Albany County committee tables proposed bus terminal at former McDonald’s site after public opposition

Madam Chair opened discussion on item four — an agreement with the Advance Albany County Alliance to develop 106 South Pearl Street — and asked Alliance and county staff to present the project’s history and community outreach.

County staff described early redevelopment work at the site, including a $200,000 CRC loan that supported a grocery operated by the A. Philip Randolph African American Cultural Center and a subsequent county purchase of the property using about $450,000 in ARPA funds when that grocery operation closed in 2024. Alliance representative Kevin said the site had been considered through March–June 2025 working groups with CDTA, the New York State Department of Transportation and Albany City Planning, and that Governor Hochul’s downtown capital initiative had identified the block as a candidate multimodal hub.

Jeremy Smith, senior vice president of real estate for the Advance Albany County Alliance, said the Alliance ran two public engagement events: an open forum with a presentation and public comment followed by a workshop with storyboards and breakout-style feedback intended to refine design options. “The first meeting was a more of an open public forum where there was a presentation on what the project was, and community feedback was given,” Smith said. He said the second session was intended to finalize design priorities after collecting input at the first meeting.

Committee members pressed staff on multiple fronts. A county presenter confirmed the prior CRC loan was defaulted and that the county had used roughly $450,000 in ARPA funds to acquire the parcel. Staff clarified that a previous board vote had authorized matching funds to access state capital (the county advanced $1 million; $1.5 million was cited as an upper figure including contingencies) rather than final project approval.

Members and several residents who attended the meeting said they had seen strong opposition at public hearings and questioned whether the second meeting’s workshop format — storyboards and design choices — had been presented as a fair forum to test broader support. Defending the two-step outreach, Dr. McLaughlin said signage and multiple formats were used and that the second meeting incorporated feedback from the first. Smith said the Alliance received letters of support from Adirondack Trailways, Greyhound and FlixBus and more than 70 supportive survey responses.

On technical concerns, staff said about 60 intercity buses currently serve the area each day and that carriers had policies to limit long idling; the Alliance planned a traffic assessment and county staff said an air-quality study would be conducted to quantify any emissions changes from moving the terminal 300–500 feet. Staff also described a safety plan that could include collaboration with the sheriff’s office to ensure a law-enforcement presence at the terminal.

Discussion turned to timing: staff warned that operators must relocate by April 2027 for the Liberty Park redevelopment, which created pressure for a rapid relocation. Members suggested alternate locations (including the Empire State Plaza and the county’s Central Warehouse), but staff said Central Warehouse would not be cleared in time for the April 2027 schedule.

Faced with ongoing uncertainty about the county executive’s formal stance and continuing public concern about outreach and impacts, the chair moved to table the item for further review. The motion to table was seconded and carried.

Next steps the Alliance outlined included bringing any inquiries and the site’s status to its board at a July meeting and reporting back to the committee; staff said a formal withdrawal would require a memo from the county executive’s office if that is the chosen path.