Altoona Blair County Development Corp. seeks Gable’s building redevelopment proposals
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The Altoona Blair County Development Corp. has opened a request for qualifications and concept proposals for a redevelopment opportunity of the Gable's building, with an Oct. 1 deadline.
In January, ABCD Corp. purchased the building with the goal of directing the next steps through a local lens and control, said President and CEO Stephen McKnight.
Since January, the corporation has been relocating tenants and securing the building. It is now moving through the disposition phase to secure a developer to give the building a new life, McKnight said, noting the building is abandoned.
All of the former tenants have found suitable spaces within the city, including the Blair County NAACP, which found an office inside the corporation's building at the Devorris Center for Business Development, McKnight said.
A few years ago, the building was condemned by the city because of a water leak in the basement. But all of that has been cleaned up and dried out, according to McKnight.
"The building is basically secure, abandoned and now we begin this RFT process," he said, adding a successful redevelopment of the Gable's Building will complete what has been a decades-long redevelopment of Altoona's central business district.
It will build upon the presence of Penn State Altoona, Saint Francis University and the Curry companies, which have all added fleet to the street in recent years, McKnight said, noting that helped local food and beverage operators like the Clay Cup and JJ Hadley & Co.
"With the Penn Central building redevelopment efforts now under way, the Gable's building will complete the central business district renovation," McKnight said.
ABCD Corp. has prepared the request for qualifications process as the first phase of a competitive redevelopment process, he said.
"We are seeking qualified development teams with the financial capacity, technical expertise, market knowledge and creative vision to transform this landmark property into a catalyst for continued downtown revitalization," McKnight said.
ABCD Corp. welcomes a broad range of redevelopment concepts for the 150,000-square-foot structure, including but not limited to: adaptive reuse of all portions of the existing buildings, mixed-use redevelopment, residential redevelopment, hospitality, office or commercial uses, entertainment or cultural uses, institutional or educational uses, demolition and complete site redevelopment or any combination of the above.
Respondents should address best use of the property, market feasibility, community and economic impact, design compatibility with downtown Altoona, estimated parking demand, construction phasing and an estimated project timeline.
The criteria will be evaluated based on organizational qualifications, relevant project experience, market knowledge, redevelopment concept and community benefits. Submission requirements include a cover letter, organization and development team, qualifications and experience and financial capacity.
Following review of qualifications and concepts, ABCD Corp. may invite one or more respondents to participate in a subsequent request for proposals or simply begin exclusive negotiations.
"At this stage, we don't expect fully engineered development proposals, rather just qualifications along with conceptual redevelopment ideas that demonstrate the respondent's experience, vision and approach," McKnight said.
Interested developers can arrange visits and ask questions about the site by emailing gablesbuilding@abcdcorp.org.
Mirror Staff Writer Matt Churella is at 814-946-7520.