Downtown Ithaca business owners are pressing the city to reconsider demolishing the Seneca Street parking garage, arguing that losing convenient customer parking threatens businesses near the Commons.
A petition started by Moosewood Restaurant had nearly 1,000 signatures Friday. It calls for an independent assessment of repair options and a pause on redevelopment plans and the proposed transfer of the property to the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency.
The campaign challenges a redevelopment process the city has been advancing since the garage closed in April. City officials maintain that the structure is unsafe and that other downtown garages have available capacity.
The petition’s organizers say businesses have suffered substantial losses since the closure and warn that demolition and construction could create years of disruption. They want officials to determine whether repairs could extend the garage’s life before committing to replacement development.
The approximately 425-space structure at 202 E. Seneca St. has been closed since April 10. In September, the Common Council advanced a process to seek redevelopment proposals through the urban renewal agency, with additional council approval required before a final property transfer.
A draft developer solicitation included in the agency’s Nov. 10 committee packet outlines a preference for a taxable residential development featuring market-rate or mixed-income housing. Owner-occupied units would be encouraged, and officials would also consider a nonresidential project attracting a major employer or retailer.
Other objectives include restoring a TCAT bus shelter on East Seneca Street, creating active street-level uses and incorporating energy efficiency and climate resilience.
The draft anticipates issuing the solicitation Jan. 4, with responses due March 15, 2027. Those dates appear in proposed materials rather than a finalized development agreement. The outlined selection process includes developer evaluation, negotiations, a public hearing and a Common Council vote.
The disagreement over repairs has a basis in the city’s own engineering records.
A September 2025 assessment by engineering firm WGI rated the garage’s overall condition as poor to fair, identifying deterioration in structural and waterproofing components. It recommended repairs within one to two years to help keep the facility operating for another 10 to 15 years.
The assessment also identified an unsafe condition in the basement area providing access to the elevator machine room. Temporary supports were already in place, and engineers recommended repairs within six months.
WGI’s estimated total project budget was about $4.75 million, including optional work, engineering, contingencies and other costs. The report listed a replacement cost of $19 million and noted that recommendations from an earlier repair program had not been implemented.
That assessment predates the garage’s closure. In an October explanation of its decision, the city said unsafe conditions identified in April were confirmed by an independent engineering firm, supporting permanent closure.
City officials also disputed the idea that downtown lacks parking. They said more than 300 spaces are frequently available in the Cayuga Street garage, less than a five-minute walk from the Commons, and committed to examining peak demand and improving the parking experience.
For petition organizers, however, the issue is the accessibility and convenience of parking close to their businesses. They are asking the city to revisit whether preserving that access through repairs is possible before the redevelopment process moves further.
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