WinnDevelopment and GDD Properties have broken ground on the redevelopment of nearly 500,000 square feet of Sibley Square in downtown Rochester, NY. The $200 million project broke ground on the major $100 million phase of the development that includes the construction of 96 modern luxury apartment homes on the 9th through 12th floors, retail on Main Street, office space in the mid-rise, 72 active senior living apartment homes, and a complete rehabilitation of the entire façade and windows of the building.
The iconic building Sibley Building, repositioned as Sibley Square, features a five-story main building and a distinctive 12-story tower – nearly 1 million square feet in total, From it’s opening in 1868 as the city’s first department store to its role in the downtown’s current renaissance. The Sibley Building earned its spot on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. WinnDevelopment purchased the building in November 2012. Construction on the top floor of the building, once home to the Tea Room of the Sibley Department Store, is already underway.
U.S. Senator Charles Schumer said, “While it’s been decades in the making, the redevelopment of the Sibley is now underway to transform this Rochester landmark into the epicenter of high-tech businesses, retail, housing and downtown activity. The new Sibley Square is not only a key anchor to reinvigorate downtown Rochester and Main Street for years to come, but with the High Tech of Rochester’s (HTR) business incubator on the 6th floor, it will be the launching pad to grow Rochester’s future industries. I was pleased to help secure $42.5 million in federal New Market Tax Credits, which was the final piece of the puzzle to make this next phase of construction possible. Together with over $2 million in federal funding I’m pursuing to complete the HTR incubator, Sibley be the place where people want to live, do business and shop once again.”
Sources of financing included equity from Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, and Federal and State Historic Tax Credits, as well as funds from New York State and the City of Rochester.
“The public-private partnership between WinnDevelopment and New York State is a model for the Governor’s approach to revitalizing our regional economies,” said Lieutenant Governor, Kathy Hochul. “The Sibley Building represents the entrepreneurial vision that fueled Rochester’s past success, and it will once again be at the center of innovation and our effort to move the Finger Lakes forward. This is a true milestone in the history of a great building and a great community once again poised for growth and opportunity.”
The $200 million project broke ground on the major $100 million phase of the development that includes the construction of 96 modern luxury apartment homes on the 9th through 12th floors, retail on Main Street, office space in the mid-rise, active senior living apartment homes, and a complete rehabilitation of the entire façade and windows of the building.
Construction on the top floor of the building, once home to the Tea Room of the Sibley Department Store, is already underway. Once completed, the floor will become the headquarters for High Tech Rochester’s Finger Lakes Business Accelerator Cooperative, an incubator for high-tech start-up companies that is expected to generate more than 1,000 new jobs within its first five years of operation.
“We are thrilled to take this leap forward in a project that will restore energy and economic development to the region’s most beloved building,” said Gilbert Winn, Chief Executive Officer at WinnCompanies. “With Class A office space and luxury apartments, the new Sibley Building is transforming into the innovative center for office, retail, and housing while maintaining its historic character.”
