A notorious Albany eyesore has a date with the wrecking ball.
Central Warehouse, a refrigeration warehouse built in 1927, was abandoned by the 1990's. It has changed hands several times over the years. Attempts to repurpose or rehabilitate it have fallen flat.
It required emergency attention after catching fire in 2010 and again when it crumbled onto nearby railroad tracks in July 2022, forcing Amtrak to suspend passenger rail service, and prompting Mayor Kathy Sheehan to declare a state of emergency.
In the most recent attempt, after a protracted legal battle with a New York City developer, Albany County transferred ownership of the hulking 11-story building to Redburn and Columbia Development in December 2022. New York state awarded $9.75 million to kickstart redevelopment of the asbestos-laden, 70,000-square foot structure.
Developer Jeff Buell pledged to eventually deliver a mixed-use residential-commercial space and a rooftop restaurant.
This week during her state of the city address, Sheehan told Albany the concrete behemoth cannot be saved.
"The hoped for rehab of the Central Warehouse is not possible," Sheehan said. "We had to give back the grant that we received to rehab that building, we will be now applying for a grant to tear this building down. And so these present challenges, this was going to be workforce housing, that would have filled a huge need in our city, but it is not possible now."
Buell issued a statement, saying a "number of factors contributed to our inability to redevelop the Central Warehouse as proposed, including a very challenging economic climate. There sometimes is victory in defeat. And we look forward to working with our partners to get the building down and remove this blight from the skyline."
Albany County Executive Dan McCoy says he’s looking at options for the site. He says after the warehouse is brought down – hopefully using government funding – the land will be turned over to the county for redevelopment.
“Unfortunately, it was a bold idea, and it didn't work," said McCoy, who added the county is leading redevelopment efforts.
“So it's a blank canvas. So we can build something on it in the future and be more imaginative. We're going to develop that with all the stakeholders, and the city, obviously, and the business community, what best fits downtown and going into the riverfront,” McCoy said.
Earlier this year, members of the Albany County legislature called for the warehouse to be demolished in a letter to state and federal leaders. Buell, who did not respond to requests for comment, has not said when demolition might begin.
