"Phase 2 will be the unsexy, but necessary stuff," Fogarty said. I am an entertainment attorney at Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard LLP, where I negotiate theatre, film, and television deals. The recent update is the latest effort to preserve the grandeur of a storied Downtown theater. Before entering the legal profession, I developed an algorithm to predict the lifespan of theatrical productions on Broadway. The real estate developers tried to get in touch with him, but many of their messages went unanswered. Previously, I worked at Skadden, Arps. Fogarty was hired in 2017 as executive director of the Palace Theatre to lead its expansion. Article Originally Appeared in the Albany Business Review. “The Monitoring Equipment is designed to protect the Adjacent Premises from attendant harms associated with the Project,” explained Robert Wolfson, one of their engineers. I am an entertainment attorney at Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard LLP, where I negotiate theatre, film, and television deals. The $2.4 billion revamp will raise the theater nearly 30 feet. The two sides negotiated an amount, and signed an escrow agreement in December. Fogarty said the project has a large, seven-figure lead gift from an anonymous donor that will be announced when the Palace kicks off its fundraising campaign. Location. I am a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Chicago Law School. Atmosphere outside 'SpongeBob Squarepants' at the Palace Theatre on September 22, 2017. That involves bringing the 1930s theater into the 21st century, which includes expanding the load-in. Palace's board went through some changes at the beginning of 2019, with longtime board chair Alan Goldberg becoming Chairman Emeritus. Despite several attempts over the past few months, the real estate developers behind the $2.5 billion project have been unable to obtain permission to inspect the neighboring building and install monitoring equipment. Last year, the Palace hired its construction management and design team, which includes Gilbane Building Co., a Providence, Rhode Island, company with an office in Albany; Phinney Design Group of Saratoga Springs and DLR Group, which has worked on theaters and performing arts centers around the world. For almost 16 years, Curbed NY has documented the ever-evolving shape of New York City. © 2020 Forbes Media LLC. The Palace Theatre: A Historic Renovation . The Albany Times Union reported the gift is from a board member. They want to redesign it so trucks can pull right up. Theatre Info ; Patron Services ; Accessibility ; Seating Chart ; History ; Jump To; Ticket Information; Location; About This Theatre; Partners ; Ticket Information. #1 Posted: 4/16/19 at 5:24pm I see by the Times Square webcam that exterior scaffolding has reached the height of the Kinky Boots / Sponge Bob billboards. Work will likely wrap sometime in … But, after putting the funds aside, the real estate developers allege that the lawyer for the building next door was still dragging his feet with the standard access agreement and monitoring plan. The Palace Theatre in downtown Albany could be getting an expanded lobby, a VIP lounge and a new marquee under a $35 million plan to transform the theater. Now, we have a new home at New York Magazine. Renovations on the Palace Theatre have not begun, and the project already has a problem. One year later, after multiple follow-up messages, SL Green instructed the real estate developers to contact its lawyer about getting access. Work will likely wrap sometime in 2021. Box Office Hours The Palace Theatre is currently closed. Public Transportation. That is how Palace Performing Arts Center Inc., the nonprofit that runs the theater, was able to negotiate with the City of Albany to buy the theater for $750,000 over 30 years. Fogarty was most recently chief strategy officer of the Capital District YMCA, and before that was a senior vice president and senior relationship manager for Key Private Bank. The development team is not just renovating the interiors, but plans also call for work on the exterior, which will include restructuring the billboards affixed to the facade. Work will likely wrap sometime in 2021. Construction was scheduled to start next month and be completed within about three years. The Palace is applying for part of the $10 million in Downtown Revitalization Initiative money that the city won toward remaking Clinton Square to pay for the marquee. The Palace Theatre renovation will take place at a cost of $2.4 billion, and is scheduled to kick off later this summer. However, the real estate developers claim that their neighbor at 1552-1560 Broadway has not been cooperating. Three formal letters were sent in the mail, along with a standard access agreement and a monitoring plan. "That original $65 million project had a lot going on. The project will come in two phases, with phase one costing around $16 million and phase two at $19 million. The renovation project has been toned down since Fogarty has been in charge. The engineering feat is expected to create 70,000 square feet of lucrative retail space spread across the ground floor and three underground floors. Buying the theater was critical for improvement plans. “As such,” the real estate developers argue in their petition that they “had no choice but to commence the instant proceeding for a Court-ordered license to the Adjacent Premises to install Code-required protections at the Adjacent Premises in order to prevent further delays to the Project.”. Previously, I worked at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. “I don't understand the delay on this matter, other than your client purposely trying to delay our client's project,” complained a lawyer for the real estate developers in a message to the lawyer for the building next door. “In fact,” he said, “such protection is necessary to protect the Adjacent Premises, its occupants, and the public at large during the Project.”. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. The first phase involves expanding the lobby, adding extra bar space, an elevator and a VIP program. Palace Theatre. EY & Citi On The Importance Of Resilience And Innovation, Impact 50: Investors Seeking Profit — And Pushing For Change. They will look to replace the billboards with one giant LED screen that will wrap around the building, like similar digital billboards in the Times Square area. Steve Baboulis of WNYT NewsChannel 13 is the new board chair. “We were hoping that this phase would be expedited based on the amount of time it took to finalize the escrow agreement, as well as the months our client reached out without a response before that,” he grumbled, adding that the agreement on the table “should be easy to finalize.” “It is clear your client is refusing to grant our client's request for access,” he stated. The Palace Theatre brings in 150,000 attendees each year to see comedians, musicians and the Albany Symphony Orchestra. The Palace has $4 million in deferred maintenance. "There are things in there we could do some day but it was important for us to find something more manageable and find something that excites our customers and contributors." Susan Rosko Fogarty, executive director of the Palace Theatre, said the project is expected to start in 2020. The Palace received two grants from Gov. The real estate developers, Maefield Development, L&L Holding Company, and Fortress Investment Group, plan to place the historic Broadway house on sixteen jacks, and then lift it up while monitoring the vibration one inch at a time until it is perched 29-feet above street level. Dr. John Bennet of CDPHP is the vice chair. The original $65 million project plans included creating an additional 600-seat theater on North Pearl Street next to the Palace, a video post-production center for editing and sound-mixing, and expanding the theater's stage house, lobby and box office. "After the first inch, the rest is just repetitive," commented veteran engineer Anthony Mazzo, who helped roll the Empire Theatre across 42nd Street in 1998. From a converted factory in Gowanus to a designer’s own apartment on the Upper East Side, Council approves unusual renovation of Palace Theater, Times Square’s Palace Theater to Get $2B Revamp, Hotel, Tracking the biggest buildings taking shape at Hudson Yards, See the incredible views from Hudson Yards’s sky-high observation deck, Waldorf Astoria condo conversion launches sales, Sunnyside Yard plan is a utopian vision for an urban future, South Street Seaport redevelopment plan includes up to 990-foot tower, In Two Bridges, judge lands another legal blow to contested towers. The revamp of this interior landmark had already received the approval of the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission back in 2015. Renovations on the Palace Theatre have not begun, and the project already has a problem.