Design Review Board approves mass and scale for proposed 269 Broadway mixed‑use building after detailed critique

Architects for a proposed multi‑story mixed‑use project at 269 Broadway presented detailed massing and context studies on Wednesday, and the Saratoga Springs Design Review Board voted to approve the proposal’s mass and scale after extensive discussion over setbacks, materials and pedestrian entries. The presentation described an 'E'‑shaped building that would run between Broadway and Hamilton, with retail at Broadway, two south‑facing courtyards and residential units above.

The team led by Sarge Gardner and Johnny Cruz said the design draws on local precedents — including the Algonquin and Convention Hall — and uses brick, metal accents and stepped terraces to break the long façade into smaller ‘pavilion’ elements in response to the district’s historic character. “We want to design beautiful plans and be good neighbors,” Gardner told the board during the presentation.

Board members voiced support for the overall massing but pressed the applicant to sharpen several details. Chair Rob Duboff said the Broadway frontage needs a prominent, legible retail entry and more base articulation so the building “does not just fade away” as it rises. “A zero‑lot‑line setback can be appropriate here,” Duboff said, but he asked the team to demonstrate how the scheme will preserve the pedestrian experience at street level. Several members also flagged the north elevation as potentially visible and in need of additional treatment so it won’t appear as a blank wall.

Representatives from the public urged caution on tree impacts and public realm effects. Samantha Bosshardt of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation told the board the new massing is an improvement over earlier submissions but reiterated the need for a clear Broadway entry and attention to materials. Resident Kathleen Soenabend said she was concerned about the building’s proximity to an existing large Broadway tree and worried the tree could be lost if the façade is built to the sidewalk.

The board conducted an environmental screening form (SEQR) discussion and, after clarifying that planning board site‑plan review will address stormwater, traffic and utilities, members voted on a negative declaration and approved the project’s mass and scale “as submitted or shown” for the purposes of the Design Review Board’s historic mass‑and‑scale review. The applicant team agreed to return with pedestrian‑level renderings from Broadway, a clearer retail entry treatment and refined detailing for the north elevation.

Next steps: the project will move forward into coordinated site‑plan and planning board review where traffic, tree protection, stormwater and other technical issues will be evaluated.