WATKINS GLEN, NY (WENY) -- The Seneca Lake Waterfront at Clute Park in Watkins Glen is looking a lot different these days. On Tuesday, state and local leaders celebrated the completion of a brand new community space.

A ribbon cutting ceremony marked the culmination of nearly a year's construction on the $5.3 million renovation project at Clute Park. A park boasts a new and improved space that aims to serve the community, with state-of-the-art features and amenities. New York State Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul spoke at Tuesday's ceremony, praising the work the community has done to bring this project to life, especially during the past year.

"It is so refreshing to see the resiliency of this community, how people here came back, and you continue with a project like this, with a groundbreaking, and now a ribbon cutting all during the time of a pandemic, that's amazing," Hochul said. 

The Clute Park redevelopment is part of Watkins Glen's Downtown Revitalization Initiative. The village was announce the winner of a $10 million DRI award in 2017. Out of the $5.3 million price tag, $2.6 million came from DRI funds. The rest was provided in the form of $2.1 million from the Department of State Lakefront Water Revitalization Program, $415,000 from the New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, and $100,000 in private investment. WENY TV's parent company, Lilly Broadcasting, contributed funding towards an outdoor ice rink, which is expected to open to the public in November.

The entire project was developed with community feedback and support, with plans to renovate Clute Park first identified as far back as 2010. In 2015, the Watkins Glen Village Board began to seek a grant for a new bath house, with assistance from SCOPED and Project Seneca. That grant was later able to be reassigned to support an ADA accessible splash pad and ice rink. In 2016, SCOPED and Project Seneca obtained a grant to replace the aging park pavilion with a year-round facility. The project received an additional boost in 2017, with the DRI funding. 

"This is tremendous, this is great to see this project come to its complete fruition, recognizing that this is just one more step in the transformation that is occurring within Watkins glen and the county as a whole," said Schuyler County Administrator, Timothy O'Hearn, "There was tremendous community involvement, and a lot of participation. To the village’s credit, and to the committee’s credit, they listened to that, and one need simply walk the grounds now to see the results of that." 

The improvements to the park allow the amenities to be utilized year-round - the state of the art pavilion can be used for both public community and private events, such as weddings or reunions, accommodating up to 300 people. The facility also houses a cafe, which will sell food and beverages. 

"So this should be a year-round function to bring in tourism, and we’re really excited about that," explained Parks and Event Center Manager, Craig Bond. 

Outside, the brand new bath house complements the splash pad, which will be converted to an outdoor ice rink from November to March. Bond says the village is currently seeking a vendor to run the cafe. The landscaping around the new facility also included the planting of 85 new trees, and 1,600 plants.

The former pavilion on the park property will remain, as it has historic significance. In the future, additional plans include creating a walking path that will stretch from the kayak launch all the way to Seneca Harbor.