Hudson River Heritage Center
Development Project Announced

NY State will spend $500,000 to plan a
major tourism and education center
along the South Troy Riverfront

Thursday, October 23, 2003 Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno announced that he secured $500,000 in state funds for a master plan for the Hudson River Heritage Center, a $470 million redevelopment project to turn the south Troy waterfront into a major tourism and education center for the greater Capital Region.

"This project will combine history, education, recreation and entertainment to turn the Troy waterfront into an exciting tourist destination for the entire Northeast and serve as a magnet for businesses and a catalyst for new job creation and economic development," Senator Bruno said. "The developers of this project have outlined a bold vision and the investment of state dollars will help turn that vision into reality."

"The waterfront project will be a unique, dynamic new regional destination and a compelling gateway symbol for the Capital Region that will celebrate the Hudson River’s past, present and future," John Hannigan, a managing member of the Hudson River Group, and the developer of the project, said. "The project will be a signature destination for tourists and will have a major economic impact on the entire Capital Region and we greatly appreciate Senator Bruno’s support of our efforts."

Members of the Hudson River Group have previous experience in planning and developing the revitalization of the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Faneuil Hall in Boston and the Adriaen’s Landing waterfront project in Hartford.

The Troy project, which is modeled after the Adriaens’s Landing development in Hartford, will include replicas of historical ships, a hotel-conference center, marina, restaurants, shops and fresh water habitat exhibit, will be located along the Hudson River on 35 acres of land in the northern end of south Troy, adjacent to Sage College. The land is designated as a New York State Empire Zone.

The waterfront project will include the following elements:

• The Hudson River Heritage Center ($106 million);
  
• "Smart building" and state of the art energy technology ($100 million);
  
• World class hotel and conference center ($65 million);
  
• New harbor with full service marina ($35 million);
  
• Entertainment and neighborhood retail shopping facilities ($95 million);
  
• Festival and Park space ($25 million);
  
• The project will be adjacent to the Upper Hudson River and Estuaries Satellite facility in partnership with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

It’s projected that the total project will employ 650 people; will attract 1.5 million visitors in its first year and will have an estimated net economic impact of $48 million. Developers plan to have the project completed by 2008, in time for the Quadrennial Anniversary of Henry Hudson’s voyage up the river in 1609.

According to the Hudson River Group, the Hudson River Heritage Center will feature the Hall of Ships. The Hall will be a 300,000 square foot building that will house full size, interactive replicas of four ships with historical ties to the Capital Region, including:

1. The Fortune - A 17th century Dutch/English Flute Ship used in commerce and trade on the Hudson;
2. The Experiment, an 18th century sloop that was the first ship to sail from America to China, making the voyage from Albany to China in 1785;
3. The Monitor, a 19th century Civil War battleship clad with iron made in Troy; and
4. The USS Albany, a nuclear submarine, soon to be decommissioned.

The replica ships will also be the focus of a unique educational program designed in consultation with the United States Navy. The program, to be named The Commodore John Barry Academy, will train high school students how to operate the ships in the exhibit. John Barry was the nation’s first Commodore and trained sailors in the first U.S. Navy.

The Harbor at Troy

Another major part of the project will be The Harbor at Troy, which will feature a hotel and conference center to accommodate visitors from throughout the Northeast and the rest of the nation. The harbor will also include retail shops and restaurants, entertainment facilities, a harbor and full service marina, a waterfront park and recreational greenway to make it a recreational and entertainment destination for people in the greater Capital Region.

The Center will also feature a fresh water habitat and aquarium with species of fish and plants indigenous to the Hudson River. The habitat will trace the Hudson from its origins by Mount Marcy to the sea and will include a $44 million, state of the art, river monitoring system.

The habitat and monitoring work at the Hudson River Heritage project will complement the efforts at the upper Hudson satellite office of the Rivers and Estuaries Center. The Center was announced last April by Governor George Pataki and will be adjacent to the Heritage project. The Satellite Center will be dedicated to advancing the understanding of rivers, estuaries and their watersheds through integrated, collaborative research and education designed to guide policy for conservation and management of these natural systems, from the Hudson River to the rivers and estuaries of the world.

Research at the upper Hudson satellite office of the Rivers and Estuaries Center will be directed by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy. Rensselaer conducts fresh water research for Adirondack lakes as the Darrin Fresh Water Institute at Bolton Landing.

The $500,000 announced by Senator Bruno comes from money in the state Environmental Protection Fund for Rensselaer Waterfront development. In addition, the project will receive funding from grants awarded to the City of Troy, including $100,000 from the Troy Redevelopment Foundation and $100,000 from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development for brownfield remediation. An additional $225,000 from the state Environmental Protection Fund will go towards bike paths and greenway space adjacent to the project in south Troy.

"This initiative is a manifestation of years of planning for the Troy Waterfront," Troy Mayor Mark P. Pattison, said. "It represents a new vision of the Waterfront and a new vision for the economy of Troy."

"The Hudson River Heritage project represents the melding of research, education, and economic development, and will provide significant benefits and new opportunities to the citizens of Troy," said Rensselaer President Shirley Ann Jackson. "We are delighted that this project will
complement the scientific work we will conduct at the Upper Hudson Satellite Center, and that it will communicate and illustrate the Hudson River's contributions to the history and traditions of this region."