Excellence Award Spotlight: Proctors Collaborative
Proctors Collaborative has been named one of this year’s Excellence in Historic Preservation Award winners. Proctors is being recognized this year for their dual restoration efforts on behalf of the Capital Repertory Theatre in Albany and Universal Preservation Hall in Saratoga Springs.
“What a fantastic honor. We celebrate our historic properties and their reuse as cultural and community centerpieces,” said Philip Morris, CEO of Proctors Collaborative. “As we Restart our events, post-Covid, this award buoys us and reminds us of our hopes for our region.”
The 28,000-square-foot industrial building in Albany’s Arbor Hill neighborhood that is now home to Capital Repertory Theatre (theRep) and the formerly condemned church that is now Universal Preservation Hall (UPH) represent very different preservation projects. The fact that Proctors Collaborative had the vision and dedication to see them both through simultaneously, especially considering additional challenges presented by the pandemic, is quite extraordinary. Perhaps best known for their flagship theatre in Schenectady (which also won an Excellence Award from the League back in 2008), Proctors serves the wider Capital-Saratoga region through a great variety of programs, with a focus on education, civic engagement, and economic development. The successful restorations of theRep and UPH will certainly help them meet that mission.
Both restorations serve as models for how historic preservation promotes the reuse of vacant buildings to stimulate the business and creative economy and revitalize downtown neighborhoods. Both buildings sat vacant and suffered serious deterioration. Now they are points of pride for their neighborhoods – and state-of-the-art performing arts destinations.
“Proctors Collaborative is a vital resource for the Capital-Saratoga Region,” said Preservation League President Jay DiLorenzo. “Their high-quality performing arts programming reaches a large and diverse population, and the recent restorations and adaptive reuse projects in Albany and Saratoga Springs will allow them to better serve their audiences. Proctors has long demonstrated a commitment to preservation. Bringing these two very different buildings back to active use will undoubtedly have positive effects on their communities for years to come.”
Theatre main stage at theRep. Photo by CSArch
The Capital Repertory Theatre Project was funded thanks in part to State and Federal Historic Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, Empire State Development, Restore New York, Capital Region Economic Development Council, National Grid, The Hearst Foundations, Berkshire Bank Foundation, CAP COM Cares Foundation, John D. Picotte Family Foundation, Carl E. Touhey Foundation, the City of Albany, Capitalize Albany Corporation and NYS Homes & Community Renewal.
The Capital Repertory Theatre Project team included: Proctors Collaborative – Philip Morris, CEO; Capital Repertory Theatre (theRep) – Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill, Producing Artistic Director; PACA Preservation LLC – Patricia Altman, Principal/Owner; CSArch Architecture Engineering & Construction – Ronald Bagoly, Principal; Specialized Audio Visual (SAVI) Inc. – Michael Cusick, Owner; MLB Construction Services LLC – Vincent Gallo, Construction Manager; Weston & Sampson – Kevin Kelly, Landscape Architect/Project Manager; WestShore Design Engineers PC – Nicholas Nitti, President; AKW Consulting Inc. – Anthony Ward, President.
The performance hall and apse at UPH, from the balcony level after renovation. Photo by Down To Earth Aerial
The Universal Preservation Hall Project was funded thanks in part to a Technical Assistance Grant from the Preservation League in partnership with the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, Empire State Development, Restore New York, Capital Region Economic Development Council, New York State Office of Parks Recreation & Historic Preservation Environmental Protection Fund Grant, State and Federal Historic Tax Credits, the Sarah B. Foulke Charitable Fund, the Charles R. Wood Foundation, the City of Saratoga Springs, Saratoga County IDA, and a New York Landmarks Conservancy Sacred Sites Grant.
The Restoration, Renovation & Adaptive Reuse of Universal Preservation Hall Project team included: Proctors Collaborative – Philip Morris, CEO; Teddy Foster, Executive Director; Lacey Thaler Reilly Wilson Architecture – Mark Thaler, Partner; Daniel Wilson, Project Manager; Andrew Petruzzelli, Project Architect; Spring Line Design – Jeff Bak, Structural Engineer; Tech Valley Engineering – Robert Wilson, MEP Engineer; Weston & Sampson – Dan Biggs, Civil Engineering; Marshall/KMK Acoustics – Jerry Marshall, Acoustic Consultant; Bonacio Construction Inc. – Vince LaTerra, Project Manager; Ganem Contracting Corp – Peter Ganem, Owner; Rohlf Studio – Hans Rohlf; B&B Plumbing and Heating – BJ Kozlowski, Commerical Project Manager; A.E. Rosen Electrical Co. – Joe Mataraza, Project Manager; Skyway Roofing Inc. – Brad Hall, Estimator/Project Manager; Distinctive Cabinetry LLC – Harry Judge, Cabinet Building Specialist; Specialized Audio Visual Inc. – Michael Cusick, Sound Consultant; Adirondack Studios – Maurice O'Connell, Project Manager; Irwin Seating/PFE – Chris Berry, Upstate NY Representative; AKW Consulting Inc. – Anthony Ward, President.
Click here for everything about the 2021 Excellence in Historic Preservation Award winners!
Since 1984, the Preservation League’s statewide awards program has highlighted projects, organizations, publications, and individuals that exemplify best practices in historic preservation and recognize the people who are using historic preservation to build stronger neighborhoods, create local jobs, provide affordable housing, open our eyes to overlooked history, and save the places that are special to all of us.