3-kpb Description kpbArchitecture
a
P.O. Box 697
Clifton Park, NY 12065
518.429.8093
kbuff@kpbarchitecture.com
December 15, 2016
Town of Queensbury—Planning Board Submission
Re: Exterior Renovation @ 63 Quaker Road, Queensbury, New York
Project Description
General
The retail plaza at 63 Quaker Road was originally designed in 1974 and consists of a single story retail
space that currently houses Passonno Paints, Realty USA, Bennington Furniture and Carpet One.There is
also a second floor portion of the original plaza situated along Quaker Road that is home to Northeast
Parent and Child. Shortly after the building was originally constructed, a retail addition was added in
1976 which currently houses Classy Clip, a dog grooming and day care service. It appears that based on
some original drawings, another addition was added in 1978, adjacent to the 1976 addition, that is
currently home to Sagamore's Hair Salon. In 1987, a simple shed roof addition for storage was added on
the back side of the building and appears to be the last 'formal' addition to the plaza.
As with much of the retail architecture of that time period,the plaza consists of a course brown brick for
the first floor mass with little natural light and beige/brown EIFS (exterior insulation finishing system) for
the second floor volume that may have been a retrofit. Original drawings indicate that the second floor
portion of the plaza was originally conceived as metal panels. With that said, EIFS was becoming very
popular in mid-1970's and it is possible that the metal panel was swapped out to EIFS prior to original
construction. Each entrance for the plaza is also marked by bulky EIFS 'awnings' and oversized EIFS
columns which were common during that time and continue to be on many of the retail plaza's today.
One of the main goals of this project is to execute an exterior renovation that transforms the plaza from
a vague 1970's aesthetic to a more modern and relevant architectural style that utilizes simplicity in
both form and material. It is this style that we hope to be a positive contributor to not only the Quaker
Road corridor but the Town of Queensbury as well.The following represents the highlights of the
exterior renovation:
Site
For the most part, the existing site will remain as is. There are currently 126 parking spaces and that will
remain in place and on-site vehicular and pedestrian circulation will remain unchanged.The existing
light poles are also to remain.There are four existing light poles on the west end of site for the main
parking area and one light pole with two lamps on the south side of the site adjacent to Quaker Road for
the front parking lot. All of the fixtures were replaced in 2014 with new cut off LED fixtures that
according to the product data for the fixtures does not exceed the 2.5 footcandles outlined in the Town
Code for commercial parking lots.
Building
Overall
In large part,the south,west and a portion of the east facades will be getting a complete makeover. All
of the existing brown brick will receive new dark gray paint while the existing second floor EIFS mass will
receive new light gray paint. All of the existing EIFS 'awnings' and associated columns will be removed
from the structure to make way for a new entrance aesthetic. This aesthetic and associated material
palette is quite simple yet elegant with the use of painted brick, exposed steel, wood and glass.
Entrances
Each significant entrance will be built out with new light gage metal framing clad in a tongue&groove
horizontal cedar siding with a clear finish.Wood is not only a regional aesthetic within the Adirondack's
but also offers a simple, classic and warm focal point for each of the retailer's entrances.The retail
entrances on the south fagade facing Quaker Road as well as the Bennington Furniture entrance on the
west fagade will also receive modern canopies that are comprised of canted steel columns with timber
rafters, tongue&groove decking and standing seam roofs.The far south facing retail entrances will
receive a more understated canopy with a simple pre-engineered hanger rod canopy.
Transparency
As was fairly common during the 1960' and 70's, transparency and natural light were not as prevalent as
they are in today's retail buildings. One of the goals to this project is to create transparency by adding
large storefront windows on the west fagade.This not only brings natural light into an otherwise
artificially lit space, but allows retailers to put their products on display and use this transparency as a
contributor to passively activate the plaza as a destination.
Conclusion
Our sincere hope with this project is that the retail plaza at 63 Quaker Road not only continues to be an
economic contributor to the Town but also an architectural contributor to the continued development
of the Quaker Road corridor.
Sincerely,
4-41 , NA,
Keith P. Buff
Architect/Owner
kpb Architecture, PLLC