Post-release facility in Rotterdam proposed

PHOTOGRAPHER: Justin Mason

A Pennsylvania-based company is proposing to locate a facility to house former federal prisoners on Chrisler Avenue near the border of Schenectady.

Firetree, a non-profit corporation providing post-release services to prisoners, has applied for a zone change that would allow the construction of a facility to house 16 men and two women on a property near the Hudson Street intersection. The three-quarter-acre parcel is now zoned for light industrial uses and would need to be multi-family residential for the proposal. Other Firetree facilities house sex offenders, according to information from a prior proposal in Colonie.

Members of the Town Board are expected to refer the matter to the Planning Commission during their meeting Wednesday.

The property has a vacant warehouse structure and is owned by Renato Belleti. Town Planner Peter Comenzo said Firetree hasn’t submitted plans for the property and is unsure whether they would replace the existing building with a residential structure.

The company’s zone change application doesn’t specify what type of federal prisoners would be housed. However, it suggests long-term.

“These offenders have often been removed from the community for a long period of time,” the application states.

Residents would be lodged for up to four months, although longer placements are possible. All residents would be closely monitored for alcohol and substances, according to the application.

The facility would eventually be expanded to incorporate 32 men and four women after five years. If approved by the town, the first residents would arrive in January 2011.

The property is located in a largely commercial area. However, a number of residences are located immediately north and east.

Firetree operates similar facilities in Syracuse and Pennsylvania. The company had preliminary approvals to locate a 36-bed facility near the Albany County Jail in Colonie in 2007.

However, town officials eventually rescinded their support after learning other Firetree facilities house federal sex offenders. Firetree sued the town in state Supreme Court last year but had their case dismissed in January.