Project Updates

Hotel Proposal for Elmira Road

November 10, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

The November 26th City Planning meeting this month has a new hotel project proposal (PDF embedded below). Ithaca Hotels and Optima Design & Engineering intend to build a

“4-story, 11,769-SF hotel with approximately 76 rooms and 76 parking spaces. The 1.4‐acre project site contains two contiguous tax parcels, containing a 7,500+/‐ SF office commercial building, fronting Elmira Road, and an auto‐body shop in the rear ― with access from Spencer Road and large paved parking areas.”

Ithaca Hotels, LLC was formed last September in Erie County, and its filing address shows up as an industrial cleaning contractor. Also filed for the same address is “Andco-Anderson Construction,” which has been registered in the past in four other states, unless the name is a coincidence. I suppose we’ll see if either company is associated or not at some point.

Optima Design & Engineering out of Buffalo has partnered with Ithaca Hotels, LLC. Their news page shows structural engineering work for the new Fairfield Inn in Horseheads… look familiar? Much like its new counterpart down the street from this proposal in Ithaca, which was completed back in August. I suppose all new Fairfields probably look about the same anyway- although, I’m sure this proposal would be for a different franchise.

Seneca Way Landscaping & Photo Update

November 10, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

The Newman Development/ Warren Real Estate project at 140 Seneca Way is set to open less than two months from now. There’s been considerable landscaping progress since I last swung around- new concrete poured for the western lot and ground-level parking beneath the building, as well as soil and plantings. Besides the fill-in of the missing section of facade, I doubt we’ll see much more change on the outside beyond this point. It’s been nice watching this one go up- definitely a swift pace. Browse the first project page here for photos going all the way back to the demolition of the former Challenge Industries building.
Not long from now, Ithaca will be welcoming 32 new one-bedroom apartments, six two-bedroom apartments, and 8,600 square feet of office space for Warren Real Estate and the Park Foundation.

Gates Hall at Night

November 7, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

These came out quite grainy, but hopefully they give a sense of what this building looks like at night. With all the glass, it’s lit-up like a Christmas tree on every floor, and I imagine the new entryway will have a bunch of floods illuminating the cantilever ceiling, as well as plenty of spots lighting the entryway. Speaking of the entry, the feet-structures are still coming along, and there’s a new concrete wall along the corner of Hoy and Campus Roads, where the level entry will be (the opposing side will have stairs from the sidewalk, shown below).

Purity Ice Cream Updated Site Plan Documents

November 6, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

Still bummed that the tower is a no-go, but the new scaled-down design for an expanded Purity Ice Cream store space and new second-story office by John Snyder Architects looks spiffy. As was announced back in October, the new plan calls for an expansion of Purity Ice Cream’s store operations, and a buildout of the second story and roof level above to include 2,640 square feet of office space and a terrace area, slated to start January next year. The PDF below contains a further revised design, full site and landscaping plans, as well as a code review on the first page. The facade improvements call for new sections of accent brick and aluminum curtain walls.

Press Bay Alley Photo Update

November 6, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

Here are some photos taken today of the Press Bay Alley site. The steel-framed glass panels have been installed along each of the bay headers, and within the past couple weeks, stud walls have been framed onto the cinder block walls. Next up, I imagine electrical runs will be made, then insulation batts will be stuffed into the stud cavities, and sheetrock to finish.

Planned Parenthood Updated Photos

November 4, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

Here are some updated photos from last week of the Planned Parenthood project on Seneca Street in the west end Route 13 split. There’s more progress on exterior wall-framing, sheathing, and some new interior wall framing. I can also see a bunch of new HVAC ductwork along the ceilings on the second level, an electrical panel with conduit runs for temporary lighting, and pipework on the ground level.

Collegetown Terrace Updated Photos

November 3, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

Here are some photos of the Collegetown Terrace project taken this past week. Building 5’s southern face has been filling-in with sheathing and facade panels, as is the north side, which is fully-sheathed and a bit further along. I’m not sure what to make of the lone cinder block wall at the eastern edge, but I assume it’s for an elevator/stair tower. The remaining stories above the parking section here may be on hold until the tower is complete.
Building 6’s framing has whizzed right along, and the steel framing on the western end is building up. It’s amazing to see how fast this building has been done- it was only about a month ago that the structural concrete for the first three floor levels had just been set.

Building 5:

Building 6:

Belle Sherman Cottages Lot 19 Foundation Set & Modular Pieces on Site

October 31, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

Agora Development’s Belle Sherman Cottages Lot #19 (sold back in June) has a fully dug and set foundation, and the four modular pieces from Simplex Homes in Scranton, PA are on site. The first two pieces are carefully hoisted onto the foundation by crane, levelled and secured, then the next two are hoisted and set in place. The adjoining walls and ceilings are secured with steel plates and create a double-sized cavity space (which is actually quite advantageous for sound suppression), and I was very surprised at how non-modular the interiors were from a tour back in the Summer- the build quality is also superb. Carina Construction will probably be putting this up in short time.

Hobby Lobby Paving & Sign Done

October 31, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

The sign is up, paving complete, lights are on- and yes, there are three Christmas trees in the front entry already. If the store hours and opening day are correct, this store opens November 11th, Veteran’s Day at 9am.

Hobby Lobby replaces the Old K-Mart, which was closed October 2011.

Ithaca College’s Whalen Center New Facade

October 30, 2013 // by Jason Henderson

I went way overboard on photos, but Ithaca College is picturesque, especially at sunset. Last time I was here, Hill Center was wrapping-up, and the Whalen Center had just begun Trespa Panel installation, as all of the previous concrete precast panels had been removed. The work looks nice, and the facade now blends well with the major facelift for Hill Center next door- the windows on Whalen looked immaculate as well. ~~I doubt they were replaced (maybe polished), but the interior blinds are different.~~ In fact, I got word via email that all these windows have been replaced for this renovation- single pane with doubles, and the former East-facing wood slats have been removed to expose new bay windows, while the North-facing ones have been kept. [credits to Jenny & Erik for emailing- thanks!]
Hill Center has fresh landscaping and benches all along the front walkway, and of course, a nice view of the lake to forget about final exams. The interior and most of the exterior was complete last time (mid-September).

Aerial shot from before renovations:

This is IC’s Athletic and Events Center, finished back in Fall 2011 at a cost of $65.5 million. The huge tower got LEED points for natural cooling and ventilation. It also looks cool when it is all lit-up at night from the across the hill.