To the editor:

The legal battle between Adirondack Experience and the village of Lake Placid over the eminent domain takeover of 2476-2478 Main St. property for a new parking garage does raise the question why the village doesn’t build on the existing municipal parking property next to Olympic Drive and the Olympic Center — a mere 100 street numbers distant. Presumably, the village already owns that site and no land purchase would be involved.

One could envision a four-tier garage: one below grade, one at street level, one above and an uncovered open level on top, much as exists today at the street level. The overall height would be less than that of many existing Main Street structures and no more sight-restricting than those structures — a common complaint these days. Entrance only at the Olympic Drive-Main Street intersection and exit only onto Main at the present-day lot access would ease traffic flow and would perhaps be less difficult than today’s pattern. Oversize vehicles could access and leave the top level via a second entrance-exit located part way up the Olympic Drive roadway. The present-day municipal street-level lot supports about 150 autos. A multi-level garage here could easily provide the same total amount of parking space as the combined current municipal lot and the proposed 250-vehicle garage at the other site.

Reportedly, $850,000 was an amount the village was willing to offer to purchase the 2476-2478 Main St. site before trying to get land by eminent domain, and that money could cover design costs of a new garage — a cost that will occur for either site. Excavation and reinforcement of hillside land behind a new garage might well be easier and less costly at the municipal site compared to the other location where the land is steeper and higher. The proximity of other structures on Main Street, both abutting and across the street, will pose a lot more hazard and restriction to construction equipment at the 2476-2478 site compared to the open-space municipal site. Construction at either site will create contentious traffic and parking problems, but to me, the better choice is the muni-lot.

For the record, I have no personal or business interest in whether or where a garage might be built.

Gene Hibbard

Lake Placid