At a press conference on state grants held at the depot on Tuesday, roofing material was seen on site. DEC Region 5 Regional Director Joe Zalewski said the work to replace the depot’s roof will begin as soon as the forecast calls for a period without rain.

The shingling of the 120-year-old building has been leaking and water has been getting in. The leaks have been patched but not fixed. The state plans to replace the roof with a faux tile for a more similar look to its original construction.

The depot sits along the 34-mile Adirondack Rail Trail that connects the villages of Tupper Lake, Saranac Lake and Lake Placid. The portion of the trail running by the building is finished and bikers and walkers could be seen using it on Tuesday.

DEC interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said they knew the rail trail would be successful and they’re not surprised by its daily use. They expect even more people to “fall in love with it” and for higher volumes of traffic after it is officially finished.

Interim Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Sean Mahar plants a tree outside of the Union Depot in Saranac Lake Tuesday as part of the state’s goal of planting 25 million trees by 2033. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

The Union Depot is planned to be a central spot on the trail, and the state is seeking partners to operate amenities inside the building as a rest stop with public restrooms.

It will sort of be like a thruway rest stop and visitor center, but on a rail trail and in a historic location.

They envision it as a place walkers, bikers, snowmobilers, skiers and other users can get refreshments, rent or buy recreation equipment and get information about recreation opportunities around the area.

In the fall, the DEC sent out a request for information asking people to propose ideas for what should go in the building.

Zalewski said the DEC received 40 suggestions for what should go into the building, but that they are keeping an open mind. An official request for proposals is be expected to be sent out next year and Zalewski said he hopes many of the people who responded to the RFI will submit again for the RFP.

Interim Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Sean Mahar plants a tree outside of the Union Depot in Saranac Lake Tuesday as part of the state’s goal of planting 25 million trees by 2033. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

The interior needs lots of work, too, Zalewski said. It doesn’t have heating or cooling. It is truly “historic,” he said — meaning old. It needs electric, water and accessibility upgrades, too.

The site needs an estimated $2 million of improvements.

The other phases of the trail — from Saranac Lake to Floodwood Road in Santa Clara and from Floodwood to Tupper Lake — are scheduled to finish in 2024 and 2025, respectively, with the whole project to be finished by the fall of 2025.

Zalewski said the state has invested $30 million in the Adirondack Rail Trail.

Saranac Lake village Mayor Jimmy Williams said the depot has been “missed.”

Saranac Lake Mayor Jimmy Williams speaks at a press conference outside of Union Depot in Saranac Lake Tuesday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

The Union Depot is a one-story, 3,900 square-foot wood-framed structure. The DEC’s RFI lists the building as in generally “fair condition” but in need of updating, renovations and repairs.

It was operated as a passenger station until 1965. In 1979, it was renovated for use during the 1980 Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid.

Historic Saranac Lake did a renovation in the early 1990s. Most the wear and tear has come since then.

In 1997, the state Department of Transportation oversaw another multi-million-dollar renovation of the depot. The building was used intermittently for excursion rail trips by the Adirondack Scenic Railroad until 2015, when the last excursion trip stopped at the building.

The building has been used for many things over the years since it stopped welcoming trains — haunted houses, storage, the Adirondacks Railbike Adventures company. From 2009 to 2014, it was the site of the Hobofest music festival.

The property also houses a 1,200-square-foot Freight Building, an ancillary structure built around two decades after the depot which the state lists as being in “fair to poor condition.” There are 40 parking spaces on the state-owned property.

The Union Depot was built in 1904 by the Delaware and Hudson Railroad. It became the largest station on the Adirondack Division line north of Utica, handling up to 20 trains a day.

The Remsen-Lake Placid Travel Corridor is in the New York Central Railroad, Adirondack Division Historic District, part of the National Register of Historic Places.