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132-140 State Street
albany county
improved
threat: demolition and inappropriate development
Lower State Street is arguably Albany’s
most historic and architecturally important streetscape, extending
uphill from the Gothic style D & H Building to the magnificent
State Capitol Building. As a result of recent demolitions and new
office construction, the five properties at 132-140 State Street
stand out as an intact and historic row in the downtown’s
most significant commercial corridor. The five buildings, which
include two former hotels, the Elks Lodge, and a rare surviving
townhouse, are included in a local historic district and are listed
on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. The buildings
of 132-140 State Street, designed by leading local and national
architects between 1832 and 1923, reflect Albany’s singular importance
as a commercial and governmental center. However, beginning in
the mid-1980s, the properties were acquired by Sebba-Rockaway,
Ltd., a British developer, that is marketing them as a single property
poised for clearance rather than as landmarks ready for reinvestment.
With no response to an unsuccessful strategy meant to attract large-scale
development, the future of the historic row on lower State Street
is precarious.
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