It's a major move for hundreds of state workers as Department of Transportation employees will be moving from the regional office in Schenectady to the department's headquarters. So what kind of impact will this have on the Electric City? Innae Park reports.

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SCHENECTADY, N.Y. -- Just shy of 200 New York Department of Transportation workers will be leaving their regional office in Schenectady and moving to the headquarters in Colonie in just a few months. That's according to state officials, who say the change is part of their efforts to maximize the state's use of space.

In response to the news, Mayor Gary McCarthy said, “We're disappointed that we're losing DOT employees from Schenectady, but I understand it's part of a ‘re-stacking,’ so it makes sense within the DOT organization to have all the employees in one location.”

The state-owned building has been a hub on State Street, having just opened its doors less than a decade ago, in March 2003. Since then, it's led to major traffic for downtown business owners.

Parker Inn’s General Manager Rich St. Jean said, “We've had hundreds and hundreds of people that have traveled all over the state to stay with us when they have training meetings here, regional meetings, which impacts us as far as guests we have overnight. In fact, this week we've got a DOT meeting that we have hotel guests staying with us for.”

However, the new building will not stand vacant. Officials say they plan to move other state workers there, just not DOT ones.

“We're looking forward to working with the Office of General Services to find another suitable tenant back in there as soon as possible,” said McCarthy. “It just works in the best interest of the state to reoccupy a building they own that is among the newest and best state offices in the region.”

St. Jean is confident that business will stay strong.

“Whether there's DOT workers, other state workers, they're all going to visit the shops, visit the restaurants,” St. Jean said. “So from that aspect, anybody visiting downtown is going to be a benefit to all of downtown. As far as whether they'll be bringing people from out of town and if it's going to impact the hotels, only time will tell.”

State officials haven't told us which departments would be moving into 328 State Street and at this point, there's no definite date set for the move. The DOT tells YNN it could be late March.