Schenectady to add downtown helpers

Schenectady’s downtown ambassador program is expanding.

Launched three months ago around a single part-time coordinator, the program will now include up to four part-time assistants who will cover additional downtown events.

The Metroplex Development Authority is providing a $36,000 grant to cover the salary of the coordinator, to pay for part-time shift captains and to pay for all-weather equipment for volunteers.

Downtown ambassadors are volunteers who provide visitors with directions to venues and answers to questions. They wear distinctive purple coats and yellow caps stitched with the word “ambassador” and carry flashlights and radios.

“This type of program is common in cities where lots of activities are going on, and Schenectady now qualifies. On any given night, especially show nights, there are thousands of people downtown,” said Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen.

The ambassadors will open doors, give directions and help people cross Broadway from the parking garage to Proctors and the cinema.

“They welcome folks to downtown and try to make sure that the experience of coming downtown is 100 percent positive,” Gillen said.

The Rev. Art Huduck will continue as part-time coordinator of the ambassador program. Huduck is a missioner with the First Reformed Church in Schenectady’s Stockade section. The church is also contributing toward his salary.

“We provide a sense of safety. We are walking two by two to provide that sense of safety and welcome. We have not had anyone feel apprehensive,” Huduck said.

The four part-time people will be shift captains who will supervise volunteers. The captains will come from the working poor, such as people who live at the YMCA women’s shelter and people from the City Mission and other service agencies, said Michael Saccocio, City Mission executive director.

“They will become employees of a revitalized downtown,” he said.

The ambassador volunteers come from a variety of professions, organizations and walks of life, Huduck said.

“Last night, I had eight people from Capital Care Providers who came down for the first time to help. They learned about the city and they stood alongside men from the City Mission and women from the YWCA. To watch that dynamic happen is wonderful,” he said.

Saccocio said the ambassador program was conceived by a group that emerged from a dialogue over how to foster economic development and help people in need downtown. At the time, downtown merchants expressed concern about the proximity of social service agencies, such as Bethesda House, and their clientele to downtown’s revitalized environment.

“You don’t have to choose between economic development and helping people in need. This is the third way,” Saccocio said. “We can help people in need spur economic development. It is a better way in which everyone is served.”

The Third Way Committee consisted of the YWCA, the City Mission, Proctors, the Jay Street Business Association and the Chamber of Schenectady County. They started at first by sponsoring chess tournaments and other activities designed to promote a safer environment downtown, Saccocio said.

“As we were evolving our mission, we asked around about what the biggest need was for downtown,” Saccocio said. “What became apparent was a need for ambassadors to help people when they come downtown.”

In September, the committee began the downtown ambassador program on a trial basis, using volunteers for 30 Proctors shows.

“The bottom line is it went great. We have had nothing but positive feedback,” Saccocio said.

Metroplex Executive Director Jayme Lahut said the ambassador program was an instant success due to the expanded membership of volunteers and the participation of the mayor’s office and the Schenectady Police Department.

“It has fostered collaboration among a variety of stakeholders in support of downtown revitalization and a safer, welcoming downtown environment,” Lahut said.