Schenectady Mayor Brian U. Stratton announced the renaming of a Huron Street block as “Roger Hull Place,” and presented the outgoing, 15-year Union College president with an official Schenectady city street sign bearing his name. The street name change will be made official later this month in legislation expected to be adopted by the Schenectady City Council.
Mayor Stratton and City Council President Mark Blanchfield jointly made the presentation to President Roger Hull as part of the Downtown Schenectady Improvement District's (DSIC) annual Block Party held at the Stockade Inn.
“For his vision, leadership and all he has done to forge a more productive and lasting connection between Union College and City of Schenectady, I am proud to put forward this official request to rename this segment of Huron Street in honor of President Roger Hull,” Stratton said.
City Council President Mark Blanchfield said: “It is only fitting that we name this street for the man who is responsible for the renaissance of the College Park neighborhood. Roger Hull Place will be a gateway between a reclaimed industrial site – now an academic, residential and business park-like setting — and Union's main campus.”
Stratton said renaming the city block for Hull carries both symbolic and material significance. The block, which connects Seward Place with Park Place, is an integral component of the college's estimated $30 million overall investment made in the neighborhood since 1998. The street also serves as the central walkway for students, staff and faculty between the main campus and the College Park Hall complex.
In 1998, Hull launched the Union-Schenectady Initiative (USI), a streetscape and housing project that reclaimed Seward Place on the college's west side. In addition to acquiring and renovating houses and establishing a community center, the college offered the opportunity for families purchasing homes in the neighborhood to receive free Union tuition for their children.
In 2003, Hull led Union's purchase of the former Ramada Inn and adjacent properties along Huron Street and Park Place for conversion into a student dormitory, a business conference center and athletic field complex. The project included environmental clean up of contaminated industrial properties formerly used by the American Locomotive Company.
“Roger Hull Place will not only remind us of the significant investment made by Union College to stabilize and reclaim this Schenectady neighborhood, but it will serve as a lasting tribute to a man who truly reached across the traditional boundaries of city and college to form a lasting partnership with our community,” Stratton said.
In addition, Hull was a founding partner in the Schenectady 2000 initiative, which began a renaissance in the city and later spurred the creation of the Metroplex Development Authority. “For more than 200 years, Schenectady has been closely identified by – and has benefited from — the presence of Union College,” Stratton said. “We hope that this commitment will be continued by his successor.”