A former fire station on Syracuse’s east side is being converted to a restaurant and residential units. Common councilors approved the sale of the property on East Fayette Street Tuesday for $900,000 to developer JF Real Estate after several weeks of deliberation. Councilor Pat Hogan said they wanted to make sure neighboring residents were aware of the project, and that there’s future fire protection in a fast-growing part of the city.
“The east side’s going to need another fire station. But we are assured by the administration that there are properties under review for a possible fire station down the road,” he said. “As part of that, Upstate [University] hospital controls a lot of property on the east side including the old Kennedy Square area, which I think would be a great area to put a fire station and maybe some more housing.”
Kennedy Square was a massive public housing complex that occupied several acres of property along East Water Street. It fell into disrepair and was demolished over a decade ago. The land has remained vacant after a development deal with the hospital fell through. The old fire station nearby closed in 2013 due to financial and building safety issues.
