It should be cause for at least modest optimism that the city received five bid proposals from developers interested in the Lighthouse Inn property. Of course, providing a proposal and making the investments to follow through on it are two very different things. New London has seen its share of would-be developers who never found the wherewithal to get the job done.

Yet given the number of proposals submitted for utilizing the long-vacant city landmark, and their variety, the city may actually end up landing a development deal. The fact that New London controls the property, having seized it in a tax foreclosure, should increase the chances of success.

It is a better situation than a little over a year ago, when New London received only one response to its request for proposals. And that proposal did not even meet the RFP’s minimum bid requirement of $500,000, providing a purchase offer of only $100,000. The interested developer also had some troubling question marks in his background.

After toying with the idea of accepting that single bid, Mayor Finizio’s administration made the right call to reissue an RFP. This time it kept the process open by not including any minimum purchase price, giving developers wide latitude in making their respective pitches.

Those purchase offers range from a token $1 to $250,000. In other words, none of the offers is very high for buying a large, historic inn with 4.2 acres of land that is a short walk from Long Island Sound. The proposals take into account that the inn and adjoining property will require millions of dollars of investment to produce a profitable operation.

Ideas include renovating the Lighthouse Inn as a special events venue, returning to its use as an inn, renovating it for a residential use with neighboring new construction, or razing it for new development. The city should only entertain the proposals that preserve the historic structure.

The proposals include requests for tax breaks and other inducements. This should come as no surprise. Any developer will be taking a risk and it is reasonable to ask New London to provide incentives that improve the odds of success in the early years. Any incentives should be set to lapse in a reasonable timeframe.

Chances are the field will narrow as discussions begin, but the odds that the Lighthouse Inn will return to the tax rolls and the life of New London are looking better than they have in a long time.