METROPOLITAN DEVELOPMENT FOUNDATION
The Metropolitan Development Foundation (MDF) fulfills a critically important role in CenterState CEO’s efforts to improve the economic viability and quality of life in the region.
Incorporated in 1981, the MDF is a 501 (c) 3 public foundation that serves as a vehicle for the funding and implementation of several CenterState CEO projects.
History & Projects
One of the first projects of the MDF involved the purchase of the Clinton Square Post Office from the U.S. Postal Service in 1984. This vacant, historic structure was ultimately transferred to Pyramid Companies, which located its beautiful Syracuse headquarters there. At about the same time, the MDF became involved with the redevelopment of the former Air Force base at Hancock Field into a light manufacturing and office park. Following the announcement that the base would close, the MDF took the lead in securing
state and federal grants for preparation of an overall site master plan and subsequent infrastructure development.
The MDF has also played a key role in assembling the necessary lands and funding for construction of the Galleries of Syracuse project. This project stabilized and improved a blighted area made up of vacant or underutilized commercial buildings in Syracuse's central business district, and has become home to major office tenants, the county's main library, as well as restaurants and retail establishments serving the downtown workforce.
Another major project of the MDF in downtown Syracuse involved the Jefferson Street Armory, now home to the Museum of Science and Technology and Bristol Omnimax Theater. The foundation secured state funding for the initial feasibility study that examined potential reuses of the Armory, accepted title to the structure from the State of New York for eventual transfer to the museum, and assisted in obtaining major state grants for the project.
The MDF has also participated as a vital partner in efforts to rehabilitate the former Jefferson-Clinton Hotel, which now has sixty-eight luxury suites at this historic landmark. The Foundation not only was the recipient of a state grant for building stabilization, it also took title to the property from the city on an interim basis, for eventual transfer to a preferred developer.
Also in downtown Syracuse, the MDF took a leading role in efforts to transform the 300 block of South Salina Street, with four vacant buildings at the heart of its main street, into 87 units of market rate housing and 25,000 square feet of retail space. MDF Property Holdings acquired the properties, packaged them and negotiated their redevelopment as one project. In 2009, VIP Development was selected as the developer for the project, now known as The Pike Block,
which will serve as a vital link to Syracuse’s mature Armory Square historic district and provide an impetus for further revitalization of downtown.
The Foundation also played a critical role in the Electronics Park project, facilitating development of the Electronics Park master plan, helping retain Lockheed Martin as a major regional employer, and serving as the recipient of two state grants totaling $2 million to support the operation of the Electronics Park LLC as manager and developer of the park.
The MDF also served as the contracting entity for an $8.4 million state grant that was used to renovate the Central New York Regional Market.
In addition to brick and mortar projects, facilitating property transfers, and securing economic development grants on behalf of member companies, the MDF also secures funding for significant studies and research projects important to the CenterState CEO and its affiliates, including the regional economic development strategy, Vision 2010.
Most notably, The Ford Foundation awarded a total of $800,000 in grant funds to the MDF for CenterState CEO’s Creative Communities Initiative, aimed at promoting sustainable and equitable economic and community development in the region. This multi-year strategy identifies catalytic urban infrastructure investments. The funds also support the work of the Center for Community Progress (an offshoot of the National Vacant Properties Campaign) to further advance the development of land banking and
vacant property strategies. As part of this effort, CenterState CEO provides technical assistance to the City of Syracuse and Onondaga County in support of their efforts to create a county-wide land bank authority, a vacant property reuse strategy, a regional land use strategy, and a streamlined property tax collection system. The initiative has the potential to become a model for other cities.
Metropolitan Development Foundation Board of Directors
Irwin L. Davis, President
Deborah Stanley, Chair
Arthur Grant, Vice Chair
Joseph Verzino, Vice Chair
Gregory L. Gilroy, Treasurer
Anthony Dannible, Secretary
Richard Cook, Counsel
SYRACUSE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION