Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan Announces Appointment of Dannielle Melendez to Pine Hills Land Authority

ALBANY, NY - Mayor Kathy Sheehan has announced the appointment of Dannielle Melendez, President of the Pine Hills Neighborhood Association, to the Pine Hills Land Authority.

In addition to being the president of the Pine Hills Neighborhood Association, Melendez is a Government Relations Analyst for Farrell Fritz P.C. and holds a Masters in Business Administration from The College of Saint Rose. Melendez was selected out of a group of approximately 20 applicants.

The College of Saint Rose made the difficult decision to close its doors resulting in the need to find a new use for the College's Pine Hills campus. While the College may sell all or part of the campus directly to interested purchasers, the State created the Authority and gave it the right to issue bonds, acquire the campus and otherwise manage the disposition of the property.

If the Authority exercises its right to purchase the campus and is the successful bidder, it shall be responsible for:

• Planning, development and disposition of the facilities
• Operation of the facilities
• issuing of bonds and collecting fees and other income

Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan said, "The closing of Saint Rose was devastating for the staff, students, and neighborhood of Pine Hills. This campus acted as the centerpiece for the neighborhood and brought people from all over to study and live in our great City. It is important for the Authority to have the option to acquire the campus and ensure we continue to have a vibrant and active core in the center of our Capital City. Given the campus' importance to the Pine Hills neighborhood, I felt strongly that my sole representative on the Authority should be a voice for the Pine Hills neighborhood, and who better to be that voice than the president of the neighborhood association. I sincerely appreciate Dannielle's willingness to serve in this capacity and look forward to working with her, the County Executive, the County Legislature Chairperson, and their appointees to develop a meaningful plan for this campus should the Authority purchase it."

Dannielle Melendez, President of the Pine Hills Neighborhood Association, said, "On behalf of the Pine Hills Neighborhood Association, I sincerely thank Mayor Kathy Sheehan for appointing me to the Authority. Mayor Sheehan has shown up for the Pine Hills neighborhood over the last several months since the College of Saint Rose announced its closure, and we couldn't be more grateful for her commitment to ensuring neighborhood voices continue to be heard. I would also like to thank the volunteers on our PHNA board and the members of the PHNA Committee on the Future Reuse of the Campus at the College of Saint Rose for their support, hard work, and dedication during this process. I look forward to representing the Pine Hills neighborhood on the Authority and collaborating with the other stakeholders to ensure the properties are returned to productive use."

###