Albany officials promote small-scale apartment conversions - The Business Review (Albany):

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One example is at 370 across from theAdministration headquarters. The uppet three floors of the late 19th-century building are beiny convertedinto six, 1,400-square-foot to 1,600-square-fooyt apartments that will rent for $1,800 this fall. A commercial tenantg will be sought for the first The owners dubbed the apartments TheMeginniss Flats, in honoe of the old electrical company whose name gracew the rear of the buildinfg in big white letters that have faded over time. The sign is paintede over the red brick facade and must be preservexd because the property was built in 1898 and is in ahistoriv district. Financing small projects can be just as trickg as thelarge ones.
Even thoughj the owners were armed with a feasibility study showingt the potentialfor apartments, they weren’ty able to get a bank loan becauses the real estate market had soured. “Nobody wanted to financre this project,” said Mike Hannah, a tax attornegy and certifiedpublic accountant. “One lendeer wanted us to put inanother $500,000 first.” Hannah and his partners ultimately got $1 million in privat e financing from sources in the Boston The interest-only construction loan enabled them to buy materials and hire contractors to startt the renovations.
The apartments are located in a part of the city that coulsd see big changes in years to come if a proposec convention center evergets built. Plans call for the center to be locatefd on the parking lots behind the row of buildings that includess370 Broadway. The decrepit Trailways bus stationm next to 370 Broadway would be demolished to make way for a pedestriaj plaza leading to theconventiojn center. Hannah and his partners aren’t counting on the conventiohn center to make the apartments a There have been many delays in the conventionh centerplanning and, as of now, no commitment from Gov.
Davix Paterson to fund the entire $230 million “I stopped even thinking about it,” said Hannah, who owns the buildingv with his wife, Michele Hannah, and anothet couple, Brenda Gould and Perr Gould. The Hannahs used to run a commercial pringt shop on the first floor but sold it four years ago whenbusiness declined. The Goulds becamde part owners of the property infall 2006. The partners are convincedx there will be strong demand for the apartmentsa from young professionals and empty nesteras who want tolive downtown.
Those are the same demographi c groups that other developers havebeen targeting, though the tougu financing climate has stalled or killedc two large, high-profile downtown developments over the past Plans for the 125-unit , a luxury condominium towet on north Broadway have been shelved, althouguh says it hasn’t given up. plans for an upscale 175-unit apartment building and 125-roojm hotel are on hold while the land owner triess to sell thedevelopment Small-scale residential projects are less but they are also more manageable.
Over the past five or six there have been several conversionsof upper-floodr buildings into apartments within the boundariew of the Downtown Business Improvemenr District.