Albany — A vision for Albany’s future decades, if not centuries, in the making, is picking up steam, with a portion of that vision now on canvas.
Reconnecting the city with its waterfront has been talked about for years, but now, some members of the community believe they’re taking steps forward to make it a reality.
Artist Len Tantillo just finished a painting depicting the Warehouse District in Albany in the late 1800s, showing life along the original Lock 1 of the Erie Canal.
“I wanted to give it the sense of there’s activity, I wanted it to feel a little gritty, but a little magical,” Tantillo, who worked on the artwork for about six months, says.
It was commissioned by Curran Wealth Management, inspired by a dream not just that company, but Tantillo has had for decades. For nearly thirty years, Tantillo has envisioned digging up Lock One of the Erie Canal, and bringing the canal from the Warehouse District all the way down Broadway.
“It will come in under the highway, in front of the SUNY building, then go down Broadway,” he says. “Broadway is quite wide, so on parts of Broadway we maintain vehicular traffic to keep the circulation moving around the site.”
It’s been his and others vision for about 30 years, but in the last few years, the idea is gaining traction. They say this project wouldn’t depend on the future of 787 or the Central Warehouse, but the conversation in reimagining Albany’s waterfront is evolving, giving this movement more momentum. BJ Costello helped launch Albany Waterway Inc. in 2023, which is spreading this vision to others, growing its following by the day. They are now applying for a State Planning Grant to continue the process.
“In two weeks, in July, we raised $100,000, so that just tells you,” Costello says. “Congressman Tonko has been very supportive of us, so we have a lot of hope to actually make this a reality. All the places where we’ve studied where water has been introduced has produced about 12 dollars to the one dollar of public money that goes in, because of all the industry that happens around it.”
Assemblyman John McDonald says in his time as the Mayor of Cohoes, reengaging with the Hudson River was a priority, saying it has a real benefit to the community and area. In this case, he believes that can be replicated through this movement.
“There’s going to be federal money out there, there has been, there will continue to be,” McDonald says. “New York State who is a donor state who sends more money to Washington than takes it back, should be working aggressively to get those funds to help support these projects because New York State should win too.”
Click here to learn more about Albany Waterway Inc.’s vision.
