SUNY System Administration Building
Encyclopedia
The SUNY System Administration Building, formerly the Delaware & Hudson Railroad Building, is a public office building located at the intersection of Broadway and State Street in downtown Albany
, New York
. Locally the building and land it sits on is referred to as State University Plaza, or the D&H Plaza; prior to the construction of the Empire State Plaza
it was simply "The Plaza". It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1972 as Delaware and Hudson Railroad Company Building. In 1980, when the Downtown Albany Historic District
was listed on the Register, it was included as a contributing property
.
The central tower is thirteen stories high and is capped by an 8 feet (2.4 m) working weathervane that is a replica of Henry Hudson
's Half Moon. The State University of New York
is centrally administered from this location. The southern tower's four top floors are the official residence of the Chancellor of SUNY.
's banks, over time being infilled, including in 1911 as part of the construction of the Plaza. The city of Albany purchased and consolidated the land ownership that allowed the D&H to build the building and the city to have a park in front surrounded by a street that acted as a loop for the trolleys running on State Street. Public access was allowed to the Hudson River through the central tower and by way of an underground tunnel to the other side of the D&H tracks. The design by Marcus T. Reynolds
was based on the Nieuwerk annex of the Cloth Hall
in Ypres, Belgium.
Originally for this site Reynolds envisioned a triangular park at the termination of State Street with a large L-shaped pier
that would go north for three city blocks that would also support another park with a bandshell and docks for yachts and boats. That design would have cost $1 million and was opposed by neighborhood groups as too expensive and grand a design, along with the problems of the railroad traffic. The idea of opening up the view of the waterfront to the public was considered unfeasible and undesirable as the river was full of commercial docks, wharves, warehouses, and railroads. A plan initiated by the Albany Chamber of Commerce (later published under the name of Stvdies for Albany) decided upon a public park as a plaza surrounded by buildings that would screen the locomotive smoke, obnoxious odors and sights of the working waterfront from the vista of State Street.
The D&H Railroad
used the building as their corporate headquarters; the southern part of the building, which was built later than the main building in 1916-18, housed the Albany Evening Journal newspaper. William Barnes, editor of Evening Journal had a lavish apartment on the upper floors. In 1924 the paper was sold to the Albany Times Union and the building became home to various other businesses including the predecessor to the New York State Department of Transportation
.
After the D&H and Evening Journal both abandoned the building it sat dormant until November 1972 when the State University of New York (SUNY) announced it would purchase the building as its first permanent home, having occupied One Commerce Plaza
as a temporary home since March of that year. SUNY purchased the building in 1973 and construction began that year. The offices were moved into in 1978. That same year SUNY Chancellor Clifton Wharton, Jr. decided that the southern tower would house the chancellor's apartment. The total renovation of the Plaza cost $15 million. In 1977 the neighboring Federal Building was purchased and added to the State University Plaza. William Hall Associates won the top Owens Corning
Energy Conservation Award in the government category for their work in the renovation.
The building's facade
was restored from 1996 to 2001; it was covered in scaffolding
during the five years of the restoration.
Though the building is in the Gothic architectural style the building sports several touches that tie the building into the Dutch heritage of Albany. The central tower sports an 8 feet (2.4 m) weathervane that is in the shape of Henry Hudson's ship the Half Moon while the gables of the entire building bear the coat-of-arms of prominent Dutch families including that of Albany's first mayor, Pieter Schuyler
. Other non-gothic elements include the names and dates of prominent printers on the Albany Evening Journal building, including William Caxton 1487, the father of English printing.
Other Albany skyscrapers include:
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Locally the building and land it sits on is referred to as State University Plaza, or the D&H Plaza; prior to the construction of the Empire State Plaza
Empire State Plaza
The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza is a complex of several state government buildings in downtown Albany, New York....
it was simply "The Plaza". It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1972 as Delaware and Hudson Railroad Company Building. In 1980, when the Downtown Albany Historic District
Downtown Albany Historic District
The Downtown Albany Historic District is a 19-block, area of Albany, New York, United States, centered around the junction of State and North and South Pearl streets . It is the oldest settled area of the city, originally planned and settled in the 17th century, and the nucleus of its later...
was listed on the Register, it was included as a contributing property
Contributing property
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing resource or contributing property is any building, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic district, listed locally or federally, significant...
.
The central tower is thirteen stories high and is capped by an 8 feet (2.4 m) working weathervane that is a replica of Henry Hudson
Henry Hudson
Henry Hudson was an English sea explorer and navigator in the early 17th century. Hudson made two attempts on behalf of English merchants to find a prospective Northeast Passage to Cathay via a route above the Arctic Circle...
's Half Moon. The State University of New York
State University of New York
The State University of New York, abbreviated SUNY , is a system of public institutions of higher education in New York, United States. It is the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States, with a total enrollment of 465,000 students, plus...
is centrally administered from this location. The southern tower's four top floors are the official residence of the Chancellor of SUNY.
History
The building and the land it sits on itself has a varied history. The building sits at the foot of State Street along Broadway, in the oldest part of the city. It was here that several of Albany's earliest city halls sat, along with the New York State Legislature in the 18th century. The Albany Plan of Union in 1754, presided over by Ben Franklin, was held here. This land was once along the Hudson RiverHudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
's banks, over time being infilled, including in 1911 as part of the construction of the Plaza. The city of Albany purchased and consolidated the land ownership that allowed the D&H to build the building and the city to have a park in front surrounded by a street that acted as a loop for the trolleys running on State Street. Public access was allowed to the Hudson River through the central tower and by way of an underground tunnel to the other side of the D&H tracks. The design by Marcus T. Reynolds
Marcus T. Reynolds
Marcus Tullius Reynolds was a prominent architect from the Albany, New York area. Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, he was raised by his aunt in Albany after the death of his mother. He attended Williams College and Columbia University and began his life as an architect in 1893...
was based on the Nieuwerk annex of the Cloth Hall
Cloth Hall, Ypres
The Cloth Hall , of Ypres, Belgium, was one of the largest commercial buildings of the Middle Ages, when it served as the main market and warehouse for the Flemish city's prosperous cloth industry. The original structure, erected mainly in the 13th century and completed 1304, lay in ruins after...
in Ypres, Belgium.
Originally for this site Reynolds envisioned a triangular park at the termination of State Street with a large L-shaped pier
Pier
A pier is a raised structure, including bridge and building supports and walkways, over water, typically supported by widely spread piles or pillars...
that would go north for three city blocks that would also support another park with a bandshell and docks for yachts and boats. That design would have cost $1 million and was opposed by neighborhood groups as too expensive and grand a design, along with the problems of the railroad traffic. The idea of opening up the view of the waterfront to the public was considered unfeasible and undesirable as the river was full of commercial docks, wharves, warehouses, and railroads. A plan initiated by the Albany Chamber of Commerce (later published under the name of Stvdies for Albany) decided upon a public park as a plaza surrounded by buildings that would screen the locomotive smoke, obnoxious odors and sights of the working waterfront from the vista of State Street.
The D&H Railroad
Delaware and Hudson Railway
The Delaware and Hudson Railway is a railroad that operates in the northeastern United States. Since 1991 it has been a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway, although CPR has assumed all operations and the D&H does not maintain any locomotives or rolling stock.It was formerly an important...
used the building as their corporate headquarters; the southern part of the building, which was built later than the main building in 1916-18, housed the Albany Evening Journal newspaper. William Barnes, editor of Evening Journal had a lavish apartment on the upper floors. In 1924 the paper was sold to the Albany Times Union and the building became home to various other businesses including the predecessor to the New York State Department of Transportation
New York State Department of Transportation
The New York State Department of Transportation is responsible for the development and operation of highways, railroads, mass transit systems, ports, waterways and aviation facilities in the U.S...
.
After the D&H and Evening Journal both abandoned the building it sat dormant until November 1972 when the State University of New York (SUNY) announced it would purchase the building as its first permanent home, having occupied One Commerce Plaza
One Commerce Plaza
One Commerce Plaza, also known as the Twin Towers, is a private office building located on Washington Avenue in downtown Albany, New York. At 20 floors and 270 feet , it is the twelfth tallest structure in Albany....
as a temporary home since March of that year. SUNY purchased the building in 1973 and construction began that year. The offices were moved into in 1978. That same year SUNY Chancellor Clifton Wharton, Jr. decided that the southern tower would house the chancellor's apartment. The total renovation of the Plaza cost $15 million. In 1977 the neighboring Federal Building was purchased and added to the State University Plaza. William Hall Associates won the top Owens Corning
Owens Corning
Owens Corning Corporation is the world's largest manufacturer of fiberglass and related products. It was formed in 1935 as a partnership between two major American glassworks, Corning Glass Works and Owens-Illinois. The company was spun off as a separate entity on November 1, 1938...
Energy Conservation Award in the government category for their work in the renovation.
The building's facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
was restored from 1996 to 2001; it was covered in scaffolding
Scaffolding
Scaffolding is a temporary structure used to support people and material in the construction or repair of buildings and other large structures. It is usually a modular system of metal pipes or tubes, although it can be from other materials...
during the five years of the restoration.
Architecture
From north to south the building consisted of at least six sections. When first built the building had an undecorated warehouse directly behind the old Federal Building built of reinforced concrete. South of where the warehouse stood begins the current structure, beginning with a square tower with four corner turrets. A 5-story tall "arm" diagonally connects the north tower with the 13-story tall central tower. Those sections were built first, in 1914-5. The building was too small for all the D&H employees and so another "arm" was built south of the tower terminating at another square tower with corner turrets to house the offices of the Albany Evening Journal. When finally finished in 1918 the building was 660 feet (201.2 m) long. Today, without the warehouse, the Plaza is 630 feet (192 m) long and 48 feet (14.6 m) wide. The Plaza has approximately 200000 square feet (18,580.6 m²) of office space, with the former Federal Building providing an additional 60000 square feet (5,574.2 m²).Though the building is in the Gothic architectural style the building sports several touches that tie the building into the Dutch heritage of Albany. The central tower sports an 8 feet (2.4 m) weathervane that is in the shape of Henry Hudson's ship the Half Moon while the gables of the entire building bear the coat-of-arms of prominent Dutch families including that of Albany's first mayor, Pieter Schuyler
Pieter Schuyler
Pieter Schuyler was the first mayor of Albany, New York and the head of the Albany Commissioners for Indian Affairs...
. Other non-gothic elements include the names and dates of prominent printers on the Albany Evening Journal building, including William Caxton 1487, the father of English printing.
See also
- History of Albany, New YorkHistory of Albany, New YorkThe history of Albany, New York, begins with the first interaction with native Indian tribes that originally inhabited the area. The area was originally inhabited by Algonquian Indian tribes, namely the Mohican and the Iroquois....
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Albany, New YorkNational Register of Historic Places listings in Albany, New YorkThe National Register of Historic Places listings in Albany, New York represent the history of Albany from the Dutch colonial era, through the British colonial era, the American Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, and World War II, in addition to various periods of immigration into New York's...
Other Albany skyscrapers include:
- Alfred E. Smith BuildingAlfred E. Smith BuildingThe Alfred E. Smith Building, known officially as the Alfred E. Smith State Office Building and sometimes called simply the Smith Building, is a structure located in downtown Albany, New York across the street from the New York State Capitol and One Commerce Plaza...
- Erastus Corning TowerErastus Corning TowerThe Erastus Corning Tower, also known as the Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd Tower or simply the Corning Tower, is a skyscraper located in downtown Albany, New York. Completed in 1966 and sided with Vermont Pearl marble and glass, the state office building is part of the Empire State Plaza...
- Home Savings Bank BuildingHome Savings Bank BuildingThe Home Savings Bank Building is an office building located in downtown Albany, New York at 11 North Pearl Street . At 19 stories and tall, it is the tenth tallest building in the city. When it was completed in 1927, the Home Savings Bank Building was the tallest structure in Albany. However, the...