DASNY NEWS & UPDATES: SUMMER 2014 DASNY Launches New Website  DASNY understands that access to timely information is crucial and recently launched a redesigned, updated website. We have a fresh new look, user-friendly navigation, and updated content with the latest information about the services we provide. Enhancements include: Facts and figures highlighted across four tabs on the homepage, a DASNY Capabilities button featured on each interior page, a new Investor Relations section, and a new Project Photo Gallery. The new website is smartphone and tablet-friendly and includes an option to Subscribe to DASNY to keep up-to-date with DASNY.  The RFP and Bid Opportunities section is currently under construction and once complete will be integrated with the NYS Contract Reporter System. This will provide NYS firms seeking work with DASNY a more direct and intuitive process to access DASNY opportunities. For now, vendors may use the NYS Contract System to access State procurement opportunities. Take a look at our new website. We welcome your feedback. 2014 NYS MWBE Forum: Save the Date Register today and be sure to stop by DASNY's Expo booth. We look forward to seeing you there. DASNY’s Western New York Vendor Outreach Event On July 23, 2014, DASNY President, Paul T. Williams, Jr. traveled to Buffalo, NY, along with our Director of Opportunity Programs Group,Michael M. Clay, to host a vendor outreach event to increase awareness of business opportunities for companies seeking work with public entities.  The event was well attended by more than 200 company representatives. Participants indicated it was one of the best business networking events in Western New York. Attendees were given the opportunity to meet with public and private-sector business entities, including Buffalo's Canalside, Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, the Erie County Medical Center, the University at Buffalo, and the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. Also available to provide hands-on guidance were a host of New York State Executive Agencies and Public Authorities, such as the Empire State Development (ESD), the Thruway Authority, the Office of General Services (OGS), the SUNY Construction Fund (SUCF), and the Department of Transportation (DOT). The attendees learned how to access upcoming capital projects and procurement opportunities. Read More $40 Million in Projects at Niagara Falls State Park DASNY contracts with industry leading architects and engineers to build impressive, state-of-the-art social infrastructure across the State, but only Mother Nature can leave you in a state of awe. In July, DASNY President and staff had the opportunity to tour our work at the Niagara Falls State Park. The overall capital project is now $40 million, up from the original $25 million and work may continue through 2018. The work we have done is unique, complex, and a testament to the diverse organization we are today. A special thanks to Rob Ryan and Michelle Paris for their assistance in making the tour possible.  North Shore Trail Reopens at Niagara Falls State Park Welcome DASNY Board Member Jonathan H. Gardner On June 18, 2014, the New York State Senate confirmed Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s nomination of Jonathan H. Gardner, Esq. to DASNY’s Board. Mr. Gardner is a Partner with the law firm of Kavinoky Cook LLP in Buffalo, NY. His practice areas include corporate and securities law, commercial transactions, private placements, venture capital financing and business combinations.  “I want to congratulate Governor Andrew Cuomo on the nomination and successful confirmation of Jonathan H. Gardner. Mr. Gardner’s professional expertise and his personal commitment to the Buffalo community make him an ideal addition to our Board,” said  Alfonso L. Carney, Jr., DASNY Board Chair. Read More Board Visits Project Sites: "DASNY told us, if you can dream it, we can build it." - Sylvia White, Chief of Staff, Harlem Hospital Center On June 25, 2014, following the Board meeting, members and senior staff traveled to Harlem for a tour of the Matthew Goldstein Science Complex at City College and Harlem Hospital’s Mural Gallery. The tours brought the projects to life and allowed participants to witness first-hand, the scale, complexity and grandeur of DASNY work. Harlem Hospital Center Read More Matthew Goldstein Science Complex  Read More DASNY Issues Competitive PIT Bonds On June 24, 2014, DASNY sold $1.2 billion in Personal Income Tax (PIT) Bonds ​via competitive sale. These bonds were rated AAA, by S&P and AA+ by Fitch. This follows Fitch Ratings’ upgrade of New York’s credit rating to AA+, the best rating that Fitch has ever given New York, and the upgrade from Moody’s Investor Services to Aa1, the State’s highest rating since 1964. After the sale, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that “following ratings upgrades from both Fitch and Moody’s, this sale of Personal Income Tax Revenue Bonds is continuing to show that New York is on the move and the best days are yet to come.”   Read More  New Housing to Support Residents in Need DASNY works closely with the Homeless Housing Assistance Corporation to provide new and renovated housing for those in need. Some recent examples of our work are highlighted below. The Crotona Park North Residence located at 867 Crotona Park North in the Bronx, is an eight-story, 39,060 gross square foot (GSF), modern brick building designed by Harden Van Arnam Architects and constructed by Bruno Frustaci Contracting at a cost of $9.7M.  The building houses studio apartments for individuals or families under the Postgraduate Center for Mental Health. The construction began in June 2012 and tenant occupation started in May 2014. The studio apartments are outfitted with amenities like hardwood floors, stylish tile backsplashes, ample closet space and roomy, well-proportioned bathrooms. Homeless Housing Assistance Corporation (HHAC) hired DASNY as a technical agent from feasibility to construction completion.  Mallikarjuna Dokku served as project manager at Crotona Park. The field representative was Stan Puciul. The Sugar Hill Apartments project located at 404 West 155th Street in New York City (West Harlem) is a 13-story comprehensive large-scale, mixed-income, mixed-use development that provides 124 studio, one, two and three bedroom apartments (227 beds in total) of affordable permanent housing, a museum and cultural center for children, an underground parking garage and an early childhood program for up to 200 children.  The total construction area is approximately 171,085 sq. ft. with an overall construction cost of approximately $45 million. Construction of the project started in May of 2012 and it is scheduled for Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) by the end of August. The sponsor of the project is Broadway Housing Communities. The artistic designer of the project is David Adjaye. The architect of record is SLCE Architects and the prime construction contractor is Mountco Construction and Development Corporation. The project manager at Sugar Hill was Mallikarjuna Dokku. Manny De Los Santos served as the field representative on this project. Sustainability News Rainwater or Stormwater? – what to call it, and why. In response to SUNY goals for increasing Green Infrastructure (GI), DASNY toured Onondaga County’s “save the rain” projects with Lou Cirelli and Chris Keado of our construction staff and Chris Marcella, Director of Design and Construction at SUCF. GI strategies use more natural approaches to rainwater management when possible to slow the water flow and encourage water to permeate to natural aquifers, instead of piping water to expensive treatment processes.  We toured installations of green roofs, bioswales, rainwater catchment systems for in-building use (toilet flushing and skating ice creation), pervious paving, etc. The intent of our tour and meeting was to learn what has worked well for Syracuse to reduce stormwater runoff and contamination of their natural water systems, and to begin to identify ways in which SUCF and DASNY can work to increase GI projects throughout the SUNY system. So far, with over 175 projects installed, Onondaga County has learned that GI approaches are less expensive than large treatment plants that require significant energy and chemical use. They beautify the town, engage the community, and clean the water, while they reduce runoff issues.  Want to learn more? Go to http://savetherain.us/ to read more.