MAYOR PALMIERI AND VISONS HOTEL ANNOUNCE NEW WATERFRONT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AT HARBOR POINT

Utica Mayor Robert M. Palmieri and Visions Hotels announced a preliminary agreement to build a waterfront living community along the north side of the harbor.

Under the agreement, the City would sell the 15-plus acre area known as Dredge Spoils Area 1 to Visions Hotels for just over $1 million. With the sale, Visions plans to develop the land into a living area that will feature:

• More than 120 housing units overlooking the water.
• A 40,000 square foot entertainment center that will feature full-service family entertainment with a restaurant, bar and one-of-a-kind entertainment amenities.
• Two additional hotels ranging from 80 to 100 rooms each.

The total development will cost $80 -90 million dollars and will bring a long-awaited residential component to the harbor. Utica’s Industrial Development Agency has already voted in favor of the agreement. Now, the Harbor Point Development Corporation will have to ratify it as well. 

The development is the latest investment by Visions Hotels and owner Andy Patel, who gained a reputation in the City of Utica for restoring the historic Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Utica after years of uncertainty about the hotel’s future. Visions has since made several additional investments along the North Genesee Street corridor that include hotels, landscaping improvements and hospitality investments. 

PREVIOUS INVESTMENTS IN THE HARBOR CULMINATE

The sale is the culmination of a decades-long efforts to bring Harbor Point to life. In addition to the Visions investment, the City of Utica announced that it reached near completion on its latest project. That project is roughly $2.5 million in upgrades will come from the American Rescue Plan Act and features both aesthetic and infrastructure improvements. Those improvements are nearly completed and they include:

• A floating dock system for recreational boating (kayaks, canoes, etc.)
• Railings along the walkways adjacent to the water to make waterside accessible.
• Permeable pavers and walkway improvements.
• Pedestrian connections to surrounding trails.
• Several pavilions and shade structures.
• Enhancement of green spaces to include trees, lawns and bushes.
• New light poles and lighting elements.

Overall, more than $10 million in investments have been made to date including building a road and entranceway, expanding sewer and water lines, demolition of dilapidated buildings and rebuilding the bulkheads and seawalls at the edge of the water. These investments have begun the transformation of the Harbor into a mixed-use destination for both residents and tourist and have attracted private and public investment.

ABOUT THE HARBOR

Utica’s Harbor Point comprises more than 100 acres of waterfront real estate uniquely situated around the City’s historic harbor, between the Mohawk River and Erie Canal. The City of Utica and the UHPDC) are advancing the transformation of this underutilized former industrial area into a year-round destination for residents and tourists.

A consultant team led by Elan Planning, Design & Landscape Architecture, PLLC was hired in 2013 and has been working with the City of Utica and the Utica Harbor Point Local Development Corporation to complete the Harbor Point waterfront plan. City officials have been executing on that plan ever since.

Mayor Palmieri said: “When we talk about Harbor Point, we’re now talking about a vibrant, mixed-use community unlike we’ve ever had in Utica. This is beyond a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, because it’s never happened in any of our lifetimes before. Visions Hotels, Mr. Andy Patel, and everyone else involved are shaping a new future for the City of Utica and I couldn’t be prouder to see it take shape.”

Andy Patel, CEO of Visions Hotels said: “From Hotel Utica to this latest investment, Visions Hotels has a vision for Utica that appreciates the past while creating an exciting future. We couldn’t be more thrilled about this all-inclusive living development. We think it will be very popular among the people that live there, but also add to the vibrancy and the beauty of this great Harbor.”