Reconnecting The Capital of New York to it’s aquatic roots In 1609, Henry Hudson sailed his small craft, the Halfmoon, up river from Manhattan and discovered the area that has since grown to be the vibrant Capital of New York State. The design of the de Laet’s Landing project revolves around reestablishing the area’s historic connection to the Hudson and capitalizing on the destination-oriented focus that the river can bring to the businesses and retail outlets involved. Great waterfronts around the world recognize one key fact: the gold is the water, not the land. Famous waterfronts such as Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, and Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, California, maximize contact with the water, and bring new energy to water uses. The vision for de Laet’s Landing accomplishes this through the creation of a new harbor as the centerpiece of the entire downtown waterfront project. Linked from that harbor is proposed a dramatic re-connection of Rensselaer’s fabric of streets and blocks, and the new Amtrak train station, to an authentic mixed use development, right on the edge of the Hudson River, overlooking the Capital skyline and accessible to Albany’s downtown business district by less than a 5 minute drive. The new harbor is connected in turn to a riverfront promenade which has the potential to link both sides of the river in a “Blue Loop”, creating a unified waterfront park for the entire metropolitan area. View of Capital skyline from de Laet’s Landing site.

The design envisions a vibrant mix of destination-oriented restaurants and upscale boutique retail to fi ll over 165,000 GSF augmented by the extension of the harbor in-shore providing docks for boats, open plazas for recreation, and a new pier offering dramatic views up and down the river. Sprinkled throughout the development are a variety of residential units, from townhouses to mid-rise lofts, for a total of 515 new residences. There is also 250,000 GSF of showcase offi ce space, and a 236,000 GSF hotel pad available, each positioned for optimal views of the riverfront, and just a short walk to the public esplanade.