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Village hears TAP sidewalk plan that needs street ranking to meet Oct. 1 deadline
Summary
A CHA engineer told the Village Board the TAP sidewalk grant covers about $1.2 million but current bid estimates approach $1.6 million; trustees must rank eight streets by priority and secure DOT obligation by Oct. 1 to keep the project on schedule.
Luke Marinus, an engineer with CHA, told the Village Board of North Syracuse that a Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant could fund improvements on portions of eight streets but that the village must act quickly to preserve the funding.
"We're proposing sidewalk improvements to eight streets," Marinus said. "There's approximately $1.2 million in construction funding in the grant. And with current bid prices ... we are estimating about $1.6 million for construction cost." He told the board the village should rank streets in order of priority and bid each block as an alternate so the village can award as many segments as its budget allows.
The plan covers portions of Shaver, Maxwell, Gertrude, Grove, Bon Mara, Church, Parkway and Wells streets. Marinus said the TAP program is an 80% reimbursable grant — the village pays up front and is reimbursed for 80% of eligible costs — and that the state DOT must obligate funds before the end of the federal fiscal year. "We need construction funds to be obligated ... before October 1st," he said, adding that construction can then begin next year or later as long as grant funds are spent within 24 months.
Trustees and staff discussed next steps: the board will make an initial ranking pass with DPW input, then hold a public meeting to review priorities and make adjustments. Several trustees and residents pressed for a separate workshop to walk specific blocks and consider drainage, right‑of‑way constraints and safety tradeoffs.
A resident raised safety concerns about Grove Street, where drivers take a curve at high speed and sometimes encroach on existing sidewalks. Marinus said the SMTC study had been incorporated into the Grove Street design and that right‑of‑way adjustments or relocation of some sidewalk segments might be required to avoid unsafe conflicts with traffic.
The board did not vote on the project at the meeting; Marinus said staff and trustees should finalize a ranked list of priorities promptly so the village can submit required materials to DOT ahead of the Oct. 1 obligation deadline.
Next step: the board is expected to make a first‑pass priority ranking with DPW and then schedule a public workshop to refine priorities and set up bidding.
