Senescence and Efflorescence
Syracuse / New York / USA /Suny College of Environmental Science and Forestry
1760
Syracuse, New York is a part of a chain of cities, along with Buffalo and Rochester, collectively known as The Rust Belt. As was the fate of many manufacturing cities, Syracuse experienced massive losses of industry as companies sought labor elsewhere, or simply ceased to continue operating as technology outpaced them.
The following century was defined by waves of urban renewal. The historic 15th ward, a prominent neighborhood of mainly Black and Jewish fami-lies, was razed in the 1950s for the construction of Interstate 81, which bisected the city. The damage caused by this project is incalculable.
The city continued on a cycle of deconstruction and reconstruction throughout the 20th Century and into the 21st. This is evident in our site, which is located in the 15th Ward. The axonometric diagram to the right illustrates the loss of structure over time on and around the site.
