Wedge Building restoration project in Schenectady moves forward

New York's Secretary of State got a first look on Tuesday at a multi-million dollar restoration project in the heart of Schenectady.

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- New York's Secretary of State got a first look on Tuesday at a multi-million dollar restoration project in the heart of Schenectady. A familiar building on State Street is getting a new lease on life after major investments by the state.

It once stood as the oldest commercial building in the Electric City. Now, it's in need of much more than just a major facelift.

"It was really an embarrassment on one of our primary intersections in the city," Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy said.

The Wedge Building, at the intersection of Erie Boulevard and State Street, is a cornerstone of history in Schenectady. But as the facade fell, the building fell into disrepair.

"This was a complicated transformation in terms of the financing," McCarthy said.

That financing came in the form of a major investment by the state of $2.3 million to help rehab the interior and restore the building. New York Secretary of State Walter Mosley got a firsthand look at the progress made inside.

"It's one thing to look at a rendering but to see it live," he said.

"Talk about the practical impact of some of the state money we are getting," McCarthy said.

Once construction is complete, the building will boast commercial space on the bottom and apartments on top.

"It's known, it's historic, it's legacy," Mark Paquin with Cass Hill Development Co., said. "To change that would be a mistake."

A transformational project for the city that will help keep the building with a long history well preserved into the future.

Mayor McCarthy told NEWS10 the renovation was made possible from a mix of downtown revitalization funding as well as money from the Division of Housing and Community Renewal.