Long-abandoned Syracuse Developmental Center Might House Drone Manufacturing Center, State Says

Syracuse, N.Y. — A high-tech manufacturing facility may become the first tenant in the long-dormant and dilapidated Syracuse Developmental Center, the governor’s office said today.

Under a plan submitted to the state, Fotokite, a drone company housed in The Tech Garden, would get $5 million in state funds if it spends $21 million to develop a drone manufacturing facility and add 200 jobs in Syracuse.

The building opened in the 1970s as a state-operated home for people with developmental disabilities. It has been abandoned since it closed in 1998.

The city seized the property in 2019 over back taxes owed by the previous owner. The site includes a more than 600,000-square-foot building at 800 S. Wilbur Ave. surrounded by 47 acres of land.

Read the full story on syracuse.com, here.