What was once a blighted urban area in Rome, N.Y., is shaping the future with art and innovation. Recalling the history of the Leatherstocking Country made famous by American writer James Fenimore Cooper, planners and residents are blending themes of past and present to create a future for the city.

The West Dominick Street Arts and Cultural District combines the roots of this central New York municipality with art and green space that honor the heritage of the region while casting residents’ eyes forward. “The stars have aligned to bring our vision into reality,” Deputy Development Director of Community and Economic Development Matthew Andrews said.

The history of Rome goes back more than a few centuries, to the days of the Oneida nation that populated the region. What is now West Dominick Street was the site of a portage path that was part of a lake and river system connecting the East Coast of North America to the Great Lakes.

The overland section of the 1,000-mile trade path that included the Erie Canal spanned nearly two miles to about a six-mile corridor, depending on the season. Known as the Oneida Carrying Path – Deo-Wain-Ste in the native language – boats discharged their cargo so that humans and animals could carry the loads over land and then continue their journey on another boat.

Fort Stanwix, in the heart of Rome, was constructed in the mid-1700s to protect the carrying path. Today it attracts about 100,000 visitors to the area every year.

Known as the Copper City, Rome is the second-largest metropolis, by area, in the state of New York. At one time, it produced 10 percent of all copper used around the world. Prosperity seemed to be a permanent lifestyle in Rome.

But urban renewal in the 1950s and 1960s took a toll on the downtown area of the city, Andrews explained, and diminished its 350 businesses to only 35. “These were unintended consequences of a project with all good intentions.”

While nearby Griffiss Air Force Base kept the area’s population numbers healthy for a while, its closing in the mid-1990s decreased the number of residents by close to 40%. Rome’s population today stands at approximately 32,000, down from 50,000 before the base closure.

Over the years, after urban renewal, West Dominick Street was redesigned to include a pedestrian mall with no vehicle traffic and two large parking garages. Later, it was changed back to a vehicular throughway.

Attractions like Fort Stanwix and the Capitol Theater, which opened in 1928, survived the many changes. “Some businesses have endured as well,” Andrews noted.

However, Rome needed a spark to revive its vigor. With the help of the state, Rome and other cities have been able to rise from blights that could have easily become permanent. New York’s Brownfield Cleanup Program helped to identify places for private sector cleanup of former industrial areas in order to revitalize economically challenged communities.

The downtown area of Rome was designated a Brownfield Opportunity Area with the adoption of a city-wide comprehensive plan in 2004. West Dominick Street is now part of a completed restoration program called “Rome Rises,” which encouraged living and investing in the city with an eye to the future while at the same time honoring its past.

Andrews said the plan for the West Dominick Street Art Walk was “bottom-up,” with extensive public input. The goals included envisioning sustainable and diverse uses of space in the downtown area, developing the public spaces to seamlessly connect various aspects of the downtown area with walkability and vibrancy, creating an environment that fosters economic opportunity and celebrates diversity, and encouraging wise use of both current and historic resources.

The West Dominick Street project came to life in 2017 with a $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award. Work began on the project before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and continued with restructuring what Andrews called the “superblock” where the pedestrian mall had been.

By rightsizing the street, four lanes became two driving lanes with parking along the curb, a pedestrian refuge in the center and landscaping mindful of the need for stormwater runoff management.

Art installations were next on the agenda, Andrews said. Consultants CLA SITE Landscape Architecture, Engineering and Planning from Saratoga Springs, N.Y., a team of artisans and the Oneida Indian Nation worked collaboratively to incorporate historical elements into the paving and sculptural plans.

The first phase saw the creation of a public art plaza that included a sculpture with three massive bronze and copper metal art panels, benches and a granite seat wall. The art panels, created by Bollinger Atelier from Tempe, Ariz., depict early life in the area. An artistic geographic waterway interpretation, using a 1777 Historic Waterway Map as the template, was cut into the sidewalk with granite inlay and depicts the Oneida Carrying Path over which the sidewalk is built.   

Additionally, the city acquired resin sculptures created by artist Joan Benefiel, founder of Brooklyn-based and New York State-certified-woman-owned Figuration Studio. Her sculptures add a unique, modern flare to the art walk with the clear figures recalling that all humanity is fluid in form and content.

Andrews said the art walk “is creating momentum in the community. People are interested in being involved and in calling downtown home for their businesses.”

In addition to the theater and businesses that have remained on West Dominick Street, Andrews added: “Now we’re seeing wine bars, coffee houses, stores and restaurants popping up. The art is supporting our infrastructure.”

He pointed out that the art walk is adjacent to a historic district featuring about 800 properties of historic significance to the area. “This revitalization is an economic tool that will also be beneficial to those homeowners.”

He said that the art walk is in the final stages of completion and is expected to be up and running in November.

The first two phases of the project totaled nearly $800,000, paid for from public and private grants. Andrews said the cost of the final phase of the project is yet to be determined.

All elements of the project, working together, honor the past and envision the future of Rome, he noted.

Peter Loyola, consultant with CLA SITE, agreed that the rich history of the area and the various themes, from the native inhabitants to the industry of Rome, have come together uniquely in the project. “They all work together seamlessly.”

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