Have you ever had the chance in the comforts of your home with all the amenities to watch a 1950s outer space movie? Of course we all know today's amenities were at one time futuristic ideas on a black and white screen. Did you also wonder what the creators were thinking at that time to make such a movie believable? As a young child I would think to myself, is this really going to happen in our not-too-distant future? But then all of a sudden two men in space suits landing on another planet would lift up their clear plastic bubble shields and begin speaking to each other. Now wait a minute, are we supposed to believe this strange planet under a fake backdrop now has oxygen? Most people will accept the scene as not being real while others might question why it was ever done that way. As a child I accepted it; today I ask why. Thanks to our past experiences (including mistakes) we are able to know the difference between reality and what is considered imaginary.

We now have a similar situation in the city of Amsterdam where a visionary person has arrived (not in a space suit, but a two-piece) to save the planet. I'm sorry, to save the Chalmers building. It appears a Long Island developer named Uri Kaufman has a fetish for transforming old mills into trendy loft-style apartments. Well, he now envisions the same for Chalmers. Before we begin, please convince me that this will really happen. If it does then sign me up for a riverfront apartment with a sliding glass door for my fishing line. It sure beats standing on a rock next to a water moccasin. I'm not sure if it was really a water moccasin that day. But I'll keep it as my big fish story. Another nice perk to go along with these apartments might be valet parking and a free golf membership. Although I doubt my 2000 Honda Civic (with more than 200,000 miles) would qualify. It might be a little embarrassing watching the parking attendant push my vehicle into a parking space.

First of all, I'm a little confused as to going forward with something which could take a couple of years before we go forward with it. At that time after further study it will be decided if it was worth it to go forward with and if not should we attempt to tear it down again as initially planned? Or should we wait for another visionary person to come by and tell us another bedtime story? Sorry to confuse you. I'm just checking to see if you see what I see. It's sort of like now you see it ... now you don't ... now you see it again. Understandably so that Amsterdam residents have become leery of outside developers coming in and presenting their own subjective ideas on how it should look. The one positive note in this scenario is having a developer with a clear resume of refurbishing other buildings within the Capitol District.

Many long-time city residents have witnessed the occurrence of a business venture more than once offering their vision for hope. Unfortunately that vision usually turned into ridicule for others to see. I just hope if this vision becomes a reality it will also be end of story. I'm personally tired of hearing stories about catching up to some business developer living on the island of Barbados while we're still living here paying for their mess. In the meantime the Chalmers building stands with shattered glass and a wired fence waiting for its verdict. Is the wired fence a sign of it becoming a gated community?

It was also interesting to hear Mr. Kaufman describing areas like the Chalmers site as "the Sohos and Tribecas of tomorrow." Can you envision it? How about adding a little flavor to the area with some street vendors shuffling up and down Bridge Street selling fake Rollex watches? Or are they real? Maybe we can throw in a couple of squeegee washers to get the full effect. Last but not least we must not forget our food vendors serving up a good Italian sausage and pepper sandwich. Now I'm getting hungry. Come to think of it not a bad idea but I'm not sure that's the plan.

Comparing a district in Manhattan to a neighborhood in Amsterdam may sound enlightening but affordability comes to mind. Lifestyle and money are on opposite ends of the spectrum when comparing the two. I'm not privy to the plan but maybe its intentions are to cater to a specific group. Of course that would leave most Amsterdam residents living on the outside looking in. One specific group that makes up a large portion of our population is our seniors. Many continue to struggle in trying to maintain their home but with limited affordable housing choice is not an option. In the initial discussions of the Chalmers building the idea of a senior housing complex was mentioned. I hope it remains in some way part of the plan.

What I do see as a realistic concept of Amsterdam is the renovation of the Shuttleworth Park where the "Field of Dreams " idea of "build it and they will come" has come true. An attraction of what was once the pride of Amsterdam baseball has been rejuvenated again catering to the community as a whole. I would have enjoyed the opportunity to tour the Chalmers building one more time before its conversion — but I wasn't invited. It certainly would have brought back a time of packing silk shirts (Saturday Night Fever era) all day long while wondering where the boss was hiding. Thanks to grease-stained floors causing his shoes to squeak that I was able to detect his presence. I don't think OSHA was around back then. If they were I didn't know about it. I also learned of foreign trade during that time by reading the labels on the shirt. It truly was an early lesson of understanding a "sweat shop" — and needing a job.

This transformation of the Chalmers building sounds promising but one can only guess if it will be successful. As the economy falters and foreclosure of properties increase a battle will ensue throughout all municipalities to encourage residency.

So the fable of the story: Beware of developers coming in wearing space suits. If you happen to see one wanting to start up a space colony then check their background and connection to the community.

Until next time — hold that thought.

MICHAEL LAZAROU is an Amsterdam native and regular columnist.