RENSSELAER – Prime riverfront property with a view of the Albany skyline is shovel-ready for a proposed $200 million development, city officials said.

It's been four decades in the making.

"Since the 1980s, it's been fits and starts. There's been interest over the years. For various reasons, things fizzled out," Moore said.

The plan for Kiliaen’s Landing calls for transforming the northern half of its Hudson River waterfront with residential and commercial development.

“It ties the city waterfront up. We have the U.W. Marx project going up. This will go north of that,” Mayor Richard Mooney said Monday.

The city issued requests for proposals late Friday and within 30 minutes received its first inquiries about developing the waterfront, a $200 million investment, said Charles Moore, the city’s director of planning and development.

“This is the Capital Region’s waterfront. It’s historically and geographically in the heart of the region It’s a proposed plan on the city’s part to fuel development,” Moore said.

The city Planning Board has completed the state generic environmental impact statements, Moore said, in order to have the riverside shovel-ready for investors.

The city had eight potential developers asking for more information about the 34 acres on the 3,000-foot-long stretch of the Hudson River that is envisioned for the first two phases of development. The first two phases extend from the Livingston Avenue railroad bridge north to the Hilton Center. Another 4,000 feet of riverfront continues north to the city line and those 41 acres are proposed for recreation development.

The properties are mostly privately-owned, but the city will work with the developers and owners on the project, Moore said.

The city is exploring its options for applying for the next round of the state’s $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative grants to assist the development of Kiliaen’s Landing, Moore said.

“It’s amazing. A $200 million investment in the city of Rensselaer is a good thing,” Mooney said about the overall concept.

The project documents depict five buildings – four that are five stories tall and one that is six stories tall – on 19.4 acres encompassing 366 residential units with parking for 547 vehicles.

Even though Kiliaen's Landing overlooks the Albany skyline, the acreage along the riverfront has has been dormant.

The area is located north of the 24-acre De Laet’s Landing site where U.W. Marx is building a 96-unit apartment complex. The area also features the $3 million Hudson River walkway.

The city's made an unsuccessful attempt to secure the state casino license for the Capital Region. And plans by SUNY Polytechnic Institute to turn the site into a $12.5 million clean energy technology center never got off the ground following the arrest of SUNY Poly President Alain Kaloyeros. At the time, the SUNY Poly proposal was seen as a consolation prize for Rensselaer, which lost out to Schenectady for the state casino license.

“The city has long recognized that attractive, sustainable development of its Hudson River waterfront is critical to the future identity of the city as a desirable place to live and work,” according to the request for proposals.

The city has set a deadline of April 12 for proposals to be submitted for consideration.