Kim and Leigh McConchie acquired their first classic car—a sleek, green 1965 Ford Mustang with white racing stripes—eight years ago.
Their reason for buying it was a simple one: “I always wanted a car to go get ice cream in,” Kim says.
Since then, the McConchies’ car collection has grown significantly, and today, they own 24 classic cars. Two years ago, the couple purchased a 4,000-square-foot commercial building in Ballston Spa that would serve a dual purpose as a showroom for their vehicles and a comfy, boozy hangout for their friends. Now, the gathering spot they’ve fittingly dubbed The Car Bar is complete.
For decades, a local construction company owned the building that now houses The Car Bar. When the McConchies bought it, it was filled with old equipment and other junk. But the accumulated clutter didn’t stop them from seeing what the space might become. With the help of Saratoga’s M&J Construction, they cleaned it up and transformed it into the vehicular palace it is today, turning a dirty loft into a lounge/bar overlooking the now-sparkling showroom.
The McConchies expect to store 10 cars at The Car Bar, which has a swirling grey, black, white, and blue epoxy floor. The couple doesn’t collect a specific brand. “Kim likes stuff that’s different,” Leigh said. “We don’t own 68 Camaros.”
High-spirited and social people, the McConchies are known for their ubiquitous presence at Saratoga Race Course and SPAC, as well as for their philanthropic work with Saratoga Bridges, a non-profit serving people with developmental difficulties. The Car Bar reflects the couple’s love of being around people.
“I made this bar for our friends,” Kim says, pointing to features such as the “wall of shame,” on which guests can hang Polaroid photos of embarrassing moments.
Other notable elements of the distinctly retro lounge space include the bar itself, built using Brazilian cherry wood recovered from a tractor-trailer left behind by the property’s previous owner, and a large mural, painted by the McConchies’ friend, artist Doug Hoch, that depicts Kim driving a blue 1966 Chevrolet panel truck, and Leigh driving a 1936 Chevy “rat rod,” a car built from a hodgepodge of parts. (See photo on top.)
Both vehicles are actually part of the McConchies’ real-life collection, and, like their other 22 cars, are drivable. “One of us has to clean them and work on them,” Leigh says. “And one of us has to drive them around looking good.”