For Rent Event returns
Spaces available in Collar City
TROY, N.Y. » Attendees got a look at lots of available spots in downtown Troy on Tuesday as part of the now-biannual For Rent Event. The walking tour, organized by the Downtown Troy Business Improvement District, drew more than 20 attendees who made their way on foot through downtown Troy checking out more than a dozen commercial and residential spaces currently on the market. This springtime tour consisted of 11 different stops, including street-level retail space, carriage house residences, several offices varying in size and even newly finished units in The News Apartments, the historic former newspaper building that once housed The Record. The purpose of the event, explained BID director Katie Hammon, is to showcase the spaces and provide an opportunity for people, particularly potential future tenants, to visit multiple downtown sites all in one day. Tuesday’s event well exceptionally well, Hammon said, remarking on the turnout and the fresh variety of spaces on the tour. “We’re seeing that the spaces that were on it before have filled, and they’re no longer available, which is great,” she said. On the commercial end, this particular tour had a large amount of office space, as retail and restaurant units are harder to come by these days in downtown Troy, Hammon commented, “and it’s filling extremely quickly.” Hammon was glad to see some residential options on the tour, too, “because there are definitely people who are looking for that downtown,” she said. Last year the BID decided to expand the For Rent Event program by offering it twice a year, in the spring and fall, and this year a post-tour networking lunch was added as well. “I think it’s a great way to keep the momentum going,” Hammon said during the networking portion of the event held at GreyCastle Security. As the tour can go by quickly, she said, the lunch offers a chance for participants to talk to the property owners and managers, discuss options and potentially strike a deal.
“I really want to be as educated as I can be about what’s happening here,” said event attendee Kristen Diesel, director of leasing with local developer First Columbia, on why she came to the For Rent Event. “I learned a little more about the diverse options that are here.”
What she saw on the Troy tour, Diesel said, was not surprising but exciting.
“I love the energy here,” the Loudonville resident said. “I feel like everyone is excited and optimistic. I just love the energy, I think it’s great.”
The next For Rent Event is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 23 in downtown Troy.
More information about the Downtown Troy Business Improvement District and its other upcoming events is available online at www.downtowntroy.org.