A project to renovate Albany’s Empire State Plaza is one of many being backed by a $400 million state investment included in this year’s New York state budget to help reimagine the capital city. The state Office of General Services is collecting public input on suggested changes.
Mathew DiGennaro was one of about 50 people who attended a public workshop on the Corning Tower’s observation deck this week.
“I just wanted to see what they were thinking,” DiGennaro said.
The workshop was part of a series called “Reconnect the Empire State Plaza” and was held open-floor style, with residents walking around a half-circle of poster boards displaying renderings of renovation ideas for several aspects of the plaza.
Ideas included options for renovating the Madison Avenue entrance, the Central Plaza pools and the concourse.
The Office of General Services, or OGS, is leading the $25 million project.
That money represents a portion of the $400 million in state funding backing Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Championing Albany’s Potential initiative, or CAP — a state-led effort to revitalize downtown.
The CAP initiative also sets aside $40 million to improve access to the Hudson River waterfront along I-787 and $150 million for cultural projects, including renovating the New York State Museum on Madison Avenue. It also includes nearly $200 million specifically to help redevelop downtown Albany.
Part of the reimagining includes revamping the plaza, once the site of a neighborhood that was razed in the 1960s to create the present-day state office and entertainment complex.
OGS Commissioner Jeanette Moy said the ideas were created using public input gathered from a survey and the first public workshop.
“1,900 individuals have taken part in our survey. We had a couple hundred individuals who participated in our first public forum, which was down in the concourse,” Moy said.
Moy said a few common themes have emerged.
“Folks have a hard time navigating. It can feel confusing: ‘Am I invited? Should I be here?’ And then also a desire for green space. I think particularly in a historic city like Albany, opportunities for green space are really important, and thinking about the plaza as a public commons is important for all of us,” Moy said.
During Tuesday’s workshop, attendees were given stickers to place on renderings to signify their favorites.
Some ideas included replacing the Central Plaza pools with green space, reimagining the Biggs Laboratory as a public art gallery or a branch of the Albany Public Library system, and transforming the Cornerstone area into a restaurant or café.
DiGennaro said he thought many of the ideas were “pretty cool,” even if some may be far-fetched.
“I wasn’t expecting to see replacing the pools, but overall, it was cool to see that ultimately the aim has been to get more access — to get people onto the space,” DiGennaro said.
The 29-year-old, who walks by the plaza every day, said he would like better access in the winter.
“You can’t cross it in the winter. If you want to go from Madison Avenue to Central, you either have to drive or walk 15 minutes around it. I would like to see the ability to walk across it in the winter and some easier ways to access it from the State Street-Central Avenue section,” DiGennaro said.
Diane Eber, executive director of The Egg, said she is excited about the brainstorming.
Eber said The Egg, a performing arts space on the plaza, needs the space to be a vibrant, thriving community fixture to succeed.
“We need the plaza to feel lively, bustling, connected. Right now, it’s pretty hard to figure out where to go, how to engage. There is so much potential — the architecture is stunning — but we need more warmth, more life,” Eber said.
She said accessibility needs improvement.
“It shouldn’t feel like a headache: ‘Ugh, should we go there? Ugh, I don’t know where we’re going to park, how do you get there?’ I even have people who work at The Egg who, on their first day, can’t figure out how to find our offices or how to enter The Egg,” Eber said.
Commissioner Moy said input gathered from both public workshops will be used to develop and implement a final renovation plan.
“We’re going to start listening to the feedback from the public about what they like and what they don’t like. We’re going to try to refine those priorities and see what fits into $25 million, and what should be incorporated into a broader plan,” Moy said.
