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Rensselaer Co. exec wants to move county offices

Sep 10, 2018 6:00 am
Kenneth C. Crowe II is reporting for the Times Union Rensselaer County Executive Steven McLaughlin reportedly wants to move county offices from its longtime location in the former Troy High School to a modern building that could also house Troy city operations, according to a story in the Albany Business Review. The publication first reported McLaughlin’s plans to seek proposals for a new county office project September 6.  Richard Crist, a spokesman for McLaughlin, would not discuss the plans further and responded in a text, “I would just refer to the ABJ article.” The suggested move would possibly open the 2.32-acre county-owned site at 1600 Seventh Ave. for development.  It’s located along the slope and base of the hill down from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute buildings on Eighth Street. According to the Albany Business Review story, McLaughlin estimated it would cost $20 million to $30 million to build a joint government center in either the South Troy or North Central neighborhoods.  He also discussed razing the five-story brick building to clear the site for development of apartments, offices and businesses. According to one official, there had been speculation that McLaughlin wanted to move out of the county offices because he complained about the building’s condition. Minority Leader Peter Grimm, a Democrat who represents Troy, said there has been no discussion with the County Legislature about the project. Read the full story in the Times Union.