Firefighter At Marshall 24/7

By Ricky Sayer – Syracuse, N.Y. (CitrusTV) – It is a month after students have moved into The Marshall apartment building, and construction is still going on.The Marshall struck a deal with City of Syracuse that involved using firefighters to patrol the building while workers finish the building.

The firefighters, which are present on site 24/7, are looking for unsafe conditions.

The building was not able to receive all completed code certifications from the state before it opened to students in mid-September. The building was supposed to open in time for the start of the Syracuse University Fall semester.

“The matter that is under code compliance review is the exterior wall assembly of the building – which is actually being installed at this time,” said Greg Loh, a spokesperson for the City of Syracuse.

Loh says the state gave The Marshall a temporary certificate of occupancy in return for The Marshalls owners to agree to pay Syracuse to have firefighters patrol the site.

To keep students safe, construction workers are only allowing pedestrians to walk under part of the building. The concern is that a tool or piece of construction material being used to finish off the building will fall on to pedestrians walking below.

About five to ten firefighters patrol the site at a time. They work on three shifts.

Some students were told the building would be fully completed next month, but a construction superintendent on site says that he doesn’t expect to finish the project until the end of the year.

The superintendent says having students in the building has greatly slowed construction.

Some residents have been having issues living in the building. One resident said her asthma has been acting up as a result of excessive dust created by construction.

Other students say the main issue is the noise from bars like Orange Crate that keeps them up at night.

Hot water is another issue students are upset about, saying it simply isn’t there at peak times.

The residents who spoke with us say they were frustrated by the building not opening on time.