The former Army National Guard armory on state Route 3, seen here in September 2024, is currently the headquarters for the Saranac Lake Police Department. The village and town are are discussing the desire to acquire the property back from the state when the state pulls out of the building. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

SARANAC LAKE — A report from members of the village and town boards here has found “potential paths” for the state to return the former Army National Guard armory property on state Route 3 to the town for public use. They see opportunity there for use again.

The Saranac Lake Police Department is currently using the armory as its headquarters. The armory has been discussed for potential use in the village’s much-debated public safety building plans.

Saranac Lake Trustee Kelly Brunette and Harrietstown Councilperson Jeremy Evans were authorized by their boards to research the idea of the local municipalities retaking ownership of the land as the state plans to close the armory for good.

The report says a portion of the building is currently used by the Division of Military and Naval Affairs for storage.

“The state’s plan is to close and dispose of the Armory property once it is no longer needed for storage, but there is still no definite timeline for this action at this time,” according to the report.

When the time comes, it calls for the village and town to “actively engage in discussions with New York State executive and legislative representatives to clarify the legal status of the Armory property.”

The two are proposing their boards pass a joint resolution making their intentions known to the state “proactively” and are bringing resolutions to their respective boards.

The Saranac Lake village board will discuss the resolution at its meeting on Monday at 5 p.m. in the second floor of the Harrietstown Town Hall. The meeting will also be livestreamed on Zoom at us02web.zoom.us/j/86856122537 using the meeting ID 868 5612 2537.

The resolution can be read in full at tinyurl.com/4tvrnxcj starting on page 47.

“Being that the village has been granted a license to house the Saranac Lake Police Department and is already occupying allocated space in the armory, we feel it would be advantageous to both the village and the state to continue our use of the facility once the state has no further need for that facility,” the resolution sates. “We would support in any way possible the required amendment to the New York state Constitution that would allow a transfer of ownership.”

If passed, these resolutions would be sent to the governor’s office and to other state elected officials in hopes of sparking conversation.

“When the state no longer has use for that building and that property, we want it to be known, pretty obvious and straightforward and almost aggressively that we have an interest in that,” Brunette said.

They said doing so would permanently secure the lands for town-run Dewey Mountain Recreation Center and allow the building and property to potentially be used for public safety department headquarters or some other public use.

The village police moved their headquarters to the former armory on state Route 3 in 2024 to make room at the department’s former 1-3 Main St. building for a potential move of the Adirondack Park Agency headquarters from Ray Brook. Some trustees and village residents have proposed the police stay at the armory, allowing the work and cost at 33 Petrova to be scaled down.

The police are there through a license to use the building temporarily. This is different than a lease. At any point, the state could give them 30 days notice to leave.

The armory is owned by the state, and previous officials have said it would likely be considered Forest Preserve land, blocking its sale. If this is the case, it would take a lengthy constitutional amendment process to reclassify the land and allow the village to buy it. But, Brunette and Evans say in their report they are not so sure this would be the case. They believe that the potential transfer of the land has not been fully explored yet.

“The parcels are not designated as state land in the APA’s State Land Master Plan map nor are they adjacent to any state lands designated on the map,” according to the report.

The closest state lands are half a mile away.

“Past discussions with New York state leaders did not fully explore this question through the agencies responsible for making this determination,” the report states.

“The armory property is partly in the village, which is statutorily excluded from the Forest Preserve,” it also says.

The property originated as private land, is not designated as state land by the APA and is partially in the village.

The property is made of two parcels — the main 29.1-acre lot in Harrietstown where the building is and including land some of Dewey’s trails are on, and a small 1.4-acre lot in Saranac Lake where the Dewey Mountain lodge and parking lot are. Both parcels are classified as hamlets, the least restrictive land classification in the Adirondack Park, where the APA encourages development.

Harrietstown purchased the land from a private owner in 1956. The town gave the state the land in 1957 and the 20,784-square-foot building was constructed in 1962.

In 2016, the New York Army National Guard pulled its troops out of the armory after its unit merged with other units. At the time, the idea of the village buying the building and land was proposed. The idea of it being a police station or a YMCA was discussed. The investigation stopped after the fire department said the building would not work for a fire station and the Forest Preserve issue came up.

Then-state Sen. Betty Little worked hard on a constitutional amendment.

Brunette said the uncertainty over the land classification when the state pulls out of the building is not enough of an obstacle to sit back and do nothing.

“Since it could save millions of dollars, taxpayers deserve better answers than they have received so far,” Brunette and Evans said.

The report calls for the village and town to establish a community-driven process to discuss the potential methods for a transfer and potential uses.

“Armories have been transferred to local governments in other areas of the state for purposes such as parks and recreation, public safety services,” the report states. “In the past, New York state has given surplus armories to municipalities for local public use, so it’s not beyond reason to ask if that’s an option for our community.”