SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The City of Schenectady announced that five properties will be transferred to the Community Land Trust of Schenectady. Final approval of the property transfer is expected at the City Council meeting on December 23rd. The Land Trust received a $600,000 grant to rehab four of the properties and demolish one other.

“This grant will help us transform vacant city-owned buildings into new homes,” said Mayor Gary McCarthy. “We appreciate the grant provided by Attorney General Letitia James and Enterprise Community Partners. We look forward to using this funding to continue to invest in our neighborhoods.”

“We continue to compete for and win State funding to help our neighborhoods, said Richard Ruzzo, Chairman of the Capital Region Land Bank and member of the Schenectady County Legislature. “This keeps our blight busting, neighborhood boosting efforts moving forward.”
Two of the properties are in the City’s Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area (NRSA) and three are within the City’s Mont Pleasant Renewal Area. This initiative will complement ongoing efforts by the City and the Capital Region Land Bank to repair or demolish blighted buildings, helping to boost neighborhoods, McCarthy added.

The following properties are targeted for renovation:

• 1318 Santa Fe Street, 1614 Sixth Avenue, and 723 Congress Street are all single-family homes in Mont Pleasant that will be renovated and sold to new homeowners.
• 431 Schenectady Street will be demolished to create green space for nearby owner-occupied homes.
• 1012 Eastern Avenue is a two-family unit that will be renovated and sold to an owner-occupant.

Predevelopment work is expected to get underway this winter with construction starting in the spring of 2020.