In 1st phase, East Adams project breaks ground to honor Judge Langston McKinney
At a Wednesday event for the East Adam Transformation Project, a modern 132-unit building was announced to be named in honor of the late Judge Langston McKinney. Residents are proud to be represented and for their community to be honored in the redevelopment. Leonardo Eriman | Photo Editor
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Ten years after it was first proposed, the East Adams Transformation Plan finally broke ground Wednesday, launching the first of its 11 phases.
The Syracuse Housing Authority will now begin building a modern 132-unit building named “The Langston” in honor of the late Syracuse Judge Langston McKinney.
At Wednesday’s groundbreaking, speakers, including Mayor-elect Sharon Owens, Syracuse Housing Authority Executive Director Bill Simmons and County Executive Ryan McMahon, honored residents of the East Adams neighborhood who worked with the Syracuse Housing Authority to pitch ideas for the project.
Those who previously lived in the demolished McKinney Manor will have the opportunity to move into the new building, Allyson Carpenter, vice president of development at McCormack Baron, one of the project’s developers, said.
Residents made other contributions to the project’s planning and design by suggesting what amenities could be added to the East Adams area, Carpenter said.
Developers expect to build amenities residents asked for in later phases of the project as the surrounding infrastructure, such as the Interstate 81 viaduct demolition, is completed. The plan includes a YMCA, a supermarket and a children’s advising center, Simmons, also the pioneer of the East Adams Project, said.
Other city and county officials, including Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh and New York Commissioner of Homes and Community Renewal RuthAnne Visnauskas, also attended the event.
Owens told attendees she is committed to continuing the project during her upcoming term as mayor, ensuring the development of affordable, sustainable housing with community amenities.
“Creating affordable, eclectic housing that will include the people who originated here, that is the promise,” Owens said.
McMahon emphasized the significance of the groundbreaking, adding that the neighborhood has come a long way since the project was first proposed in 2015.
“In 2005, if you asked me if it was possible that that highway would actually come down and there would be hundreds of millions of dollars invested in this neighborhood, I probably wouldn’t have said yes, but here we are,” McMahon said.
Leonardo Eriman | Photo Editor
A 132-unit building was announced Wednesday to be named in honor of the late Judge Langston McKinney during an event for the East Adam Transformation Project.
“The Langston” is more than just a name — it represents the project’s goal of creating an economically diverse community, Linda Littlejohn, Langston’s widow, told attendees.
Monique Hill, who moved into McKinney Manor in 2018 with nothing but her three children, said she had lost everything before moving to the East Adams neighborhood after a divorce and an illness that left her unable to walk. Hill said the East Adams community helped support her through her most challenging times.
Today, Hill can walk again and said she advocates for the community that saved her.
“I’m excited about these buildings going up, because another woman that is going through, there’s going to be another man that’s going through, and they need that family,” Hill said.
The East Adams project is mostly funded by the federal government and private investor J.P. Morgan. Julie Gonzales, a representative from JP Morgan’s Community Development Banking team, promised the current partnership with SHA would continue.
J.P. Morgan has invested in phases 1 and 2 of the project and plans to invest in more phases in the future, Gonzales said.
The federal government gave Syracuse $50 million in grants to revitalize East Adams and other neighborhoods, Simmons said. He said the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development is on “good terms” with the project, and that the project is in “good shape” as the state also continues to invest.
The project’s infrastructure phase, which includes new roads and walkways, will be completed in tandem with the project to reconnect East Adams with the rest of the city, Carpenter said.
“(Syracuse) shouldn’t be you all up there and our residents down here,” Carpenter said. “This is one community, and it’s going to be so amazing to see what that looks like once we have those infrastructure improvements.”
The lot for the project’s second phase, a four-story building to house senior residents, is currently being cleared by Langan Engineering. The second phase is expected to be completed by 2027.
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