City of Plattsburgh awarded $405K Restore New York grant
The project will include the rehabilitation of a former recording studio called Wayward Sound Studio into an active mixed-use property that includes 4,300 square feet of commercial space and two affordable apartments.
As previously reported by the Press-Republican, Wayward Enterprises LLC, run by James Ward of Plattsburgh, is the owner of the property at 5500 Peru Street. Ward spoke to city councilors late last year to advocate for the project.
He said floor plan for the building at 5500 Peru Street has two 2,100-square-foot apartment units on the second floor of the building with plans for a possible business on the first floor.
The plan was for each apartment to have three bedrooms and two baths, he said in December of 2024, however, Ward acknowledged the plans may change if and when the project gets closer to the engineering and design phase.
'I think it's awesome,' Mayor Wendell Hughes said about the city receiving the grant.
'To have … some state money come in and help us out is amazing.'
The funding is from the state's Restore New York grant program, which 'supports municipal revitalization efforts with funds to help remove and reduce blight, reinvigorate communities and generate new residential and economic opportunities statewide.'
According to the state, the program, administered by Empire State Development, is designed to help local governments encourage new commercial investments through community revitalization, growing local housing and putting properties back on the tax rolls to increase the local tax base.
'Being added to the tax base in the city is a good thing,' Hughes said.
The city's $405,000 grant was part of more than $50 million awarded to 50 projects through the State's Restore New York Communities Initiative, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced last week.
'Revitalizing and rehabilitating vacant and blighted areas of our communities for housing or development is vital to make downtowns thrive,' Hochul said in a news release.
'Restore New York helps our municipalities plan for the future by catalyzing economic growth and supporting housing, businesses and cultural spaces. We are further unlocking the potential of these sites and communities across New York.'
The city being chosen for the Restore New York grant seemingly bodes well for future applications. It's a 'step in the right direction,' Hughes said.
He said he is now hopeful this award could open up the possibility of bigger projects getting funding down the road.
'That's the hope,' he said.
'I'd like to get a bigger project maybe next time. But again … It's amazing that we won and we were chosen over a lot of other places that didn't get it. So it's exciting for the City of Plattsburgh.'
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