Ashley McGraw's Peter Larson and Ed McGraw examined the unique history of the Syracuse University Center of Excellence site on Wednesday, January 25. The presentation, "Seven Generations Past and Future" was part of the Onondaga Historical Association's "Landmarks of New York" lecture series. The presentation was held at the Onondaga Historical Association Museum & Research Center at 321 Montgomery Street in Syracuse.
The site bordered by East Water, Almond, Washington Streets, and Forman Avenue has witnessed the construction of the Erie Canal, the manufacturing of typewriters by L.C. Smith & Brothers, the launching of Onondaga Community College, and most recently the completion of the LEED Platinum Headquarters for the Syracuse Center of Excellence. The site has experienced the birth and life of the industrial age paradigm in Central New York.
This presentation examined the unique history of the Syracuse Center of Excellence site over seven generations and explore how its unique position in time and space will influence our community for the next seven generations. Involvement with the site and the Syracuse Center of Excellence project represents a pivotal point in the architects’ journey toward a truly sustainable future. A future that demands a fundamentally different relationship with the earth and each other. A future that is prosperous and sustainable for the next seven generations.
To deepen awareness of central New York’s architectural legacies, Onondaga Historical Association’s January lecture series augmented the ideas and issues expressed in OHA’s latest exhibit, “The Landmarks of New York,” now in OHA’s changing gallery space on the first floor.