Ballston Spa should support Saratoga

It’s not often one is selected to be pictured and quoted as a representative of the general public in a feature article. Such was the honor received in Sunday’s piece on Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation’s House Tour.

I quipped to the reporter that it was important for people of Ballston Spa to support Saratoga, and my wife and I were doing that by taking part in the house tour. Then, Murphy’s Law took over. Somewhere between lip and print it got turned around to a gripe that Saratogians don’t do enough for Ballston Spa.

This little slip allows me to make two points.

First, the towns, from Galway and Providence east to the Hudson River, exist within an economic unit that encompasses Saratoga Springs. What benefits the city, benefits the outlying areas, and vice versa. As it is important for planners in each municipality to be mindful of their neighbors, so too, we, who live around the City, should consider ourselves to be citizens of a greater Saratoga Springs.

Second, Saratoga Springs is extremely lucky to have an active and relevant Preservation Foundation. The built environment creates a sense of place. The remaining Victorian and late Federal structures in the city create the ambiance craved by those who come for sport, arts, and education.

The Preservation Foundation does much to ensure the continued prosperity of Saratoga Springs by guarding against the muddling and destruction of the city’s buildings. In doing so, the organization helps all the surrounding communities.

That’s why it is important for us of Ballston Spa to support Saratoga Springs. — John J. Cromie Ballston Spa—