SYRACUSE — The revitalization of downtown Syracuse was rolling along with significant speed before the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020.

While the public-health crisis obviously presented many challenges for the businesses and people of downtown, the development progress never stopped. 

During the pandemic, $80 million of investment activity was completed in downtown Syracuse, according to Merike Treier, executive director of the Downtown Committee of Syracuse, Inc. And now, $172 million of development is either underway or announced.

“I do think the momentum is back,” says Treier, who notes that since the start of the pandemic in mid-March 2020, 32 new retail businesses have opened in downtown Syracuse. She spoke with CNYBJ on Aug. 12.

One of the signature development projects was the construction of the Salt City Market, which is located on the southern end of downtown at 484 South Salina St. and opened in January. Work on this project never had to halt during the COVID-19 shutdowns because it was deemed an essential project as it included affordable housing. 

The Salt City Market, downtown’s first new construction project in 10 years, brought 10 new restaurants, the first full-service grocery store in downtown, the Syracuse Cooperative Market, the Salt City Coffee & Bar, and an outdoor playground, says Treier.

The Downtown Committee at its virtual annual meeting in June recognized the Salt City Market and the Allyn Foundation with its Urban Innovation Award, recognizing a “successful, trailblazing activity in a previously underdeveloped area or facet of downtown Syracuse.”

“If you recall when Salt City Market was built, that was a surface parking lot that did experience a lot of challenges at that end of downtown,” Treier tells CNYBJ. “And to be able to have the type of experience we see there now with the Salt City Market on the ground floor, the housing on the upper levels, the office space … It’s just become such a community gathering space that has totally changed the foot traffic and who is coming into downtown Syracuse.”

In terms of key development projects underway now, Treier points to a pair on the eastern side of downtown. 

Developer Matt Paulus is converting the former Smith Restaurant Building, now called the Smith Building, into 38 affordable-housing units. “The affordable housing he’s going to provide there is going to help revitalize our eastern side of the downtown,” she says.

In addition, the Icon Companies is redeveloping a former office building at the corner of East Genesee Street and South Townsend Street into Corbett Corner, which will provide 24 apartments and commercial space. “That will be another noteworthy project in terms of adding more affordable housing to the market, but also changes the eastern gateway of downtown as you come into the district from the [Syracuse University] Hill,” says Treier.

Another important project she notes is the Mitzpah Towers in the Cathedral Square area of downtown. Tom Cerio is in the process of redeveloping that long-vacant property to provide a mix of 12 residential units on the upper floors, along with office space and an event venue and performance space.

The redevelopment of old, vacant, or dilapidated buildings into housing units continues a trend of the last five to 10 years that shows no signs of stopping. In 2020, more than 280 new apartments were completed in downtown Syracuse, which provided the space for another 12.5 percent increase in downtown’s population, according to the Downtown Committee. More than, 4,300 people now reside in downtown.

Another theme in downtown’s development is the spotlight now being shone on the cultural and performing-arts space.

“I think what we’re starting to see is a shift in some ways to some of the arts and culture and entertainment-type experiences,” says Treier. 

Specifically, she notes the Landmark Theatre’s renovation with the new seating and the marquee. Also, the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology (The MOST) is in the process of securing funding for “a new state of the art, digital theatre.”

“So, we’re seeing investments being made in some of these entertainment destinations,” Treier says. “…We’re seeing a renewed focus on how to support these venues.”

And after more than a year where cultural and performing-arts venues couldn’t welcome crowds, more and more performances are getting scheduled for their stages and screens. 

Another pandemic-related challenge downtown Syracuse is still working through is the return of the workforce to offices from remote work. About 29,000 employees work for companies in downtown Syracuse. As of mid-August, “we think probably 35 to 40 percent of the workforce is back,” says Treier. 

“A lot of the employers are trying to be very flexible with their employees in terms of continuing to offer that remote work option while people are taking care of childcare — that primarily is what the need tends to be.”

More offices were expected to bring back more in-person staff after Labor Day after schools reopened.

“We have heard some of the larger companies, offices have reopened to let employees come back but based on someone’s job function it may be a supervisor-by-supervisor decision about what the team needs to work most efficiently, Treier says.”

As more employees return to downtown offices, more people are around to frequent downtown restaurants for lunch or after-work dinner or cocktails, as well as shop at downtown stores.       

SYRACUSE — Every time barber Kyle Patchett has a customer sit in his chair for a haircut or a shave, he looks forward to the conversation he is going to have with that person.

“Every 45 minutes, you get a completely different story in the chair,” says Patchett, the founder and owner of  Forum Barber, LLC in downtown Syracuse. “You put the cape on someone and their clothes, whether raggedy or fancy, don’t matter anymore.”

Patchett says he loves talking to people and he likes to connect with those of all different backgrounds.

He hopes to infuse that ethos into Forum Barber, which he opened on July 13 at 227 W. Fayette St. in Armory Square.

Patchett started cutting hair about six years ago, when he was 18. The Syracuse–area native moved to Brooklyn two years ago, where he worked as a master barber. He says he always had a goal of ultimately opening his own shop in Syracuse, but he moved back sooner than he expected.

Patchett says an ex-girlfriend led him to New York City and the COVID-19 pandemic brought him back.

When he worked at a barber shop in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood, there was not a single television in the space, Patchett says. It was in an old auto garage and in nicer weather they would cut hair with the garage doors open. It created a neighborhood feel, and that’s what Patchett says he has created at Forum Barber.

“Everything that’s expected in a shop in Brooklyn I wanted to have back here,” he says.

Patchett’s 700-square-foot shop has three chairs. Another master barber is cutting hair along with Patchett, and an apprentice is working on Tuesday and Thursday evenings as well as Saturdays.

Patchett renovated the space himself with his brother. Besides taking out a small loan, Patchett used his own savings to start his business.

“I wanted the actual space to have an energy to it, so people walk in and it’s not just a room,” Patchett says. The space he obtained helps with his goal, he says, because it “has so much character.” 

Patchett says that anyone who feels like they don’t fit in a barber shop elsewhere is his customer base. He thinks that will include young professionals looking to invest more in their day-to-day life and look; artistic, musical and creative types; and people from the LGBTQ community.

When addressing how Forum Barber stands out, he notes that there are barber shops with a lot of noise from TV screens and “it’s just sports, sports, sports. And not everyone loves sports.”

Forum Barber is offering a hot towel with every service unless a customer gets a cold shave. Forum also offers a free beer or hard seltzer after 4:30 p.m.

The goal is to facilitate people staying and hanging out, Patchett says. He wants Forum to be a place where anybody can gather and connect, and a place where people can forget about their anxieties for a while.

Patchett’s long-term goal is to turn Forum into a creative space, a “shell for whatever people want to do here.” He envisions it being a place where gallery shows could take place or open-mic nights could be held.

“I really want this to be a space where creative people can show off their talents,” he says. 

Patchett says he hopes as people in their 20s and 30s move back to Syracuse that his shop can be part of the revitalization in downtown Syracuse.

“I love Syracuse,” Patchett says. “I really want Forum to be part of the revitalization in downtown Syracuse and give the neighborhood an amenity that will make people want to take a chance on living downtown.”

SYRACUSE — Starting a restaurant in the middle of a pandemic might not seem like the best idea but it does have silver linings. Just ask Jon Page, owner of Three Lives, an Armory Square venue that is a bar, restaurant, and game arcade rolled into one.

“It’s all I’ve ever known, so it doesn’t seem odd to me,” Page says about Three Lives’ first year in business, all of which has been during the pandemic. “We’ve always just pivoted.”

After 10 years of experience working in fine dining for other people, Page says he knew he wanted to start his own business venture. After talking with several business owners he had met throughout his career, he thought about what sector in which he would be most likely to excel. He considered a couple other ideas but ultimately examined the gaps in the Syracuse bar/restaurant scene.

“What Syracuse was missing was an alternative nightlife and a bar arcade,” Page contends.

Having spent years in the restaurant industry, building the menu and business plan came naturally to Page and his team. After three years of planning, the perfect location became available at 316 S. Clinton St., “right in the heart of downtown,” Page says. 

Three Lives held its grand opening on Aug. 19, 2020. It is located in a space that previously was home to Sugar Magnolia Bistro, Byblos, Black Olive, and a Quizno’s franchise.

The Three Lives menu is modeled after different video games, from the “Super Nintendies” chicken tenders to a drink menu filled with elixirs, tinctures, potions, and power ups — served in unique video-game inspired glassware. 

Along with food offerings, Three Lives is home to a variety of video games. In this atmospheric regard — combining food and drink with an arcade setting — the arcade bar has virtually no competition locally, Page says. In terms of its bar offerings, he says Three Lives’ main competition is Al’s Wine & Whiskey Lounge. Located right across the street, the relationship is friendly and camaraderie-driven; the staff of each restaurant are frequent customers of their neighbors. 

The team at Three Lives aims for any customers who walk through the door to feel right at home. Page stresses he hopes to create a completely inclusive environment, suitable for both groups of friends in the evenings and families during the day.

“We call ourselves ‘E for everyone.’ Everyone’s a gamer at some point and it’s about finding that game that you like,” he says.

Now, after a year in business, Page says he wouldn’t change the experience. 

“I would do it again in a heartbeat,” he says, “because this is a dream come true.” 

In some senses, the restrictions and challenges presented by the pandemic have actually helped Three Lives. When the business concept was announced in 2019, hype built quickly, Page remembered. Thinking back to the trajectory that publicity could have sent him on, he says the new business might have been initially overwhelmed. 

“COVID allowed us to grow gradually. That’s a silver lining, the steady growth,” he says. 

On its first day in business, last August, Three Lives’ staff was forced to close down the vintage video games — a major part of the restaurant’s business model. The staff had to press pause and think about other interactive offerings that could set the eatery apart. 

“We’re going to feed them. We’re going to give them drinks. We’re going to have fun,” Page told his team. 

One particular idea that proved successful was the Roll for a Shot menu. To play the “game,” the customer rolls a 20-sided die, each side of which corresponds with a different drink shot. Perhaps the brightest silver lining was when a patron shared a clip of the game on TikTok and it went viral. 

“It looked like a commercial,” Page says, adding it drew people from across the country. New customers even traveled from out of state, quarantining for two weeks upon their arrival, simply to visit and roll the die, he notes.

The pivots continued as the year went on and the city of Syracuse was designated an orange zone under New York State’s COVID-19 cluster initiative. That meant no indoor dining was allowed from November until mid-January. That was the most difficult challenge the Three Lives team has faced thus far. Forced to offer take-out only, Page shifted the interactive experience from in-person to entirely virtual, streaming from the bar, sometimes eight hours a day. That online presence helped Three Lives not only stay in touch with its customer base, but also grow it, as well. 

“We had patrons who heard about us only through Twitch,” Page says, referring to the video-game live-streaming platform.

Without any pandemic assistance from local or state levels, Page continued to pivot as guidelines continued to shift. The lack of funding pushed him to work harder. 

“You have to then focus in on the demographic and really engage with people,” he says. 

And engage the staff did, from building Three Lives’ online presence, which Page hopes to continue into the future, to paying close attention to any customer feedback regarding the food, drinks, or atmosphere. 

Now, with a staff of 12 people and in the process of hiring more, Page says he is looking toward the future — the “light at the end of the tunnel” that guided him through this first year. In the near future, the team is expanding the restaurant’s hours of operation, hosting more events like trivia, and updating its menu. Three Lives recently started to be open for lunch, attracting more families. Thinking long-term, Page says he hopes to expand to a second location. 

Of course, the rate of any growth will depend on how pandemic restrictions might shift in the fall. 

“That’s a challenge that I’m bracing myself for,” he says. “I’m not dreading it; I’m just enjoying the time I have right now.”

For now, Page hopes to continue offering a unique and inclusive environment, changing the dialogue of what nightlife is in Syracuse, he says. 

“We want you to leave with your heart meters full,” Page quips.