Dave Evans is among the many homeowners who say they bought property in Saratoga Springs for its "city in the country" feel.

"We are walking distance to Broadway, walking distance to all of the things Saratoga has to offer, and yet, we have all of the benefits and the privacy of a neighborhood,” Evans said Thursday morning.

Evans, who owns a home off of Morgan Street but splits his time between Guilderland, says he's now concerned the neighborhood will lose its charm. The city is considering rezoning an undeveloped parcel on Morgan and Myrtle streets from residential to commercial.

The change could pave the way for an expansion of the nearby Saratoga Hospital that was first planned nearly a decade ago.

“It just doesn’t make sense because 100-percent of this area is residential and what they want here is an office park,” Morgan said.

Evans and many of his neighbors have placed "Save Morgan Street" signs in their yards, but Saratoga Hospital CEO Angelo Calbone believes the project will help serve the area's hundreds of thousands of residents and visitors.

"While we want to be sensitive to the concerns of a relatively small group, the mission of this institution is to take care of the broad community,” Calbone said.

The hospital is waiting for a decision on rezoning before completing official plans, but Calbone says the project would likely be about 75,000 square feet with room for 300 parking spaces. All of the hospital's specialty practices would be moved to that central building.

“Right now the specialists are in many offices all around town,” Calbone said. “They are outgrowing their space, they need more space and they want to bring in more partners, more talent, and we don’t have any place to put them in these offices.”

In addition to saving money on rent, Calbone says bringing the practices under one roof is best for patient care.

“Cardiologists need to be available immediately to manage an acute episode like a heart attack or perform interventions, so it is important they be close to the institution,” Calbone said.

If the parcel’s zoning is ultimately changed to commercial, the hospital would still have to submit formal plans for the building, which would then be subject to the city’ full approval process.

"I think we have the ability to be a pretty good neighbor and we think we can address most of their concerns,” Calbone said.

“We are not opposed to the hospital, we are not opposed to hospital growth, we just want to make sure this parcel maintains a residential,” Evans said.

The Saratoga Springs Planning Board is set to consider advancing the rezoning proposal to the full city council at its meeting Thursday night.