A State Supreme Court Justice ruled earlier this year that the Interstate 81 project could proceed but additional environmental studies were needed before the elevated viaducts could be removed. Renew 81 for All's lawsuit over the project was heard by the New York State Appellate Court on Monday.
Meredith Lee-Clark, a lawyer representing the state Department of Transportation, said there are costs associated with delays in construction.
"Department experts estimate that it's perhaps upwards of $25,000 a day that the public incurs for each day that construction completion is delayed for all of the delayed benefits," Lee-Clark said.
Lee-Clark said department analyses looked at potential carbon monoxide levels and anticipated carbon monoxide levels were higher for the viaduct alternative than the anticipated levels for the community grid alternative.
"The department conducted a micro-scale analysis of carbon monoxide," Lee-Clark said. "For the community grid alternative, these anticipated levels didn't even reach the triggering threshold for such a study. So based on that, the department rashly concluded that the community grid alternative would actually improve levels of carbon monoxide and particular matter throughout downtown."
Alan Knauf, representing Renew 81 for All, said the group is concerned the project could lead to pollution within the Syracuse Southside community.
"We represent the Southside neighborhood, the environmental justice community," Knauf said. "They're going to have to shoulder all this traffic you're going to have to go through. There is going to be stop-and-go traffic."
Knauf said they aren't saying they shouldn't replace the viaduct. But they believe the community grid alternative would be a "disaster."
"We think that there are numerous defects and they should be sent back to the drawing board," Knauf said. "Especially in light of so we don't make a huge mistake for this community with Micron coming and have a system, a road system that can't handle that and can't get people to work."
A groundbreaking for the I-81 project happened over the summer.
