ALBANY COUNTY — It’s official: The sale of five properties the county wanted to buy on the former College of Saint Rose campus was approved by the Albany County Pine Hills Land Authority on Dec. 11.

The vote was unanimous.

The $6 million sale includes:

— 420 Western Avenue, formerly the Event and Athletics Center;

— 996 Madison Avenue, formerly the Hearst Communications Center;

— 394 Western Avenue, formerly the Neil Hellman Library;

— 994 Madison Avenue, formerly the Huether School of Business; and

— 1000 Madison Avenue, formerly the College of Saint Rose Administrative Center.

The century-old college, facing financial hardship, closed in the summer of 2024. The Pine Hills Land Authority, backed by Albany County, then won the bid to buy the 48-acre campus for $35 million. 

Earlier this year, the authority had approved an agreement that allowed the county to use the buildings on a temporary basis until the sale was approved.

“This action marks another important step toward transforming the site into a vibrant and functional asset for our community,” Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy said in a statement. “Securing these parcels lays the groundwork for a thoughtful, phased redevelopment process, one that will honor the campus’s legacy while opening the door to new opportunities for housing, innovation, and public use.”

“Finalizing the sale to Albany County delivers on two main goals of our board: to find dynamic uses for these buildings that maintain life and activity in the Pine Hills neighborhood, and to quickly retire the county’s debt load for financing the purchase of the campus,” said Dominic Mazza, who chairs the authority’s board of directors, in a statement.

Mazza also said, “The presence of not only county employees, but also members of the public taking classes and visiting businesses, will maintain the security of this campus and the long-term economic and social wellbeing in the heart of the City of Albany.”