Apartments eyed for Saratoga's old ‘Pink Palace’

PHOTOGRAPHER: Erica Miller

The former Moore Hall in Saratoga Springs, also known as the "Pink Palace," is seen Monday.

One of Saratoga Springs’ most prominent developers is looking at taking on one of the city’s most notorious landmark structures and turning it into working-class housing.

Bonacio Construction has applied for zoning variances that would allow it to convert the former Skidmore College downtown dormitory on Union Avenue known — often derisively — as the “Pink Palace” into 53 one- and two-bedroom apartments geared to downtown workers. The building, formally known as Moore Hall, was once slated for demolition.

The six-story dorm was built in 1957 on Union Avenue, near its intersection with Circular Street, just blocks from the city’s downtown district. At the time, that was Skidmore’s campus. Many of the other buildings on campus were deteriorating, and in 1960 the college accepted the donation of 1,000 acres of land that would lead within a decade to construction of the entirely new campus the college occupies today at the north end of the city.

The 135-room dormitory with cafeteria remained in use as college housing until 2006, when the college agreed to sell it for $1.1 million to NorStar Development of Albany. NorStar planned to demolish the building and construct condominiums on the site, but those plans never moved forward. The building has sat vacant for the past decade. Bonacio Construction has an option to buy the building.

The proposed renovation project is due to go before the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals on Oct. 19 for a variance from current parking requirements and for an interpretation allowing the project to go forward as a pre-existing building although such high residential density wouldn’t currently be allowed under the zoning code.

In application materials filed with the city, Bonacio says the apartments would be “priced to be more affordable for workers in the core of the city.” Since many occupants probably wouldn’t own cars, Bonacio contends that the 54 existing parking spaces would be adequate, though current zoning rules would require two parking spaces per apartment.

“The project represents the opportunity to reuse a dormant significant structure at one of the primary entryways to our city, while beginning to address the need for more affordable housing for an economic level of workers that are underserved in the core of our community,” the application states.

Extensive interior and exterior renovations would be involved if the project goes forward, according to its application.

The building gets its rose-pink color from the stone that was used on its exterior.

Bonacio Construction, whose president is Sonny Bonacio, has been responsible for some of the city’s largest residential and commercial projects, including the Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas complex downtown, the Park Place condos and the 2 West Ave. commercial-residential complex now under construction on the city’s West Side.