NEW LOCATION
Upstate Concert Hall moving to downtown Albany
Upstate Concert Hall is moving south, as owners plan to relocate the Saratoga County music venue to the Capital Region.
The longtime Clifton Park concert hall’s new digs are located at 111 N. Pearl St. in downtown Albany.
Stan Levinstone, who owns Upstate Concert Hall along with Ted Etoll, said this move has been in the works for some time.
Though the deal is still in its final stages of negotiation, “We’re definitely getting out of Clifton Park,” Levinstone said. “That was always kind of our intention for a while.”
Operating a venue in Clifton Park is tough, Levinstone said, especially in the summer.
“Being in downtown Albany puts a whole new perspective on stuff,” Levinstone said.
“It’s such a different world.”
Levinstone mentioned the location’s new setting in an area with a larger population and its close proximity to the highway as major advantages to the future site.
“Being in downtown Albany lends itself to a bigger audience,” Levinstone said.
The city’s two free outdoor summer concert series, which typically draws thousands of music-lovers to downtown Albany each summer, could be a plus for the venue, too.
By planting roots in Albany, Upstate Concert Hall will also be near other popular entertainment venues such as The Palace Theatre, The Egg, Times Union Center, and Capital Repertory Theatre, which previously occupied the 111 N. Pearl St. space.
Jeffrey Buell of Redburn Development, which owns the North Pearl Street property, said that Upstate Concert Hall’s move to the neighborhood makes a ton of sense.
“As a person who believes in walkable, urban neighborhoods, our region is going to thrive based on the health of our cities,” he said, noting that the concert hall will be on the same street as three other major local venues. “That’s a really great entertain
ment corridor.”
At 15,000 square feet, the new Upstate Concert Hall will have two stages, and greater capacity. Smaller shows will be hosted in a room with a 400-person limit,
while the main stage area can accommodate about 1,300 fans. The Clifton Park room’s capacity is approximately 1,100 people.
The timing of this relocation and expansion comes under unique circumstances when Upstate Concert Hall has not been able to host any events in more than six months due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
As many venues are struggling to survive, the Upstate Concert Hall owners are setting their sights on a bigger and better future.
Levinstone believes the Albany venue will offer opportunities for the venue to be open more often, and that having another room available will help the business make money.
Even if capacity is limited whenever Upstate Concert Hall can reopen, Levinstone envisions hosting smaller acts in the larger room to show people the space and get the word out about Albany’s newest concert venue.
Though the details are uncertain due to the pandemic, Levinstone’s goal for Upstate Concert Hall going forward is to host a lot of shows at the club and help develop acts so they can someday draw crowds at even bigger venues such as theaters and arenas.
“Having a venue in the market helps develop bands and relationships,” Levinstone said, explaining how his role as a music promoter goes hand in hand with owning a concert hall. “It’s all part of the game being in the music business.”
Regarding the Clifton Park club where Levinstone’s company SLP Concerts and Etoll’s company Step Up Presents have hosted thousands of events over the years, “The location served its purpose,” Levinstone said.
In 2009, Levinstone and Etoll took over the club business - then known as Northern Lights - and ran it for more than a decade.
In the first few years, they implemented changes to make the venue more artistfriendly and renamed it Upstate Concert Hall in 2012.
With the Clifton Park lease ending in December, Levinstone said it would be virtually impossible to hold another event there before the end of the year, even if state regulations allowed.
This means there will be no grand finale for the Clifton Park space or a chance for fans to say goodbye to the room where countless memories were made.
“It’s sad, you know, there’s a lot of history there,” Levinstone said, recalling some of the shows he’s booked there over the years, including Blues Traveler, Maroon 5 and Third Eye Blind.
“It’s kind of like the end of an era.”
Some showgoers are already nostalgic about the strip mall concert hall.
“I’m gonna miss the grime of the old venue,” said local music fan Shannon Grant. “I’m disappointed it’s moving, but curious as to how the new location will work out.”
Dylan Baldwin-Delaney liked tailgating outside of the Clifton Park club before each event. “Hanging out grilling and having a beer in the parking lot was an integral part of a UCH show,” he said.
Saratoga County residents like Connie Farris Crudo are sad to see the venue moving out of the area. “It was the only thing we had in Clifton Park,” she said.
Music enthusiast Brian Michael of Glens Falls views the move as a loss for the younger generation from his area.
“As someone who is north of the Twin Bridges I can say honestly I’ll attend, but only because I have a decent job and can swing a hotel and all that,” he said. “If I was a kid I would be missing out; and Northern Lights/UCH really meant a bunch to us kids growing up.”
Aside from the driving distance, some Upstate Concert Hall patrons are worried about parking in downtown Albany.
Levinstone said there’s plenty of parking in the area, and Buell shared that all Albany lots and garages are free on nights and weekends.
However, some are still concerned.
“I would rather travel to Clifton Park for shows and than try to find parking in Albany,” said Jessica Henry McClements of Johnstown.
John Wallace pointed out that if The Palace, The Times Union Center and Upstate Concert Hall have events scheduled on the same evening, “parking will be even more of a nightmare,” he said.
As far as traffic, “From people who travel for shows, Clifton Park was much easier to navigate with all the traffic from the event,” said concertgoer Seth Corey.
Others are more optimistic about the situation. “I always thought the strip mall location was odd so I think it’ll make more sense in a downtown setting,” said Danielle Sanzone of Troy. “If I’m able to find parking for Alive at Five (which I am), I’m sure I’ll be able to find parking for this new music venue, even if things are also going on at the TU Center, etc.”
Albany resident Kassie Parisi said she thinks there’s no better location for Upstate Concert Hall’s upcoming move. “I get that the old space has a parking lot, but if that’s the only good thing going for it, there’s tons of municipal, (and largely, free) parking in Albany, that is no more than a 10-minute walk away from the venue,” she said. “Also, the closeness to bus stops at the new location means that tons of car-less people, who couldn’t get to Clifton Park anyway, can now see a show!”
Lauren Mineau, of Albany, is really looking forward to Upstate Concert Hall’s relocation. “Parking and wait times at restaurants might get difficult some nights, but overall I think it’s a great addition to downtown and now when the artists say ‘ We love you, Albany!’ after a set, it will be accurate!”