Silver Bay YMCA Awarded a Preserve New York Grant
$11,200 grant to fund historic Fisher Gymnasium assessment
SILVER BAY, NY – Silver Bay YMCA is one of this year’s Preserve New York (PNY) grantees.
Their grant of $11,200 will fund a facility condition assessment of the historic Fisher Gymnasium. The Preservation League of NYS and their program partners at the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) are thrilled to help fund this important work.
“We are very thankful for this grant,” said Silver Bay YMCA CEO Peter Doliber. “It will help us preserve Fisher Gymnasium, an important historical structure on Lake George.”
The Fisher Gymnasium at Silver Bay on Lake George was constructed in 1917 and is an excellent example of Adirondack Style architecture. Built to house two gymnasiums, a lounge with a massive fireplace, and locker rooms, the building was beautifully designed to accommodate the Summer Training Institute but was not insulated for use in the non-summer months. Silver Bay is planning to renovate the Fisher Gymnasium for year-round use as a community wellness center for area residents and visitors — part of a larger $1 million HUD-funded project. This grant from the Preservation League will ensure a thorough conditions assessment, completed by consultant Elise Johnson-Schmidt, Architect, PC, to guide this capital work moving forward.
Silver Bay YMCA is a steward to 62 buildings, 32 of which are contributing properties in the National Register-listed Silver Bay Historic District. Preservation is a key component of the organization’s overall mission, and recommendations from the conditions assessment would allow the work to maintain historic integrity while making the building more functional for current needs.
At its 2023 meeting, an independent grant panel selected 19 applicants in 17 counties to receive support totaling $279,936. Each grant supports important arts and cultural initiatives, as well as economic development related to the state’s arts and cultural heritage. Many of these grants will lead to historic district designation or expansion, telling the stories of communities throughout the state and allowing property owners to take advantage of the New York State and Federal Historic Tax Credits. With the announcement of the 2023 awards, support provided by Preserve New York since its launch in 1993 totals more than $3.7 million to 529 projects statewide.
The Preserve New York program is a regrant partnership between the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and the Preservation League, made possible with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. The Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation has generously provided additional funds to support nonprofit projects in Nassau and Suffolk counties.
About Silver Bay YMCA: Silver Bay YMCA, founded in 1902, is in Silver Bay, NY, just minutes south of Hague. Its 700-acre campus along one mile of Lake George shoreline offers a breadth of programs for all ages. Silver Bay YMCA is consistently ranked one of the top ten family reunion sites in the country and is on the National Register of Historic Places with the U.S. Department of the Interior. As a mission-based charity, Silver Bay YMCA offers outreach programs in addition to its core activities as a premier conference and family retreat center. Learn more about Silver Bay at www.silverbay.org.
Our MISSION: To foster relationships, strengthen communities and nurture spirit, mind, and body for all.
Our IMPACT: Because of Silver Bay YMCA, connections between people and family are stronger. People are more connected, respectful, and caring. They have the confidence to develop to their full potential and to positively impact the communities in which they work and live. As a result, communities are more dynamic, inclusive, and diverse. As stewards of Lake George, we inspire people to be stewards of the environment while they are visiting our magnificent campus and in their home communities.