Conventional wisdom

Downtown Albany is a prosperous seeming place, but precious little of that prosperity trickles over to the poor neighborhoods a short distance to the north (Arbor Hill) and south (South End). The proposed convention center site is near the South End, and would be worth building if it provides job opportunities for the people there.
Fred LeBrun is cheerleading, and I reckon he gives Gov. Paterson a bit too much credit for releasing $10 million of the $75 million already appropriated for the convention center project under Gov. Pataki. Paterson, the TU columnist says, "has proved himself a good friend to the city of Albany." In fact, this seems like the least the guv could do, given that this summer he vetoed a bill passed by the Legislature that would have increased the state's payments in lieu of taxes to the city for the Harriman Office Campus. Now the city has been forced into economies such as cutting police officers, despite recent high-profile homicides. And it has to worry about increasing taxes, which would give businesses and middle-class residents an incentive to move out. Meanwhile, environmentalists and editorial writers demand unrealistically that Albany close its landfill, which would deprive it of vital revenue.
If the state puts up some money for a scaled-back convention center, that's better than nothing. The site is underdeveloped, and putting conventioneers into the mix should help make downtown more vibrant and successful. But although the state has contributed significantly to downtown development, it also wasted opportunities. For example, walking north on Broadway from the convention center site, you come across two relatively new state buildings, the Dormitory Authority and the Department of Environmental Conservation, both of which are touted as green buildings. But neither has ground floor-retail, so they deaden street life. Nor does the former train station rebuilt with public money into a bank building. In fact, you can't even get in the grand front entrance of that building on Broadway, but have to go around to the parking garage entrance in back.
Channel 13 reported Saturday that the more than 13,000 fans attending a Siena-UAlbany basketball game didn't do much for local restaurants. Critics say convention centers, like sports arenas, don't deliver on their investment. Still, in this era of bailouts and recession, Albany has to take what it can get, and get it done.

Comments

[Brian]

" he vetoed a bill passed by the Legislature that would have increased the state's payments in lieu of taxes"

Perhaps an idea for a future entry is to explain exactly what 'payments in lieu of taxes' means. I've never really grasped it. It seems to me that taxes ARE a series of payments and I'm not quite sure how PILOT is any different from taxes, except that it seems negotiable.