LAKE PLACID – The salutations for the Adirondack Scenic Railroad’s Timber Train departing this village Wednesday morning were quite different from the greetings it received in Saranac Lake.

Leaving Lake Placid, one mother of children on board honked and waved as the train departed Station Street. On the ride in between, the train’s conductors and staff cracked one witty joke after another in a family-friendly manner. Then, 33 minutes into the ride, trainman Paul Allen touched on the elephant on the rails – saying how railroad workers and supporters still hope to see rails and trails work together, though that now appears unlikely.

In Saranac Lake, numerous people waved from sidewalks and from their cars at the arriving train.

The contrasting scenes encapsulate some of the difference in opinion on the rail-trail debate. In Saranac Lake, even after Gov. Andrew Cuomo in May approved the removal of the state-owned railroad tracks between Lake Placid and Tupper Lake to create a 34-mile multi-use trail, sides are still split and vocal about getting what they want. In Lake Placid, however, most parties have been resigned to the corridor’s future fate as a bike trail for some time now.

A couple of weeks before Cuomo’s announcement, the North Elba Town Council issued a statement backing the state’s rail-trail plan. At Tuesday night’s meeting in Saranac Lake, the council and town Supervisor Roby Politi doubled down.

“You know, we always felt we wanted the rails and trails at the same time, but it wasn’t feasible economically or from an engineering standpoint,” Politi said. “So given that, it made more sense as far as we were concerned, for people in Lake Placid to be able to utilize that bike trail to go to Saranac Lake.

“In many ways, it’s a way for Saranac Lake people to come to Lake Placid and kind of connected the two communities.”

The Adirondack Scenic Railroad has sued to stop the plan, in which state agencies had said they would begin removing the tracks at the end of this year, after this train season.

The change from rail to trail would most directly affect business at the corner of Station Street and Sentinel Road. Two popular restaurants occupy that corner. Lisa Grigoriadis has owned and operated Lisa G’s at the corner for 16 years, and an arrow pointing to the train is visible outside her restaurant’s front door.

“It’s too bad about the train,” Grigoriadis said. “They’ve decided to do the trail, and I think it’ll be great for the community.”

Across the street is Liquids and Solids at the Handlebar and its adjoining butcher shop, Kreature. Co-restaurateurs Tim Loomis and Keegan Konkoski are both former employees of Lisa G’s and have called the corner home for many years.

Speaking at their outdoor seating area at Liquids and Solids Tuesday afternoon, neither minced words about their preference for the trail. They said business for them from the train has been “minuscule to non-existent” since they opened in 2010.

“I would say we get more business from people visiting just the museum end of it, not actual train riders,” Konkoski said. “I think any sport draws business to any place. … This town is based on athleticism, whether it’s the Olympics or something else. … That’s what we should be pushing and centering around.”

Both Konkoski and Loomis said they are avid mountain bikers and didn’t shy away from saying their hobby may influence their stance on the rail-trail debate. But they also delved into what they think the future of their corner could hold when the planned trail is installed.

“I don’t love snowmobiling, but I certainly like business,” Konkoski said. “And I don’t care who walks into my restaurant as long as they enjoy it, and they know what they are walking into and getting.

“I think this is a good corner because it kind of encompasses a lot of different things for anybody who comes around.”

The couple also mentioned how the opening of the Courtyard Marriott down the street, though a half-mile away, brought business to their corner. With the recently opened Big Slide Brewery and Public House a half-mile further away, and potentially another couple of rumored restaurants as well, Konkoski thinks the rail-trail decision could prove to be a crucial juncture in business history for not only their corner but Lake Placid as a whole. They highlighted how recently, passers-by are more frequently asking about the Placid XPRSS trolley, which stops at the train station, as a way to traverse the village.

She and Loomis said they’d like to see a bakery and coffee shop at the corner. They also mentioned the possibility of relocating the farmers market and parking food trucks and “Adirondack-style” for-rent bikes – like those popular in Boston and New York City – near the location of the Lake Placid station. When asked about this, Politi said he thought the addition of bike rentals and food trucks was a good idea, though the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society, which owns the station, would have to be on board.

For now, though, it’s still wait and see for rail supporters, trail supporters and businesses at Lake Placid’s rail-trail crossroads.

“I think the rail trail would bring people here, but it’d also bring them up into the town, too,” Konkosi said. “I don’t think they’d only come here. I think it would push the town with other alternative ways to get into (the Main Street area).”