A Neighborhood on Both Sides of the Line
Sycaway sits on the east side of Troy, and it does not stop at the city limits. NY Route 2 becomes Brunswick Road east of NY 66 and runs through a residential part of Troy along the north edge of the Poesten Kill to the city line at South Lake Avenue, then keeps going into the Town of Brunswick. The Brunswick Fire Company No. 1 on Hoosick Road describes itself as being in Sycaway, on the town side.
That matters when you are planning work. A house on one side of the line is in the City of Troy and a house a few doors down may be in Brunswick, with a different building department. Troy handles permits through its building permit office, and Brunswick lists fuel-burning appliances as permit work on its town building department page.
Sycaway Houses
Inside the city, Sycaway is newer than downtown but older than the suburbs. The census tract covering Tibbits, Euclid, Carlyle, Wendell, Lee and South Lake avenues has a median build year of 1947. About 38 percent of homes there were built by 1939 and about 36 percent between 1950 and 1979. Roughly 42 percent are single-family detached, 40 percent of units are in two-to-four-unit buildings, and about 85 percent of homes heat mainly with gas.
Some of the oldest houses are along Brunswick Road. A Greek Revival house built in 1847 just inside the city limits there borders a 17-acre nature preserve near Poestenkill Gorge Park.
Mid-Century Systems
The median Sycaway house in the city dates from 1947, around the years when forced-air gas furnaces and ductwork became common in new houses. A house from that era that still has its original ducts can work fine, but old ducts often leak at the seams, have undersized returns, or never reached a finished attic or a converted porch.
When the furnace goes, it is a good time to look at the ducts too, and at whether a heat pump or central air should share them. Older two-families here may still have a boiler per floor or a single boiler for both apartments.
Sycaway heating or AC? Call us.
Call (838) 884-0024Sycaway Streets and Landmarks
We work on Brunswick Road, Hoosick Road, Tibbits Avenue, South Lake Avenue, Lee Avenue, Euclid Avenue, Carlyle Avenue, Wendell Avenue and Mount Saint Marys Avenue. St. Mary's Cemetery runs along Brunswick Road. The Troy Public Library once ran a Sycaway branch, which closed in 2009. On the town side, Brunswick Plaza sits along Hoosick Road.
Sycaway Questions
My house is on the Brunswick side of Sycaway. Who issues the permit?
Houses inside the city go through the City of Troy. Houses on the town side go through the Town of Brunswick building department, which lists fuel-burning appliances as permit work. Your tax bill shows which one you are in.
Should I replace the ductwork when I replace my furnace?
Not always. Ducts in good shape can be sealed and reused. Ducts that are rusted, crushed, undersized or leaking badly are worth replacing while the old furnace is out.
Can I add central air to a 1950s house that has a furnace?
Usually. If the furnace and ducts can move enough air, a coil and outdoor unit can be added. Some older duct systems need changes to cool well upstairs.