Latham Eyesore to be Turned Into Luxury

It's sat falling apart for at least seven years. It was once a thriving motel that also housed one of the Capital Region's favorite restaurants, Otis and Oliver's.

Otis & Oliver's is now located at Mill Road Acres Golf Course in Latham | Google Street View

The abandoned Cocca's Inn & Suites on Troy-Schenectady Road in Latham is boarded up in some spots, and other parts of the building are simply falling apart, leaving the structure in a condition that can only be described as decrepit.

Google Street View

The motel once famous for its heart shaped hot tubs (so I've heard) has been more famous for squatters over the years, who moved into some of the vacant rooms.

Google Street View

The building did wind up finding some purpose within the last couple years though. In 2019 the property owners made a deal with the Verdoy Fire Department across the street. The department uses the vacant structure for training and emergency drills.

Coccas as it looked in 2011, still open and a freshly paved parking lot | Google Street View

So what's next for the property? Luxury cars. North Country Motor Cars plans to level the current building and put up a new dealership featuring high end cars like Lexus and Porsche. They also plan on building a three story parking garage to keep inventory as well as a car wash. The service entrance will have three lanes.

All in all, it will certainly take away an eyesore and turn it into eye candy. Construction is expected to begin as soon as approval is given by the town of Colonie Planning Board.

[Spotlight News]

Abandoned Rensselaer County Burger King is Surprisingly In Tact

This Burger King was located on Columbia Turnpike in East Greenbush. After a near 40 year run, the restaurant closed its doors in 2017, long before the pandemic. These photos/video were taken nearly 2 years later in 2019. The inside remained in relatively good shape. You can see the old school swivel chairs and booths were all still there. Pictures and paintings remained on the wall and for the most part, inside looked pretty clean.

It's more common to find abandoned buildings covered in graffiti, windows broken, raided for copper and ceiling tiles left decaying on the floor. There's a little bit of that here, but the restaurant for the most part - at least on the inside looks ok. There is a door boarded up and the back loading dock has some ceiling tiles down. And yes, somebody did break one of the windows of the drive thru, but that could've been an angry customer from when they were still open.

Outside is a bit of a different story. As the interior photos were taken in 2019, the exterior was starting to have a tough time. Photos from 2021 do show some additional wear and tear, including more broken windows, pieces of the roof coming down and a serious absence of landscaping.

Although not independently verified, records show this property was sold at auction back in February of 2020.

WARNING: Under no circumstances should you enter this property. By doing so you risk bodily harm and/or prosecution for trespassing on private property.

Filed Under: cocca's inn and suites, cocca's motel, Colonie, latham

Categories: Around Albany, Local Stuff