Syracuse is Going Green, and Albany is Helping; Will Private Industry Help?

A lot of people complain about this huge state budget deficit for the State of New York. People like myself have stopped complaining and are throwing a lot of our daily efforts into helping the State of New York finance more fourth wave technology, or environmentally-friendly "green power" projects, such as the Destiny Project. Presently, Albany is governing a state with a budget deficit second only to that of Alaska per capita.

The greening of upstate New York, and the preservation of the Adirondacks, are major issues. So is the development of the City of Syracuse, New York as the Green Capital of the World. This has been a long-term struggle to mediate growth within a city whose economy was stagnant prior to its rebirth. The downtown Syracuse development committee, the neighborhood redevelopers, and industry, is working together with environmentalists and federal funding sources to work towards a better tomorrow for the city itself, as well as for the people who live within the city limits. If you are expecting Syracuse to already be this green utopia city envisioned by some proponents of green-built communities, visiting Syracuse's downtown would only be a drastic disappointment.

However, there is something else in the works, called the "Destiny" project, which is an ambitious project. The Carousel Mall is somewhere within the site of what will be the Destiny Project. For some odd reason, I thought that the light rail system was already working, however, this, and much else of the Destiny Project is still under construction. The website will be renovated and up and running this August, with a new and improved appearance, for the Destiny Project mega-mall and technology center to be located within the metropolitan area of Syracuse, New York, USA.

The Destiny Project is still in the fund raising stages, while the project is also being constructed. Being that the construction of this Destiny Project is reliant on enough funds being raised to construct the mega-mall, most people are not saying much, who are involved with the project itself. This mega-mall development has not, as of this writing, completed renovations on its own website, which should be on-line again in August, proclaiming the good works of the project to the world.

A lot of environmentalists have retreated to the Adirondacks as well as to Syracuse, which has largely been untouched by the economic expansion. This is more than a mere understatement, Syracuse is presently undergoing drastic infrastructure rehabilitation. The people who have invested in the green economy are continuing to invest. Syracuse was spared the effects of the economic expansion, for the most part - thus, has not been changed as much as many other metropolitan areas by the oddly balking economy that we have at present, here in the United States, neither bull nor bear.

Then, there is the park system of Onondaga County, the county that Syracuse, NY is located in. There are beautiful city parks, that exist, as well as lovely getaways outside the city, within the county itself, that are staffed by people who have ideas about how the parks could be improved that have yet to be financed. Everything is on a shoestring budget for the park system, and despite the popularity of the parks, sometimes the shoestring is frayed. However, these well-maintained parks attract tourists, who flock to parks such as Onondaga Lake Park throughout the summer months, which is why park improvements are needed, as local tourism has increased.

Syracuse, a town in the geographic center of New York, is continuing to go along its own path, with or without the help of Washington, D.C., to become the "Green Capital of the World". This is an ambitious undertaking. Given this self-reliance, the federal government is pursuing Syracuse being a Business Enterprise Zone.

Syracuse was in need of an overhaul, and now this city is receiving this much-needed makeover. Locals are both anticipatory and leery of the development, knowing that progress is either extremely micromanaged and difficult to live through, or it is poorly planned and does not work. These are strong words, just my observations of the clinical environment that Syracuse is now becoming, where everything is micromanaged.

Reading US Green Building Council article is about Syracuse bonds, funds are necessary in order to build green, is an article that states financial parameters. We need to have money, to use money, in order to be able to build according to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) codes, to have these lovely things. We need to use the United States currency, in order to use the money, we need to have the money. The Destiny project is partially being financed by federal reserve notes and bonds being sold on Wall Street. The money needed is flexible according to certain economic indices.

Called up the State Assembly, received a few bill numbers and some key words for titles, and was told that there are probably more bills. The person who spoke to me on the phone was polite, and gave assistance as requested. "It's possible that there are other bills", she told me, and gave me the numbers of three key bills, including A10834, or S7814, recently signed into law by the Governor of the State of New York after passing the State Assembly and the State Senate. This is a bill vital to the courtship of private industry and the tax dollars associated with business returning to the newly established "Enterprise Zone." Given the advent of telecommuting, many home office workers are now enabled to finance a move to Syracuse a bit better.

Back to the Internet, lots and lots of information, interesting things about development, information overload about Syracuse developments, the Destiny Project, downtown revitalization, federal government money, business enterprise zone (sounds like the Small Business Administration's terminology), efforts to bring commerce into the new millennium.

Intel is adhering to Leadership in Energy Efficient Design LEED standards for building green, although, there's not much that Intel is doing in Syracuse, one of its laptop computer suppliers, Seneca Data Corp, is based in North Syracuse. This company is in the area, however, is not located in the city itself, like many other businesses.

There are numerous events around Syracuse hosted by the Microsoft Developers Network, this summer. There are also active UNIX and LINUX developers groups within the city limits. These are exciting opportunities to meet some of the people most likely to benefit from the rehabilitation of homes in the Syracuse metropolitan area, namely, telecommuters. Being within a reasonable distance for infrequent commutes to Albany, Boston, Buffalo, or New York, the city itself has potential of becoming a major draw for, if not a panacea for Information technology professionals.

There are other projects underway in and around Syracuse, New York, aiming for the city's development towards being the "green capital of the world". SUNY Oswego began a MetroCenter in downtown Syracuse, something to bring the educators to the downtown area. The building I looked at is a secure facility, a MetroCenter is there for people who are urbanites. The Hotel Syracuse already has hosted events in its complex, and is parking cars in its garage. The admirable course of action that community leaders and city planners have chosen to take for Syracuse, NY is an admirable one, although a difficult road to follow. The works have been underway for years, and will continue to go on for years.

Syracuse is near the Adirondacks, and is a scrappy city that is fighting to be the "Greenest City on Earth". Like the legendary and mythical city of Oz, the Emerald City, is sort of what the Destiny Project looks like at first. Syracuse is in the middle of the Empire State, The Emerald City is in the middle of an imaginary nation called Oz. The Emerald City is imaginary, whereas the Destiny Project is not. The Destiny Project is not in downtown Syracuse, though, is an ambitious mega-mall with connections to a light rail system that also has work options at a technology center that is a work still in progress.

Sources: LEED entry, Intel, New York State Assembly Bill Summary, Downtown Syracuse Rehabilitation Accomplishments