The New York Army National Guard cut the ribbon Friday on a new Field Maintenance Shop in Troy. The nearly $17 million, 18,000 square-foot facility replaces a more than 50-year-old facility at the armory.
The garage was designed to serve 1,500 of the National Guard’s vehicles with modern equipment and enhanced storage space.
WAMC caught up with New York State Office of General Services Commissioner Jeanette Moy about the project and other events the office is undertaking:
We are opening up this field facility out here in Troy. It's a project that we are very proud to have completed six months ahead of time on behalf of the National Guard.
How did it get completed so quickly?
A lot of focus. It's a lot of coordination. The Office of General Services provides a lot of design and construction activities. We work with our vendors and our partners. DMA [Division of Military and Naval Affairs] makes good and fast decisions very quickly. Our teams were absolutely incented to get this up and ready for the next ready for the National Guard as soon as possible.
A little more about just other things OGS is doing, Capitol hauntings tour. Can you talk a little bit about that?
Oh yes, we're pretty excited the Capitol haunting tours. It's always a great time. The Capitol Building is beautiful. It's historic. We've finally just reopened the Hawk Street passage, so it's a great opportunity to see and learn not just about New York history, but to get a little scared as you walk through and think about that past fire in the Capitol building. And, you know, get a little spooked. Time enjoy the season.
Have you done it yet?
Oh, absolutely. I mean, we've walked through a number of times. It's one of my favorite things to do with the kids.
And this summer, the office announced the $100 million plan to decarbonize the Empire State Plaza. Can you talk a little bit about how that's going and kind of what the outlook for that is?
Oh no, absolutely. So, it's one of the things that we're most proud of this year. $100 million worth of funding is going to allow us to be able to dramatically reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that happen right in downtown Albany. And so, we're going to be looking to convert more electric chillers. We're looking to do a heat recovery chiller, which allows us to experiment with different types of technology, and it is a great way to start this process of decarbonizing. Our first phase of work and our second phase have already started from a design perspective. So, we're hoping to release RFPs in the near future. It's going to allow us to be able to have better air quality for residents in the Arbor Hill area, residents in Sheridan Hollow. It's something that OGS has been very focused on, and the administration and Governor Hochul have made a top priority.
Will this expand to other state buildings like the State campus up the road from the Empire Plaza? Is there plans for that?
Yes, absolutely. So as part of the work that we're doing in partnership with NYPA, we're looking at decarbonizing 15 of the State campuses, and OGS has two of them, one being the Harriman campus, and one being the Empire State Plaza. So, we had already been working on energy efficiency efforts. We've been trying to lower emissions and lower our energy usage. So, we definitely had a lot of the work in place prior to even launching the decarbonization plan. Harriman, that study is actively underway, and we're looking forward to those outcomes.
And do when do you expect that study to be completed?
Hopefully in the very near future, I think it's going to be the next year or so, but those are the targets. NYPA has been working very closely with us. They're going to be using a lot of our energy studies and the work that we've already done with them to date. So, we're looking forward to getting a great strategic plan together for the Harriman campus.
And lastly, Diwali celebration coming up New York is pretty big on celebrating a lot of different cultures. What is that going to look like?
Oh, you know, this is the first time that OGS has done a program like this. We've got a great staffer who has really been taking the lead on bringing community organizations in. I believe they're going to be some fireworks and be performances. There's going to be food, and we're very excited to sort of broaden out the types of programs that we're doing at the Empire State Plaza, so that all communities in the area feel welcome. So, you know, if you haven't been a part of a Diwali celebration, this is a time to do it. It's a great way to celebrate right in the Capital Region.
