HomeMy WebLinkAbout20210501 19 Washington St. Development Preservation Foundation Letter Saratoga Spring.
Preservation Foundation
June 16,2021
Ms. Tamie Ehinger,Chair
Design Review Commission
F 0 R e,""Uew City Hall
PRESERVATION 474 Broadway
Saratoga Springs,NY 12866
' RE: 19 Washington Street—Demolition& New Addition
Dear Tamie:
1:
The Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation has reviewed the revised concept plan at 19
Washington Street, which will be an addition to the historic Rip Van Dam Building at 353
Broadway.
Over the years,the Foundation has reviewed numerous proposals for this site. Most recently it
reviewed the 2019 proposed addition to the historic building at 19 Washington Street,an annex
Board of Directors for the Adelphi Hotel, which the Design Review Commission gave unanimous support for
removal of the rear additions to the historic 1840 stone building as well as the proposed mass
Adam N.Favro and scale, and the 2017 proposed addition to the Rip Van Dam Building, which received
President approval by the Design Review Commission. With each of the proposed projects the
James Gold Foundation submitted multiple letters expressing concerns about the removal of the historic
Vice President extension that appears to date back to the 1850s and the mass and scale of the proposed
Linda Harvey-Opiteck structures.
Secretary
The current proposal for the site has a significantly reduced scale and mass compared with
Dmitriy Yermolayev those two projects. It also incorporates multiple setbacks—most importantly,the setback from
Treasurer the Washington Street facade of 351 Broadway,the oldest commercial building on Broadway,
Jaime Butler and the setback of the sixth floor. The multiple setbacks reduce the mass and scale, allow for
Caroline Cardone greater visibility of Universal Preservation Hall, and lessen the overall visual impacts. In
Steven adds addition, this proposal does not physically connect to the circa 1840 stone structure,allowing
Giovanna D'Orazio
Julia Dunn it to remain a free-standing structure.
Sandra Fox
John Haller The Foundation strongly recommends that the sixth floor remain a light color to reduce its
Liz Israel g y g
Douglas Kerr visual impact, similar to the top floor of the Crafters Gallery building at 427 Broadway, and
Richard King that the first floor fenestration and detail be improved to make for a more pedestrian friendly
Stephen Kyne experience.
Vincent LaTerra
Dorothy Rogers-Bullis
Cindy Spence The Foundation understands that the architectural details, including materials and colors, are
Jason Thomas still evolving and looks forward to continued review of those details as the design progresses,
Matthew Veitch
The Foundation greatly appreciates the significant investment that the applicant is making in
James Kettlewell the historic buildings at 351 and 353 Broadway,which allows those buildings to be preserved
emeritus for future generations.
Executive Director Thank you in advance for your thoughtful consideration.
Samantha Bosshart
Sincerely,
Membership
Programs Director tor
Nicole Babie /
striomtd06&44+
Adam N. Favro Samantha Bosshart
President Executive Director
112 Spring. 5irrrr. S u i r r ? , Cc: 353 Broadway Acquisition,LLC
Saratoga Spriac- NY 12S1,6 Dominick Reneri,Project Architect
I' 51S-587-503o Mike Ingersoll,The LA Group,Agent
1 Amanda Tucker,Planner, Office of Planning and Economic Development