Ithacating in Cornell Heights

Facade work is just beginning on the new 106-room Fairfield Inn down in big box land. The project experienced a bit of a hiccup back in January when two construction workers were injured at the site, falling four stories through collapsing scaffolding above an elevator shaft. Occupancy is slated for mid-fall 2013.

Site prep is under way for the new 18,000 sq ft Planned Parenthood building on the 600 block of West Seneca Street. It would be unfair to label this a demolition. If anything, it looks like a careful deconstruction is underway for the run-down homes currently on the property, salvaging what can be reused before the rest of the structure is torn down. A maneuver like that deserves a big thumbs up. The project will begin construction during the summer, with completion around late summer 2014.

Why? Because it’s Ithaca.

5 of the 6 floors have been built for Breckinridge Place; rather curiously, only a couple bits of masonry and steel are up to where the sixth floor will be poured. The 50-unit project should be completed and ready for rentals by this fall.

This photo will very quickly become outdated. Firstly because of the Commons reconstruction, which I’ll cover at another time. Secondly, the Harold’s Square project. The 10-story, 140-building will refurbish the Sage Block and the Miller Buildings (the orange brick structure left of center), while the three buildings at center will be demolished. The mixed-use project will have retail on the bottom, office space on the first few floors, and apartments on the upper six floors (estimates range from 36 to 70). Although the project still needs some zoning variances, if all goes well, construction could start by the end of the year, with completion around mid-2015.

EDIT: Oh look, new renderings. Now the building has gone from “meh” to embracing the prison motif, with slit windows in the tower and a dour face towards the Commons. This is not going to age well…

Another soon to be outdated image. The “Lofts at Cayuga Green” will add 39 units on four 15′ floors. In a recent interview, the director of planning and development expressed concern whether the project would start this year, but given that funding is in place and the developer’s tax credits will expire otherwise, my guess is now or never.

Now, another project that is underway. Seneca Way will add 38 apartments and ground-floor office space. The five-story building is expected to be opened in Spring 2014. Meanwhile, the Argos Inn next door should finally be open for this business.

Hotel work, approved and set to begin. At top, the site for the new Marriott. With tax abatement approved, construction will start by summer, with an 18-month buildout for the 10-story, 159-room hotel. The Holiday Inn will also begin its reconstruction this year, tearing down the low-rise portions for a 9-story tower and a convention center (and a net increase of 13 rooms). The low-rise portions are slated to close in November, and while renovation of the older tower will be done by May 2014, the new tower and convention facility will probably require another year before they are completed.

All other photos will be uploaded in the final entry.