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Design Review Board deems 195 Lake Avenue carriage house historically significant; asks owner for preservation alternatives
Summary
After hearing from the owner and contractor, the Design Review Board on Sept. 10 determined the small carriage house at 195 Lake Avenue to be historically or architecturally significant. The board required the owner to submit additional information documenting efforts to preserve or relocate the structure before any demolition can be considered.
The Saratoga Springs Design Review Board voted Sept. 10 that the carriage house at 195 Lake Avenue is historically or architecturally significant and therefore subject to the UDO process for demolition and alternatives. The owner, Erin Murphy, said she purchased the property intending to adapt the structure into habitable secondary dwelling space after receiving Zoning Board approval. She told the board that work to make the carriage house code‑compliant would require extensive reconstruction — including foundation, walls, stairs and roof — and asked for the board’s guidance on what elements it considered worth preserving.
The board reviewed applicant documentation including condition photos, framing notes and a short feasibility discussion that outlined structural deficiencies (slab or shallow foundation, 2x6 framing, low ceiling heights, exterior stairs and other issues). Several board members said the carriage house is a rare, early auto garage with intact historic character and that accessory structures like carriage houses contribute to the historic fabric of neighborhoods.
Rob DeBoeuf and other members noted that the structure appears on early maps and retains integrity in its form and some materials, and that it tells part of the story of the district’s transition from carriage to automobile use. After public comment and discussion, the board voted to find the structure historically or architecturally significant under Section 13 of the Unified Development Ordinance. The motion to determine the structure significant was seconded and passed.
Because the board found significance, the owner must now document good‑faith efforts to preserve the structure or present acceptable alternatives: examples include professional assessments of adaptive reuse, efforts to locate a purchaser willing to relocate or reconstruct the building, or demonstration that the structure cannot be adapted for a permitted use that provides reasonable return. The board noted applicants may return with documentation and public‑hearing materials; the board will consider proposed demolition only after the required alternatives analysis and public process are complete.
Speakers included owner Erin Murphy and contractor Garrett Eaton, board chair Tammy Anger and members Rob DeBoeuf, Jeff Wood and Chris Bennett. The Preservation Foundation also offered support for adaptive reuse. The board’s written motion specifically states that the structure contributes to the historic fabric of Saratoga Springs and triggers the UDO’s demolition review requirements.
