Those who recoiled in disgust or gasped in reverence at a modern design for the Saratoga Springs City Center expansion have voiced their opinions, and designers have run with that advice.
The resulting exterior redesign was unanimously approved by the city’s Design Review Commission at its Wednesday, May 6, meeting. It will now proceed to the City Council for consideration at the May 19 meeting.
The DRC was very accommodating in working with the City Center Authority, helping guide the process to be timely and positive, said Authority President Mark Baker.
The new design eliminates chunks of limestone and substitutes brick columns. It still has panels of glass that will allow passers-by to see inside the expansion, a feature designers say promotes a sense of excitement and helps set the building apart from its neighbor, the Hilton hotel.
`The hotel that it sits next to is not an architectural wonder, so their goal was to establish a new identity, separate themselves from this big pile of bricks next door and be representative of the type of building that it is,` said DRC Chairman Patrick Kane.
The expansion will still be 22,000 square feet, providing much-needed space for events and drawing more visitors to the city and its downtown area.
The changes will likely increase the cost of the project by about $500,000, said Baker, but an extremely competitive environment in the construction business may still result in bids that are within the $16 million budget.
`We’re hoping we can address these changes within our budgetary constraints,` said Baker.
If bids don’t come back within budget, the project will go back to the City Council.
The review process has also sent the construction timeline back. The authority had initially hoped to be breaking ground in late May, but even assuming a quick approval from the City Council, bids probably won’t come back until July.
Starting construction during the racing season would be troublesome, so the new target for groundbreaking is September.
Construction is expected to take 14 months, during which time the facility will remain open.
The city referred the expansion to the DRC following a community backlash to the modern appearance that some said clashed with surrounding Victorian architecture. Kane said he thinks the changes will be better received.
`Everybody felt like [the authority] listened to us; they listened to the public,` he said. `They brought back many changes that helped widen the comfort zone of people.`
Though the DRC was tasked with only examining the exterior of the proposal, in an interview Kane said that he would like to see features like radiant heating in the sidewalk (for snow removal) and a backup generator added.
Though adding a generator would not be in the authority’s budget, finding the funding elsewhere could mean the creation of a safe haven for residents during a disaster like December’s ice storm.
`To me, I think it’s a shame if we build a building like that and don’t make it something that will truly serve the county,` said Kane. `This is a building that could and should be relied upon in a time of need.“