Two years after the closure of the Oswego Friendly’s, a new Tully’s location will take over the location on 196 W. Bridge St., according to Mayor Billy Barlow.

While Tully’s has purchased the property, there is still plenty of work that needs to be completed. Due to wear and tear, Tully’s will have to rebuild and upgrade the building. According to Barlow, the upgrades will include a drive through. The City of Oswego has already seen Tully’s in some capacity, as the New York chain launched a food truck last summer in the Friendly’s parking lot in order to gauge interest. As Barlow said, the experiment was rather successful.

“Since the food truck was here, they saw the excitement of the Oswego community and saw a market that was untapped,” Barlow said.

With the semester winding down, SUNY Oswego students will not be able to take advantage of the new restaurant until next semester. According to Barlow, the expected launch of the new Tully’s is hoped to be for “early-to-mid fall.” The campus community is another attractive demographic for Tully’s, as it is full of students that would enjoy the quality and price point of the food. 

“It is walking-distance, it is near the college neighborhoods and it’s a food that when you are in college, it is convenient, it is affordable and it is high-quality,” Barlow said. “I think that is important for college kids. I see a lot of the SUNY community patronizing Tully’s once it is up and open.”

While there are no established hours for the Oswego Tully’s, the locations in the surrounding areas such as Syracuse, Liverpool and Cicero are open until 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. This could provide students with an alternative to the lively nightlife that the city provided before the COVID-19 pandemic.

For Barlow, he is excited about the opportunity that Tully’s provides for fundraising and supporting the SUNYAC teams that SUNY Oswego has to offer.

“I see a lot of opportunities for sports teams to have fundraising events and communication and a relationship with local sports organizations like … the SUNY teams,” Barlow said.

Kailee Montross | The Oswegonian