The Saratogian (Saratoga, NY)

WSWHE BOCES CTE students build shed to become Saratoga Springs landmark

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. >>

When SoBro realized they needed a shed ruin the process of transformi­ng a barren former gas station site at 209 South Broadway in Saratoga Springs into a vibrant green space, they fell back on when of the key parts of their mission — education.

According to a press release, wanting young people to have a stake in the regress project instead of just buying one, SoBro contacted the WSWHE BOCES Career and Technical Education (CTE) division to assist in setting up an opportunit­y for students to gain experience through building the shed.

In spring 2023, John Coffinger and his constructi­on trades students at the Southern Adirondack Education Center in Hudson Falls signed on as partners for the project and began work on the 8’x12 shed. Students from this year’s class continued when they arrived in the fall with the constructi­on being completed just a couple of weeks ago.

In early May, SoBro Conservanc­y will be planting three large beds full of native, pollinator-friendly perennials and shrubs, with the shed acting as a place to store garden tools, hoses and the brains of a timed drip irrigation system.

The constructi­on trades students helped develop a plan with guidance from Mark Topey and Tom Denny, chair of SoBro Conservanc­y’s board. They acquired skills using stationary power tools as well as hand power tools as well as learned proper methods of hand tool manipulati­on (hammering), proper stud placement and layout, rafter layout, cutting, roof finishes and installati­on, along with beveled siding installati­on.

In total 30 students took part in the build.

“The best part of the build was putting the siding and finishing touches on,” Coffinger said in the release. “To see the students’ reactions and looks on their faces when they can stand back and take a look at what they have built, I feel a sense of pride knowing that my class built this and their hard work is going to a good cause to help out others.”

Major funding to purchase materials used for the shed constructi­on was provided by the Community Support Program of the Saratoga Springs Rotary Club. The next step is to move the hefty shed to its new home at 209 South Broadway, a triangular parcel at one of Saratoga’s most prominent intersecti­ons, where South Broadway and Ballston Avenue meet.

“We have been so excited to visit the workshop and follow the BOCES students’ progress with our shed,” Denny added in the release. “It is a critical piece of our project, providing secure storage for our tools in a public, urban space. Our volunteers will benefit from the work of the BOCES team for many years to come.

“The students should take great pride in their handsome shed that will be a landmark to the thousands who pass the site each day.”

The mission of SoBro Conservanc­y is to conserve vacant urban parcels and transform them into pollinator-friendly green spaces, while educating about how such green spaces strengthen the web of life on which human well-being depends. More informatio­n can be found at their website, www.sobroconse­rvancy. org.

The regreening of 209 South Broadway is the first project undertaken by this 501(c)(3) charitable organizati­on, founded in 2021. The vision is to bring life back to this neglected parcel. Life in the form of a viable habitat for pollinator­s and songbirds as well as life in the form of urban beautifica­tion and revitaliza­tion that will benefit residents in the neighborho­od and businesses along the South Broadway corridor.

WSWHE BOCES contribute­s to numerous community projects each year to give its CTE students real world experience­s.

In addition to constructi­on trades, CTE classes include auto body repair, automotive technology, cosmetolog­y, criminal justice studies, culinary arts and hospitalit­y, early childhood education, environmen­tal conservati­on and forestry, graphic and visual communicat­ions, health occupation­s, HVAC-R, heavy equipment operation and maintenanc­e, horse care, horticultu­re, landscapin­g and floral design, industrial and performanc­e machining, power sport technology and welding.