Columbia Development eyes 20 Albany parcels

The Business Review (Albany) - by Michael DeMasi The Business Review

A two-block stretch of homes near Albany Medical Center would be demolished and replaced with a mixed-use development under plans being pursued by the city and Columbia Development Cos.

The east side of New Scotland Avenue between Myrtle and Dana avenues is being eyed for a development whose details are still being sorted out.

"We're in the very formative stages of what we're trying to do there," said Joe Nicolla, president of Columbia.

Ideas under consideration include an 80,000-square-foot to 120,000-square- foot development with ground floor retail, said Megan Daly, deputy commissioner of development and planning for the city.

Residential uses are not planned for the upper floors at this time, she said.

There are about 20 parcels on the two-block section of the street, most of which are single or multi-family homes. Many are vacant.

There are also two vacant lots and two commercial tenants, including a convenience store.

The city was awarded a $3.3 million grant from the state Restore-NY program to pay for demolition and construction costs. Without the grant, Nicolla said, the project wouldn't be feasible.

The Albany Local Development Corp. has negotiated contracts with the owners of all the parcels, Daly said, but doesn't own them. The state grant doesn't cover acquisition costs.

Columbia Development is interested in the site because of its success developing the 129-room Hilton Garden Inn on New Scotland Avenue across from the hospital. The $20 million hotel opened last summer.

Separately, the hospital announced plans in late February to build a six-story, $360 million expansion at the corner of New Scotland and Myrtle avenues.

The New Scotland Avenue redevelopment is around the corner from a $13.5 million gut rehab of 18 run down houses on Knox Street in the Park South neighborhood.

It hasn't been determined whether Columbia Development or the ALDC will end up buying the 20 properties on New Scotland Avenue, but the purchases are expected to be wrapped up by late spring or summer.

"It is 100 percent our intention to honor the contracts and close on these properties," said Michael Yevoli, commissioner of development and planning. "How to do it is something we're doing an analysis of internally, on what makes the best sense."

mdemasi@bizjournals.com | 518-640-6814

Long Island developer secures option to buy abandoned Amsterdam mill

The former Chalmers Knitting Mill
will become a mixed-use development
with office, retail and residential buildings

The Business Review (Albany) - by Michael DeMasi The Business Review

City leaders in Amsterdam, N.Y., approved an option with developer Uri Kaufman to sell an abandoned textile mill for $138,000 that Kaufman wants to convert into upscale apartments.

The Common Council voted 4-1 on May 6 to approve the sale of the former Chalmers Knitting Co. buildings on the city's south side, according to Mayor Ann Thane.

Kaufman, a Long Island developer who has bought other run-down mills in the Albany region for redevelopment projects, wants to convert the roughly 275,000 square feet of space into about 200 apartments.

The mill buildings closed in the 1980s. They are located at one end of a planned $16 million pedestrian bridge that would link both sides of the city, which straddles the Mohawk River.

Thane, a former museum director who took office in January, is a big supporter of the project, but she knows there is some skepticism in the community as evidenced by the "no" vote from 1st Ward Councilman Joseph Isabel.

"Amsterdam has had many people come through here before and make false promises," Thane said. "There is some trepidation because of past experience, but the fact is this is a very good developer with a good track record and the financial resources to back up his promises."

Kaufman redeveloped the former Harmony Mills in Cohoes into a 96-unit loft apartment building. He plans to renovate the other half of the mill into 141 additional units once he gets the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to approve mortgage insurance on a $24 million construction loan.

In February, Kaufman bought the old Victory Specialty Packaging plant near Schuylerville for $50,000. He's also talking to officials in Schenectady about possibly redeveloping part of the old American Locomotive Co. plant along the Mohawk River.

National Grid wants $220M program for upstate to offer incentives for home upgrades

By LARRY RULISON, Business writer at TimesUnion.com
First published: Tuesday, May 6, 2008

ALBANY -- National Grid is proposing a $220 million energy-efficiency program in upstate New York that would save customers $350 million.

The three-year program, which must get approval from the state Public Service Commission, would cost the average residential customer about $3 a month on combined gas and electric bills, although the exact amount will be lower than that in the first year and rise the next two.

In return, National Grid would offer customers a wide variety of incentive programs to buy energy-efficient appliances and make home upgrades such as adding new windows and roof insulation.

Based in the United Kingdom, National Grid is the dominant utility in the Capital Region with about 1.5 million customers in upstate New York.

National Grid's plan is required by a PSC initiative to reduce energy consumption in the state by 15 percent by 2015. The idea was first proposed by former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, and is now embraced by Gov. David Paterson.

"National Grid is doing its part in achieving this goal," said Tim Stout, National Grid's vice president of energy efficiency.

National Grid outlined the plan in a filing made with the PSC April 30, and held a conference call with reporters Monday. The company wants the plan approved quickly so it can get under way by October.

Although customers have to be proactive to reap economic benefits from the program, the potential savings are large -- especially for people who own their own homes. For instance, National Grid will pay 75 percent of the cost of upgrading insulation and sealing in a home, up to a total of $5,000.

To illustrate the impact energy-efficient moves can have on electric bills, National Grid pointed out that replacing five traditional incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent ones can reduce a home's electric bill by $9 a month.

National Grid spokesman Patrick Stella said he believed the program would provide retailers with incentives to lower the cost of such bulbs, which are priced higher than incandescent bulbs.

Under the current billing structure, when National Grid customers use less electricity, the company makes less money.

Under this new proposal, National Grid will recover lost revenue through the $3 charge to customers, and will share in the savings that customers realize if it meets certain goals.

That way it's in the best interest of both customers and the company to reduce energy usage.

"This is a shift," Stella said. "It's a shift in thinking."

Larry Rulison can be reached at 454-5504 or by e-mail at lrulison@timesunion.com.