Plattsburgh was one of the first cities to be awarded a $10 million New York State Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant. The primary area that will be redeveloped is a large parking lot one block from the center city adjacent to the Saranac River. A developer recently revealed a proposed $25 million multi-use plan for the nearly five-acre site. Mayor Colin Read tells WAMC’s North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley he is hopeful construction work can begin soon.
“For that part of the downtown revitalization the developer believes that if things go well he can complete their end within about 20 months. Some of that still requires state contracting. As you know with state programs there’s an awful lot of criteria that we have to meet. But we’re looking to really see things done by later this year or early next year and completion in a couple years. And I think that will be transformational if we get those 125 new households living downtown on a year-round basis to really reverse the decline in the property tax base. Remember the city of Plattsburgh has 5 square miles and we’re kind of landlocked in that way. We don’t have much room or any room to expand. The only thing that we can do is make those 5 square miles more valuable over time.”
Plattsburgh Mayor Colin Read is a Democrat serving his first term.