New York state has started restoration work on the historic Guy Park Manor along the Erie Canal and Mohawk River in the City of Amsterdam. The structure, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was severely damaged by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee.
New York State Power Authority Interim President Justin Driscoll says the $36 million multi-year reconstruction project will create a more resilient structure that is safe for the public. Driscoll spoke with WAMC’s Jim Levulis.
Driscoll: Well, the key component of it is the restoration of Guy Park Manor, which was severely damaged by Hurricane Irene and Lee. And so the project includes that, which is basically creating a more resilient structure, but also, you know, modernizing it and making it available to the community here. As you know, it sits right alongside the canal. And so that's a key part of the project. But also equally important is some improvements to the movable dam structure that currently is only accessible by Canal Corporation staff people, but we're going to make some improvements to that so that the residents can cross over the canal and access the the Empire State Trail.
Levulis: To the point of the community being able to have greater access to this area, I understand the manor is going to become sort of an educational center, is that correct?
Driscoll: Environmental educational facility. And there will be park like features around the building as well. So we're really excited about making that available for educational purposes as well. It's just going to be a great project. And of course, it sits on a beautiful piece of land. And it's unfortunate that it's been sitting idle since 2011. But we're excited to get it back in the hands of the community, and even in a better way.
Levulis: I think $36 million was the dollar figure. Where is that money coming from Justin?
Driscoll: So this is part of our Reimagine The Canal effort, which was launched by the Power Authority Board of Trustees. In the process of our ownership and operation of the canal system, as you know, the Canal Corporation is now a subsidiary of the Power Authority, and one of the things when we took over management was to really take a look at how we could improve the canal and make it more accessible to residents along the canal system, and also trying to upgrade it and have it be more in line with current usage patterns of the canal. So there's a lot of great recreational activity that's taking place along the canal. So this is part of that and our board authorized expenditure of funds towards the Reimagine efforts. So the funds will come out of that, essentially an appropriation by our board of trustees at the Power Authority and the Canal Corporation.
Levulis: You mentioned the Reimagine The Canals effort, this is part of it. What are some of the other major elements of that really statewide plan?
Driscoll: So it has several components along the entire canal system. In Western New York, we've opened up additional fishing opportunities and irrigation facilitation for agriculture use and farming. We, along the entire canal system, are doing lighting projects. We did a really great lighting project of a bridge across the canal in Fairport. And in the eastern part of the canal, we're looking at trying to improve water flows and try to prevent flooding to the extent we can, so that's a piece of it as well. There's camping, there’s the On the Canals program which includes kayaking. There's a number of improvements that we're looking to make, some are already in flight. Some have completed and many more we're looking at down the road.
