SARANAC LAKE — The village of Saranac Lake is investigating the possibility of installing a replica fire tower on the top level of Ward Plumadore Park, and public comment on the proposal can be submitted to the Adirondack Park Agency through Thursday.

The idea of having a publicly accessible, recreational fire tower in the park on the corner of Broadway and Bloomingdale Avenue has been part of the vision for the space since it got a couple hundred thousand dollars as part of the village’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant from the state in 2018.

Village Community Development Director Katrina Glynn emphasized that there are no real plans to install a fire tower yet. The village’s application to the APA is more of a preliminary fact-finding measure, to see if the project is feasible within the agency’s regulations or not.

Since the proposed fire tower would be 55 feet tall, it would require the APA to sign off on the project. Most structures more than 40 feet tall are subject to APA approval, even in hamlets, the least restrictive land classification in the park.

Written comment on the fire tower can be sent to the APA today, and the APA board will hold an in-person public comment period on the project on Thursday in the APA board room at 1133 state Route 86 in Ray Brook.

Comments on the project can be submitted today online at tinyurl.com/bdhj33u2, by email at rpcomments@apa.ny.gov to by mail to P.O. Box 99/Ray Brook, NY/12977.

More information on the project can be found on the APA website at tinyurl.com/bdhj33u2 and a mock-up of the fire tower in the park can be seen at tinyurl.com/mr463ptj, though Glynn reiterated that the image is just an estimation of what the finished product could look like. It is likely to look quite different than the photoshopped image.

If the APA grants a permit for the project, the village would still need to find funds for it, make plans for construction and source a replica fire tower. The village is not guaranteed to do any of this, but is seeing if it is possible.

The village filed its application with the APA on Nov. 14 and completed its application after providing more information on Dec. 16. It is now under formal review by the state agency.

The meeting on Thursday begins at 9:30 a.m. but it is unclear exactly when the public comment on the fire tower project will be. The meeting can be joined remotely through Webex at tinyurl.com/APAJan2025Thu, or by phone at 415-527-5035 with the access code 2820 629 8239.

To make public comment remotely, people must send their name, phone number they will use to call into the meeting and the topic on which they will be commenting to agencymeeting.publiccomment@apa.ny.gov.