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The city of Syracuse’s Department of Neighborhood and Business Development has worked throughout the pandemic to aid local businesses and residents.

In the past year, many businesses in Syracuse were only able to operate for a few months at a time as public health restrictions continued to change. Some officials said that the pandemic has changed the way local government operates, specifically to support local businesses.

“Our efforts were all about how we support people that live, work and invest in Syracuse,” said Michael Collins, commissioner of the department. “Government is well-known for doing things a certain way. It’s set in concrete. In the case of the pandemic, the concrete got liquified.”

Since public health officials have deemed it safer to operate outdoors, many local restaurants in Syracuse opted to open outdoor dining throughout the pandemic, when the weather was suitable.

Jennifer Tifft, deputy commissioner of the department, said the department helped restaurants operate with more outdoor dining options by renting metered parking spots from the city to allow restaurants to offer more outdoor seating.

“People felt more comfortable outdoors so that caused us to find more ways of using the public outdoor space to accommodate them,” Tifft said.

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The department also waived fees associated with offering food or beverage services and customer seating on sidewalks, Tifft said. This allowed businesses on Walton Street in Armory Square to use the entire street for their seating on the weekends from July to October.

The department may continue to offer some services even as the state continues to lift certain public health restrictions, Tifft said.

“We’re interested in continuing some of these things,” Tifft said. “Maybe not doing exactly what we did last year but using public spaces so that they’re available for businesses.”

The department has donated about $1.3 million to local businesses to help keep them afloat, Tifft said. It also distributed reimbursable grants so businesses could purchase personal protective equipment and other supplies to meet state guidelines.

“When COVID-19 first hit, the city was one of the first communities in upstate New York to donate small business relief funds,” Tifft said.

But the department has also been working to implement many of its other initiatives despite being slowed down amid the pandemic.

Tifft said the department completed one project which connected all of the city’s street lights to one system, which makes the city more efficient and technologically integrated.

The streetlight project is part of the city’s Syracuse Surge initiative, an economic growth project with the goal of revitalizing the city through technology.

The department has also been able to continue the city’s Resurgent Neighborhoods Initiative, which aims to focus economic and neighborhood development along 10 business corridors in several neighborhoods across the city. The initiative includes a block-by-block plan of where development could have the most impact on the city.

Collins said it was important for the department to continue operations despite pandemic restrictions in order to continue helping and serving local residents.

“The department is in service because of the people who live and work in the city of Syracuse,” Collins said. “Never let a crisis go to waste. There is always opportunity within it.”

Published on March 28, 2021 at 10:30 pm

Contact Katie: kjscovil@syr.edu