Syracuse, N.Y. -- When guests arrive at the new nine-story hotel planned for downtown Syracuse, they won’t see the reception desk when they first step inside.
Instead, they’ll have to take an elevator to the top floor to check in. That’s where the reception desk and main lobby will be.
It’s an unusual design – and a unique one for a Syracuse hotel. But it’s one that will take advantage of the building’s height and the lobby’s tall glass walls.
“You’ll get sweeping skyline views when you step off the elevator,” said Eric Ennis, deputy commissioner of business development for the city.
Syracuse Lodging Associates LLC, an affiliate of Indianapolis-based hotel developer Sun Development & Management Corp., announced plans Friday to build the 245-room hotel at South Warren and East Fayette streets.
Formed in 1989, Sun has developed a national portfolio of 29 premium brand hotels that include Embassy Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites, Hampton Inn & Suites and TownePlace Suites. It has eight more under development, including the one in Syracuse.
Some details of the hotel’s interior design have not yet been firmed up. But Sun did disclose some interesting features it is planning while also applying for government assistance for the $87 million project, including tax exemptions and grants.
Here’s what syracuse.com | The Post-Standard learned about the proposed project this week.
Historic name makes a comeback
The developer plans to name the building the Onondaga Hotel, evoking memories of a 500-room hotel of the same name that operated half a block away on Warren Street from 1910 until it was replaced by an office building in 1970.
The full-service hotel will be part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, a brand of uniquely named and custom-built, high-end hotels, according to Sun.
Rooftop bar
In addition to the reception desk and lobby, the top floor will have 10,000 square feet of ballroom and meeting space, as well as a restaurant and bar that will be open to hotel guests and the public. And that’s not all.
During the warmer parts of the year, patrons will be able to enjoy their drinks in an outdoor bar on the hotel’s rooftop.
It won’t be Syracuse’s first rooftop bar. That honor goes to the Emerald Cocktail Kitchen, which opened on Tipperary Hill in 2023. But it will be the only one downtown.
Second restaurant
The first floor of the hotel will contain more than a bank of elevators and a small “arrival” lobby. It will also have a two-story restaurant and bar catering to a mix of casual dining and night life.
The hotel’s 245 rooms will be on floors 5 through 9 and consist of a mix of suites, junior suites, king singles and queen doubles.
Parking
The site chosen for the hotel consists of two parcels. One is a vacant lot, known informally as Lemp Park, which is owned by the Syracuse Industrial Development Agency.
The other parcel contains the decrepit 550-space Warren Street Garage, which is privately owned.
Ennis said the development agency has agreed to sell the vacant lot to Sun for $430,000 and Sun will buy the garage in a private transaction. The garage purchase is still being negotiated, but Ennis said the sale price will be in the neighborhood of $2 million.
Sun plans to demolish the garage. But that won’t mean the loss of many downtown parking spaces. Only the ground floor of the seven-level garage has been used since the city declared its upper floors unsafe in 2023.
Finding convenient parking shouldn’t be a problem for the hotel’s guests. The hotel will have 308 parking spaces on floors 1 through 4, with entrances off both East Fayette and South Warren streets.
Government support
The financing plan for the $87 million hotel includes lots of government support.
The developers have asked the city’s industrial development agency to issue $59.2 million in tax-exempt bonds.
Though the bonds would be issued in the agency’s name, the agency and the city would put up no money. Instead, the bonds would be sold to investors, who would put up the money.
Such bonds have the advantage of carrying lower interest rates than taxable bonds because the investors who buy them would not have to pay income taxes on the interest they earn.
Ennis said the project is eligible for tax-exempt bonding because it is in a state-designated Empowerment Zone. The Empowerment Zone program seeks to revitalize distressed communities by using public funds and tax incentives.
The bonds would be the responsibility of the developer to pay back. In the event of a default, bondholders could foreclose on the hotel but could not go after the development agency or the city for their money.
The agency last issued tax-exempt bonds in 2018 for $82 million in city school construction projects.
Sun is also seeking government grants and tax breaks.
Onondaga County has already approved a $500,000 grant from a fund established last year to incentivize developers to expand the number of hotel rooms in the county.
Sun has applied for a $5.25 million grant from Empire State Development, the state’s economic development arm, through its consolidated funding application process.
The company has applied to the city’s industrial development agency for tax exemptions. They would consist of a $443,665 exemption from the state mortgage recording tax, a $3.1 million exemption from sales taxes on construction materials and payment in lieu of taxes agreement that would provide property tax discounts.
An estimate of the value of the property tax discounts is not included in the company’s application. The agency will make that determination after consulting with the city assessment department.
In addition, the city has agreed to provide $400,000 that Sun can use toward the demolition of the Warren Street parking garage. That money is part of a $1.55 million grant the state awarded to the city last year to assist development along South Warren Street.
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