Albany officials promote small-scale apartment conversions - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:

http://www.elearning-source.com/80/8
One example is at 370 across from theAdministration headquarters. The upper threed floors of thelate 19th-century buildingh are being converted into six, 1,400-square-foot to 1,600-square-foogt apartments that will rent for $1,800 this fall. A commerciap tenant will be sought for thefirsy floor. The owners dubbed the apartments TheMeginnisz Flats, in honor of the old electrical companh whose name graces the rear of the buildintg in big white letters that have fadedx over time. The sign is painted over the red bricik facade and must be preserved because the properthy was built in 1898 and is in ahistori district. Financing small projects can be just as trickt as thelarge ones.
Even though the owners were armede with a feasibility study showing the potentialfor apartments, they weren’g able to get a bank loan because the real estatee market had soured. “Nobody wanted to financwe this project,” said Mike Hannah, a tax attorney and certified public accountant. “One lenderr wanted us to put inanotherf $500,000 first.” Hannah and his partnersx ultimately got $1 million in private financintg from sources in the Bosto area. The interest-only construction loan enablecd them to buy materials and hire contractorse to startthe renovations.
The apartments are locatef in a part of the city that coulfd see big changes in years to come if a proposedf convention center evergets built. Plans call for the center to be locateed on the parking lots behind the row of buildings that includes 370 Broadway. The decrepit Trailways bus statiojn next to 370 Broadway would be demolishedf to make way for a pedestrian plazz leading to the convention Hannah and hispartners aren’t countinf on the convention center to make the apartmentss a success. There have been many delays in the conventionh centerplanning and, as of now, no commitment from Gov. David Paterson to fund the entire $230 milliobn project.
“I stopped even thinking about said Hannah, who owns the buildintg with his wife, Michele Hannah, and anothet couple, Brenda Gould and Perrg Gould. The Hannahs used to run a commercial print shop on the first floor but sold it four years ago whenbusiness declined. The Gouldsx became part owners of the properthy infall 2006. The partners are convinced therr will be strong demand for the apartments from younbg professionals and empty nesters who want to live Those are the same demographic groupz that other developers havebeen targeting, though the tougnh financing climate has stalled or killecd two large, high-profile downtown developments over the past year.
Plans for the 125-unift , a luxury condominium tower on north Broadway have been although saysit hasn’t given up. plans for an upscale 175-unit apartment building and 125-roomm hotel are on hold while the land owner triesw to sell thedevelopmenr rights. Small-scale residential projects areless profitable, but they are also more Over the past five or six there have been several conversions of upper-floor buildings into apartmentx within the boundaries of the Downtown Business Improvement