Every summer, thousands of visitors descend upon Saratoga Springs for one reason above all others: horse racing. The excitement of the racing season fills hotels, restaurants, shops, and sidewalks with activity, reinforcing the city’s reputation as one of America’s premier destinations. Yet long before visitors ever place a wager at the racetrack, they have already experienced something far more enduring: the remarkable historic character of Saratoga Springs.

That character did not happen by accident.

It exists because generations of residents, elected officials, preservationists, architects, business owners, and community leaders made the conscious decision to protect the city’s historic buildings, neighborhoods, parks, and streetscapes. Those decisions were codified through historic preservation laws that have guided thoughtful development while ensuring that Saratoga Springs never sacrificed its identity for short-term economic gain. Walk down Broadway, and you can feel the history. Try that in downtown Albany.

The Mayor is calling for weakening or altering those preservation laws in the name of flexibility or economic opportunity. Doing so would be a profound mistake. Historic preservation should never depend upon the financial fortunes of horse racing. Racing has experienced peaks and valleys throughout Saratoga’s history. Attendance rises and falls. Economic conditions change. Ownership changes. Public tastes evolve. But the city’s architectural heritage remains the one constant that continues to attract residents, businesses, tourists, retirees, and investors year after year.

If racing were to disappear tomorrow, Saratoga Springs would still possess one of the finest collections of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century architecture in New York State. Its historic downtown, elegant Victorian homes, churches, hotels, commercial buildings, and public spaces would continue........

© The Saratogian