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SCHENECTADY
Hotel has no problem filling rooms
Hampton Inn officials pleased with bookings so far
BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter

   The rule of thumb is that it takes 12 months for a new hotel to take off. But when it comes to Schenectady’s latest, it took less than 12 days.
   The weekend after the Hampton Inn opened, nearly every room was filled, according to a hotel official. Now it looks as if that wasn’t an anomaly: Bookings have stayed strong in the five weeks since then, Chief Operating Officer Greg Schahet said at Wednesday’s official grand opening.
   Two weekends ago, the hotel nearly sold out again, renting 86 of its 93 rooms, Schahet said.
   Weekdays are big too — 68 rooms were rented Tuesday, mostly to business travelers, he said.
   There has been one disappointment. The hotel has not turned out to be a hot destination for parents heading to the Union College graduation this weekend. Only 24 rooms have been booked so far.
   “We think that’s because most of them make reservations a year in advance,” Schahet said, noting that the Holiday Inn is sold out. His family also owns that hotel.
   He’s hoping to pick up some lastminute reservations, but one slow weekend won’t hurt him. Things are already going much better than expected.
   “Generally the rule is it takes a year to ramp up, so we’re excited,” he said. “We’ve had a couple of real busy weekends. A couple nights were very close to selling out. The indications are pointing to us being pretty successful here.”
   Right now, rooms are going for about $149 a night, although the prices drop when most rooms are empty and rise when the hotel starts to fill up.
   The Hampton brand’s claim to fame is deluxe accommodations, so the hotel boasts pillowtop mattresses, flat-screen high-definition televisions and free Internet access. They even provide a computer if you don’t bring your own.
   Photographs of Schenectady decorate the inn, ranging from a view of the lighted train bridge over State Street to a shot of the Central Park rose garden.
   The only jarring view is the one from the hotel’s breakfast nook. There, early risers have a perfect view of the four derelict buildings across the street.
   Schahet acknowledged that he wouldn’t be happy if he thought his guests would be stuck looking at those crumbling buildings for years.
   “I’m not worried because I’ve been told change is coming,” he said. “We knew there were other things in the works.”
   At the grand opening ceremony, County Legislator Gary Hughes said a plan for the buildings would be announced within weeks.
   That plan involves relocating Pizza King, the only remaining business there. The owner originally refused to move until his lease expires in 2011, but he recently agreed to consider other options. He wants to move two blocks down, to the State Street storefront currently rented by Nextel.

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SCHENECTADY
Metroplex eyes last 5 buildings
Project aimed at final undeveloped downtown block
BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter

   The Metroplex Development Authority plans to purchase the property at 453 State St., allowing it to proceed with a project to transform the final undeveloped block of downtown into proposed retail, office and housing space.
   Metroplex board Chairman Ray Gillen said the proposed purchase would give the authority site control over five buildings and a parking lot representing 13,000 square feet. “This will give us a footprint with which to work on for retail,” Gillen said.
   Metroplex is close to announcing a deal that will encompass four buildings on the block: 453, 457-459, 463 and 469 State St., plus a parking lot at 150 Clinton St. In the past, he said, the goal has been to add retail along the first floor of buildings and place offices and lofts on the upper floors.
   A fifth building at 447-451 State St. is reserved for the LaSartoria, an upscale men’s and women’s clothing store that is under construction.
   “The goal is to complete the restoration of the Proctor’s block,” a designation that includes both sides of State Street between Broadway and Clinton Street, Gillen said. The Proctor’s side of State Street is already under development.
   Metroplex plans to purchase 453 State St. for $250,000. It purchased the other buildings in 2005 for $800,000.
   Metroplex will use $1.4 million it received from the state’s Restore New York Program toward redeveloping the buildings at 453, 457-459, 463 and 469 State St. and the Clinton Street parking lot. The money may be used for demolition, renovation or other efforts to restore urban neighborhoods.
   Metroplex is looking at three options for the four buildings, according to its state Environmental Quality Review Act statement: renovate the existing structures, partially demolish and rebuild the facilities or demolish and build a new structure.
   The first two options, the SEQR statement said, do not provide Metroplex with the best uses for the site because the buildings require massive renovations and repairs and are not aligned with one another. The third option, the statement said, “integrates the structure with neighboring structures.”
   Gillen said the amount of leasable space in the existing Camaj, operator of Pizza King at 469 State St. Metroplex has asked Camaj to leave the building as part of the renovation project.
   Camaj has refused, saying he wants to stay in the building until his lease expires in 2011. He opened his pizza shop 19 years ago.
   Gillen said Metroplex provided Camaj with a hand-delivered offer, which he called “fair.”
   Camaj referred calls to his attorney, Donald Zee, Wednesday night. Zee’s phone number was not in service. “My lawyer was supposed to be there tonight [at the Metroplex meeting]. Talk to him,” Camaj said.
   Gillen said the offer has Metroplex making up the difference between the price Camaj is currently paying for rent at 469 State St. and what he would pay if he relocated to another site on State Street or returned to a restored building at the same site. The agreement would run through 2011.
   “He has known this was coming since 2005,” Gillen said. “The status quo is not an option. It is not a gentrification or a David and Goliath issue. Some are also trying to make this a political issue.”
   Board member David Sterman said the “bottom line is if you look at the buildings, you know something needs to be done.”
   The buildings are opposite the new Hampton Inn and can be seen from the hotel’s atrium. Board member Brad Lewis said the buildings are eyesores featuring peeling blue paint and corrugated metal siding.
   Board member Gary McCarthy said, “Nobody is trying to hurt anyone. We are trying to create better value, but there will be some inconveniences.” buildings is “nil.”
   Frederick Killeen owns 453 State St., a three-story building containing 2,750 square feet. The building has no windows on its upper floors, which have not been used in years. The last tenant on the first floor was a church.
   The Metroplex board also reviewed its discussions with Jon  

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Towns in Schenectady County Receive Increased Funding from  Metroplex


May 25, 2007 - Schenectady County officials today announced that the Towns in Schenectady County received record disbursements in 2006 from the portion of the sales tax each municipality receives from Metroplex.  

Susan E. Savage, Chair of the Schenectady County Legislature said, "As more and more economic development projects come on line in our County, we see increased sales tax payments, increased jobs and more commercial tax base."  

Metroplex receives ½ of one percent of the County sales tax.  30% of this amount is reserved for the Towns and sent directly to them by the County Finance office.  The remaining 70% stays with Metroplex and is used to help finance economic development projects that in turn create additional sales and property tax.

In 2006, the Towns in Schenectady County received record disbursements from the sales tax collected by Metroplex.  All of the Towns received more than in any previous year since the sales tax for Metroplex was instituted in 1999.

The results for 2006 are as follows along with total funding received since 1999:  

Rotterdam -- $1,032,303 in 2006 up from $1,013,840 in 2005.  $7.791 million received since 1999.

Princetown  -- $77,840 up from $76,448 in 2005.  $579,856 received since 1999.

Niskayuna  -- $739,786 up from $726,555 in 2005.  $5.5 million received since 1999.

Village of Scotia -- $290,045 up from $284,858 in 2005.   $2.15 million received since 1999.

Glenville  -- $737,315 up from $724,128 in 2005.  $5.64 million received since 1999.

Delanson -- $13,900 up from $13,651 in 2005.  $103,427 received  since 1999.

Duanesburg  -- $197,688 up from $194,152.  $1.47 million received since 1999.  

Total -- $3,088,877 in 2006.  $23.23 million received by Towns since 1999.

In addition to this funding, Towns are benefiting directly from Metroplex's role as part of the County's unified economic development program.  This effort has helped Schenectady County for the first time develop a network of smart growth business parks and shovel ready sites in Rotterdam, Glenville and Niskayuna.  Projects like Railex in Rotterdam bring new jobs and property tax revenue to the Towns, local school districts and the County.  In addition, the Towns benefit from the fact that the City has made available Empire Zone benefits to projects in the Towns helping the entire County win more projects, jobs and tax base.

"One of the major myths about our economic development effort is that it is strictly focused on downtown.  The reality is that the Towns get direct funding from Metroplex and they are benefiting from a unified economic development effort which is coordinated by the County," said Ray Gillen Metroplex Chair and County Commissioner of Economic Development and Planning.  

Since the County's new unified economic development program was put in place three years ago, the Towns have benefited from $117 million in new projects including:

Rotterdam -- $52.5 million

Glenville -- $22.2 million

Niskayuna -- $42 million

Princetown --$1 million

A complete list of Town projects can be found at http://www.schenectadymetroplex.org/click on Report to County Legislature.  

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SCHENECTADY
MVP building is eyed for apartments
Former courthouse to get face-lift for commercial tenant
BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter
Reach Gazette reporter Michael Lamendola at 395-3114 or lamend@dailygazette.com.

   A private developer said he will invest $2.5 million to convert the former MVP Health Care building on Liberty Street into luxury apartments and restore the facade of the former courthouse on Union Street.
   Building owner Reza Mahoutchian, president of Maxim Engineering of Clifton Park, said he will create 32 high-end apartments in former MVP office space and would like to place a commercial business in the former courthouse. He expects to complete the conversion in 2008, he said.
   “The apartments will have stateof-the art amenities and will rent for $1,150 per month and higher. We will market some of them as condominiums,” Mahoutchian said.
   The building fronts Union Street in the Stockade with a rear entrance on Liberty Street. It contains 43,000 square feet. MVP vacated the building in 2001 when it moved to its new headquarters at State Street and Nott Terrace.
   The apartments will contain between one and four bedrooms. “It seems like we never run out of high-end clients. The nicer we make them, the more people want them,” Mahoutchian said.
   Mahoutchian currently manages 62 apartments in Schenectady, mostly in the Stockade, he said. “Almost all of our tenants commute. … They get a better deal here,” he said.
   The Union Street side of the courthouse has a Greek revival facade and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Mahoutchian said. He will restore the facade with state assistance and would like to locate a day spa in the building, he said.
   “I have no tenant for it yet,” he said. “I’m contemplating a day spa. We think it would be excellent for the building.”
   The Metroplex Development Authority will provide Mahoutchian with a $100,000 loan at 4 percent interest and a $60,000 facade grant to support the courthouse renovation. Metroplex will also sell Mahoutchian a small parking lot next to the Liberty Street building off lower State Street for $75,000.
   “Maxim Engineering has a proven track record, and we look forward to working with them to restore a key building downtown,” Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen said.
   Mahoutchian said he bought the building last year with the intent of renovating. “My concern is to keep the Union Street side of the building accessible to the public,” he said.
   He has renovated numerous buildings in the Stockade already, including those at 4, 6 and 210 Union St., which are often featured on the Stockade Walkabout.
   He currently is renovating 613 Union St., he said. Following renovations, the building will be included in the Stockade Historic District, the first historic district in New York state. Inclusion of the building in the Stockade Historic District fulfills a long-standing goal of the Schenectady Heritage Foundation and the Stockade Neighborhood Association, Gillen said.  

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The apartments will contain between one and four bedrooms. “It seems like we never run out of high-end clients. The nicer we make them, the more people want them,” Mahoutchian said.

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Pizza King is ready to move
  
By JENNIFER PATTERSON, Staff writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
Monday, June 25, 2007

SCHENECTADY -- The Pizza King is ready to deliver himself to a new location.
  
John Camaj is close to an agreement to move his pizza parlor to another spot on State Street.

Camaj said he was ready to go, but saddened to leave 469 State St., the only location his business has ever had.

``I guess that I won, but I lost my dream, because to own and preserve the property and my business here is what I dream about,'' Camaj said. ``Everybody's happy with the way things are working out, but for me, I will always be sad because I spent so much time here.''

The owner of Camaj's current location, the Metroplex Development Authority, wants to demolish 469 State St. and several other neighboring buildings. The taxpayer-funded authority has agreed to make up the difference between Camaj's current $1,400-a-month lease and any increased rent at the new location.

Camaj's attorney, Donald Zee, declined to say where on State Street the business will relocate to, though it is expected that the business will move into a storefront across the street from Proctor's Theatre and Movieland Cinema.

``We've worked out with Metroplex conceptual floor plans for a new location,'' Zee said. ``Hopefully in a few days, we'll be able to sign some documents and make it final.''

The owner of Camaj's current location, the Metroplex Development Authority, wants Camaj to move so they can renovate the building. Camaj had resisted a move, but continued to negotiation with Metroplex for the past month. Camaj and the authority reached a tentative agreement on Friday.

Metroplex bought 469 State St. and four other properties for $800,000 with plans to convert the properties into modern structures.

The authority is leading efforts to convert downtown into a dining and entertainment district. It's put money behind a movie theater, expansion of Proctor's Theatre and several eateries.

Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen said the authority has given Camaj a written offer, promising to cover any rent increase he might face if he moves to a new location.

Gillen insisted the renovation of the 469 State St. building where Camaj has his current operation will make it impossible for a restaurant to remain during construction.

Gillen declined to discuss the deal today.

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Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen said the authority has given Camaj a written offer, promising to cover any rent increase he might face if he moves to a new location