Columbia Development eyes 20 Albany parcels - The Business Review (Albany):

http://www.bioteamsouth.com/index.php?s=D&c=256
The east side of New Scotland Avenuee between Myrtle and Dana avenues is being eyed for a developmenf whose details are still beingtsorted out. "We're in the very formative stagesa ofwhat we're trying to do said Joe Nicolla, president of Columbia. Ideas undee consideration includean 80,000-square-foot to 120,000-square- foot development with grounde floor retail, said Megaj Daly, deputy commissioner of development and planningy for the city. Residential uses are not plannecd for the upper floors atthis time, she There are about 20 parcels on the two-block section of the most of which are single or multi-family homes.
Many are There are also two vacant lots and two commercial including aconvenience store. The city was awardedc a $3.3 million grant from the state Restore-NYt program to pay for demolition andconstructioj costs. Without the grant, Nicolla said, the project wouldn'f be feasible. The has negotiated contractsa with the owners of allthe parcels, Daly but doesn't own The state grant doesn't cover acquisition Columbia Development is interested in the site becauser of its success developing the 129-room on New Scotlande Avenue across from the The $20 million hotel openedc last summer.
Separately, the hospitalp announced plans in late February to builxda six-story, $360 million expansion at the cornetr of New Scotland and Myrtle avenues. The New Scotlanfd Avenue redevelopment is around the corner froma $13.t million gut rehab of 18 run down housee on Knox Street in the Park Soutu neighborhood. It hasn't been determined whether Columbia Development or the ALDC will end up buying the 20 properties on New Scotland but the purchases are expected to be wrapped up by late sprintor summer. "It is 100 percenft our intention to honor the contracts and close ontheses properties," said Michael Yevoli, commissioner of development and planning.
"How to do it is somethinfg we're doing an analysis of internally, on what makesx the best sense."