(rshsdepot) Utica, New York

["James Dent" <james.dent_@_itochu.com>]

=46rom the Utica Observer-Dispatch

Station focus of revitalization effort
By KELLY HASSETT
Observer-Dispatch

UTICA =97 Tucked behind Broad Street and the Genesee Street bridge, Boehl=
ert
Center at Union Station has for decades patiently undergone the nips and
tucks necessary to buff the looks of a regional landmark.

Utica used to be the geographic center of New York state, said Richard Au=
st,
curator at the Oneida County Historical Society.
=93Everybody ... had to come to Utica,=94 he said. =93It was all the way =
up to
World War II that the railroad was the primary means of transportation.=94

The latest phase in the station=92s renovation is currently under way in =
an
effort to restore the building to its original beauty and draw businesses=
 to
keep the area around it viable.

It=92s the third phase of the restoration project, according to Cary Flac=
k,
chief planner in the Oneida County Planning Department. The phase has a
price tag of $5.8 million, with almost $4.7 million coming from federal
funds and the rest from matching state and county funds.

One of the main elements of the current work includes the construction of=
 an
overhead walkway to connect directly to the passenger trains, Flack said.

There will also be work done on the exterior brick walls of the building,=
 he
said.

The station =97 renamed last year to recognize the more than three decade=
s of
public service to Oneida County by U.S. Rep. Sherwood L. Boehlert, R-New
Hartford =97 is held near and dear as a local treasure by residents and
officials.

Easing himself into a chair near the open door of the Union Station Barbe=
r
Shop, Dan Creaco Sr. said he remembers when the train station was bustlin=
g.
Really bustling.

=93When I came here, there were 47 trains running east and west,=94 he sa=
id,
running a comb through his hair.

Creaco has owned the barber shop for 53 years. Clippers and towels lay on
counters, and the walls were covered with clippings, photos and mirrors. =
The
whole room looked like a Norman Rockwell painting.

At one point he had two barbers just to handle =93all the salesmen (who) =
came
in by train. Just fabulous,=94 Creaco said. =93Unbelievable activity.=94

Now, it=92s just him in the shop, Creaco said, and the station is a bit
different.

=93(There=92s) not as many as there used to be. Only seven, eight trains =
coming
through here,=94 Creaco said.

The county-owned building was built in 1914, according to the Oneida Coun=
ty
Historical Society, and has been on the National Register of Historic Pla=
ces
since 1975.

The first two phases of the project included sidewalk and landscaping wor=
k,
and infrastructure improvements to the building.
The building=92s restaurant, located off the lobby, opened in March, and =
the
county is also in the process of bringing over the Department of Motor
Vehicles and the Board of Elections offices from the county building.

=93I think it=92s got loads of potential,=94 Flack said.

So have countless people over the years. The Bagg=92s Square area and Uni=
on
Station have been at the core of many revitalization efforts, similar to
what downtown has seen with the recent opening of the Hotel Utica.

John Adasek is one of those people who thinks the space has potential.

Adasek owns The Station Restaurant and Martini Bar, which kicked off with=
 a
Oneida County GOP fund raiser this spring. The coffee bar opened in
February.

Adasek said the area around the station would be a prime location for mor=
e
nightlife.

Adasek said the restaurant, with a dining room open for parties and table=
s
set up by the coffee bar, is designed to appeal to the city=92s professio=
nal
community.

He said he hopes to open the martini bar sometime after July Fourth.

=93A city without a nightlife is just a town,=94 Adasek said.

------------------------------