West Side

The West Side is the part of Saratoga Springs west of Broadway, and for most of the city’s history it was where the people who worked in the resort lived. The houses are smaller and closer together than on the East Side, mostly modest 19th-century cottages, doubles and multifamily buildings in vernacular styles. About 122 acres of it make up the West Side Historic District, listed on the National Register in 1994 with almost 600 properties. The neighborhood has changed a lot in the last 20 years, with new apartments near the train tracks and higher prices on the old streets, but Franklin Square, the Beekman Street arts blocks and the old grid are still there.

Where it is

In everyday use, the West Side means the area from Broadway west to the city line, between Greenfield Avenue on the north and West Circular Street on the south. That definition takes in Skidmore College and Saratoga Hospital. Washington Street (Route 29), Church Street (Route 9N) and West Avenue are the main roads. The Beekman Street Arts District is inside it, and downtown is a few blocks east. All of it is within Saratoga Springs city limits.

What to know if you’re moving here

The West Side is walkable to Broadway, and our read is that a comparable older house usually costs a bit less here than on the East Side. Here is what shapes the choice.

• Most houses are 19th century, and many are two-family. A double with a rental unit is a common way people make the numbers work here.
• Franklin Square, where the old train station stood at Division and Franklin, has the neighborhood’s large Greek Revival houses. Just west of it is the area long called Dublin, settled first by Irish and later Italian railroad workers.
• New apartment and condo buildings have gone up along Railroad Place and West Avenue, so the neighborhood now mixes old frame houses with multistory buildings.
• Parts of the West Side fall inside a local historic district, which means design review for exterior changes.
• Schools are in the Saratoga Springs City School District, and elementary assignments go by address. Check the district’s zone map.
• The Amtrak station on West Avenue is the city’s train link, useful for anyone who commutes to Albany or rides to New York City.

What to do if you’re visiting

The West Side rewards a visitor who leaves Broadway. Most of what is here is within a 10-minute walk of Franklin Square.

• Universal Preservation Hall at 25 Washington Street is a converted 19th-century church that now hosts concerts and events.
• Franklin Square Market at 55 Railroad Place is a grocery with prepared food and a bar in the middle of the store.
• Game nights are at The West Side Sports Bar & Grill, 112 Congress Street.
• Anyone staying a week and missing the gym can call the Saratoga Regional YMCA at 290 West Avenue about guest passes.
• Walk Beekman Street for the galleries, then loop back to Broadway on Washington Street.

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