Old Lyme - The town on Wednesday unveiled preliminary design plans for the Sound View area that feature a park with an open green space and a pavilion, as well as a redesigned streetscape for Hartford Avenue.

After receiving a transportation grant, the town has been working with engineers to redesign the neighborhood by Sound View Beach to make it more accessible to pedestrians and bicyclists and to install a town green with public rest rooms.

The town is hoping to begin construction on the pro ject after the 2015 summer season.

At Wednesday's information session, engineers and town officials stressed that they are seeking comments from the public on the design plans, which they said are still in the preliminary phase.

"This is a public project," said Kurt Prochorena, a BSC Group engineer, during the presentation. "This is for the town."

The proposal for the stretch of Hartford Avenue, from Bocce Lane to Pond Road, calls for an 8-foot-wide sidewalk on both sides of the avenue, parallel parking on one side and driving lanes shared by both vehicles and bikes.

The preliminary streetscape design would make the sidewalks uniform in width, enhance the crosswalks to make them more visible to drivers and add trees in areas along the avenue.

The proposed park near Pond Road will include an open green space for farmers markets or jazz festivals, a picnic area and a pavilion with permanent restrooms, according to the presentation. It also will include a parking area with 42 spaces. The current capacity at the town parking lot, which the park will replace, is about 71 spaces.

Engineers also studied the 4.5-mile stretch along Route 156 from Hartford Avenue to the Baldwin Bridge for a proposed bikeway. Prochorena said the Route 156 corridor from the Baldwin Bridge to the intersection of Old Shore Road is suitable for a paved shoulder that could accommodate bikes. The remaining section east of Old Shore Road is more suitable for "shared lanes" used by both bikes and cars, he said.

The town was awarded a federal transportation grant to fund 80 percent of the project's total cost. Residents already approved spending up to $148,500 for the design phase. Approval for the construction phase will come up for vote at a future town meeting.

First Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder said the town is seeking feedback before completion of the preliminary design plans. The engineers and town will finish the preliminary design plans for December, when the town will hold another information session on the project.

Wednesday's PowerPoint presentation will be available on the town's website. Residents can email comments on the project to soundviewimprovements@gmail.com.

k.drelich@theday.com

Twitter: @KimberlyDrelich