Saratoga Springs council moves to end parking garage dispute

PHOTOGRAPHER: File Photo

The Mouzon House in Saratoga Springs is shown on Feb 5, 2016.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The City Council voted Tuesday to end a legal battle between the city, the Saratoga Springs City Center and owners of the Mouzon House restaurant.

In May 2016, Diane and David Pedinotti, owners of the Mouzon House, filed a lawsuit against the city after the City Council’s approval of a long-term lease of property to the Saratoga Springs City Center Authority.

The City Center proposed building a five-story parking garage on a parcel next door to the restaurant, on York Street.

Mayor Meg Kelly announced a revised plan in May for that parking structure, called the Flat Rock parking garage. It is named after the Flat Rock Spring Park, which was located on the 2.62-acre property in the 1800s.

The project, which is still in the planning stages, could include a rooftop feature of some sort, as well as a community space and greenspace.

In May, Diane Pedinotti said she and her husband were “thrilled the city is considering another plan.”

The Pedinotti’s filed another lawsuit against the city in October 2015 in state Supreme Court in Ballston Spa to annul a law passed by the City Council in July 2015 that would have allowed a proposed 500-parking-space garage to cast a shadow over the solar panels on the roof of their business. The lawsuit also sought to annul a subdivision of the parking garage site approved in November 2015 by the city Planning Board.

City Attorney Vincent DeLeonardis said the city has agreed to discontinue all causes of action regarding the previously approved long-term lease of the property.

DeLeonardis said the city would keep the Pendinottis and other area businesses updated as to when construction of the Flat Rock parking garage would begin and provide a screened fence between the Mouzon House and the construction area.

The city also agreed to install signs outside the parking structure so people can easily find businesses along High Rock Avenue, including the Mouzon House.

DeLeonardis said the city is the first of the three involved entities to agree to end the legal battle.

“The Pendinottis indicated that they are supportive,” DeLeonardis said on Tuesday, adding that the couple was out of town. “The City Center Board of Directors is expected to vote at their meeting [on July 25.]”