A Visitors Center, similar in function if not in size to the facility in Lake George Village, is under consideration for Rogers Park, Bolton Supervisor Ron Conover said.

The new Visitors Center would replace the Chamber of Commerce’s log cabin and the restrooms adjacent to the Bolton Historical Museum. Restrooms and chamber offices would be housed in the new building.

“The Visitors Center would serve as a gateway, not only to Bolton Landing, but to much of the region,” said Conover.

The Capital Region Economic Development Council has announced that it has named the Visitors Center one of its 85 priority projects and has endorsed it for State funding.

“That’s an important step forward,” said Conover. “The endorsement doesn’t guarantee funding, but it makes it much more likely.”

According to Tracey Clothier of the LA Group, a planning and design firm that has been retained by the town to seek grants for the project, some federal funds are available through Lakes to Locks Passage.

Lakes to Locks Passage, a not-for-profit organization promoting heritage tourism in the Hudson, Lake George and Lake Champlain Valleys, helped secure funding for the Lake George Village Visitors Center and the Ticonderoga Heritage Museum.

“Bolton Landing’s new Visitors Center would serve as the Scenic Byway link between the Lake George Visitor Center and Ticonderoga Heritage Museum,” said Clothier. “By combining the function of the Bolton Landing Chamber of Commerce with a Community Heritage Center on the Lakes To Locks Scenic Byway, the Center will extend the value of the Chamber facility, providing visitors access to interpretive experiences that will provide a window to Bolton’s unique natural, cultural and historic resources.”

“Since Bolton Landing is known as the “Gateway to the Islands”, the building of a new visitor center is critical for local and regional economic development and is the key element of the Rogers Park Master Plan,” said Clothier.

Earlier phases of the park Master Plan have already been completed, Clothier said.

Those phases included the reconstruction of the town pier, new public docks, new restrooms and storm water management systems.

The third phase, which includes construction of the Visitors Center, has also been designed to incorporate improvements to the park’s lawns and its older dock.

The entire project is expected to cost $850,000. The town itself would contribute as much as $350,000.

The design and construction of the Visitors Center would not begin until Bolton residents have had a chance to comment, offer opinions and make suggestions, said Clothier.

“Building the Visitors Center is a very big, very ambitious project, but it will serve as a beacon,” said Clothier. “With the Sagamore resuming year-round operations, Bolton Landing will play an even larger role in the region’s tourism economy, and the Visitors Center will provide a valuable informational gateway for visitors.”