In his State of the City address this week, Mayor Ben Walsh announced transformative plans for Syracuse's 15th Ward.

The city of Syracuse is dedicating $800 million to replace public housing projects in the East Adams area.

To accelerate the project, the city is applying for a $50 million Choice Neighborhoods grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“Other cities have taken on this level of effort, we have not," Walsh said. "So this is new for Syracuse, which makes it exciting, but also daunting.”

Walsh said even if the city doesn’t receive the grant, it won’t mean the end of the project.

He said a priority is to ensure families living in the more than 1,000 units will not be displaced.

“They will get first preference over any new units,” he said.

The investment comes after the Syracuse Housing Authority told city leaders the units needed revitalization.

“The model of public housing has change substantially in this country, and so there are different tools that they have and will continue to look to avail themselves to undergo these projects,” Walsh said.

He said residents’ desire for a grocery store, parks and retail options will be part of the design.

The neighborhood transformation is being planned by the SHA and Blueprint 15.