By Danielle Sanzone; photograph by Mike McMahon.
6/08/07
TROY - The former Mooradians' furniture store on River Street, a 117-year-old Italianate-style building, will soon be home to 48 loft-style residential units ranging in price from $200,000 to $550,000, officials announced at a formal gathering Thursday evening.
The upscale abodes, which will be called "the mooradian lofts," should be completed by the end of next year, said Pietro Costa, one of the partners with the New Amsterdam Development Corp., which is transforming the historic building into modern lofts.
"There is no other housing like this in the capital region," Costa, a native of the Netherlands, said. "We feel there will be a large market for this type of housing with professionals, employees at the local colleges, baby-boomers and empty-nesters. Anyone who wants to experience living in a downtown atmosphere will appreciate the mooradian lofts. We are bringing chic, urban living back to this area."
While the development has received the appropriate permits and zoning approvals from the city, developers are still waiting for the final approval from the state attorney general before they can accept offers to purchase the lofts which range from 1,100 square feet to 1,600 square feet, officials said.
Following Thursday's event, however, the building's owners will begin to accept tentative reservations for people interested in purchasing the units. TL Metzger & Associates has been chosen by the developers as the exclusive broker from this project.
At Thursday's event, locals were able to tour through a couple floors of the building and see a model unit of what the loft residences could look like.
"It is very humbling seeing this vision turned into a reality," said Mayor Harry Tutunjian. "It will be great having this type of loft living available in our city."
The developers are still taking comments and suggestions from prospective buyers, but the current loft designs include units with two bathrooms, a kitchen, a loft storage area, and an open space with movable walls. The flexible walls are meant to appeal to all types of people - those with children can make another room with the walls, while single professionals can store the walls away and live in a true loft residence, said Pietro.
"We are a pioneer in loft-style housing in the city of Troy. There are no riverside residences like this in the Capital District," Costa said, referring to the Powers Park Lofts also located in the city but without a river view.
The eight-story brick building, which will include six stories of housing units, will also house a café and marketplace on the first floor with a terrace overlooking the Hudson River. The retail area will include a farmer's market-type space for local vendors and artists to sell their wares, officials said.
"As a woman who grew up in Troy, it is amazing to see this come to fruition since I know it will help revitalize the surrounding area," said Dorothy Ganz, one of the people touring the building. "It is great to see this old building turned into something new instead of torn down like so many other historic buildings in the city. I would definitely live here - it would be great to not worry about the upkeep of a house and to be able to do my shopping in the same building that I lived."
In addition to Thursday's event to showcase the new housing units, an open house is also scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
TROY - The former Mooradians' furniture store on River Street, a 117-year-old Italianate-style building, will soon be home to 48 loft-style residential units ranging in price from $200,000 to $550,000, officials announced at a formal gathering Thursday evening.
The upscale abodes, which will be called "the mooradian lofts," should be completed by the end of next year, said Pietro Costa, one of the partners with the New Amsterdam Development Corp., which is transforming the historic building into modern lofts.
"There is no other housing like this in the capital region," Costa, a native of the Netherlands, said. "We feel there will be a large market for this type of housing with professionals, employees at the local colleges, baby-boomers and empty-nesters. Anyone who wants to experience living in a downtown atmosphere will appreciate the mooradian lofts. We are bringing chic, urban living back to this area."
While the development has received the appropriate permits and zoning approvals from the city, developers are still waiting for the final approval from the state attorney general before they can accept offers to purchase the lofts which range from 1,100 square feet to 1,600 square feet, officials said.
Following Thursday's event, however, the building's owners will begin to accept tentative reservations for people interested in purchasing the units. TL Metzger & Associates has been chosen by the developers as the exclusive broker from this project.
At Thursday's event, locals were able to tour through a couple floors of the building and see a model unit of what the loft residences could look like.
"It is very humbling seeing this vision turned into a reality," said Mayor Harry Tutunjian. "It will be great having this type of loft living available in our city."
The developers are still taking comments and suggestions from prospective buyers, but the current loft designs include units with two bathrooms, a kitchen, a loft storage area, and an open space with movable walls. The flexible walls are meant to appeal to all types of people - those with children can make another room with the walls, while single professionals can store the walls away and live in a true loft residence, said Pietro.
"We are a pioneer in loft-style housing in the city of Troy. There are no riverside residences like this in the Capital District," Costa said, referring to the Powers Park Lofts also located in the city but without a river view.
The eight-story brick building, which will include six stories of housing units, will also house a café and marketplace on the first floor with a terrace overlooking the Hudson River. The retail area will include a farmer's market-type space for local vendors and artists to sell their wares, officials said.
"As a woman who grew up in Troy, it is amazing to see this come to fruition since I know it will help revitalize the surrounding area," said Dorothy Ganz, one of the people touring the building. "It is great to see this old building turned into something new instead of torn down like so many other historic buildings in the city. I would definitely live here - it would be great to not worry about the upkeep of a house and to be able to do my shopping in the same building that I lived."
In addition to Thursday's event to showcase the new housing units, an open house is also scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
