Syracuse, N.Y. — A major development project downtown will force the relocation of a homeless shelter, sparking criticism from a city councilor and advocates who don’t want the shelter moved near a burgeoning neighborhood.
JMA Wireless plans to acquire the property at 1074 S. Clinton St. that’s now home to a Catholic Charities men’s shelter. The site will be part of a proposed corporate campus built around a new factory that will manufacture 5G components.
After months of searching for a new home for the shelter, the city, the county and Catholic Charities settled on a vacant building at 501 W. Genesee St. That’s about two blocks from Middle Ages Brewing Co. and the Park Avenue neighborhood.
Common Councilor Pat Hogan, who represents the city’s West Side and that neighborhood, balked at the proposed location Wednesday.
Hogan said he plans to fight the move. The Park Avenue neighborhood has spent 30 years rebuilding, he said, and putting a homeless shelter nearby could destabilize the area.
“I think it’s going to have a very detrimental effect on the neighborhood,” Hogan said. “It’s just the wrong place to put it.”
Shawn Fiato is the president of the Park Ave. Neighborhood Association. She’s lived on Park Avenue for 33 years with her husband.
Fiato said she and other neighbors have spent years working to revitalize the area and claw back a neighborhood that had been overtaken by automotive dealers on Genesee Street.
Putting a homeless shelter two blocks from the homes and Leavenworth Park would be a huge setback, she said. She’s concerned about the safety of the neighborhood and the quality of life issues that may come with a daily influx of homeless men.
“I’m completely and totally against it,” she said “They should find somewhere else because this was a blue collar neighborhood that went down, and we brought it back up.”
There’s been ample development along Park Avenue in recent years, including the renovation of the Dietz Lantern building and the warehouse at 538 Erie Blvd., and the salvaging of the “Five Sisters" houses.
The proposed location for a new Catholic Charities men's shelter is a vacant building at 501 W. Genesee St.
Mike Melara, executive director of Catholic Charities, said he became aware of JMA’s intentions about a year ago, at which point his agency started discussing options to move the shelter, often referred to as “The Oxford Inn” or just “The Ox.”
The city and county presented about 15 options, he said, and the West Genesee Street location was the best.
The proposed site, at West Genesee and West Streets, is close to downtown and other social service agencies, Melara said. That’s ideal for a population of people who mostly walk to get where they’re going.
Melara added he’d like to hear directly from neighbors about their concerns and will work to address them all. He stressed that the relocation of the shelter is still a work in progress.
“We are committed to being a good neighbor,” he said. “We want to demonstrate that to the neighborhood.”
Melara said the agency is planning meetings to hear from neighbors in the coming weeks.
Hogan met Tuesday with Melara and spoke with Mayor Ben Walsh. He said the neighborhood should have had more input before the site was selected.
“I’ve already been accused of ‘NIMBY-ism’ by the mayor,” Hogan said. “That’s like the elite telling the working class what they should have in their backyard.”
Hogan said he understands the need for the services the shelter provides, but would like to see it located in a less residential area.
“Every community needs those services but no one wants them in their backyard,” Walsh said.
Walsh said the new shelter won’t simply be a relocation of the existing one. He described it as a “comprehensive approach” that will include a mental health clinic and a variety of housing options. The new facility will treat the underlying conditions that lead to homelessness, he said, not just offer a bed.
He also said he plans to hold Catholic Charities to a high standard of management.
He added that the JMA project will be a boon for the entire city.
“I understand why some stakeholders are skeptical and I understand why Councilor Hogan thinks he’s doing what’s in the best interest of his district,” Walsh said. “but my job is to serve the whole city... JMA is making a significant investment and making a transformational project.”
The planned JMA campus will be part of the area identified by Walsh for his Syracuse Surge strategy, which aims to attract tech companies and entrepreneurs to the city.
Building that campus, as proposed, requires the city to hand over two blocks of road to JMA: the 1000 block of South Clinton Street and the 100 block of Cortland Avenue. Those blocks sit on either side of the former Coyne Textile building, which JMA plans to turn into a factory to manufacture 5G wireless components.
Construction is underway at the former Coyne textile building. JMA Wireless is developing the site into a facility that will manufacture 5G components.
The homeless shelter sits across the street from the textile building on South Clinton Street, along the portion the city would give to JMA. JMA has proposed replacing the streets with sidewalks, trees and landscaping as part of a corporate campus.
The forfeiture of the two city blocks will require Common Council approval.
The JMA project is expected to bring at least 100 jobs to downtown.
A JMA spokesman did not respond to messages Wednesday.
The Catholic Charities shelter moved to its current location in 2013. Before that, it was located on Oxford Street.
It has 99 beds that are open to men in need of shelter. Many struggle with drug addiction or mental health issues.
The new facility at 501 W. Genesee St. would include a shelter that’s the same size, in addition to six apartments for elderly homeless men, according to Melara. It will also have a commercial kitchen that operates as a job-training program and health care facilities.
The building has staff and security on-site around the clock, Melara said, as well as security cameras.
Walsh noted that the new shelter will also have offices for Catholic Charities staff, which will bring employees to the Park Avenue neighborhood.
“I am optimistic they can co-exist,” Walsh said of the neighborhood and the shelter.
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