Columbus Circle Preservation District

Background

Columbus Circle may be the smallest preservation district in the city but it includes some of the most architecturally and historically distinctive civic structures in Syracuse. The district includes the Onondaga County Courthouse, designed by Archimedes Russell and Melvin King (1904-06); the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception designed by Michael Connor (1886) with the tower addition by Archimedes Russel (1906), the former First Baptist Church (known as Mizpah Tower) designed by Gordon Wright (1914), and the former Central Library, designed by James Randall (1902-05). The district also includes the site of the former Powelson Building, which was demolished in 2004. At the center of the district is the community plaza that features a monument to Christopher Columbus by artist Renzo Baldi (1934). Common Council approved the designation of the Columbus Circle Preservation District in 1981.

Design Guidelines

Self-Services