Saratoga Organization Wins Technical Assistance Grant

Related Media

A $3,000 grant to Universal Preservation Hall will support the cost of a handicapped accessibility study for the performance and cultural center on Washington Street in Saratoga Springs.

ALBANY, NY (09/04/2013)(readMedia)-- The Preservation League of New York State has awarded a Technical Assistance Grant to a group directly engaged in the stewardship and public use of a historic building in Saratoga County. A $3,000 grant to Universal Preservation Hall will support the cost of a handicapped accessibility study for the performance and cultural center on Washington Street in Saratoga Springs.

The Hall was built in 1871 by Elbridge Boyden and is one of the earliest and finest examples of High Victorian Gothic architecture in the country. The majestic bell tower, which is the tallest structure in Saratoga Springs, houses a 3,000 pound Meneely bell cast in nearby Troy. Originally constructed for the Methodist church to host their annual regional meeting, the Hall has been visited by such luminaries as William Jennings Bryan, Henry Ward Beecher, Frederick Douglass, Senator Edgar T. Brackett and President William Howard Taft.

The Universal Baptist Church purchased the building in 1976 and used it until the building's deteriorating condition made it unsafe. In 1999, citizens of Saratoga Springs joined with members of the Baptist Church to rescue the Universal Preservation Hall from collapse. They formed a partnership to restore the building as a performance and events center while also creating separate worship space within the building. This TAG award will fund an accessibility and entry design analysis, which will be completed by preservation architect Mark Thaler. The study will evaluate various concepts for an accessible entrance designed to harmonize with the historic character of the building.

"Universal Preservation Hall is delighted to receive this technical assistance grant. It will provide a real boost to UPH's continuing efforts to restore this magnificent landmark within Saratoga Springs. The study that this grant will fund is a needed first step in providing accessibility to the wider community and securing its place as a premier cultural venue for the region," said Teddy Foster, President and Board Member of Universal Preservation Hall.

The Preservation League of New York State launched the Technical Assistance Grant (TAG) program in 2012 to support discrete projects that preserve New York State's cultural and historic resources. Grants of up to $3,000 are available to not-for-profit arts and cultural groups and municipalities managing historic sites, museums, arts facilities and other culturally important institutions that are located in historic buildings and structures open to the public.

"In a very competitive grant round, applicants sought funds for technical studies to be carried out by preservation and design professionals which included building conditions surveys, engineering and structural analyses, and feasibility and reuse studies," said Erin Tobin, the League's Regional Director of Technical and Grant Programs in eastern New York. "The Preservation League is delighted to help advance the efforts of Universal Preservation Hall with this grant."

Guidelines for application for the second of two grant rounds in 2013 are now available on the League's website. Applications must be received by September 16, 2013. A total of $11,553 is available statewide for the fall funding cycle, and funded work must be completed by the end of the calendar year. Each grant recipient must provide a $500 match and the cost of the project may not exceed $3,500.

The Preservation League of New York State is a private, not-for-profit organization that works to protect and enhance the Empire State's historic buildings, landscapes and neighborhoods. The Technical Assistance Grant Program is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

"The TAG program builds on the record of excellence the League has established with the similarly NYSCA-funded Preserve New York Grant program," said Jay DiLorenzo, President of the Preservation League. "Our TAG program fills a significant funding gap. It is tailored to provide support to worthy projects in New York that may be ineligible for grants from other sources, or may not have the scope or scale to compete at regional and national levels."

The following received TAG support in the first funding round of 2013: Montgomery County (2): Friends of Fort Plain; Mohawk Valley Collective; New York County: Lilac Preservation Project, New York; Niagara County (2): Heritage of Hope and Service, Inc., Niagara Falls; Tonawandas' Council for the Arts, North Tonawanda; Oneida County: Munson Williams Proctor Arts Institute, Utica; Ontario County: Victor Historical Society, Victor; Orleans County: Cobblestone Society, Albion; Saratoga County: Universal Preservation Hall, Saratoga Springs; Schoharie County: Town of Jefferson; Steuben County: Save the Lyon Commission, Inc., Bath, Suffolk County: Eastville Community Historical Society, Sag Harbor; Washington County: Whitehall Skene Manor Preservation, Inc., Whitehall.

For more information on the League's Technical Assistance Grant program, please call 518-462-5658 or visit the League's website at www.preservenys.org.