A photo of Syracuse Urbanism Club members at one of their monthly meetings in the basement of the McCarthy Mercantile. Credit: Courtesy of Michael John Heagerty

In his final year at Syracuse University’s School of Architecture, Baxter Hankin’s undergraduate thesis project showcased a 3D rendering of Syracuse’s new 15th ward. Hankin envisioned a Syracuse after the Interstate 81 viaduct is removed, one he and others want to see realized.

The project made Hankin, a Connecticut native, want to return to Syracuse after graduation and get involved. 

“I interviewed so many people in the community in my process of imagining the future for the community grid after I-81 changes, and that was my inspiration for starting this group,” Hankin said. 

Then, last year, Hankin started the Syracuse Urbanism Club with the goal of improving the city for those who live in it. Hankin wanted a more walkable, livable city. The club has brought together people who share an interest in urban planning, sustainability and revitalizing Syracuse.

Since launching last year, the club has expanded to 150 members. The group holds monthly meetings on the last Tuesday of every month at 6 p.m. in the basement of the McCarthy Mercantile at 217 South Salina St. The next meeting is March 26.

They’ve picked up some wins along the way. The club submitted 175 recommendations to the New York Department of Transportation about the removal of the Interstate 81 viaduct through an email letter campaign. The club has become a chapter of the Congress for New Urbanism, an organization that advocates for better designed and more walkable communities. 

And it has picked up a number of other projects, including improving M. Lemp Park, located at the corner of South Warren and Fayette streets, and a project to turn patches of grass into native meadows or wildflower gardens. 

“There’s a lot of assumptions that people make about the communities that they live in, that the way it is now, is the way it’s always going to be. But, we can always dream bigger than that,” Hankin said. “Why can’t we make Syracuse the most beautiful city in the world? What’s stopping that from happening? Nothing but our imagination and lots of willing volunteers to make it happen, which we have both of.”

While Hankin started the organization, he added other critical members. Hankin met Michael John Heagerty, who founded Wildflowers Armory in the McCarthy Mercantile building, while hanging a flier there about the club. The two bonded over their vision for the city.

Syracuse Urbanism Club members engage in a group discussion at a monthly meeting. Credit: Courtesy of Michael John Heagerty

Three others joined the group as board members: Jaynelle Nixon, a professor at Syracuse University, Kevin Race and Tori Shaw. 

Each of the board members provide something: Nixon writes their newsletter, Heagerty provides space for meetings and organizes trips to project sites, Race handles the marketing and Shaw takes notes and attendance.

Race and Nixon separately found out about the club on Reddit. Both were looking for a sense of community after the Covid-19 pandemic.  

Until recently, the group remained small. But their outreach through Instagram, Facebook and Reddit and flyers in public places landed. They had dozens of people at their first meeting.

“The first meeting had a lot of folks at it, which was impressive because up until that point it’s just been a little grassroots marketing campaign,” Heagerty said.

The group has started working on several projects. The club put forward a 30-page document with recommendations for how the state’s Department of Transportation should handle streets around where the I-81 viaduct will come down.

SUNY ESF, the Syracuse Parks Conservancy and the Erie Canal Museum endorsed the document, Hankin said. 

It wants to start its mini meadows program, in which it would like to turn patches of grass into native meadows or wildflower gardens, this year. The program was inspired by the art, garden and sustainability trail event hosted by Outer Comstock Neighborhood Association.

They’ve proposed fixing signage on the Onondaga Creekwalk to make it more user friendly and are planning a SWAG Bike Fest, which is meant to be inclusive. SWAG stands for Syracuse women’s and gender nonconforming people. 

The group also plans to advocate for better bike and pedestrian infrastructure in the city. 

Many of the projects came from the interests and recommendations proposed by club members.

“Our members have been fantastic. We have a lot of people who are members of the urbanism club who are always ready to put in volunteer work and make stuff happen,” Hankin said. 

The club’s next step will be formalizing a number of its plans, which will require fundraising and grants. It applied for a grant from the Syracuse Parks Conservancy to start the mini meadows project. About 20 club members are involved in that project. It’s hoping to launch the project this summer.

 “We believe that there are a lot of folks in and around the city that would like to see these things become a reality,” Heagerty said. “So we’re working diligently to get to the point where we can be a platform for that often.”

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Yolanda Stewart was raised in the Bronx, New York City. Before choosing a career path in journalism she found a voice in writing plays, short stories, and a myriad of other creative outlets. She is a 2022...