We have to wonder why it's taken so long for such an innovative idea to come to fruition.
We're referring to the Adirondack Public Observatory in Tupper Lake.
The project has flown under the radar for almost eight years, when the organization spearheading the public-education endeavor finally received nonprofit status.
Since then, organizers have been raising money, seeking permits for the APO's construction and introducing the joys of science and star-gazing to youngsters.
The APO's board of directors and its array of pro and amateur astronomers recently jumped one of its more serious hurdles by getting a draft permit from the Adirondack Park Agency for the actual bricks and mortar construction of the observatory, which will be located on Little Wolf Road.
That 3.9-acre parcel was purchased several years ago, a site across the road from the Town of Tupper Lake's beach.
It now awaits approval from local planners and zoners in Tupper Lake. Drawings and project reviews have already been done, and a public hearing will be scheduled.
Planned is a telescope structure with a roll-off roof design similar to a garage door that can be opened to view the night sky. It's hoped that construction can begin in the spring.
Waiting in the wings is the coup de grace: the telescope itself.
In 2006, the APO was given the Everest Reflecting Telescope by the family of inventor A.W. Everest. Students at Clarkson University, with help from observatory founder Marc Staves, restored the historic mirror optics and unique housing. Work was completed in 2007.
In the meantime, despite the lack of formal observatory space, the APO has continued to share educational star-gazing sessions in public forums, several held at the popular Wild Center in Tupper Lake over the years.
And the APO has recently launched a unique after-school education program locally for students in grades 4-6 in an effort to increase the interest in science and astronomy.
The program offers hands-on activities designed to engage young students in projects that are fun and entertaining as well as educational.
Further, in July the APO became an official member of the NASA Night Sky Network, a national group of amateur astronomy clubs dedicated to "the science, technology and inspiration of astronomy" that helps deliver NASA's missions to the general public.
The Night Sky Network is supported, in part, by NASA.
If you get the idea that members of the Adirondack Public Observatory haven't been dragging their feet over the last eight years, you're correct.
We can't wait to see the finished product.
