Mixed Use Development Proposed at 269 Broadway

A proposal for a six-story mixed use development on 269 Broadway in Saratoga Springs is currently being considered by the City Planning Board. 

The site spans from Broadway to Hamilton Street and sits in between Saratoga Central Catholic School and NBT Bank. The land is currently a parking lot. The project includes a singular retail space on the ground level with high-end condominiums on the upper floors and underground parking. 

The developers, Prime Group Holdings, said deliveries and car traffic will enter through Hamilton, with the aim of keeping congestion away from Broadway. 

Included in the plans are renovations of the Hamilton and Broadway sidewalks, installing streetlights, and planting additional trees along the property.

A requirement of the board is to save the 60-foot maple tree planted by late Public Works Commissioner, Anthony “Skip” Sirocco, who was instrumental in implementing street trees along Broadway. 

Prime Group Holdings received approval for a similar project in 2022 which notably garnered significant public opposition in the form of an 800-signature petition over the scale of the proposal which sits in the city’s historic district. 

However, the developers abandoned the project after construction costs increased due to groundwater on the site. 

The applicants believe their current proposal will better integrate into the surrounding streetscape. 

The architects “have spent months visiting Saratoga Springs, reviewing its historic and current architecture, to immerse themselves in the feeling of Downtown Saratoga,” the project narrative said.

This time around the proposal only includes one level of underground parking, instead of two in 2022. 

Although the public’s comments did not focus on the architecture of the building, neighbors did voice their concerns over the ground water on the site. 

“The entire engineering issue is associated with the fact that we are putting a lot of weight on a very wet area,” said planning board Chair, Mark Pingel. “It’s a problem that is solvable because it has been solved on many other sites before.”

Current planning board member, Tony Stellato, was employed by the outside engineering firm contracted by the city to review the 2022 project. After disclosing this to the board and a quick discussion about recusal, the board and the developers determined it would be mutually beneficial to have Stellato’s expertise in the approval process. 

The planning board did not vote on the project at the September 24 meeting, instead instructing the developers to review their plans on civic spaces, stormwater management, vehicle turnaround on Hamilton Street, and foundation structures. 

After the developers return to the planning board with renewed submissions based on the board’s comments, the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) process will begin. 

The SEQR requires government agencies to review the environmental, economic, and social impacts of the project. This process will include public hearings to be announced at a later date on the planning board agenda. 

Public comments can be submitted online at, saratogaspringsny.gov/192/Planning-Department.