Should an Urban Boulevard replace the aging Interstate-81 elevated highway that has sliced through the heart of Downtown Syracuse for the past 40 years?
That's the question the Onondaga Citizen's League has examined during the past year, and the answer will be given in their report -- "Rethinking of I-81" -- that's expected to be released soon.
Proponents of removing the deteriorating highway hope the recommendation will follow the lead of other cities in America that have torn down elevated structures in order to eliminate physical and psychological barriers and stimulate new investment in nearby property.
The Syracuse Metropolitan Transportation Council, in a recent study of University Hill, concluded that tearing down I-81 in the Almond Street corridor and rerouting through traffic might be feasible. The report recommended an in-depth study of an urban boulevard for that area.
Recommended options and strategies are expected to be proposed by the public agencies involved during the winter of 2011-2012, and a timeline for a final decision -- including an environmental review and other studies -- has not yet been published.
For more about the Onondaga Citizen's League study go to: http://onondagacitizensleague.org/ocl_studies/index.htm
