By Francesca Merwin, staff writer

 

When Tiffany Sisko first considered how to make a downtown office building into a yoga studio, she knew she had to turn the space into something special. Not Ikea special — the local, sustainable kind of special. “I wanted the space to be artistic and use it to increase cultural richness,” she explains. “It’s a yoga studio, yes. But it’s also a work of art.” Sisko’s project is one of many popping up that features a mix of art and sustainability to enliven the Connective Corridor.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Everyone wants to know how Sisko went from a bare, drab and ugly office space to a beautiful, uniquely urban studio. Mostly, it came from friends and family: she enlisted her husband, an architect at Syracuse University’s UPSTATE:, and local company Activism in Commerce.

Together, the fearless team of entrepreneurs and designers gutted the space and rebuilt, sparing no piece of material. They completely restored the pine wood floors, created shelving using the subfloor, made a wall design with pieces of furring strips and used local trees to make handmade, one-of-a-kind furniture.

“It’s wild. It’s really cool,” she enthuses. “We found an old newspaper from the 1800’s [during the renovation]. We used local trees. You can’t recreate that character with new materials.”

O Yoga Studio is not the only example of sustainable (art)work on the Connective Corridor. When finished, University Avenue will feature porous pavement treatments in the right-of-way (a first in Syracuse!). Silva Cell, a new technology which helps tree roots to grow beneath the pavement, is also being implemented throughout the street. So not only will we be getting a beautiful, two-way street, but we can also feel good about the materials used there.

On the Corridor’s Syracuse Stage project, the outdoor benches will be repurposed from timber trees, many of which were local beauties which were slated to become mulch or firewood. Cosmo Fanizzi, owner of Activism in Commerce, also played a role in this project by helping to salvage the trees.

“In cities like ours, change can’t come fast enough,” says Fanizzi. He adds that the only thing that makes this change sweeter is when the work comes from local talent. “To completely source materials and manpower within the confines of the city — that is the perfect model of sustainability.” 

Indeed, sustainability is alive and well on the Connective Corridor and throughout the city of Syracuse. 

O Yoga is at 327 W. Fayette St., just steps of the Connective Corridor bus route, a FREE service. On Friday, November 18, from 7-9pm, check out Yoga, Chocolate and Wine for $25 per person.