The Syracuse Planning Commission held action on the proposed Onondaga Hotel and Convention Center project after several neighbors raised concerns about utility conduits and easements, vehicle access, and the project's impacts on adjacent historic buildings.

CHA Consulting presented the proposal for a new 10-story hotel with attached convention space at the corner of South Warren and East Fayette Streets. The project would replace a condemned parking garage with a new mixed-use building that includes a 4,500-square-foot corner restaurant, a multi-level parking garage providing roughly 321 spaces, about 248 hotel rooms and a tenth-floor ballroom and convention space totaling several thousand square feet.

Several nearby property owners and tenants spoke at the hearing. Fred Davies (Putnam Properties) and representatives for Saint Pauls Church flagged two technical but consequential issues: an existing overhead communications cable routed through the Warren Street garage that supplies multiple nearby buildings (including the church), and a 10-foot easement along the Lafayette Building that appears in older survey materials. Davies said the cables path and existing easement rights need clarification before demolition begins. Saint Pauls leaders also noted the church uses the adjacent parking lot and expressed concern about continuity of parking and access during construction.

The developer's team said they had reached out to neighbors and would work to resolve concerns; counsel for the owners also noted that many of the cable/easement questions are private property or title issues that will likely be resolved through negotiations and title work. The planning staff observed that some matters are civil property disputes outside the commission's permitting purview, while others (traffic, curb cuts, egress) may require department-level coordination.

Commissioners indicated they wanted a more formal update on outreach and on the specific outstanding items. By consensus the board agreed to hold the project and requested that the applicant convene conversations with neighbors and staff and return with a progress report; one commissioner suggested the commission receive an update in three weeks. The commission also reiterated that certain issues (signage, encroachments, and specific construction permits) must still be returned to the board or handled through building-permit review.

No final approvals or denials were made; SEQR review had previously been completed by staff, and the application will be rescheduled after the applicant reports back.