News
August 4, 2016Downtown Albany Residential Open House Announced
The Downtown Albany Business Improvement District (BID) announces its Residential Open House will take place on Friday, August 12 from 4:00 – 7:00 PM. An event for those who are looking to rent in Downtown, or who simply want to see the development taking place in Albany’s newest neighborhood, participants will step inside available units in eight residential properties. Attendees can pick up their maps at Tricentennial Park (Broadway and Columbia Street) before heading off on their free, self-guided tour.
Residential properties participating in the event include: Beaver Lofts (83 Beaver Street), 370 Broadway, 374 Broadway, 412 Broadway, The Lofts at 733 Broadway (733 Broadway), 50 S Pearl Street, Park Place at Sixty State (60 State Street), and 20 Park Street. Attendees will be among the first members of the public to have access to the newly constructed 20 Park Street and 50 S Pearl Street apartments; these two projects alone add 90 additional units to the growing residential market within the District.
“Downtown’s transformation continues as vacant commercial space is developed into highly sought after apartments,” said Mayor Kathy M. Sheehan. “These conversions allow people to live in the midst of Albany’s historic architecture and culture in one of Albany’s most walkable neighborhoods.”
With the existing 340 new market-rate residential units in and directly adjacent to the District boasting a 97% occupancy, desire to live Downtown has developers working on new projects to meet demand. An additional 111 units are expected to come online in early fall 2016, and 230 units are in the pipeline; those numbers fit well within the results of a Zimmerman Folk study on residential market potential commissioned by the Downtown Albany BID, which showed that the area should be able to support 100-200 new market-rate units annually through 2018.
Typically attributed to millennials’ interest in urban living, populations in metro areas have recently begun increasing for the first time in 50 years according to the 2010 U.S. Census. In part due to that shift in mindset, downtown Albany is in the midst of transforming from the perception of a daytime employee-driven corridor to the city’s fastest growing neighborhood. Downtown is also benefiting from a regional trend; in 2015 building permits for multi-family units outpace single-family units for the first time in over three decades, according to a Capital District Regional Planning Commission report. Thanks to these factors, and a concerted effort by the public and private sectors to utilize and rethink uninhabited properties, Downtown is becoming home to young professionals, retirees, and everyone in between.
“The renaissance of Downtown continues, and while millennials may be the leaders in this drive to live in metro areas, our community is comprised of a broad spectrum of residents who are excited to engage the shopping, dining, entertainment in our District,” said Georgette Steffens, executive director of the Downtown Albany BID. “Developers are just as eager to breathe new life into these historic buildings, and offering the kind of details in their units you won’t find in new construction.”
Happening on the same night as the Residential Open House is the Downtown Albany BID’s Fork in the Road. Taking place 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM in Tricentennial Park (Broadway and Columbia Street), the event will feature food trucks, vendors and live music. For more information on the events and downtown Albany residential, visit downtownalbany.org.
