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Syracuse University’s Department of Public Safety opened the doors to its new substation during a community open house event Friday afternoon.

The satellite office — located at 101 Marshall Street, or 737 S. Crouse Ave. — will be open during the “peak hours” of activity and as late as 3 a.m. on weekends, said Craig Stone, SU’s chief of campus safety and emergency management services.

“(The station) is going to help us address quality of life issues and crimes, and try to prevent and deter those types of things from happening,” Stone said. “We are going to be right at the pulse of everything moving in Syracuse University (and) this campus community.”

Campus community members will have the option to share “quality of life concerns” directly with DPS personnel, Stone said. He said the office will also have the technology required to complete and process public reports. Previously, staff had to travel to DPS’ office in Sims Hall to do so.

The university celebrated the opening of the substation with a ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring Stone and Allen Groves, SU’s senior vice president and chief student experience officer.

“(Marshall Street is) a very important area for our students, for our community, our employees but also everyone in Syracuse University,” Groves said. “Our hope is this very visible presence of our DPS personnel will make this an even safer spot for everyone in the community.”

Stone thanked several SU staff members and administrators throughout the ceremony, including Groves, Chancellor Kent Syverud and DPS Commander Mike Hartnett — whom he credited with leading the substation initiative.

Stone emphasized that DPS plans to work “hand-in-hand” with the university’s community partners at the new office, such as with Crouse Hospital and SU’s joint crime control team with the Syracuse Police Department.

Throughout the hour-long open house Friday, community attendees toured the station.

Community members can interact with personnel directly at a small reception desk near the station’s entrance. The station also has a back room with five large computers where DPS will monitor its surveillance cameras on the street and in the substation itself. SU’s Administrative Sergeant John Stephens has a desk at the station inside a small office with frosted glass.

Campus faculty, staff and students across several university departments — such as SU’s Information Technology Services and the DPS Student of Color Advisory Committee — filtered in and out of the substation’s open house. DPS officers answered questions and also shared stories from their time with the department.

While DPS first announced its plans to establish a new office in January, several students who attended the open house, such as SU sophomores Sierra Wood and Stef Figueroa, said they weren’t aware of the office prior to seeing its open house event appear on SU’s Community Calendar.

“It’s great that we have this security at Marshall Street because of the things that go on around here, especially at night,” Figueroa said.

The first 44 student attendees were offered a $20 food voucher, which Wood and Figueroa said incentivized their attendance.

“It’s really good to have more DPS present around Marshall,” Wood said. “(Marshall Street’s) not really on campus, so there’s not always (DPS) around, so I think the new station will be good.”

DPS personnel did not suggest the new office would introduce any changes to its jurisdiction, which currently operates “within the Syracuse Campus proper and any other properties owned, controlled, or administrated by the University, as well as the streets and sidewalks adjacent to and connecting such properties,” according to its website.

DPS is authorized to provide assistance to other law enforcement agencies operating within Onondaga County and officers can make arrests if they witness a felony outside of their jurisdiction, according to its website. Previously, several Marshall Street business owners said DPS’ presence will deter crime.

The office will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. Thursday and Friday, 6 p.m. to 3 a.m. Saturday and will be closed on Sunday, Stone said. Its Main Campus office at Sims Hall will continue to be open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“We’re on a main artery, a focal point of the campus community,” Stone said. “By us being here, it’s going to help us enhance security and keep the community safe.”

Published on March 29, 2024 at 6:03 pm

Contact Julia: jmboehni@syr.edu