Washington – Gov. Kathy Hochul plans to emphasize the importance of a $2 billion project to rebuild Interstate 81 in Syracuse during a meeting here today with the White House’s new infrastructure czar.
Hochul is due to meet privately with Mitch Landrieu, the former New Orleans mayor appointed by President Joe Biden to oversee spending from a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill signed into law two weeks ago.
Hochul’s office said she will spell out New York’s priorities to Landrieu, including the need to advance highway projects that reconnect communities like the plan to tear down the elevated section of I-81 in Syracuse.
The highway’s construction displaced a historically Black neighborhood in Syracuse’s 15th Ward and cut off previously connected neighborhoods in the heart of the city. Now the state wants to replace the highway with a street-level boulevard.
The governor also plans to discuss two big New York City projects with Landrieu – the Second Avenue Subway extension and the redevelopment of Penn Station.
In the afternoon, Hochul will meet privately with members of New York’s congressional delegation, including Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, as part of her second official trip as governor to Washington.
New York is expected to receive $11.6 billion from the massive spending package to rebuild highways and $1.9 billion for bridge replacement and repairs over five years.
New York’s share of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes $2.6 billion to improve water infrastructure, at least $100 million to expand broadband coverage, and $175 million to build charging stations for electric vehicles across the state.
The infrastructure package also sets aside $1 billion to help “redevelop marginalized communities” affected by transportation projects. That money would be made available through competitive grants to communities across the nation.
Biden and his administration have mentioned the I-81 project as an example of how infrastructure projects could bring “restorative justice” to communities torn apart by big interstate highways.
Hochul’s visit to Washington comes two days after one of those New York House members, Rep. Tom Suozzi of Long Island, announced that he would challenge Hochul in a Democratic primary election next year.
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