State transportation officials will hold a public open house November 5 on two major contracts in the second phase of Syracuse's I-81 Viaduct Project. Visitors can review early construction plans, a future I-690 detour and new stormwater infrastructure.
The informal session runs from 6 to 8 p.m. at Palladian Hall at The Treasury, 101 South Salina Street. No formal presentation is planned; state staff and the prime contractors will answer questions alongside project renderings and videos, according to NYSDOT.
Contract 6, awarded in July, covers reconstruction and realignment of I-690 in both directions between Leavenworth Avenue and North Crouse Avenue. The open house will explain initial work and an eastbound reconstruction detour expected to begin in late 2027 and last about two years.
That detour will direct traffic from Syracuse's near Westside and Onondaga County's western and northern suburbs onto city streets. It is a future construction phase, rather than a newly announced immediate closure.
The contract also includes new connections between Business Loop 81 and I-690, a complete interchange at North Crouse and Irving avenues, and a street-level intersection at West and West Genesee streets. Work on 25 local streets will add or replace sewer and water lines, lighting, sidewalks, shared-use paths and trees.
Contract 6a, awarded in September, includes an 8-by-10-foot concrete stormwater trunkline beneath Almond, East Water and State streets, Erie Boulevard, Salina Street and Herald Place. It is part of work to separate stormwater from sewage, reduce highway flooding and limit combined sewer overflows into Onondaga Creek and Onondaga Lake.
Five streets along that route will also be rebuilt with improved pedestrian and bicycle accommodations, replacement traffic signals, signs, pavement markings, lighting and trees. Information on air-quality and vibration monitors will be available at the meeting.
Parking is available in The Treasury Building Garage at 119 East Washington Street. Visitors must scan a QR code at the open-house sign-in table to obtain a $5 parking rate. NYSDOT also noted on-street spaces and nearby lots with free parking after 6 p.m.
The hall is accessible to people with disabilities. Anyone needing a sign-language interpreter, assisted-listening system or another accommodation can contact TeNesha Murphy at 315-728-4251. Project questions can be sent to Tenesha.Murphy@dot.ny.gov.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to news@fingerlakes1.com.
