The Town of Colonie has been kicking around the idea of building a new park in place of the vacant Latham Water Treatment Plant along the Mohawk River, but it looks like it is now ready to move forward with those plans. At a Town Board meeting on Thursday, Oct. 20, the town went public for the first time with the proposed project for the 12.3-acre parcel, which would be called Mohawk Landing, with a presentation given by Planning and Economic Development Director Joe LaCivita. The town is working with the Colonie Industrial Development Agency on obtaining funding to demolish the vacant Latham Water Treatment Plan and put in a new energy-efficient park complete with solar panels and an underwater collection system to water the community gardens. “It’s a great project and we’re looking forward to having something we can go forward with,” said Supervisor Paula Mahan. “It fits in nicely with some of the connections that have been recommended through a lot of the studies done.” Mahan said the project fits in with not only the town’s Comprehensive Plan but also the Rt. 7 Corridor Study and the Mighty Waters Initiative made by Congressman Paul Tonko to promote more development along the Mohawk Riverfront. LaCivita said that the town originally looked into trying to stabilize the existing building but discovered it would essentially cost the town more money than putting in a park considering that the building does not have any structural integrity. The goal was also to make a connection with the Mohawk Bike-Hike trail to the town and through to the Ann Lee Pond. “The goals for developing the plan was to improve the physical and visual access to the Mohawk River, strengthen the Mohawk River bike trail, enhance recreational activity, more interpretive signage and investigate storm water control,” LaCivita said. “We’ve hit every one of those bullet points in this design.” The proposal has plans to included tennis and basketball courts and a pavilion, all of which will have energy provided by passive solar collection. There is also a proposed underwater collection system that would feed into the community gardens with water from the parking lots. LaCivita also said there are plans to put in a dog park. Ted Kolankowski, senior project landscape architect for Barton &Loguidice, said there would also be a circular trail system surrounding the park where some of the buildings currently are. He said this will fit some more of the recreational needs of the town. “It’s always nice to sort of have a circular trail system,” Kolankowski said. “It will be perfect set up to have a general fitness circuit.” Mahan said the town would also like to partner with some nature conservancy groups to develop kiosks along the trails to inform people about the different wildlife along the Mohawk River and also the history of the river. “There are things we are looking at as we progress through this project,” Mahan said. “It depends on how much grant money we can acquire.” The town is working on applying for a Consolidated Funding Application, which is part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s economic development plan. The deadline for applications is Monday, Oct. 31, said LaCivita, and the town has been moving fast to get a plan together. John Razzano, a board member of the Mohawk River Community Partners group, said the project was a welcomed improvement for what is currently in place at the site. He said it would bring the Town of Colonie up to speed with the Town of Niskayuna, whose Lions Park borders the proposed location of Mohawk Landing. He said he likes the town plans to add more restrooms and more connections to the bike path but said he felt the tennis court and the basketball court did not fit in with the natural feel of the green space. “It’s a good compromise under the current circumstances,” said Razzano. “It will be very much appreciated by the thousands of people who use the bike path. I think it really compliments Lions Park. And I hope people see it as complimentary as opposed to competing with Lions Park.” Joe Zoske, another member of the Mohawk River Community Partners, said the project was “a positive reuse concept” but had some concerns as to whether there had been an environmental study done or if there was any wetlands in the area. “It will be done through the demolition process,” said LaCivita. “We’re looking holistically at the site. We’re looking to get into the grant application so there’s some leeway to the design. We’re not held to this. The devil is in the details and we don’t know the details yet.” David Rowley, president of the Town of Colonie’s IDA, said this is the perfect time to try and get a new park in there and is ready to work with the town to get things rolling. “We need to seize the moment,” he said. “I think the alignment of the planets is right to move forward on this.”