Members of Saranac Lake’s Local Planning Committee, Consulting Team and public gather in the Cantwell Room of the Saranac Lake Free Library for a public information session on the proposed projects for Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant funding in February. (Enterprise photo — Jesse Adcock)

SARANAC LAKE — At the final open house for the village’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative, the public got an up-close look at the narrowed-down, detailed list of proposals for state grant funding.

Projects asking for a total of around $18 million were outlined on boards spaced around the Cantwell Room of the Saranac Lake Free Library. The state recommends that each DRI-awarded community submit $15 million in requests for funding, of which $9.7 will be awarded, usually announced in the summer.

“I think it’s great that it’s continuously being made available to the community,” Josie Good of Saranac Lake said.

Saranac Lake won the grant package in August 2018. Each year since 2016 the state has picked one community in each of its 10 economic development regions for a DRI award of $10 million (which comes out to around $9.7 million after administrative expenses) to help private and public downtown initiatives.

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“People are asking targeted questions about individual projects,” said Jaclyn Hakes, director of planning services for M.J. Engineering and Land Surveying, the firm leading the Consulting Team. “Folks seem to understand the synergy among the different projects.”

Good agreed. She said she appreciated projects’ common threads, such as Pendragon Theatre’s plan to build a new venue downtown, accessibility improvements at BluSeed Studios and public art installations downtown.

Other projects would bring their own value to the community, Good said, like Play ADK’s planned children’s museum at a warehouse on Depot Street, and renovation and landscaping at the Tops supermarket on Church Street.

“I can’t imagine anyone would not want the Tops Market to look better,” Good said.

The Local Planning Committee, which will ultimately vote on a slate of projects to submit to the state from 1 to 3 p.m. March 14 at the Harrietstown Town Hall auditorium, had members in attendance to answer questions about the process and the projects.

LPC member Matt Scollin said when he got to the library at 5 p.m., there were cars lining both sides of the street. He said he thought there had to be an event at the Hotel Saranac across the street — but it was people turning out for the DRI.

“I heard some people got here 15 minutes early,” Scollin said. “Getting the community engaged is one of the most important goals of the project.”

Scollin said it’s essential that people pay attention because they’re going to be the ones to watch as the chosen projects are finally built over the next few years.

Public input was encouraged. Attendees had the option of writing down their comments for consideration by the LPC and the hired Consulting Team.

Sydney Aveson and Chris Makowicki used to live in Saranac Lake and are now in Lake Placid, but may be looking to move back.

“I think there’s a lot of great ideas,” Aveson said. “Personally I’m most excited about the whitewater park.”

That roughly $400,000 project would modify the bed and banks of the Saranac River below state Route 3, making it more accessible for sport. Aveson said the project ticks a lot of boxes for community benefit: It would bring in tourists and paddlers who would put money into the local economy, and it could also help attract young people to balance the demographic.

Makowicki said it could boost growth in the area, as there are few other places in the country that focus on whitewater recreation as an economic prospect.

“I’ve traveled all over the world for whitewater,” said Eric Adsit of Lake Placid, “but what’s lacking in this area is a consistent feature.”

He said the Adirondack Park has a lot of whitewater that people would travel to access and that those resources aren’t featured enough by communities. In his travels, he said, he’s seen places benefit in a big way from promoting their whitewater resources.

Aveson said Play ADK would be a nice parallel to the Wild Center nature museum in Tupper Lake, which has been a tremendous success.

“It targets young families,” Adsit said.

If Saranac Lake is trying to attract more families to the area, then Play ADK would help that happen, Adsit said — as young families are the most likely to move here, and appreciate the natural and recreational opportunities of the area.