UTICA, N.Y. -- At the corner of Columbia and Huntington Streets in Utica, a large hole has sat untouched for years. It was the beginnings of the new Irish Cultural Center, but money woes brought the project to an abrupt halt -- until now.
"Every so often you come across something that makes your heart feel good and this is not for money. It's for heritage," said the project's new developer, Vaughn Wang.
"There has always been the desire to do it, but the thing that was missing was the ability, one person to just take control, know construction, know development, know what to do, know how to bring the parts together," he said.
Now with a new developer in charge, some small changes have been made to the plan and construction has started from scratch. Crews returned to the site last week.
"Step one is to take out the existing foundation and put in a much larger foundation to support the larger building," said Wang.
The center, which Wang says is expected to cost several million dollars to build, consists of two floors. The Irish Cultural Museum and offices will be upstairs, with a convention center and authentic pub on the first floor.
"The Irish pub, actually, is being built in Ireland, coming over here and being installed," he said. "We look forward to it being identical to [pubs] of the late 1800s, and to have people come in to get the Irish cultural feel."
Developers say they aren't sure how long the center will take to complete, but add residents should start seeing big changes in the coming months.
The museum will be filled with artifacts that have been passed down for generations through families who live in the Utica area. The cornerstone of the old St. Patrick's Church, which once stood on that site, will also be implemented into the center's foundations.