Will 'Destiny' be Fullfilled?Niagara Casino Adds A hotel It's a Go, $ Or No

It would be the biggest tourism development in the history of Upstate New York, but for now it's at a standstill.

"It" is Destiny USA, which in its full expression would be an 800-acre resort and entertainment complex along the Syracuse waterfront. Ground was to have broken last summer on Phase I of a project that ultimately would comprise 10 hotel towers totaling 13,000 rooms, eight million square feet of entertainment and retail space, and a 325-acre "Research and Development" park.

Now, with the project's pricetag having ballooned from $2.2 billion to $5 billion, development is at a standstill while the city of Syracuse and the developer, the Pyramid Company, await the filing of a State Supreme Court decision last month that Pyramid be allowed a 30-year property tax exemption for expanding the existing Carousel Center Mall, which would become part of Destiny USA.

The city has been fighting the tax exemption and is expected to file an appeal as soon as Supreme Court Justice John Centra files his motion. The appeals process could take up to two years, so the fate of Destiny USA is up in the air, to say the least.

Plans are more definite for a new convention center hotel to be built next to the 109,250-square-foot Oncenter. "We're expecting to break ground on a 350-room hotel this fall," said Doug Small, president of the Syracuse CVB. The property has not yet been flagged.



In Niagara Falls, the 604-room Seneca Niagara Hotel & Casino, featuring 34,500 square feet of meeting space, has debuted as part of a $200 million expansion of the tribe's existing casino and entertainment complex.

Future expansion plans call for the addition of three restaurants and a 2,000-seat capacity performing arts center that also will be used for meeting functions. Plans are also under way for a championship-level golf course to be completed by 2008.



Albany now expects to move forward with plans to build a new $85 million convention center with a 400-room hotel and 1,000-vehicle parking garage without a previously expected increase in state aid.