What next after fire destroys old Doane Stuart building?
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Whether you remember it as the former Kenwood convent or Doane Stuart school on March 23rd, 2023, the Albany skyline forever changed when a fire destroyed the historical site. The blaze left behind a nasty scar on the property and a community in shock. It's been two years since this massive fire destroyed a part of the city's history and the cause is still under investigation.
There are differing opinions on how to preserve the land and remaining structures. Bill Bradow, Co-Founder of Kenwood Preserve said, “The main building from the mid-19th century was destroyed, but the earliest buildings on the site are still here and there's other buildings. The city has this listed as vacant land. It's not, there's eight buildings on the property.”
The co-founder said the group was created just after the fire and he has been following the development of the site for nearly two decades now. He's getting a lot more interest, as seen in a petition, to preserve not only the historic buildings that remain after the fire but also to create a nature trail that’s accessible to the public in the surrounding greenspace. “We put together a petition and within a matter of days we had 1500 signatures. Right now, it's right about 2000 signatures.” Brandow said the idea is to create a win-win situation. He went on to state, “To get that win-win, someone has to take the next move.”
That next move might be a multi-million-dollar redevelopment. Renderings provided by Guild Ventures, the company now responsible for redeveloping, show the transformation and how the architecture reflects the original building. A spokesperson with Guild Ventures said, “Guild is actively planning a mixed-use development anchored in high tech. We’re aggressively marketing this site and continuing pre-development work. As we work, we are mindful of the region’s pursuit of high-tech economic development, efforts we hope to compliment while honoring the site’s history and giving the people of Albany something of which they can be proud. We are fortunate our investors have a long-term view and want to take the time required to get this right. We are fully committed to the site and purposely aren’t rushing into anything. We are taking the time required to get it right because we believe so strongly in this property’s transformational potential for the City of Albany.”
But Brandow says the longer the wait, the more damage that can be done. He explained, “I get it. It's not an easy property to secure, totally. But not a lot of effort, here.”
The Albany Police Department and the Albany County Sheriff’s office confirm nearly half a dozen calls to the site for property checks and loud music.
That same representative for Guild said if all goes well shovels could break ground sometime this year with a price tag of about 250 million dollars for the project.