Local Waterfront Revitalization Program

Local Waterfront Revitalization Program Update

The Village of Saranac Lake has begun the process of updating its Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) to guide appropriate development and investment.  The LWRP will express the Village’s vision for its waterfront areas and outline a program for achieving that vision. The LWRP will promote public access to recreational opportunities, identify sustainable approaches to mitigate climate change impacts, stimulate economic development, and plan connections to and between recreational amenities and downtown. This process is supported with funding provided by the New York State Department of State under Title 11 of the Environmental Protection Fund.

The primary waterfront issues to be addressed by the Village in the LWRP have been preliminarily identified as increasing and improving access to water resources; stimulating economic development in downtown Saranac Lake; protecting and enhancing natural resources; and improving pedestrian safety to and from waterfront areas. The Village’s LWRP will identify potential projects and actions that will articulate a vision for the waterfront areas.

This effort is a community-driven planning effort to ensure community-supported implementation. To support this approach, there will be consistent communication with the Waterfront Advisory Committee (WAC), the public, and various stakeholders throughout the process.

For more information about the LWRP program, please visit the NYS DOS website https://dos.ny.gov/local-waterfront-revitalization-program.

Who's Involved

• Saranac Lake Waterfront Advisory Committee
• New York State Department of State
• Village of Saranac Lake
• LWRP Consultant Team:
  • MJ Engineering and Land Surveying, P.C.
  • CLA Site
  • Shumaker Engineering
• The Saranac Lake community

Recent Waterfront Revitalization Projects

The Village of Saranac Lake adopted the LWRP in 2004 for the purpose of promoting economic development and revitalization of waterfront area while assuring the protection and beneficial use of waterfront areas. The LWRP recommended priority projects and many have been completed. Those projects include park improvements, the creation of new parks such as the Riverwalk and SkatePark, and several planning initiatives. Projects that were recently completed utilizing LWRP grant funding from NYS Department of State include:

• New amenities in Riverside and Prescott Parks, including picnic tables, Adirondack chairs and projection art
• Redesign of the Dorsey Street Parking Lot in order to improve pedestrian access between the Riverwalk and the business corridor

Additional park improvements are recommended in the Village’s Park Vision Plan.  Improvements to the bicycle and pedestrian networks are included in the Village’s Bicycle & Pedestrian Trails Master Plan.