State eyes demolition of 10 deteriorated buildings at Psychiatric Center
Aug. 2—OGDENSBURG — The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York is moving forward with a request from the state Office of Mental Health to demolish 10 vacant and deteriorating buildings at the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center complex.
DASNY states that the Letchworth Complex at the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center, 1 Chimney Point Drive, Ogdensburg, was constructed in 1890 and has been vacant since 1988. The complex is in a "dilapidated and deteriorated condition."
The 10 buildings set for demolition are 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 and 210.
"Today's news that DASNY will begin demolition of the Letchworth Building Complex, otherwise known as the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center, is a win for Ogdensburg, St. Lawrence County, and the North Country as a whole. Abandoned since 1988, these buildings have deteriorated into not only an eyesore but a public safety hazard as well," Assemblyman Scott A. Gray, R-Watertown, said in a press release Wednesday.
The first step of the process is to pursue a State Environmental Quality Review of the buildings. According to the Full Environmental Assessment Form completed by DASNY, the project would be done in two phases and include hazardous and "regulated material removals."
"The buildings to be demolished total approximately 135,000 square feet. Phase 1 would demolish the southern half of the complex (Buildings 117, 118, 119, 120, & 121), a connecting corridor towards Building 123, disconnect and infill a steam tunnel and utilities, and backfill the foundation area of Phase 1 to serve as laydown/staging/loadout area for Phase 2," the form states.
The second phase would demolish the northern half of the complex and buildings 122, 123, 124, 125 and 210. The foundation areas would be backfilled, perimeter fencing would be removed and final grading, top soil and seeding of the entire project area would take place, according to the document.
In a letter to involved agencies regarding the environmental review, DASNY also states that more buildings at the campus may be demolished as well.
"Additional dilapidated and deteriorated buildings on the SLPC campus are under consideration for demolition. As plans progress, any contemplated demolition activities would require their own environmental review pursuant to SEQRA. Regardless of where on the campus these buildings are located and when such demolition activities would take place, a separate review would be no less protective of the environment," the letter states.
The state abandoned some of the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center stone buildings beginning in the early 1980s, according to reports. Many of the buildings have been empty since the mid-1990s, when the center's operations were consolidated into new buildings which stand among the abandoned ones.
In 2021, roughly 8,000 lineal feet of fencing was installed for the safety of the public around buildings 1-9 which make up the Center Complex; Building 16, the Center Kitchen; Building 21 which used to hold education/farm care and CLR Clinic; Building 23, Curtis Hall; and Buildings 117-125 that are in the Letchworth Complex.
The cost of the fencing was approximately $400,000.
Gray stated that he had sent letters to Empire State Development Commissioner Hope Knight and General Services Commissioner Jeanette M. Moy earlier this year calling for the buildings to be torn down.
"The demolition is a turning point for Ogdensburg, which is burdened by unassessed property that, in turn, is shifted onto the taxpayers of Ogdensburg," he said. "My bill, A.5276, would allow the city a payment in lieu of tax on the vacant state property, but all along the main goal was demolition. Hopefully, this is a first step to return this land to its productive potential."
Gray called the demolition of 10 buildings a "much-needed first step."
