NBT provides financing for transformative Mohawk Valley projects

UTICA — NBT Bank officials say they are pumped about the economic and development transformation taking place in the Mohawk Valley and their role in helping to procure financing for some of the projects.

“It’s a great story what’s going on in the Mohawk Valley,” John H. Watt, Jr., president and CEO of parent company NBT Bancorp (NASDAQ: NBTB), says. “It’s an exciting business opportunity for us in a market we know well.” 

NBT Bank has about 100 employees and 10 branch offices in the Mohawk Valley region.

David Kavney, NBT Bank’s regional president for both the Mohawk Valley and Central New York regions, share’s Watt’s enthusiasm about the Utica–Rome area.

“There’s a lot going on and it’s exciting to be a part of it,” he says. Both Watt and Kavney sat down with CNYBJ on July 7 at the banking company’s Syracuse office.

The Mohawk Valley projects NBT has participated in include the following pair.

Olbiston Apartments

Formerly a “grand example of stunning Utica architecture,” the 124-year-old Olbiston Apartments building at 1431 Genesee St. in Utica had fallen into disrepair and had been deemed unsafe in July 2021, the bank notes. As a result, nearly 60 tenants were displaced.

In late 2021, NBT Bank worked with borrower the City of Utica to provide the initial funding that allowed for the purchase of the property from the absentee landlords, enabling initial repairs to be made protecting the property through winter from further damage, NBT says. In conjunction with and support from New York State Homes and Community Renewal, Housing Trust Fund Corporation, and the New York Governor’s office, this also helped “jump start the process” toward obtaining construction and permanent financing with low-income housing and historic tax credits. 

Following a full gut-renovation/restoration, the historic property, built in 1898, will provide affordable and workforce housing for 153 households, including 32 studios, 92 one-bedroom units, and 29 two-bedroom units for affordable-housing tenants, NBT says. The total project cost is estimated at more than $55 million.

Utica Harbor Point 

The Utica Harbor is a historical landmark on the Erie Canal. It is a vestige of the great NYS Canal System during the “Barge Canal” industrial period and boasts “a proud history,” NBT notes. The goal of the Harbor Point Redevelopment Project is to revitalize the 148 acres of Utica Harbor waterfront area into a 500,000-square-foot mixed use area with “vibrant business and recreational destination for the City of Utica and surrounding areas.”

In 2018, NBT provided the bridge financing for the site-preparation work and the repair of the Canal bulkhead, supported by a $6 million Empire State Development grant issued in 2013. This financing enabled the project to advance the overall property development in conjunction with the City of Utica Master Plan,” NBT says. Today, this work is about 95 percent complete with final work underway to be able to sell the properties. 

“Both of these projects presented our team an opportunity to do what they do best — partner with amazing businesses and organizations to support the exciting and ongoing transformation of our community,” Kavney says. “I can’t stress enough how exciting, I mean truly thrilling, it is to be able to roll up our sleeves and help make sure these two important projects are a success. Both transactions involved unique structures due to the complexity of the funding sources and number of partners involved. But it all comes down to collaboration, open communication and having a shared vision.”

NBT Bank offers personal banking, business banking, and wealth-management services from offices in seven states, including New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, and Connecticut. NBT Bank and NBT Bancorp are both headquartered in Norwich. NBT Bancorp had assets of $12.1 billion, as of the end of the first quarter.