Douglas Reicher was appointed to the SHA by Mayor Sharon Owens. Credit: Mike Greenlar | Central Current

The Syracuse Housing Authority by the end of this year expects to have the financing to redevelop its lone apartment complex in Syracuse’s Eastwood neighborhood. 

SHA plans to begin the redevelopment of Eastwood Heights, which it gained control of earlier this year in a land swap with the city of Syracuse, in 2026.

The $25.9 million redevelopment project of the property, located on 1025 Sunnycrest Road, will see the number of apartments go up from 49 to 53. The land Eastwood Heights sits on has become critical in the reimagination of public housing on the city’s Southside. City and SHA officials earlier this year swapped Eastwood Heights for land along Latimer Terrace in the Southside. 

The land swap deal required SHA to make a $500,000 payment to the city to make up for the difference in property values between Eastwood Heights and the land along Latimer Terrace. That land could eventually be home to the Children Rising Center, a project undertaken by the Allyn Family Foundation and Blueprint 15 to provide early education, child care and a YMCA for the neighborhood. 

The Syracuse Common Council approved the swap of Eastwood Heights and the $500,000 payment in August. 

The land swap followed a volley of blame and fingerpointing among SHA, the city, local nonprofit Blueprint 15 and the Allyn Family Foundation over the pause of the Children Rising Center project. The city, the Allyn Family Foundation and Blueprint 15 blamed SHA for failing to finish its plan to redevelop public housing in time to apply for $7 million in federal tax credits. SHA denied missing any deadlines.

Blueprint 15 Interim Executive Director Sarah Walton LaFave told Central Current in September that the organization was waiting for the transfer of the land and a ground lease to be executed before the board and staff delved into the viability of continuing the project. 

The center will offer early learning slots to children in a neighborhood where only 38% of early learners show age-appropriate development, Walton LaFave said.  Alongside after school and summer programs, CRC will also host a play arena for children and parents with early learning opportunities, Walton LaFave said. 

After closing on financing for the Eastwood Heights project at the end of the year, residents will be relocated in batches. Five residents at a time will be placed in hotel suites in East Syracuse, Simmons said. 

The redevelopment of units will take approximately 45 days before they can return. Rocester’s Cornerstone Group will redevelop the property. Residents with disabilities will be relocated to units within the building. 

Residents will receive a 30-day notice before they have to move, said SHA Deputy Executive Director Jalyn Clifford. 

According to SHA, the redevelopment will improve the complex with:

  • Energy-efficient heating and cooling and full building electrification
  • New windows and roofing
  • Fully renovated apartments
  • A modernized community room and fitness space
  • A secure entry system and enhanced building safety features
  • EV charging stations
  • Improved accessibility, including eight units designed for mobility impairments and three units for hearing or vision impairments

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Debadrita Sur is a multimedia journalist and Report for America corps member who reports on the I-81 project and public housing for Central Current. In 2023, Sur graduated with a master’s degree in journalism...