Glens Falls Chronicle Serving the Glens Falls/Lake George region; Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties since 1980
By Cathy DeDe, Chronicle Managing Editor
The vacant clubhouse of the former Glens Falls Tennis and Swim Club on East Sanford Street burned to the ground early Saturday morning.
The start-up not-for-profit Crockwell Preserve aimed to re-use the building in its environmental park plan. The 922 square foot building dated from 1975, said the City of Glens Falls.
“This was definitely not on the Bingo card,” says Doug Thorn, president of the Crockwell Partnership that seeks to convert the 6.5-acre Tennis & Swim Club and adjacent properties into an ambitious wetland preserve and education center.
“We had this thing mapped out, had a really neat concept of what the building could look like,” Mr. Thorn says. “I’m sure people are going to get over it, but it’s tough. We’ll work and figure out a new plan.”
In January, the State awarded a $150,000 matching grant from the Environmental Protection Fund to develop architectural plans for the property, including converting the long-disused Clubhouse into an educational center.
Mr. Thorn said the Partnership would oversee the plans and seek the matching funds needed to obtain the grant.
“We’ll want to work with the mayor’s office,” Mr. Thorn said, and the City’s new Planning and Development Director Allison Hargrave-Gaddy, to figure out the status of the grant in the aftermath of the fire and loss of the building.
“It’s still the City’s property, so we’ve got to get a sense of what they would like to do and how we can partner together and get it going…” Mr. Thorn says.
“Part of the charm of the Tennis Club building itself was that it created a connection to the community.
“It was a neat kind of homage to the past, the idea that we could repurpose it as a trailhead and a learning center that people would remember from family times they may have had there,” he said.
“Unfortunately, we’ll have to pivot and rethink how we’re going to handle that. This is a bit of a left turn. I keep reminding everybody, the main act has always been to create a trail system through these wetlands.”
Sandra Hutchinson, a founding board member of the Crockwell Partnership [and Chronicle general manager], said, “I have to say, I was very sad. My family also has a lot of memories of the Tennis and Swim Club.”
She says the Partnership’s charge is, “This happened. It burned down. Now what? The Partnership can also ask, how is this an opportunity for us to do something more suitable, not retrofitting an existing building, but creating something that fits all of the needs of the preserve?”
Still, she acknowledged, “It’s a complete wrench in the works. We still don’t know what’s the impact on the grant. We don’t want to lose that.
“We had a vision plan but a key component has gone down. We need a facility for kids, school groups and other users, but what will that look like now?”
Mr. Thorn said, “The site is surrounded by wetlands, so I’ve got to presume there’s some real limitations to where we could put a building. It’s not an easy site to work with. I’m presuming, if the building’s replaced on that site, it’s probably going to have to be very close to where it was. That’s something for the experts.”
The planned Crockwell Preserve is named for artist Douglass Crockwell (1904-1968) and his wife Margaret Braman Crockwell (who died in 1995).
Much of the property eyed for the environmental park was part of the 160-acre Crockwell estate. Originally owned by Margaret’s family, it includes Crockwell Pond in Glens Falls — which the City is in the process of acquiring from SUNY Adirondack on behalf of the Partnership — as well as about a half-dozen surrounding properties in the Town of Queensbury. Technically, the pond is held in trust for the college by Warren and Washington Counties.
The Crockwells lived at 245 Sanford Street and donated the 6.5 acres that became the Tennis and Swim Club.
Neighbor: ‘Looked like our very woods were engulfed’
Chronicle Managing Editor Cathy DeDe writes: Neighbor Dana Stimpson posted on Facebook at 1:32 a.m. Saturday morning: “Moments ago” her husband Don “awoke to this tragic scene and got me up to witness it: The Glens Falls Tennis and Swim Club/Crockwell Preserve building burning down.”
“It looked like our very woods were engulfed in flames,” Ms. Stimpson wrote.
“I was relieved once I noticed that the emergency crews were there, but it was pretty clear there was nothing for them to do but monitor and secure it as is burned to the ground.
“I’m heartbroken.”
Glens Falls Mayor Diana Palmer said in a press release, “We are happy to say that no one was injured in the fire or in the response.”
South Queensbury Volunteer Fire Department responded. Queensbury Central, Bay Ridge and West Glens Falls responded to calls for mutual aid, as did Kingsbury.
The City owns the property, but it’s in the Town of Queensbury.
Glens Falls Fire Chief Izzy Modert said in the release, “We will conduct our own investigation and ask South Queensbury for an official report on the response. Given that the building is a total loss, the investigators will have little to go on. A completed report is expected to take a couple business days.”
The City said there were no security cameras on site, and it reported that the clubhouse building was 922 square feet and built in 1975.
Neighbors reported graffiti on the walls and cited it as a possible “attractive nuisance,” where unhoused persons were believed to sometimes seek shelter.
Copyright © 2026 Lone Oak Publishing Co., Inc. All Rights Reserve
