SARANAC LAKE — The Saranac Lake village board approved a contract for 3D scans of the planned location of a new emergency services complex at a special meeting on Monday.

A vote on this contract was tabled at a meeting last week because three out of five trustees wanted more time to review the contract before voting. On Monday, several members of the public asked the board to wait further on voting to approve this contract. Two trustees said they did not think the contract was “fiscally responsible” at this time.

The majority of the board felt this was a good step to make in determining the future of the property, voting 3-2 to approve the contract.

With this vote, the village will hire the Troy-based architectural company Scan2Plan to produce 3D models of the former St. Pius X High School at a price of up to $23,514. This building at 33 Petrova Ave. is the site of a planned emergency services complex for the village’s police department, volunteer fire department and volunteer rescue squad.

Neighbors of the site and other village residents have opposed this plan since it was proposed in January 2023. Opponents of the project want to village to consider alternative plans — whether that be placing just two of the three emergency services at the location, or keeping all three departments at their current respective locations and using the land for housing instead.

Some village officials are convinced this is the only plot of land able to accommodate the police, fire and rescue squads — and they say renovating or expanding at the departments’ current locations is impossible because of the lack of land or the high price.

Scan2Plan estimates the 3D model will take four weeks to finish.

The money for these scans comes out of the village’s Public Safety Facilities Reserve Fund, which was set up specifically for the development of this complex. A permissive referendum must be passed to pull money from this fund.

Mayor Jimmy Williams and trustees Sean Ryan and Matt Scollin voted to approve the contract. Trustees Kelly Brunette and Aurora White voted against it.

“I don’t think it’s fiscally responsible at this time,” Brunette said.

White said it appears, to her, that the village is committed to use the building for an emergency services complex. Because of this, she said the state requires an Environmental Quality Review — called a SEQR — to be completed. She said this has been required at multiple points, including before money was spent on the project, and that has not been done.

Last month, the board approved a $340,000 contract with the architecture firm Wendel Architecture, Engineering, Surveying and Landscape Architecture for design work as part of a broader $1.78 million contract. As the first big financial move since the purchase of the land, this was fiercely opposed by critics of the project, who brought a letter from an attorney asking that the village suspend all further activities on this project until a SEQR review is done.

Williams said the village attorney met with attorneys from the New York Conference of Mayors and senior planners from Wendel last year and determined the right time to start SEQR to be at the first phase of design. He said that is what the village is following.

White was also worried about setting a precedent that Wendel can decide who they bid with. Williams said Wendel did not bid on the village’s behalf. It sought estimates for the work.

Williams said only two companies showed an interest in scanning the building and the village accepted the lower bid, with an estimate costing around $5,000 less than the other bid.

White said she found three other 3D scan companies in the area and that the idea that only two companies were interested in scanning the building is false.

Williams said that he trusts Wendel’s recommendation.

A neighbor of the project, Mark Wilson, pointed out that the resolution’s language had changed, from stating that “bids were solicited” to stating that “it is being recommended” the village contract with Plan2Scan.

It’s unclear why this change was made.

Wilson alleged the initial language was misleading, implying that it was a competitive process to get the contract.

The new resolution states that “it is considered a professional service in the village purchasing policy.”

Saranac Lake resident Keith Murphy said he was disappointed with the process of the project, saying it continues to move forward despite residents’ concerns.

“You may further erode public confidence in your decision-making, and ultimately, you may jeopardize your ability to get any facility in a timely manner,” Murphy said.

He said the village should stop and talk to the public before making a decision, to avoid delay. He suggested the village create a new task force for the property to see what other options exist.

Williams said the village is very interested in putting the complex there, but they don’t have enough information to know if that will happen for certain yet.

“This is one of the very first steps,” he said of the 3D scan last week.

The village has been working on the project based on a conceptual drawing of the facility, but he said they need an exact layout of the building to produce a more accurate blueprint.

Williams said this 3D rendering will not a guarantee that the building will be used for the emergency services complex. Whatever the building is used for, a 3D scan is needed, he said.

Saranac Lake resident Doug Haney said the village has not looked at all options for the property yet. He said the village is focused on the building, but he is focused on the land as a potential place for new housing, without the building.

Brunette agreed with this, saying the village should study the land before the building.

Wilson said he was “disappointed, but not surprised” with the vote. He worried that the village would be getting into a sunk costs fallacy — by spending $800,000 so far on the project, he said it could cause the village to not look at other options. He accused the board of breaking the law and of a “dereliction of duty.”

Where emergency vehicles would exit the property is one part of residents’ concerns — multiple residents have attended board meetings over the past few months to express concerns about potential traffic hazards, with residences and schools nearby.

Williams said the current plan is to send emergency vehicles through Bay Boulevard — the road which runs through the Citizen Advocates property and connects the complex site with Edgewood Road, right on state Route 3.

The final product from Scan2Plan will include a more precise square footage audit. Currently, the building is sized at having a 38,890-square-foot first floor with a 24,235-square-foot crawl space.