State lawmakers are calling for a bill to dedicate several acres of land of the proposed Wadsworth Labs project for retail and residential development.

This is in response to the state’s $1.7 billion plan to create a new state-of-the-art public health lab in the city of Albany.

This would be built on the Harriman State Office Campus in Albany.

State Assemblyman John McDonald says now the goal is to attract people from across the state and the country to the Capital Region in order to maximize the plan’s potential and create a sense of community around that campus.

“We have an opportunity here to take Wadsworth, which is internationally acclaimed, and make some significant investment here in the Capital Region that benefits the city of Albany, but more importantly, or just as importantly, the Capital Region,” he said.

State Sen. Pat Fahy compares the current plan to a parking lot district.

The new Wadsworth Center is set to be complete in 2030.