saints halftime. Coyne did present this sculpture to the director of the Rose Bowl at halftime in the Dome, in front of Mayor Lee Alexander, County Executive John Mulroy and a grand total of 28,001 ticketholders.

If Syracuse's loss had only been a half-empty stadium on national television (NBC) for all of the country--save for the blacked-out areas in Central New York--to see, then it really wouldn't have been any worse than the 36-7 beating the Eagles gave the Saints. Think of it this way: if 1981 was Michael Phelps' 2004 Athens' games, then this would be the bronze disappointment compared the gold-medal performances of the Bonds-Leonard fight, the National Sports Festival, and the Empire State Games. But the players in this sport treated the bronze in a manner similar to wrestler Ara Abrahamian, stomping off and placing blame in a public forum, much to everyone else's discomfort and unease. Feeling bad that ARC would get no money from this charity game, Benedict LeStrange, executive vice president of Coyne International Enterprises, hit up representatives from the Eagles and Saints for $10,000 donations each at a cocktail party the night before the game. After calling team owners', each team complied. Coyne himself wrote ARC a check for $5,000. Coyne told reporters he "couldn't understand" why attendance was low, stating that "The public has been hollering for a pro team...we had two great teams and a great stadium. I don't know why it didn't fly." (The Post-Standard, August 24, 1981). LeStrange echoed the statement, saying "This town is maybe not ready for professional football. Maybe we built too big a stadium." (The Post-Standard, August 22, 1981). Coyne also blamed NBC for changing the game from a Saturday night (August 29)--which he believed surely would have brought a sell-out crowd--to a Sunday afternoon (although NBC paid the Coyne foundation $50,000 prior to the game for this switch, and August 29 would have fallen during the State Fair). Dome publicity director Mike Holdridge faulted the National Sports Festival for "draining dollars" away from the game, as the festival had "saturated the Syracuse sports market for the summer" (Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 24, 1981). Syracuse Herald-Journal editorial writers agreed, contending that "the abundance of first-quality sports attractions in Syracuse this summer just depleted the average fan's budget." (Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 25, 1981). The editorial writers also criticized the Coyne foundation for setting such high ticket prices, as well as the New England Patriots, for pulling out of their original agreement to play the Eagles (even though the Patriots paid a $25,000 fee to the Coyne foundation for breaking the agreement). Sports columnist Arnie Burdick maintained the loss of money was due to waiting to July to sell tickets to the general public, allowing only season ticket holders to purchase tickets prior to this time (Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 24, 1981). He also questioned why Coyne agreed to such an "unfavorable, 'can't-win' contract," including not getting any percentage of the ancillaries (concessions, parking, program, etc.). Syracusans as a whole were taken to task in a number of articles and editorials prior to the game for not contributing to charity by purchasing tickets, and thus causing harm to Syracuse's status for hosting future exhibition games. And yet in all of the finger-pointing, no one ever stopped to ask one simple question:

Why was Syracuse hosting an NFL exhibition game between the Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints?

In 1953, the last year Syracuse hosted an NFL exhibition game, football was not widely televised. The Super Bowl was still 14 years away. Exhibition games (which numbered six in the years prior to 1978) in non-league cities were a means to promote the sport, as well as earn money for the team. By 1981, the teams were primarily doing out-of-town exhibition games as moneymakers (the Eagles were supposedly offered $450,000 to play in Los Angeles the same weekend as the Syracuse game, but honored their original commitment). Of course, if money was made after the upfront costs, these profits would benefit the city (or charity), and the city did get national exposure (more that 40 newspapers and 30 radio stations were at the Dome for the Eagles/Saints game). In recent years, preseason games are not only primarily held at one of the playing team's venues, but are also scheduled such that no team has to travel extensively. (An exception to this, of course, was the pre-season game between Buffalo and Pittsburgh in Toronto, part of the $78 million deal for Buffalo to play 5 regular season and 3 preseason games in Toronto over the next 4 years. It should be noted that the August 14 exhibition game only drew 48,000 attendees, with over 15,000 tickets being given away for free.) Even in 1981, exhibition games were known for being played mostly by second and third-stringers, players that would be cut at the end of pre-season and never to be heard from again. The Eagles/Saints games was a slight exception in that it was the third pre-season game, which usually features more veteran players (Manning and Jaworski played until the third quarter). But exhibition games are somewhat reluctantly attended at home stadiums, so why would there be 50,000 Syracusans who would want to see Philadelphia and New Orleans? Only 150,000 wanted to see the National Sports Festival, and that included 33 sports over six days. SU students, which were obviously a large part of sell-out dome crowds, had just returned to campus. And if the main selling point was to see NFL players up close and in action, well, the New Orleans Saints held open practices in the Dome for the two days prior to the game, complete with autograph sessions, which anyone could attend for free (and over 500 did).

Yet beyond the matter of bad planning, there's another underlying issue of even greater concern. In an August 20, 1981 letter to the Post-Standard by William Hanbury, director of the Convention and Visitors Bureau, Hanbury wrote that if the Eagles/Saints event was successful, there would be a chance of hosting even more exhibition games in the future, starting with Cleveland and Buffalo in 1982. These exhibition games would "contribute to Syracuse's continued growth as 'Sports Town USA " (August 20, 1981). By using a phrase like "Sports Town USA," does Hanbury sound like he is aiming for Syracuse to be a city that carefully recruits and selects sporting and other significant events that benefit both host and guest, or a theme restaurant where big name athletes make an appearance once or twice a year, and overpriced, generic hamburgers are the stars of the show for all the rest?

On February 19, 1967, a letter from Noreda A. Rotunno, Professor Emeritus, Landscape Architecture at Syracuse University, appeared on the Syracuse Herald-American Opinion page. While it had been written in response to an earlier editorial regarding a new city hall design, she offered this closing advice:

I sincerely hope that in the rebuilding of our downtown Syracuse, and, in fact, any development within the city, we do not approach it as we would a circus, with spectaculars along the midway and barkers proclaiming that we have the largest glass building, the largest pile of concrete cubes, the greatest forest of concrete piers or more "spaghetti roads" than in any city in the state.

It behooves us to weigh carefully each decision on any project and to relate this decision to what we presently have and what we anticipate having in the future.

All of our new developments must not only be beautiful, functional and economical in themselves, but must be compatible with all the characteristics that we like to believe Syracuse represents, economically, socially, industrially and culturally, and at the same time be complimentary to the natural beauty of the area.

Such developments, buildings, building complexes and outdoor areas must go beyond our present level of appreciation, but should not be "too far out" for the sake of publicity.

The day after Michael Phelps won his 8th gold in prime-time glory, Stephanie Brown Trafton, a third-place finisher in the Olympic trials, won one gold medal in the discus competition, the first US woman to do so since 1932. Stephanie herself wanted to be like Mary Lou Retton, until she grew to 6' 4", and had to find another sport to suit her strengths. While she may have won a gold just as her idol, Stephanie Brown Trafton will not be appearing on a Wheaties (or Corn Flakes) box, nor will she be an inspiration to thousands of little girls throughout the country to take up discus throwing. Let's be honest: after the closing ceremonies, chances are the American media won't mention her name again. But for those in her discipline, and all those who follow the unglamorous, rarely televised, but most ancient of sports, she is the story of these Games. A story that may never be a bestseller, but will also never be lacking for an audience.

August 18, 1975/August 13, 1976

(Please note: the comments setting has been corrected!)

I am a child of Syracuse's overmalled '80s. One look at photos of me from those years and it would be quite evident: my outfits matched the styles of the day, regardless of how silly or absolutely wrong they appeared. Should the girl who was always shortest in her class by a foot have worn oversized sweatshirts that fell to her knees? No, she should not have, but did she own several in every color of the neon rainbow? Yes, she did, because that is what we did in Syracuse in the 70s and 80s: we spent so much time --good times--at the malls that we had to bring part of it home with us. You bought an outfit knowing that it would be out of style in another three months (and therefore never to be worn again), but you didn't care because not only was it your parents' money, but for that moment of time, you were on top of the trend (which, for Syracuse, meant a year behind New York, LA and the other big cities).

Given this, I understand why Syracuse has a history of attention deficit disorder-type behavior. When a city has continually placed its faith in retail, to the point of having seven major malls by the end of the 80s, it is no wonder that it started to adapt behaviors like the shoppers themselves. Yet instead of having a closet full of stone-washed jeans and shaker knit sweaters, Syracuse has amassed a collection of "studies." Just as I one time bought pink neon telephone earrings, Syracuse once dropped $50,000 (federal funds) in 1979 to study building a monorail from SU to downtown. I didn't question slouch socks, and apparently neither did Onondaga County when it spent $23,500 ($12,000 covered by the state) in 1966 to study recreational facilities (including the possible relocation of the Burnet Park Zoo to the northwest section of Onondaga Lake, between Route 690 and the Thruway). And while we will examine all of these in due time (the plans, though maybe the fashions as well), let's start with the study that has experienced more comebacks than jelly shoes: The SyracUSA report.

News of the SyracUSA study first hit the newspapers in late 1972. A December 28, 1972 Post-Standard editorial outlined the $100,000 study, commissioned by the Metropolitan Development Association, and prepared by the architect-planning team of McAfee, Malo, Lebensold Affleck and Nichol, and economic consultants Barton-Aschman and Hammer, Green & Silver. John R. Searles Jr., executive vice president of the MDA, referred to the study as a "call to action...positive steps to turning the tide for downtown." The main points of the study, as listed in the Post-Standard editorial, are as follows:

1. Convert Salina Street downtown into a transit mall for buses only, giving priority to pedestrian traffic and thereby making the main shopping center of the region more attractive.
2. Renovate Clinton Square by re-routing Erie Boulevard to the north and south of the Square in a one-way pair.
3. Build housing downtown for families of all incomes.
4. Complete the Civic Center.
5. Build a structure near the Civic Center for parking and other commercial and entertainment uses.
6. Favor the pedestrian by breakthroughs between adjacent stores and attractive weather proof underground or overhead walks.
7. Run a pedestrian-oriented minibus on downtown Salina Street.
8. Institute an East-West Way to provide easy access from the University complex to downtown.
9. Building the proposed Transportation Center.
10. Save old attractive buildings.
11. Give long-range consideration to the opportunities for outstanding developments in the Warren-Washington Street, Onondaga-Salina Street, and Clinton Square sectors.
12. Give long-range consideration to the Southwest sector - beyond the tracks.
13. Establish a SyracUSA Corporation, to believe in downtown, keep it going, and put it all together.
(The Post-Standard, December 28, 1972, p. 4)

Looking at the report in this form, the plan doesn't seem like something that should be resurrected, especially when you consider that variations of many of these ideas were eventually carried out, with unfortunate results. Skybridges (number 6)? The Salt City Trolley (number 7)?. Yet a Post-Standard article written when the final report was unveiled nine months later, on September 19, 1973, discusses these ideas in the context of the bigger picture for downtown:

"The chief focus of the study is to give the city an 'image' or identity that is exciting and unique - termed in the study as 'SyracUSA'...[the study] advises stressing the city's historically interesting assets, such as its Indian heritage, the Erie Canal, old buildings and even the trains that once plied Washington Street...functional areas [should] be highlighted through creative developments, such as reconstructing an Erie Canal atmosphere (with water) at Clinton Square, and making Onondaga Creek into an all-weather park and amusement area."
(The Post-Standard, September 20, 1973)

Report author Fred Lebensold, an architect who also designed Place Bonaventure in Montreal, Quebec, said at the presentation that the study was less about construction than conviction: "Lebensold emphasized the study is aimed...at the infusion of a downtown spirit...downtown is psychological and physical-- and the attitudes with which people regard it give it meaning." (The Post-Standard, September 20, 1973). As mentioned in an earlier post, Lebensold later stressed the importance of uncovering the canals, and architect Paul Melo encouraged the glass roof/canopies over streets. John Searles wished to turn Onondaga Creek into an area similar to San Antonio's Riverwalk. But, unfortunately, what Lebensold, Malo and Searles didn't fully take into account was that this was a plan that was being presented to a downtown that still couldn't see beyond department stores. Rather than requesting a further study of the canals or the canopies or the creek, the city thought it could "infuse a downtown spirit" in a much more direct and simpler way.

Syracuse held a sidewalk sale.

Now, to be fair, the SyracUSA Festival, held August 18-24, 1975, was more than shops opening their doors to pedestrians on a closed-off four-block strip of South Salina Street. In fact, as it was promoted, SyracUSA Festival Week was "the biggest Festival/Shopping Spree/Carnival/Sale-a-thon/Fun Fair/Celebration since the Canal went through!" (Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 17, 1975, p.22). (Once again, you have to wonder, if a 10-day street festival was the most fun since the canal went through Syracuse, what would happen if the ACTUAL canal ran through Syracuse again year-round, for the rest of time, as suggested by the ACTUAL SyracUSA report?) The festival's stated purpose was to "reaffirm downtown as a people's place for meeting, buying, setting the fashion place and just having fun" (The Post-Standard, August 15, 1975, p 12). As one can imagine, if you provide a parade, ferris wheel, carnival games, hot air balloon, movies, a petting zoo, bands, fashion shows, arts and crafts booths, flea market vendors and, yes, free parking, crowds might gather in downtown Syracuse for ten days. Harold H. McGrath, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce Downtown Promotion Committee (which sponsored the SyracUSA festival), said mid-way through the festival that "we've proved people will come downtown if there's something to come down here for, and that's what we wanted to prove" (Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 21, 1975, p. 31). Well, true, but the same could be said about the Fairgrounds during the State Fair. If visitors aren't flocking to the Fairgrounds on the Tuesday after Labor Day, why would the city expect any differently for downtown after the festival? Mr. McGrath seemed to realize this, stating "this is just a start, not our last hurrah," and pointed out that the Downtown Committee had several other events planned to lure people downtown.

While McGrath did not name any planned festivals at that time, we know that in fact many festivals have been held downtown since SyracUSA--New York State Blues Festival, Taste of Syracuse, Winterfest. If you build it, they will come, but they will also go as soon as the stages/booths/tables are dismantled. After the second SyracUSA festival in 1976, several merchants complained that not only was there no noticeable increase in sales, but the street fair actually turned away their usual customers. A "Warren Street jeweler" said that "the carnival atmosphere was an injustice to intelligent shoppers" (The Post-Standard, August 24, 1976). One Dey's merchandise manager openly wished that the festival have "less honky-tonk and more charm and sophistication." These thoughts were also echoed by "Shopper" in a letter to the editor printed in the Syracuse Herald-Journal, August 28, 1976:

"To SyracUSA promoters: The way to make downtown attractive to shoppers is not to fill it with carnival noise and screaming lower life....If you would use the money wasted on such projects and continue the subsidized three-hour free parking to several days a week, shoppers would come downtown to spend money...You had better do something soon or no one will patronize downtown. SyracUSA was almost a fatal illness this time, bury it, and realize you have to appeal to decent, intelligent shoppers who appreciate an attractive downtown to go to and spend their money."

The Downtown Committee did in fact bury SyracUSA festival after 1976. The SyracUSA report, however, lived on, creating several other spin-off studies, such as the $48,200 Transitway study (to create a more detailed plan regarding a Salina Street pedestrian mall), a $4,500 study about skybridges (paid to Fred Lebensold), and even the monorail study was seen as a modification of the report's proposed link between Drumlins and Burnet Park (The Post-Standard, November 17, 1978, p. 13). And while perhaps we should be grateful that we didn't end up with a people-mover downtown, we also don't have any more people downtown, either.

***

When it came time to buy an outfit for my high school yearbook photo, I skipped the floral prints and acid wash and opted for plain, blue blouse. It wasn't particularly cutting-edge or fashionable, but my thought was that plain, blue blouses had always been on the racks at the mall stores, holding their own through all the other silly trends. Future generations could not point and laugh at a plain, blue blouse and say it looked dated. Granted, I'm only sixteen years out from my experiment, but so far, my theory has held true.

Therefore, it's a bit of a shame that Syracuse, with its similar shopper mentality, has never stopped to look at what sells throughout the seasons. It's quite possible that the "Warren Street jeweler" quoted above is the same Warren Street jeweler that has not only been around for 118 years, but one of the few remaining retailers downtown. Instead of throwing a literal dog and pony show on Salina Street back in 1975-76, perhaps some of the city officials behind the SyracUSA festival should have wandered one street over and asked the handful of shoppers at that jewelry store what brought them there. Chances are the answers would be an engagement ring, a wedding gift, an heirloom to last for time. Which is, to say, exactly what was said in the heart of the SyracUSA report: if the redevelopment of Syracuse focuses on the historical legacy of Syracuse, then it can never go out of style.

July 31, 1985

The Galleries. It's like Syracuse's very own New Coke or Crystal Pepsi - what else can you say that hasn't been said before? Is there not a point when making fun of such an easy target actually makes you more pathetic than the target itself?

I mean, what can you say--with a straight face-- about Mayor Lee Alexander's statement comparing the construction of the Galleries to the building of the Erie Canal (The Post Standard, August 1, 1985)? Would this be the same canal that the city of Syracuse paved over when the canal became obsolete? And the same canal that Fred Lebensold, architect of the Civic Center, implored the city to unearth ten years earlier in a Clinton Square redevelopment plan? The same canal that Lebensold said must be uncovered and "return[ed] to its historic prominence in the Square area"? (June 24, 1975)

And, really - isn't it just going for the cheap laugh when I remind you that the Galleries project took six years to get from initial idea to construction phase in large part because the city couldn't find a major tenant? And that, over Jack Daniels on a fishing trip at Wolf Island in 1983, Executive Vice President of the Metropolitan Development Association Irwin Davin suggested to County Executive John Mulroy that perhaps the Onondaga County Library could be the anchor tenant? (Herald-American, July 28, 1985) Would that be the same library that was already located downtown and apparently didn't bring in enough traffic to make a difference? The same library that had ten other branches in the city and twenty throughout the Syracuse suburbs? The same library that had $35,585 in outstanding overdue fines (countywide) in July 1987? A $35,585 amount that was only a rough estimate, as "overdue books and theft [were] so common, it's hard to keep track of the actual loss"? (Syracuse Herald-Journal, July 20, 1987)

And am I just taking the low road when I quote Galleries developer Stewart "Bud" Andrews, who stated that the Galleries would hold its own against the suburban shopping centers because "it's not where you do your grocery shopping?" (Syracuse Herald-Journal, July 31, 1985) Would those be the same suburban shopping centers that survived precisely because of the existence of a supermarket? The same suburban shopping centers that realized food is a better anchor than books?

And what point is served by again bringing up Robert Congel's (and Mayor Young's) assertion that the "Oil City Mall"--whose plans were first announced in July, 1987, three months before the Galleries opening--would be a complement, rather than competition, to the downtown shopping center, as it would "revive Syracuse's urban core...extend[ing] the city's central business district to Onondaga Lake"? (The Post Standard, July 11, 1987) And, to that end, Congel wanted to enter a joint leasing agreement with the Galleries, requiring any tenant in the Oil City Mall to also open up shop in the Galleries? Would this be the same agreement that would--according to Congel--work splendidly because the Galleries and the Oil City Mall would be "two different markets"? (Syracuse Herald Journal, July 17, 1987) Two different markets in the same extended downtown?

And shouldn't I rise above recalling Syracuse officials' steadfast belief that the Galleries would turn around downtown just as a similarly-named Galleria supposedly had done in downtown Louisville, Kentucky? (Syracuse Herald-Journal, July 31, 1985) Would this be the same Galleria that was also built by a group of Canadian developers (Oxford Properties) and that, contrary to overenthusiastic pr claims from the Louisville Chamber of Commerce to the Syracuse MDA, never took off? The same Galleria that was was purchased by the City of Louisville from the Canadian developers in 2001 as it had become nothing more than empty storefronts and a closed food court? The same Galleria that was then sold for a buck to the Cordish Company of Baltimore, who performed a 70 million dollar renovation of the mall by knocking down the exterior sides, but keeping the glass atrium, allowing for both an open-air pedestrian mall as well as the ability for restaurants to provide outdoor seating rain or shine? The same glass roof that had also been proposed as part of the 1973 SyracUSA report (Syracuse Herald Journal, October 18, 1973), to be constructed over South Salina Street? Or the related "canopy system" that was suggested by Syracuse architect Paul Malo to the Syracuse Chamber of Commerce on November 15, 1973 as a relatively quick and inexpensive way to revitalize downtown? A canopy system that Malo insisted would be much cheaper and less hassle than an "enclosed air conditioned mall" (Syracuse Herald-Journal, November 16, 1973)? As in $240,000 (1973 dollars) compared to the Galleries' $48 million?


And is it particularly shameless to mention that on the first day of the Galleries' construction, instead of distributing a normal press release, the developers handed out a coloring book instead? (The Post-Standard, August 1, 1985) A coloring book that included pictures such as a kid scratching his head, along with the caption "What do you suppose is going to be inside the Galleries? Circle the one you think is right: shops, restaurants, a tower for a princess"? The same coloring book that was created, according to author Art Rath, because he "figured if [he] wrote it down to the level of kids, maybe it would get adults to get the message"? Would these be the same kids who went to the Galleries shortly after its second grand opening--when the library finally opened nine months after the rest of the mall--and felt an overwhelming sense of embarrassment? These same kids who loved their suburban malls at the time -- even the equally empty Fairmount Fair--because they all had their own unique charm and character? These same kids who understood that the schoolyard drama of forgetting who you are and copying the cool boys and girls in a misguided effort to become popular always ends in miserable failure? These same kids who would have circled "tower for a princess," because that would have been far more realistic than expecting a mall in a paved over downtown with a library as an anchor and no grocery store in sight not to mention a soon-to-be 150+ store mall three miles away and a failed replica model 700 miles away to be the ultimate answer in turning the city around?

So, yeah, picking on the Galleries makes me kind of pathetic. But no more pathetic than this: on July 31, 1985, a crane took a wrecking ball to the old McCrory's building at 435 South Salina Street to begin construction of The Galleries of Syracuse. Even after several swings, the wall would not break. It had been built to last.

July 24, 1981

While NBC would have you think that 8-8-08 is the greatest day in sports history, let's not overlook 7-24-08: training camp begins for the New England Patriots. Or how about 7-24-81, opening day of the National Sports Festival III, hosted at twenty different venues throughout Syracuse?

Though the Carrier Dome hasn't seen too many victorious sports moments recently (the lacrosse team won in Gillette Stadium, after all), on July 23, 1981, it was home to the opening night ceremonies of the National Sports Festival, a multi-sport competition created by the United States Olympic Committee to showcase Olympic sports in Olympic off-years. The festival took on a greater significance in 1981, as the 1980 Summer Games in Moscow had been boycotted by the United States. While Syracuse now gains notoriety for busting washed-up B-listers, Syracuse then hosted future superstars such as a 21-year old Greg Louganis at Nottingham Pool, 22-year old Scott Hamilton and teenagers Brian Boitano and Paul Wylie figure skating at the War Memorial (as well as a 16-year old Bonnie Blair on speedskates), 20-year old Dot Richardson playing softball at Meachem Field (who would go on to captain the first women's Olympic softball team in 1996), 19-year old Hershel Walker running track Sunnycrest Field (competing in the 4x100 relay, even though he was fresh off a Sugar Bowl win as a University of Georgia running back), and an 18-year old Patrick Ewing at Manley Field House (of course, Syracuse would see plenty of him in the next four years). 2500 athletes competing in 33 sports spent six days in Syracuse, housed in dorms at Syracuse University and transported via Centro to sites in every corner of Syracuse. The Sunnycrest track at Henninger was built especially for the festival (with $250,000 of federal grant money and the same amount of city funds), and the county legislature allocated $33,000 for renovations at Liverpool's Griffin Park. How exactly did the city of Syracuse come together for such an singular feat that did not involve the construction of a shopping mall?

A Sunday, July 19, 1981 Post-Standard article outlines the nearly three-year process in great detail. In 1978, the USOC decided to move future National Sports Festivals from the USOC home city of Colorado Springs to cities throughout the country, in an effort to showcase amateur athletes prior to Olympic appearances, and draw attention to sports that otherwise received little fanfare during the Olympic games--or were not even part of the Olympic Games at the time--such as badminton and windsurfing. Syracuse was one of 14 cities that received letters from the director of the USOC, inviting the city to be a potential host for the 1981 games. Mayor Lee Alexander asked the Commissioner of the city's Parks and Recreation Department, Frank Kelly, to look into the possibility of hosting the festival. Syracuse did have experience with sports festivals, as it had just hosted the inaugural Empire State Games. In the end, the competition came down to Syracuse and Orlando, and despite Orlando putting together a much more polished presentation to the USOC, Syracuse was ultimately awarded the games due to the close proximity of all venues necessary for the festival, as well as the availability of the SU dorms and dining halls for the athletes' village. (And yet, one thinks that if the USOC had seen all the empty seats in this video supposedly promoting Syracuse sports, they might not have realized that "it's all here.")

What is particularly interesting is that while a headline in the Sunday, July 19 Herald American boldly proclaimed "Festival to generate $4.7 million in revenue," the reality was that Syracuse entered the agreement to host the festival knowing that, in the short term, it would probably be a financial loss. In 1980, the Common Council approved a $500,000 guarantee against the festival -- a requirement by the USOC, in case the festival was a financial disaster. In the final contract between the Syracuse Organizing Committee and the USOC, the SOC would be responsible for transporting, housing and feeding all athletes, but would earn ticket revenue only. But to put it in retail terms, the festival could be considered a loss leader - 2500 athletes, their coaches, family and friends would spend six days throughout Syracuse. ABC would cover the festival for six hours, including three hours of coverage on Wide World of Sports. Over 400 journalists from 81 newspapers, 16 magazines, 10 television stations, 18 radio stations and 2 wire services would set up shop in a press office on the 10th floor of the Hotel Syracuse. And even when news came halfway through the festival that only 6-16% of the tickets had been sold outside of the Central New York Area -- which meant fewer hotel reservations and related tourist business--the festival was still considered profitable by both the city and USOC in the sense that it was an organizational success. There were scheduling problems here and there, and heavy showers that came mid-festival completely rained out some events, but 3000 full and part time volunteers came together to assist the games, and approximately 150,000 spectators ($457,000 worth of ticketholders) saw the entire city of Syracuse on display. Though the festival fell 100,000 spectators short of their pre-festival expectation of 250,000, as Boston Globe sports columnist Joe Concannon stated via an August 18, 1981 Syracuse Herald-Journal column: "Say what you will about Syracuse and its dreadful winters and drab appearance, but its people warmed up to the festival and made visitors feel at home...National Sports IV will be conducted next summer in Indianapolis...until then, let it be said that NSF III was a qualified success."

So yes--as any Boston Globe columnist or Patriots fan can tell you---then, there was Indy.

In 1982, when Syracuse was back to its familiar turf of demolishing buildings for shopping malls, Indianapolis was gearing up to host National Sports Festival IV. Actually, it had been in full planning mode for over one year, sending city representatives to Syracuse in 1981 to hand out press packets of their event the following year. A two-part article in the Syracuse Herald-Journal on Sunday, July 18 and Monday, July 19, 1982 details, point by point, how much Indianapolis showed up Syracuse: a projected $1 million dollars in ticket sales, two more national sponsors, 4000 more volunteers, a unique mascot (Sneakers the Squirrel), Bob Hope as grand marshal for the evening portion of the nine-hour opening day festivities (complete with 600 homing pigeons, 883 marching band members, 70 hot-air balloons, two groups of WWI-vintage biplanes, 55,000 American flags, 30,000 helium balloons, fireworks and 50,000 expected spectators), billboards and advertising in 23 cities in four states, and the 60,000-seat acoustical wonder Hoosier (later RCA) Dome. While Indianapolis has since demonstrated a pattern of throwing money at pretty things to look good , in 1982, Indianapolis desperately wanted an NFL team that would be routinely get decimated by an AFC rival from the Northeast. They desperately wanted figure skaters and swimmers and cyclists to hold national competitions there, and to that end, not only built the Hoosier (RCA) Dome, but also created a permanent organizing committee whose sole purpose was to attract sporting events to the city. Indianapolis has since not only become home of the Colts, but also known as "Amateur Sports Capital of the World," given the large number of sporting venues in the downtown area, including Victory Field, home of the Indianapolis Indians, Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. When it comes to downtown Syracuse revitalization plans, residents repeatedly mention the desire for a downtown stadium, referring to their experiences in cities like Denver and, yes, Indianapolis.

Certainly, new stadiums are one of the biggest political boondoggles out there, but when any city revitalization plan is discussed, sports must be a central consideration in some context. As I know from my experience with running, sports inspire a certain obsession. If you want to run a marathon course known for its high percentage of Boston qualifiers, you'll travel to Scranton, PA or Lowell, MA despite the fact neither is known as a tourist destination ("The Office" fans, notwithstanding.) 10,000 runners visit Utica every July for the Boilermaker. One would hope that if the National Sports Festival were held today (unlikely, as the last NSF was held in 1995), an overflow crowd of 1,600 would still come to Meachem Field despite last week's headlines. That thousands would still watch the track and field events at Sunnycrest Park without thinking about random teenage assaults. That suburban parents would put aside their judgments of city school system and watch the Greg Louganis of tomorrow at Nottingham. True, at the end of the six days, there would once again be a quick retreat to the suburbs (and crude comments on the syracuse.com forums), but it would be a start. Such a valuable start that the city once had--just like Indianapolis--back in 1981. But instead of analyzing their performance and reworking their routine and setting their sights on the gold, Syracuse left the competition as if that was the win in and of itself, and settling not even for silver or bronze but its very own medal -- a token souvenir pin, now available on ebay.

July 10, 2008

These blog entries require a bit of research. You would think that the City of Syracuse website would be a helpful resource. However, attempting to link to the website through Google produces this message:


What exactly does this mean?


As Google warns, "please be aware that malicious software is often installed without your knowledge or permission when you visit these sites, and can include programs that delete data on your computer, steal personal information such as passwords and credit card numbers, or alter your search results."

Way to welcome visitors to Syracuse, Syracuse.

July 8, 1949

Syracuse has always had a bit of a retail fetish. I mean, who needs DestiNY when tourists already flock to the area due to its elite status among dead mall cities? But long before the DestiNY saga, there was a similarly drawn-out battle for a shopping mall in DeWitt. Fifty-nine years ago today, an architect who wished to build a $500,000 shopping center on a 46-acre parcel of land opposite DeWitt Cemetery (the Dadey farm) for a then-unnamed developer submitted his plans the DeWitt Town Board. The shopping center would be a one-story, half-circle shaped building housing twenty-four stores, with enough parking for 650 cars. Also included in the deal was a plan to construct 45 homes on the site, which would sell for about $15,000 each. The plan drew quick protest from Orvilton Park residents, who brought the matter to court, citing that they built their homes when the area was zoned residential, and the change in zoning would cause the value of their houses to drop. If you find it hard to imagine Erie Boulevard as a residential street, so did the judge who ruled in favor of the shopping center on May 27, 1950: "It is found that Erie Boulevard by reason of heavy vehicular traffic with resulting noise, dirt, odors and hazards is unsuited for residential purposes. One is not required to theorize to reach this conclusion." Furthermore, as the judge pointed out, five of the plaintiffs weren't even disgruntled homeowners, but rather businessmen who had recently sold their property located on the corner of East Genesee and Erie Boulevard to a competing shopping center developer (what would become the "DeWitt Stop and Shop Shopping Centre"). A shopping center on the site would be "in accord with a well-developed plan to promote the general welfare of the community," the judge stated.

With this decision, in June 1950, Eagan Real Estate announced their plans to begin construction of the Town and Country Shopping Center on the disputed site, though the year of legal battles had given Eagan the opportunity to expand their vision. The center would now contain 40 stores, and cost an estimated $3 million. These days, this shopping center is not only better known as Shoppingtown, but also as a favorite stop on the Dying Mall Tour. Plans are being discussed to redevelop the mall into a "lifestyle center," i.e. a strip plaza, not unlike the Dewitt Stop and Shop Shopping Centre (now better known as 4473 East Genesee Street), which still has storefronts to this day. In fact, all of the earliest shopping centers/strip plazas in Syracuse --Nottingham Plaza (1951), Valley Plaza (1952), Shop City Plaza (1952), Westvale Shopping Plaza (1950) and Mattydale Plaza (1950)--have remained intact and occupied, even while the neighborhoods around some of them have (sharply) declined. So as Syracuse continues to be seduced by new shopping centers, perhaps we should look at why these vintage plazas may be much more valuable.

When it comes to city revitalization, those who subscribe to the Richard Florida theory suggest that transformation begins with members of the "creative class" inhabiting--and rehabbing-- the city's downtown. 40 Below would not only like me to Come Home to Syracuse, but preferably move into a renovated loft or condominium downtown. But what does a call to live in a luxury condo in the abandoned blight of downtown Syracuse rather than an older house in an established neighborhood--albeit a neighborhood that has seen far better days--really say about the city that you're trying to revitalize? When Nottingham Realty Corporation built Valley Plaza in 1952 (with Eagan Real Estate serving as managing agents), the site was selected "after a detailed survey revealed that 55,000 persons in the immediate area can be conveniently served" (The Post-Standard, November 16, 1952). As Eugene W. Kilts stated in a letter to the Post Standard on January 17, 1972, when he moved to Syracuse in 1920, he "made many inquiries as to the best sections of the city to make my residence and 9 out of 10 recommended the South Side." His walk home from work (at 2 am!) involved "walk[ing] home via the then beautiful West Onondaga St. with its maple trees on both sides of the street...down South Ave. to Bellevue to Hudson Street." Mr. Kilts then adds "In those days you never feared being mugged at that time in the morning, but as of today...I would be frightened to walk that section in the daytime." Thirty-six years later, this sentiment has not changed. Given that the Syracuse of today is a direct result of the urban renewal actions of the 1960s, how exactly does establishing a neighborhood of young professionals and empty nesters downtown address the problems of these historic neighborhoods that are in desperate need of revitalization themselves? Is it perhaps easier to settle in condos in the abandoned downtown, because you are creating a neighborhood where none exists?

Also significant is that all of the above-named shopping centers were originally anchored by a supermarket (or in some cases, two supermarkets - but that's a whole other blog entry). Most still contain a grocery store today. While perhaps not aesthetically pleasing, these strip plazas did provide all of the amenities - food, pharmacy, department store - for the immediate neighborhoods surrounding them. And because each of these suburbs was located on the early trolley lines (which had all become bus lines by the time the shopping centers were built), sidewalks made the area walkable. If Syracuse is trying to "go green," then why not promote these neighborhoods with smaller houses (less energy/heat), sidewalks and short distances to the supermarket (less gas)? There is usually the assumption that "downtown living" means less driving than the suburbs. However, given that not only is Syracuse years away from a real mass transit system, but also has most of its offices currently based in the suburbs, downtown living in Syracuse is probably less of a green choice than settling in one of the inner-ring suburbs.

Lastly, it is important to note is that the sites for these older plazas were considered in relation to the proximity to the top Syracuse employers at the time. A January 25, 1955 Post-Standard article discussing the proposed expansion of Shop City mentions that the center "has ample parking space, an attractive feature to the thousands of workers from plants at Industrial Park...Carrier Corp., General Motors, General Electric Co. and other firms have plants in the area, one of the most rapidly developing sections in the U. S." L.T. Eagan of Eagan Real Estate cited the rapid growth of Syracuse as the main factor for JCPenney's 1952 decision to open a store in Shoppingtown:

"East, west, north, south, Syracuse grows beyond its borders...Carrier Corporation, Bristol Laboratories, U.S. Hoffman, Oberdorfer Foundries and other Digney interests, the new Western Electric upstate service and supply center to employ 500, mean nearly 10,000 industrial employees along one axis developed largely since the war...small wonder that national concerns look to Syracuse for outlets and Syracuse interests think in terms of branches around the great golden circle of the city." (The Post-Standard, October 12, 1952)

In other words, the jobs in Syracuse created the shopping centers; the shopping centers did not create the jobs in Syracuse.