Big new Albany residential construction project get OK to move ahead
An elevation for the Pearl Street side of the project.
The plan to build a new 100-unit residential project at 760 Broadway in Albany got the OK to move ahead about the city planning board Wednesday evening.
The has been making its way through the planning process since this past January. Details related to storm water management at the site had been the last item to be squared away before site plan approval. (The project will include the installation of a new sewer line that will keep storm water out of the city's combined sewer.)
In the wider picture of the ongoing boom in downtown Albany residential, the 760 Broadway project is notable because it and another project at 191 N. Pearl Street (18 units) are the first new-construction residential projects in the downtown/Warehouse District area in many years. (Though if you consider the Sheridan Hollow neighborhood as being downtown, the Habitat/Housing Visions redevelopment project would also qualify.)
Here are a few more details about 760 Broadway...
Developer
The company behind 760 Broadway is Fairbank Properties, which has been involved with the residential conversions of the former school building at 27 Western Ave (across from Washington Park) and the Arcade Building on Broadway downtown.
(Fairbank Properties has also been gutting the building at 27 N. Pearl, on the corner with Maiden Lane, downtown. It's the building with the mural on the temporary plywood. Fairbank's David Sarraf said they don't have a specific plan for that building yet because they're waiting on how things look after the internal demolition.)
Building details
+ The site is currently a parking lot between Broadway and Pearl Street, roughly across from the US Post Office facility on Broadway. It's in that in-between area between the downtown Albany commercial district and the Warehouse District.
+ Five stories on the Broadway side, three on the Pearl Street side
+ Total building square footage is roughly 190,000 -- residential space is about 120,000
+ 100 residential units
+ Mix of units is 20 studios / 60 one-bedrooms / 20 two-bedrooms
+ Approximately 100 parking spaces under the building
+ About 2,000 square feet of street-level retail space on Broadway
Elevation for the Broadway side.
Projected rents
Rent range will be $850-$1600
Project cost
Estimate project cost is $15 million. The developers have negotiated a PILOT arrangement with the Albany IDA.
Estimate completion
David Sarraf said Wednesday evening they're looking at a completion date of the project in the spring or summer of 2018.
Also from the planning board
One other project was up before the board Wednesday evening: A plan to build a 45,000 square foot warehouse at the Port of Albany that will be used to store turbines made by GE before they're shipped on the Hudson River. The board approved its site plan. And Patrick Jordan, representing the Port of Albany, told the board the project could be completed in 3-4 months depending on various federal approvals for grants.
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Comments
It's long past time to start including some affordable units in all these new projects! Let's allow for some income diversity and offer some lower priced housing of decent quality, instead of handing out tax breaks to a small number of developers. And also include a few larger units, such as 3 bedrooms, so families could live there, if they wished to do so.
... said Peter on Oct 8, 2016 at 5:37 PM | link
Dear Peter, I appreciate your concern and I understand it completely. Is there not enough low income housing in Albany already? I have driven and searched extensively thru the surrounding areas and see NOTHIN BUT low income housing projects and other affordable apartments and housing stock. Not sure there is any lack of "diversity" in the area....in fact I think it is too heavy with low income to be a thriving area. I really must say that the areas of Delmar and Loudonville and other nearby areas seem to be lacking the affordability and diversity that you are seeking. Should we not approach the developers and politicians in the areas to do more?
... said BS on Oct 9, 2016 at 5:19 PM | link
BS,
I'm talking decent quality housing, not antique, poorly maintained units full of lead paint. Sure, Delmar, Loudonville, and other suburbs could use affordable multifamily housing as well. One does not have to preclude the other.
... said Peter on Oct 11, 2016 at 10:05 PM | link
This is just what the Doctor order!!! Beautiful, can't wait!
... said Anythings Possible on Mar 11, 2017 at 10:47 PM | link
I agree about the low-income housing aspect, but we also need decent moderate income housing with rents in the range of $600-$800 per month that people/families making $35,000-$50,000 a year could afford. It's sad that Habitat for Humanity is now our nation's provider of low-income housing as the federal government has given up on it. Prisons are the only new public housing being built now. The suburbs need affordable housing more than the city itself, however, which is already overburdened. We should have policies like Montgomery County, MD which mandates that 20 percent of all units in every jurisdiction (including wealthy enclaves) be affordable.
... said Paul on Mar 13, 2017 at 8:49 AM | link