Glens Falls Chronicle Serving the Glens Falls/Lake George region; Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties since 1980
By Zander & Mark Frost, Chronicle Staff Writer & Editor
The Heritage Apartments on Glen Street — the former Glens Falls Junior High School — has been bought by Staghorn Property Management for $6.3 million.
Staghorn is owned by Queensbury High graduate Dawn Davidson and her husband, Chris Davidson, who live in Boston but have become major apartment developers in Glens Falls.
The three-building, four-story complex has 90 apartments and 6,000 square feet of available commercial space in the back that formerly housed a fitness gym, said a press release.
It said they plan to add eight two-story loft units on the upper floors.
The Heritage Apartments is being renamed District 425, alluding to its past as a school and its 425 Glen Street address.
The Albany Business Review said the property encompasses 4.4 acres overall.
The Davidsons began buying and redeveloping apartment projects on Sherman Avenue in Glens Falls in 2018, starting with Bemis Place and then moving up the street and around the corner on Holman Street.
They own 78 renovated units over three properties on or near Sherman Avenue, said the release. The Albany Business Review said Staghorn has invested more than $10 million in less than four years purchasing and renovating apartments on Sherman Avenue and Glen Street.
The Business Review said Staghorn’s Glens Falls real estate portfolio now reaches nearly 200 units, and that they hope to double that number in the next two years.
“Throughout the pandemic, we weathered the storm really well,” Dawn Davidson told the Business Review. “Demand is as strong as ever.”
“My husband and I take pride in investing in my roots,” Mrs. Davidson said in the press release. “I’ve been coming to the Adirondacks since I was three years old. My family has a place on Schroon Lake, and I have family and friends in the area.
Mrs. Davidson’s parents, Donald and Tina Sweetser, who live locally, are investors and participants in the business.
Mr. Sweetser will be the project’s general contractor, the press release said, and Mrs. Sweetser works at McPhillips Fitzgerald & Cullum, LLP, which does all of the Davidsons’ legal work. It said William Fitzgerald handled the closing.
“My greatest gift is that I get to go to work with my father every day,” Mrs. Davidson was quoted. “We truly are a family business.”
The press release said Nic Ketter of Realize Brokers and Consultants in Glens Falls represented the Davidsons in the purchase.
Mrs. Davidson was quoted: “Nic Ketter has done our last three deals. He found this deal on his own and patiently put it together, adding value all the way. Nic is a great asset to our team!”
The release also credited Craig Seybolt of Glens Falls National Bank, who arranged financing. Mrs. Davidson was quoted, “Craig is fantastic. We have done all of our deals with him. He’s the best.”
The release said three full-time employees, along with Mr. Sweetser, will handle much of the renovations and that local sub-contractors will include Adirondack P&M and Bob Rayno of Rayno Electric, who it said have done extensive work on the Davidsons’ other buildings.
Mrs. Davidson was quoted: “There will be some tenant turnover as a result of the renovation schedule and the new market-rate lease agreements.”
The Albany Business Review said monthly rent for studio and one- and two-bedroom apartments will run from $950 to $1,475, including heat and parking. It said all the apartments will be vacated and renovated before tenants move back in.
“And we will be pet friendly, allowing cats,” Mrs. Davidson said in the press release.
Info: www.staghornmanagement.com.
Leasing agent for the apartments is Holly Wheeler at 518-744-8847.
For inquiries on commercial space, Nic Ketter at 518-307-7824.
The Heritage Apartments’ seller was 425 Glen Street Associates LLC, which also recently listed for sale for $15-million the nearby 10-story Monument Square (Travelers Building) at 333 Glen, noted the Business Review.
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