May is National Preservation Month with a theme of “This Place Matters!”. On Friday night, the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation celebrated by presenting its Spirit pf Preservation Award to James Kettlewell, local author and Professor Emeritus at Skidmore College who taught us to appreciate Saratoga Spring’s remarkable architectural heritage; and to the New York Racing Association, for its stewardship of the historic Saratoga Race Course. Their leadership has emphasized for all Saratogians that this place does indeed matter.
Around town, however, Preservation Month is off to an inauspicious start. A lovely historic mid 19th century brick house on Greenfield Avenue at Woodlawn lost its windows and portions of its roof as part of an apparent asbestos removal and lead abatement, often the precursor of demolition. The house is a contributing structure in the federally designated Broadway National Register Historic District. It is unprotected from demolition, however, because it, like several historic houses in the area on Woodlawn, Clement and Clinton Streets also included in the National Register District, is not part of the Broadway Historic District designated by the City. City designation of a landmark is what actually affords protection from demolition and inappropriate alterations, not federal designation. Demolition threatens other historic structures in the City as well, notably the Winans-Crippen House on Franklin Street, and two small houses on Phila Street that have been allowed to deteriorate almost beyond repair. Past years have seen the loss of the rear of the Rip Van Dam hotel on Broadway and an unsuccessful attempt to demolish a cottage in the City’s East Side Historic District.
There is good cause to take a time out and give our threatened buildings a breather. The City has been awarded a grant from the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to review and update its Historic Preservation Ordinance. Included in this effort would be review of the demolition provisions of the ordinance, as well as inclusion of language to address the issue of “demolition by neglect” whereby an owner allows an historic property to deteriorate to the point where demolition is the only option.
To prevent further loss of historic buildings while improvements to the ordinance are being considered, the Preservation Foundation proposes that the City Council impose a temporary moratorium on the issuance of demolition permits for City designated historic properties, as well as for any other structures listed as contributing to a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This will allow time for the new ordinances to be draft and adopted. In addition, the Preservation Foundation supports extending the boundaries of the City’s Broadway Historic District to coincide with the boundaries of the federally designated historic district, as stated in the City’s Historic Preservation Plan.
Saratoga Springs has long been a leader in preservation. Preservation Month is a good time to reaffirm that “This Place Matters!” by taking a time out from demolition.
Douglas Kerr is the President of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation.
(518) 587-5030
info@saratogapreservation.org
