Former Albany Dry Cleaner Building Finally Being Torn Down

Have you ever passed a building that’s been boarded up and abandoned for a long time, and wondered why there hasn’t been anything done with? In all honesty, that’s what I thought every time I drove by this one particular building at 566 Washington Avenue in Albany. It’s on the corner of Washington Avenue and Ontario Street.

Well, my question has been answered by a story that I saw on WNYT.  It’s the former RKO Dry Cleaners And Taylors. A fire gutted the building in 2000.

There were still some drums that had dry cleaning chemicals stored in the basement, which was full of water. There were environmental concerns because of the chemicals. Besides of those issues, the structure of the building caused many safety and health concerns.

After inspections and research, Albany city officials finally ordered that the building be demolished, starting at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday June 21, 2012. New York State regulators will still be able to access the site for any more environmental testing and clean up.

Is there a building near you that you think needs to be torn down?