UTICA — Additional investments have been allocated to Utica’s Harbor Point, where city officials say the destination is now another step closer to reality.

Roughly $2.5 million from the city’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding will go towards infrastructure and aesthetic improvements for Harbor Point, including a floating dock system for kayaks and canoes, walkway improvements and railings along the walkways adjacent to the water, pedestrian connections to the surrounding trails, several pavilions and shade structures, and the enhancement of green spaces like trees, lawns and bushes.

“Harbor Point will be a destination that will transform the future of the city of Utica,” said Utica Mayor Robert Palmieri. “With these investments, people will live, work, visit and play at Harbor Point.”

Utica’s Harbor Point comprises more than 100 acres of waterfront real estate, situated around the city’s historic harbor between the Mohawk River and the Erie Canal.

The announcement comes after significant additional investments have been previously allocated to Harbor Point and multiple organizations planning several projects in and around the location. Most recently, city officials and officials with Mohawk Valley Gardens announced plans to restore and rehabilitate the historic 1933 building adjacent to the harbor and to construct an adjoining 8,000-square-foot facility. The two buildings will be home to a restaurant and banquet facility, as well as a regional event center.

City officials say that Harbor Point has been in the works for decades and is now finally starting to see legitimate progress.

“As we have said back in 2013 and when I took over, we felt that the harbor was the future of our city,” Palmieri said. “I think what you’re starting to see is the many years of talk about the harbor coming to a realization.”

“For decades, the bright future of the Harbor has been talked about, but now it’s the present and not the future that is bright,” the mayor added. “It’s taken a lot of time, energy and work, but Harbor Point is taking shape and we should all be thrilled.”

While city officials did not provide an estimated timeline of when construction will be complete, they did say that construction is expected to begin within the next week.