Albany County is celebrating a new state-of-the-art public works garage.
The 15,000-square foot Coeymans Subdivision Garage will house equipment serving the rural communities of southern Albany County.
Built at a cost of around $5 million, the new facility was completed in April. It replaces an aging, wooden structure about a quarter of its size. The project received just under $190,000 in Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program – or CHIPS – funding from New York state, with the rest of the cost covered by the county.
Speaking at an unveiling ceremony Friday, Democratic County Executive Dan McCoy says the new garage is better suited for the current and future needs of the county Department of Public Works. McCoy says the new garage will function "off-the-grid." Solar panels and geothermal heating equipment are some of the energy upgrades at the new garage.
“We have exceeded the energy standards that NYSERDA and everyone puts out. And I hope this model here goes around the state of New York and around the country, that you can do this, do not just the solar panels and catching the rain water to clean the equipment, having four bays that are heated...,” McCoy said.
Albany County DPW Deputy Commissioner Scott Duncan says it will allow staff to work more efficiently, too.
“They'll have the ability to wash the trucks off as they park them in between shifts, or wash them in between shifts, which is going to be huge for the trucks,” Duncan said.
Duncan says more trucks will be stored inside, which is important for keeping them clean and out of the elements. That's key. A custom-designed vehicle costs upward of $225,000.
Duncan says during severe winter weather, crews need to be able to get out the door and onto the roads quickly.
“Timing is everything for us, which again, is why it's important to have the trucks inside when it's snowing out, these guys come in, they punch in, they get their gear, they get in the truck, and the truck is on the road. It's not ‘spend 20 minutes to shovel the snow off the truck or warm the truck up,’” Duncan said.
On a tour of the building's electrical room, Duncan points out state-of-the-art heating equipment. Two geothermal heat pumps are designed to keep the building warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.
“There's 20 geothermal wells that're drilled out back. They're just over 400 feet deep. And these essentially pull the hot water up, run the hot water through the radiant floor system. And these will also heat water if it needs to be heated,” Duncan said.
McCoy says the garage is part of a goal to make Albany County greener.
“I was hoping by 2025, to have over 70 percent of our cars electric, got ambitious, got out there in front of the press. I'm like, ‘we're going make this happen,’ but we can't. And, you know, there's so many stops of why, but I would like to see that down the road. But you also need to make sure that they have a way to charge the vehicle,” McCoy said.
Duncan says the space is transformational – a significant improvement over the wood-heated structure it replaced.
“The old facility, honestly, was a shed with a bathroom, and the bathroom was an afterthought,” Duncan said.
