BALLSTON SPA – The Saratoga County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution during its monthly meeting Aug. 20 to purchase a 1.4-acre property at 96-116 Ballston Ave. (Route 50) in Saratoga Springs for $3 million as the future site of a permanent Code Blue homeless shelter.
In addition, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was unanimously adopted, which provides for the conclusion of a long-term lease agreement with the organization “Shelters of Saratoga” for the construction and operation of the emergency shelter.
The goal is to open a facility on site by fall 2025, said Phil Barrett, chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors.
Code Blue protocols are activated when the temperature is 0 degrees Celsius or below, including wind chill. As an emergency winter shelter, it represents a different environment than a year-round, 24-hour, accessible shelter that has been discussed in Saratoga Springs in recent years.
“The county has a New York State mandated responsibility that we must meet,” Barrett said. “We need a permanent site because we are in a very difficult position every year trying to find a Code Blue shelter. We found a piece of land that can be purchased at a very attractive price — based on the zoning and the fact that there is a building on the property — and that is a solution to the problem.”
The property was valued at approximately $3.2 million, according to the board’s resolution. It is located directly across from a shopping center with a market and other amenities and is on a public bus route.
“The zoning of the property allows for high density and multi-family projects,” Barrett said.
According to the plans, the county would purchase the property for approximately $3 million and, as the property owner, enter into a long-term lease with Shelters of Saratoga (SOS). SOS would likely use the one existing building on the site and raise money to develop the land on which an emergency shelter would be built.
“Land leases of this type are typically for many years, at least 50 years, and there are provisions: Should the organization be dissolved or there are other circumstances where it can no longer provide the services or is no longer financially viable, then the building reverts to the county,” Barrett said. “It’s important that the county has some influence over any programs that take place there — and that’s something we’ll have through a memorandum of understanding with Shelters, through our ownership of the property, so the county is protected.”
Essentially, the county will purchase the land and SOS will pay for the construction and operating costs of the shelter, including staff, utilities and maintenance.
The MOU outlines the district’s basic financial arrangements and general responsibilities, including acquiring the property, leasing it to Shelters of Saratoga, and having final decision-making authority over what programs will be conducted on the property.
The county leadership and SOS are philosophically aligned, Barrett added. “The county doesn’t want a shelter with low barriers to entry, and neither do the shelters. The county doesn’t want a safe injection site or anything like that, and neither do the shelters.”
SOS has operated a Code Blue shelter at various temporary locations in Saratoga Springs over the past few years, but efforts to establish a permanent shelter have always been opposed by local residents or those with similar interests.
Supervisor Michele Madigan, who represents the city of Saratoga Springs at the district level, thanked her fellow board members for approving the proposal, adding that securing a permanent site was long overdue and now is an important step in meeting a community need.
“Our first Code Blue shelter in Saratoga Springs opened in 2013 and in 2016 this became a state mandate,” said Supervisor Madigan.
The Code Blue Saratoga program was born after the tragic death of Nancy Pitts. The 54-year-old mother of two sought shelter on a Williams Street porch on a freezing December night in 2013. She was discovered by police the next morning. Within days of the homeless woman’s death, a collaboration between then-Mayor Joanne Yepsen, nonprofit organizations and community members was formed and a plan was put in place to establish an emergency shelter in the city. A series of cold weather shelters followed, each of which is used temporarily from winter to spring.
The Code Blue program provides shelter and safety from the cold during the winter. In addition to overnight accommodations, the organization offers dinner, resource navigation, assisted living and connection to treatment. The 2023-24 winter season included 299 guests and was open for 171 nights. According to SOS, 11,560 meals were served, donated by local businesses and organizations.
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