Opening Day: Onondaga Creekwalk

The Onondaga Creekwalk official opened today, so I took it thought I'd walk a small portion of it to see how it looked.

I've been waiting for the Downtown portion of the creekwalk to be completed since I moved into the neighborhood in the Spring of '07. I managed to snap a few pictures of the Franklin Square creekwalk in October of that same year. That section was fairly short, but it was an enjoyable walk none the less. And looking towards the 690 overpasses, it was a path just begging to be lead south into Downtown.

Starting today, the new sections have been unveiled and the creekwalk now runs from Walton St, up through the city streets on the west side of Downtown, then underneath several 690 overpasses, on into Franklin Square, up through the Inner Harbor, and heads toward Carousel Mall.

I began the walk near the steel serpent section off of Walton Street (FYI the serpent has his own Twitter now). I didn't get a picture, but I should have. That sculpture is so awesome.

Heading north after crossing W Fayette St, you get this.



They're going to have to fix something here in the future. I remember looking at this last year and thinking it was a tad ridiculous to run the walk directly into a wall. If the grand scheme here is to loop this trail around all of Onondaga Lake, through Downtown, and into Nedrow, then this spot is going to need major fixing. Not only does the section not feel like a public place, but it's sectioned off and bordered by a tall concrete wall (on the left). You can't see the creek without going right up against it and stepping on your toes. And I think asking bicyclists to walk their bikes is demanding a little too much. It just feels awkward and has more of a "concrete ramp" vibe to it, than a scenic "creekwalk" one.

Perhaps it's an area that'll get improved on in a later date. I'm glad they didn't destroy the stone wall. The city is repairing a nearby stone bridge before the Fall of '12 and this looks to be from a similar design era. A hunch says it was connected to the old railroad station, but I could be way off. At any rate, let's file this into the "status remains to be seen" category.

Looking southeast from W Water St.



Oh, surface parking lots, how I loath you. Hopefully that Marriott gets built here (correctly) and can get integrated with this portion of the creekwalk in some way.

Below is N Franklin St looking north.



Something seemed out of place here. Don't get me wrong. The new bike path is a wonderful step forward for Syracuse, but the street designations seem backwards here. Just a personal preference: I would have rather seen the cars sacrifice one lane to bicyclists rather than making the day-to-day pedestrians sacrifice their personal space. I'm not quite sure if those extra blocks of sidewalk that jut-out from the bike lane are meant to imply that normal walkers are supposed to move towards the street when a bicyclist heads toward them or what. It's very possible the city will wrap the base of the trees in those metal grates you typically see around other parts of Downtown. Maybe we'll file this in the "remains to be seen" category as well.

Color me impressed. The city actually put up fresh signs that stand up straight!



These next three pictures are at the former Fire Department Station #12 at 400 W Genesee St. It opened in 1923, closed in 1998, and is still owned by the city and used for storage. The creekwalk runs directly next to it and it would be a great location for a museum given the anticipated foot traffic right outside.

I'm so glad we decided to swerve the yellow line to leave this one parking spot in here. That's what we call Rockstar Parking!



Clearly, faux windows and doors line the building's ground floor; something I hadn't noticed until being up close. I didn't realize there was public parking over here either.



The handicaps get the older, coin operated meter. Call me old fashioned, but I'm partial to those over the computerized ones.



Trail marking. A hint of Fall in the background.



Now this is development. Blending the old with the new. It was a great surprise to see. Perhaps a fresh coat of paint is in 690's future too.





These lampposts should be a nice touch at dusk and nighttime. Though, one guy looks really out of place.



The city / county / whoever did a really great job in this section. Obviously, there's not that much room for development, but it's surprisingly scenic here and the concrete cylinders actually look like art.



However, I'm no engineer, but the north-bound West St to 690 E overpass looked to be the most stressed of all the overpasses.



Thanks for the heads up, sign!



Before walking on the bridge, I for some reason expected it to be shaky and shoddily made, but it seemed to be very sturdy. On the eastern side of the bridge is this.



Some might see a hasty way of integration, but I love that they semi-incorporated things like this. They probably had no choice, but at any rate, it brings in a little character. And can I just say that I actually like the graffiti?

The picture below is facing north at a former railroad bridge, now converted to automobile traffic and named Evans St. If anyone knows the name of the line that formerly went across this, let me know.




Here's some bridge stress underneath Evans St.



Fast moving creek water.



I volunteer to clean the creek every other year or so. It looks pretty much the same as it did four years ago when I took my previous set of pictures at roughly the exact same location. However, instead of that nasty creek smell, the smell of Fall emanating in the air was much more over-powering. Maybe those cleanups and new "green" "technologies" are actually working.

And the creekwalk heads north through Franklin Square. I stopped here. Another day, another time.



Oh, Franklin Square. If only other areas of Syracuse revealed their true potential like you have.



In all honesty, I felt safer standing / walking underneath the converted railroad bridge moreso than the 690 overpasses. Something about them just seems intimidating and obtrusive. Like you can't wait to get away from them. And I'm sure part of it is knowing that they have a much shorter lifespan than a railroad bridge that was constructed with a bit more ingenuity, with better materials, and with less wear and tear. I'm generally not a fan of elevated highways, but it was really interesting to see them viewed in this fashion. Even coming from someone who wants to tear them all down, I got a different impression of what they mean and how they can be used after seeing them from this perspective.

My issues with this section of the creekwalk are small, but valid: too much of it focuses on the Downtown streets and not enough runs along the creek. The 690 overpasses are cool because it puts you into an unique public space for Syracuse. Meanwhile, it'll be interesting to see how both pedestrians and cars interact with the Fayette / Jefferson / Erie / Genesee path. I walked during a weekday rush-hour and found it to feel dangerous in some parts (for example, the crosswalk button at W Genesee wasn't working). Just a hunch: the path may be completed here, but I feel like the city will still be working on parts of it - especially parts that run over the streets - as time permits.

Overall, the city did a nice job. I'm looking forward to checking out the other new sections and anticipating the entire trail's completion sometime in the next... however many years.