Video Transcript: Fire-damaged Maria Regina site could become affordable housing
Janice Ha: The Maria Regina College has been closed for almost 30 years. Rochester-based developer ‘Home Leasing’ have had plans to turn the site into low-income, senior apartments. Construction was on track to begin in 2025, but the fire last March delayed any progress. At the Greater Syracuse Land Bank board meeting in February, Home Leasing announced a new plan that would expand the number of apartments to be created. As the developer plans for new apartments at the fire-damaged site, housing advocates like Alex Lawson from CNY Fair Housing say affordability remains a major concern.
Alex Lawson: We also need more affordable housing. We can’t just build market rate to get out of this mess we’re in, because it’s built over such a long period of time.
Ha: Syracuse faces an on-going housing and homelessness crisis. According to Zumper, a national rent report, rent prices for one-bedroom apartments in Syracuse have increased by 22% in 2024 – the highest rate increase of any city in the nation. A second phase of the Maria Regina Gardens Project includes a new apartment building offering a total of 216 apartments. Prior to the fire, the plan called for 182 units. Lawson says more projects like this is mandatory for Syracuse communities.
Lawson: So projects like this are super important for that. This is 200 somewhat units, so it’s actually less than a tenth of what we would need for any given year but you need to build this up. We need more projects like this.
Ha: Home Leasing hopes to begin construction in June.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) – As Syracuse continues to face a growing housing and homelessness crisis, a redevelopment project on the city’s north side could help bring more affordable housing to the area.
The former Maria Regina College campus has been closed for nearly 30 years. Now, Rochester-based developer Home Leasing plans to transform the property into low-income, senior apartments.
Construction was originally expected to begin in 2025, but a fire last March damaged the property and delayed the timeline.
During a February meeting of the Greater Syracuse Land Bank board, developers announced updated plans that would expand the number of apartments planned for the site.
The project, called Maria Regina Gardens, would now include a total of 216 apartments, up from the 182 units originally proposed before the fire.
“We do believe that this is the absolute best use for this campus that is possible in the next several years,” said Michael Collins, Syracuse’s commissioner of neighborhood and business development, during the land bank meeting.
Housing advocates say projects like this are necessary as affordability continues to be a major concern in Syracuse.
“We also need more affordable housing,” said Alex Lawson, CNY Fair Housing’s policy manager. “We can’t just build market-rate housing to get out of this mess we’re in, because it’s built over such a long period of time,” he said.
Syracuse has seen significant increases in rent prices in recent years. According to a national rent report by Zumper, the cost of one-bedroom apartments in Syracuse increased 29% in 2024, the highest rate of increase among cities in the United States.
While the Maria Regina Gardens project will add hundreds of units, more developments will still be needed to address the city’s housing shortage.
“Projects like this are super important,” Lawson said. “This is 200 somewhat units, so it’s actually less than a tenth of what we would need for any given year. We need more projects like this.”
Home Leasing hopes to begin construction in June.
