DEC OK's Waterfront First Phase

Times Union: DEC weighs in on Rensselaer waterfront plan

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has approved the beginning of a massive development project planned for the Rensselaer waterfront on property where the Rensselaer City Middle and High School campus once sat overlooking the downtown Albany cityscape.

Doane Stuart Remodeling

The Doane Stuart School's April 2009 Newsletter (PDF file) has a cover story called "The Transformation Continues, Finding the Soul of Our New Home". There are photos of the renovation of the former Van Rensselaer High School building [199 Washington Ave., Rensselaer, NY]

DeLaet's Public Hearing

REMINDER: The City of Rensselaer Planning Commission is holding a public hearing on the proposed DeLaet's Landing waterfront project on Tuesday, Feb. 24th at 7pm, at the Boys & Girls Club of So. Rensselaer County [544 Broadway].

Unfortunately, I have a class, so I can't attend. If you go, please e-mail me or post a comment if you learn anything interesting.

Green Building - GE Healthcare

Turner Construction Company has issued a press release summarizing all its green building projects for 2008, including the new GE facility going up in the tech park.

Turner Completes $3 Billion of Green Buildings Nationally and $1 Billion of Green Construction in New York Region During 2008

Turner's active green projects in the tri-state region during 2008 include:
...
General Electric Healthcare digital x-ray detector production facility, $165 million, seeking LEED-NC Gold, Rensselaer Technology Park in North Greenbush, N.Y.

According to the Green Building Council, "The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria. " A LEED-New Construction Gold rating means the facility scores between 39 and 51 of a possible 69 points for criteria like Water Efficiency, Energy & Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality, etc.

GE was scheduled to start moving equipment into the new building last December, and the plant opening is planned for this spring. They're not currently posting any jobs for this location, but I believe that's because they've already done a round of hiring, and the employees started in Niskayuna and will transfer here later.

Van Rensselaer Square

Check out the post "A Rush To Build" from the North Greenbush Pipeline blog, analyzing a fundamental problem with the as-yet-unbuilt Van Rensselaer Square shopping plaza.

I had missed the underlying article in the Times-Union:

No sale for empty storefronts
Vacancies signal the party is over for retail developers, at least for now
...
John Nigro, president of The Nigro Cos., a shopping center developer in Colonie, conceded the economy has put his company's plans to build the massive Tempel Farms shopping plaza along Route 4 in East Greenbush on hold.

Marina and Waterfront Still On Track

Here's a nice long article from the Independent (Indienews.com) describing the waterfront marina project:

Rensselaer projects still on

E. GREENBUSH--In recent months many businesses have slashed jobs and developers have scraped multi-million dollar projects, due to the global economic crisis. But the proposed East Greenbush Marina and the Rensselaer Waterfront Development projects are still on track, for now.

UPDATE: Troy Record: Marina, waterfront projects on track

Village at Tempel Farm Stalled

The Nigro Company's plans for the Village at Tempel Farm have been shelved due to the economic downturn. The land is now up for sale.

Troy Record:

Poor economy stalls project; land is now on the market

EAST GREENBUSH — A 157-acre parcel slated for the Village at Tempel Farm project is now on the market for $4 million.
...
Trustco Bank placed the land on the Realty USA commercial real estate Web site.

Business Review:

Nigro Cos. East Greenbush project in limbo

A large, mixed-use development called The Village at Tempel Farm in East Greenbush, N.Y., that would have included a Lowe’s, Hampton Inn and hundreds of apartments is in limbo because of the recession.

With national and regional retailers unwilling to commit to leasing space because of the struggling economy, developer Nigro Cos. has let its purchase option expire for the 157-acre parcel, said Steven Powers, vice president.

(Note that this is not the site where development has already begun. There is nothing new online about the Van Rensselaer Square site, where only the parking lots have been constructed.)

Firehouse Preparation

Progress on the firehouse construction, Washington Ave. near I90, Rensselaer, NY









<- December 31, 2008

January 8, 2009 ->

<- January 10, 2009











The contractor, U.W. Marx, is a sponsor of the upcoming Northeast Green Building Conference 2009 (Feb. 12-13), and helped to bring the event to the Albany area. From yesterday's press release:

U.W. Marx, recognized by the Capital District Business Review as the 3rd largest construction firm in NY's Capital Region in 2008, recently completed design-build construction of a new 288,000 sf K-12 school campus for the City of Rensselaer (NY) School District. The NYSERDA NY Energy SmartSM New Construction Program (NCP) awarded the Rensselaer City School District the maximum project incentive of $165,000 based on a system evaluation by the Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC).

I-90 Connector P.R.

The North Greenbush Pipeline reports on a press release recommending the I-90 Connector Phase II as a federal economic stimulus project.

Read the blog post: Ashley Seeks Funds For I90 Connector

Groundbreaking Photos

Photos from the groundbreaking for the new firehouse, held at 11am, Wed. Nov. 26, 2008, at the Franciscan Heights Senior Community on Washington Ave, Rensselaer, NY.

(Click photos to enlarge)

News Coverage

Times Union: Firehouse finally will be a reality

Firehouse Groundbreaking

The groundbreaking for the new firehouse is tomorrow (Wednesday) morning at 11am. The new firehouse will be on Washington Ave, by the entrance to the Franciscan Heights Senior Community and the Rt. 90 ramp.

This location will provide faster response to new schools and the growing neighborhoods in the North End. I understand that the Franciscan Height Community has raised funds to help provide amenities for the firefighters.

I-90 Connector

From the Troy Record: I-90 connector back on drawing board

NORTH GREENBUSH — To ensure that nearly $10 million in federal and state funding is not lost, Rensselaer County officials are slowly moving forward with plans for a connecting route between Exit 8 on I-90 and the Rensselaer Technology Park.

Nov Planning Report

City of Rensselaer
Department of Planning Report
November 2008

[distributed at the North End Neighborhood Association meeting, 11/13/2008]

Broadway Corridor Reconstruction - Clough Harbour and Associates have been developing a design for the Broadway Corridor from Route 20 north to the Broadway Viaduct Bridge. This project will include new separated sewer lines, water lines and streetscape improvements like brick pavers, crosswalks and historic style street lighting. A public information meeting was held October 16th at City Hall to gather public comment.

Broadway Viaduct Bridge - The City of Rensselaer selected Bergmann Associates to develop a design for the rehabilitation of the Broadway Viaduct Bridge and they have begun survey work and a structural analysis. This project will include structural improvements as well as design improvements for a more attractive bridge in the center of the City and construction for the bridge and the corridor reconstruction are both anticipated for 2010.

Hollow Master Plan - Fraser and Associates, with the help of a steering committee and several public meetings, have been developing a Master Plan for the Hollow that emphasizes passive recreational uses by developing a trail system within the Hollow. A final plan is due within the next month and will be forwarded to the Council upon its receipt.

Brownfield Study - The engineering firm of Malcom Pirnie has been working on a study to identify Brownfield sites in Rensselaer. A public meeting was held in July and the consultants are now sending out letters to property owners who may be interested in participating in the study.

Marx Waterfront Development - U. W. Marx is currently working on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the project based on the scope of issues approved by the Planning Commission. A public hearing on the project will be held at the end of January 2009.

Cottage Hill Condominiums and Townhouses - This project proposes 180 condominiums for 96 Partition Street and the applicant has produced a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) that the Planning Commission and its consultants are reviewing. A public hearing on the Environmental Impact Statement was held on November 10th and a Public hearing for the project will be held in the first half of 2009.

Empire First Light Power Plant - A 350 megawatt power plant is under construction in the Port of Rensselaer and is scheduled to come online in 2010. This will also generate a significant amount of tax revenue for the City and provide several hundred construction jobs and approximately thirty full time jobs when the plant is operational.

Condo Hearing

There will be a public hearing at the Rensselaer Community Center on Mon, Nov. 10 to hear public comment on a draft environmental statement filed at city hall for a big condo project at the interection of Cottage Hill and Partition Streets. For more information, see the posting on The Buzz Business News: Condominium, Town Home Project Planned For Rensselaer.

Bloomingrove Drive

On Nov. 5, 6 and 7 from 7:30am to 2:30pm, drivers won't be allowed to access Bloomingrove Drive from the Rt. 4 intersection by the Stewarts shop. Rensselaer County is constructing an island, and thereafter we will no longer be allowed to make a left turn onto Bloomgrove Dr. from Rt. 4 Northbound.

This should improve safety and flow at the intersection, where cars waiting to turn left can block northbound traffic for long periods. Bloomingrove Dr. and the Washington Ave. Extension aren't built to handle any appreciable volume of traffic, and I'm as guilty as everyone else who uses it as a shortcut to Home Depot (three times last Sunday alone, but that's another story).

However, this is just a stage in the evolution of this intersection. The next phase will happen when the Quackenderry Commons is constructed along Rt. 4 between Stewarts and Applebees, where several buildings currently stand vacant. (The lovely brick cottage is doomed, as brick houses aren't stable enough to jack up and move - they checked.) The proposed plan is to widen Rt. 4 to two lanes in each direction, with a turn lane. This will become a four-way intersection again, but with a traffic light.

The first stage of the Quackenderry Commons will include a pharmacy and restaurant at the road, and a larger mixed-use building further back. There will be an access road from Bloomingrove Drive, and one from the Home Depot parking lot. A new bridge over the mighty Quackenderry Creek will be a focal point for the landscaping, and the waterway will be kept as pristine as possible. An oversized storm water management system is planned, which will reduce the runoff into the creek by 30-40%, compared to the site's current volume.

How did I learn all this? Well, curiosity trapped this cat in a stuffy meeting room for a very, very long meeting of the North Greenbush Planning Board. I originally went to hear the 7:45pm presentation of the site plan for the Tech Valley Plaza at the Rt. 4 and Rt. 43 intersection. I never did find out what's happening there. I gave up at about 10:30pm - they were running three hours behind schedule.

UPDATE: Rumor has it that about 2am, the board approved a Tech Valley Plaza site plan with a big box and a strip mall, with entrances from Best Road and Agway Drive. This sounds a bit different from the original plan on the BET Investments site.

Waterfront Site

I took these photos last Sunday (Oct. 19th), and but didn't have a chance to post them (click them to enlarge). This is the riverfront site from the viaduct bridge on Broadway near the Amtrak station. What a gorgeous view!

The demolition appears to be mostly completed now. Here is a Business Record article from May 19, discussing the start of demolition, and another Business Record article from May 23 discussing the future project tenants.

The developer, U.W. Marx, shows the vision of the Rensselaer Waterfront Development on their web site.

Doane Stuart Site

The former Van Rensselaer School at 199 Washington Ave. is crawling with construction equipment - perhaps the renovation requires some foundation work. The empty building was sold to the Doane Stuart School last month, and according to their newsletter, the school plans to start the year on the Rensselaer campus in the fall of 2009.

Doane Stuart's September 2008 Newsletter (a PDF file) shows an architectural drawing of the planned streetside view, so you can see what they're planning with the landscaping. (Think big brick wall, but not in a bad way.)

In case you missed the earlier news coverage, here is a Sept. 26 Times-Union's article about the purchase, and last week's update in the Business Review.

Schenectady Views

The "Streetscape" reconstruction of State Street in Schenectady is an award-winning project of Clough, Harbour and Associates. At last week's public forum, Schenectady's Streetscape was described as a template for the Broadway reconstruction.

Completed a few years ago, the Schenectady Project reportedly had a $12-13M budget. Rensselaer's budget is $7M, and construction costs will grow by the time the work starts. I haven't done research to compare the scope of the two projects.

These pictures of State Street show features like those planned for Rensselaer, such as historic-style lighting and small-scale plantings. Sidewalks will have a margin styled to look like historic pavers (probably pressed concrete, rather than Schenectady's real bricks).

The sidewalk will include the bump-outs that define the ends of the parking spaces and shorten the crosswalk for pedestrians. Crosswalks will have the historic paver look (of questionable aesthetic value in my opinion, as much of the brick-colored surface coating has already worn off the State Street crosswalks).

Broadway Meeting

Rensselaer residents had the opportunity to review the proposed Broadway reconstruction plans last Thursday evening. The plans were developed by Clough, Harbour & Associates, the firm which created the award-winning pedestrian bridge at the Albany riverfront. The reconstruction will take place between the Rt. 9 & 20 intersection and the railroad viaduct bridge.

The city received federal funding for this project several years ago, and $7 million is allocated (the city must contribute 5% itself). Reconstruction plans have the following objectives: improve pavement condition, upgrade municipal utilities to support future development, improve safety at intersections, accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists, improve aesthetics with plantings, historic style paving and lighting, and minimize impact of construction on property owners.

After the public comment period ends on Oct. 31, the design report will be finalized and sent to the appropriate agencies for approvals. Final design approval is anticipated by the summer of 2009, and detailed plans will be developed over the following winter. Construction should begin in 2010, and will take 2 full seasons, as they can only close a single lane at a time for work.

Discussions at the meeting revolved around traffic flow versus pedestrian safety, and why there were no plans to bury the power lines (it wouldn’t be covered by the grant, and is therefore cost-prohibitive). Here is a picture of the Rt. 9 & 20 end of Broadway on Oct. 18. (Sure would be nice to bury those lines… maybe other funding sources could be explored.)

This Times Union article announcing the past meeting gives an overview of the project. I haven’t found any follow-up articles.

Broadway Face-Lift

At 6pm, Thursday Oct. 16, there will be an information session at Rensselaer City Hall [62 Washington St.] to review options for the reconstruction of Broadway, as part of Rensselaer's waterfront redevelopment. See the article in the Times-Union: Forum to Focus on Rensselaer Road Plan.