Business eyes Church St. plots
The county Legislature has voted to sell two countyowned parcels on Church Street in the city to Albany Valve and Fitting Co. so the business can expand.
The properties, one 0.27-acre lot at 122 S. Church St. and another 0.07-acre lot at 106 S. Church St., were purchased for Schenectady County Community College in the early 2000s.
“The college never had substantive plans to use that property — it truly is surplus land,” a spokeswoman for SCCC said Friday. “They’re pleased to see it being used for economic development and like to have businesses near the college campus.”
The lots are located across from the city’s Gateway Plaza project, or the extension of the Liberty Park downtown, which is slated to be completed in 2017.
“This is something that is good for the community,” the spokeswoman added.
“The lots are vacant and in poor condition, so to reconstruct them even for parking would be very expensive,” said Ray Gillen, the commissioner of the county Department of Economic Development and Planning. The county is in the process of getting the parcels appraised. An initial appraisal that was done last year found that the lot at 122 S. Church St. was worth $45,000 and the second parcel at 106 S. Church St. was worth $17,000.
Gillen has worked with G. Thomas Selfridge, founder of Albany Valve and Fitting C., who plans to expand the company at its current site at 120 S. Church St.
By acquiring the two small lots, Gillen said Selfridge plans to expand the facility from 9,000 square feet to around 20,000 square feet.
“It’s a no-brainer,” Gillen said. “These two lots that aren’t being utilized will be appraised, sold at full value to the company, which will do something good with them, as well as put the lots back on the tax roll.”
The project was approved by the county Legislature earlier this week.
Next, the project will go to the SCCC board and then the SUNY board before returning to the county Legislature for fi nal approval.
“We hope to complete the sale to Mr. Selfridge later this year,” Gillen said.
Reach Gazette reporter Kate Seckinger at 395-3113, kseckinger@dailygazette . net or @KateSeckinger on Twitter.