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Village of Canton to take ownership of dilapidated Midtown Plaza, parking lot

Posted 3/8/23

BY PAUL MITCHELL North Country This Week CANTON – The Village of Canton has finally taken ownership of the dilapidated Midtown Plaza and its parking lot. An enthusiastic village board unanimously …

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Village of Canton to take ownership of dilapidated Midtown Plaza, parking lot

Posted

BY PAUL MITCHELL
North Country This Week

CANTON – The Village of Canton has finally taken ownership of the dilapidated Midtown Plaza and its parking lot.

An enthusiastic village board unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday night to purchase six parcels at the 19 Miner Street property for $1,280,000.

Mayor Michael Dalton said an agreement had been reached between owner Garry Cohen, New York City, who owns five of the six parcels, and Vernon Green, owner of Green Furniture in the plaza.

“This has been a long time coming. The board has been working very hard over the past few years to make this happen,” Dalton stated. “It’s important to gain control of these properties for economic development purposes that will benefit the community”

Village officials, including the mayor, will be negotiating loan terms with Community Bank, N.A. to purchase the properties.

Trustee Beth Larrabee, a native of Canton, called the acquisition “historic.”

“Growing up it has always been a vibrant space. I’ve seen it decline and that’s been really sad,” she said. “It’s going to make a major difference in our community. I’m proud of this board for getting it done. I’m really excited about where we can go from here.”

Trustee Barbara Beekman agreed.

“It’s been a long time coming. It’s great to be over the hurdle,” she said.

“The Village of Canton has the opportunity to acquire real property that has been determined will ultimately create jobs, provide needed infrastructure, and stimulate our local economy” the resolution reads. “For many years the Village has been working to redevelop an area commonly known as the Midtown Plaza, that is in a state of serious disrepair, and with the vision of SUNY Canton’s President, the Village throughout the years has applied for DRI and Restore New York funding that includes the 19 Miner Street properties.”

“The plan is to turn this dilapidated plaza, at the center of our downtown, into a mixed-use development offering diverse housing options and an Entrepreneurship Center that will anchor the project that will ignite innovation, spur the creation of new businesses, and ensure enduring economic and community growth, and the plan for the area has been well established and the anchor for the project, the SUNY Canton Entrepreneurship Center, has received approximately $4 million dollars to date.”

The project will take an underutilized and derelict shopping center in the heart of downtown Canton and transform it into three floors of commercial and residential space, including 44 residential units, and the anchor of the project, the SUNY Canton Entrepreneurship Center

The SUNY Canton Foundation is working with developers from Saratoga Springs.

The plaza has sat empty since 2018 when Rite Aid closed its doors and opened a new store on East Main Street. That store became a Walgreens, which closed its doors on Monday, March 6.

The plaza’s largest tenant, the Jubilee supermarket, closed its doors in 2000.

The lone business still open in the plaza is Green Furniture.

The village has applied for two separate Restore NY grants, $10 million and $2 million, to help pay for the cost of demolition and cleanup.