Glens Falls Chronicle Serving the Glens Falls/Lake George region; Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties since 1980
By Gordon Woodworth, Chronicle News Editor
Dawn (Sweetser) Davidson, the 1991 Queensbury graduate who bought and transformed Sherman Avenue’s historic Bemis Place apartments last year, has bought six more nearby buildings and now has 38 apartments in her Glens Falls real estate portfolio.
Mrs. Davidson paid a total of $1.2-million for 17-19 Sherman Ave., 18 Sherman Ave., 21 Sherman Ave., 21½ Sherman Ave., and, around the corner, 1 and 3-5 Holman Street.
Mrs. Davidson says, “The gem is the Ames Building units. It’s the crown jewel. It has new steam heat, new hot water boilers, new electric, new windows, new kitchens, refinished hardwood floors.”
Mrs. Davidson bought the properties from the estate of the late William Green.
“[Realtor] Mark Levack reached out to me a little over a year ago, just after we closed on Bemis Place, to see if I was interested in these properties that Mr. Green’s three daughters were looking to sell,” she said.
“I very much wanted another project, it was in our wheelhouse, we knew the dollars and cents, they were older properties with similar upside, and they were close by. It was a year-long process, and we got it done.”
Mrs. Davidson’s father Donald Sweetser is her general contractor. Her brother Geoffrey, who owns Sweet Home Services in Brant Lake, is doing much of the renovation work.
Last year, Mrs. Davidson bought the Bemis Place buildings, formerly called Sherman Square, next to the Glens Falls Senior Center for $769,000. Her team renovated all but two of the units. She says the apartments are fully rented with a waiting list.
She said the purchase and renovation of Bemis Place has gone “better than I expected. It’s mostly young professionals looking for access to downtown.”
Now the team is working its way through the new acquisitions. Mr. Levack and Nic Ketter of Levack Real Estate represented the sellers. Mrs. Davidson says of the newly acquired buildings:
18 Sherman Ave. “is in great shape. It’s a five-family with a new roof, new windows and electric.
17 Sherman Ave., known as Argent Place, is a 12-unit building on the National Register of Historic Places. Mrs. Davidson said “the sellers took four units down to the studs.”
21 Sherman Ave., known as Hack House, is a four-unit long ago farmhouse that has been improved inside and out, she said.
21½ Sherman Ave. is a two-story brick annex buildings with four apartments, storage and laundry.
3-5 Holman St. is a two-family, with one side rented and the other side being renovated, Mrs. Davidson said.
She says 28 of the 38 apartments are rented, with six still being renovated.
Four smaller one-bedroom units that will rent for $700 a month will be available in 21½ Sherman Ave. in early October.
Leasing agent for Mrs. Davidson’s buildings is Holly Wheeler, at 518-744-8847.
All the buildings have been extensively renovated with new secure entrances and video cameras. Some work is ongoing.
Local sub-contractors have included Adirondack P&M, Bob Rayno of Rayno Electric, Mike McGrath of 1-800-Paintjob and Alex Stehle of Alex’s Lawn Care and Property Maintenance, Mrs. Davidson said.
Her contractor father Mr. Sweetser adds, “The City has been very good to us. We have a great relationship with the City.”
Mrs. Davidson said Craig Seybolt of Glens Falls National Bank secured the financing for her latest purchase, just like he did for Bemis Place.
“Glens Falls National Bank has been amazing,” she said.
