Colvin Central Plaza was a large strip mall in Albany, NY along Central Avenue, a major business and shopping area of the New York State Capital Region. For this area, it was significant as it was over 100,000 square feet and was initially opened in 1981. It survived in this form for two decades.
It was located near the Westgate Plaza. The property is now known as Capital Center and is the location of a Home Depot store.
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The strip mall was opened in February 1981 with original tenants Price Chopper and Caldor.[1]
Over the years, tenants have included:
| Tenant Name | Date(s) |
|---|---|
| Price Chopper | initial tenant (37,472 sq. ft.)[1] closed Spring, 1995, moving to Westgate Plaza, continued to pay rent for lease[2] |
| Caldor | initial tenant[1] closed in March, 1998[3] |
| Fay's Drug | closed Spring, 1995, moving to Westgate Plaza, continued to pay rent for lease[2] |
| Denny's (outbuilding) | unknown[4] |
| Grand Union Mega Save (new construction in former Caldor space) | opened June, 2000, began closing later that year. [5]
completed closing by January, 2001[6]
(At one point, a "Grand Opening" and "Store Closing" banner could be seen on the building at the same time.) |
| Discount Carpet Super Mart | departed before September 21, 2001, due to demolition[7] |
| Rainbow Rentals | departed before September 21, 2001, due to demolition[7] |
When Price Chopper and Fay's exited the strip mall to move to Westgate Plaza, only Caldor remained in the main strip mall. Denny's occupied an out building on the site. At that time, it was claimed that various entities were considering renting space. Both Caldor's and Denny's had the right to prevent direct competitors from moving onto the property. Price Chopper and Fay's continued to pay rent at the time they left because their leases had not yet terminated.[1]
For one week in November, 1996, J. Crew used the empty Price Chopper space for a reduced priced "warehouse sale."[8]
Prior to 1999 when demolition of the Caldor space took place, the retail space was 137,690 square feet.[4][9]
By 2001, after the Grand Union Mega Save had been built (after demolition of the Caldor space), the size of the strip mall was 117,481 square feet.[6]
The property was developed by Bella Vista. It was then turned over to the City of Albany Industrial Development Agency on September 28, 1991. Westmont 80 of Pittsburgh then purchased the property from IDA at a cost of $4.2 million. The property was mortgaged by Aetna Casualty and Surety Co. of Hartford, Connecticut. Aetna later sold the mortgage to Unum Insurance Co. of America Inc. of Portland, Maine.[4]
Unum began foreclosure on the property in September, 1996. A foreclosure sale was held on January 10, 1997. As there were no bids for the property at that point, Unum took ownership.[4]
On April 12, 1999, Columbia Development Cos. LLC purchased the property from Unum, at a cost of $3.995 million. The company created Columbia Colvin LLC to own the property.[9]
At least two demolitions have taken place on the site.
In 1999, the Caldor store was demolished to make room for a new Grand Union store.[9]
In 2001, Home Depot purchased the plaza and began demolishing the structures, including the newer Grand Union store.[7][10][11]
In 1999, Columbia Colvin LLC borrowed $6.88 million from CIBC Inc. of New York City to build a 65,000 square foot Grand Union store on the property after demolishing the space formerly occupied by Caldor. The new store was scheduled to open in 2000.[12]
Visibility had been cited as an issue for the plaza. It was not as easily seen from Central Avenue, among all the other businesses. However, it had been said that it had great visibility from I-90.[5]
In mid-2001, the name was changed from Colvin Central Plaza to Capital Center. Shortly thereafter, Home Depot signed a contract for a new 116,279 square foot store, which would replace the plaza.[12]
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  | Retailers Said to be Eyeing Plaza Site - Search Archives - Times Union - Albany NY |
| | Warehouse Sale: Frenzy for a Find - Search Archives - Times Union - Albany NY |
| | Plaza Eyes Big-Box Home Store - Search Archives - Times Union - Albany NY |
| | Home Depot Plans Albany Store - Search Archives - Times Union - Albany NY |
| | Revitalizing Strip Malls Adrift After the Closings of Major Department Stores, Retail Plazas Are Shopping for Solutions - Search Archives - Times Union - Albany NY |
| | Agents search for tenants for former Colonie Builder's Square - Agents search for tenants for former Colonie Builder's Square - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Home Depot plans Albany outlet - Home Depot plans Albany outlet - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Caldor Corp. closing all stores - Caldor Corp. closing all stores - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Filings can leave landlords in the lurch - Filings can leave landlords in the lurch - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Area developer to revitalize empty Colvin Central Plaza - Area developer to revitalize empty Colvin Central Plaza - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Colvin Plaza rehab begins as shopping center is torn down - Colvin Plaza rehab begins as shopping center is torn down - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Colvin Central Plaza owners finance new Grand Union - New program will allow more small businesses to get loans - The Business Review (Albany): |
| | Troubles mount up for plaza - Troubles mount up for plaza - The Business Review (Albany): |
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