This weekend on In Focus, a conversation on reconnecting communities through major highway redesign projects in upstate New York cities. JoDee Kenney sits down with State Senate Transportation Committee Chair Tim Kennedy, to talk about the state and federal investment in these undertakings. Kennedy highlighted the role Gov. Kathy Hochul and leaders in the State Senate and Assembly played in moving these projects forward. This includes the I-81 redesign in Syracuse, Inner Loop project in Rochester and plans to return the Humboldt Parkway section of the Kensington Expressway in Kennedy’s Buffalo district to its intended design, as laid out by Frederick Law Olmsted in the late 19th Century. This project would rejoin Buffalo’s East Side neighborhoods, that were bisected as construction of the six-lane Kensington Expressway began in the 1950s. In addition to the immediate change, Kennedy spoke about the long-term mission of redefining this urban landscape. Public greenspace and more walkable neighborhoods, Kennedy said, will increase property values and entice new businesses to serve the area. The senator also reaffirmed the commitment of New York State in its Five-Year Capital Plan.

You can watch the full interview with State Senate Transportation Committee Chair Tim Kennedy via the video player above. And be sure to tune in for a look inside the biggest issues impacting Upstate New York, on In Focus with JoDee Kenney — every Sunday on Spectrum News 1.