Public interest in a future Heritage Square and active engagement in vetting potential designs are positive indications that something extraordinary may happen with this prized asset.

Ever since Safeway’s relocation to Marine Drive, Astoria residents and the city’s far-flung nonresident fan club have noodled around with a variety of ideas. These discussions can be roughly summarized as dreams of an ambitious public space versus the need for more parking, with the important consideration that any outcome must be affordable.

If the slab that once formed the store’s subfloor had not collapsed, the entire area might have simply been carved up into parking spaces. Some still argue for that outcome. However, Astoria’s success in aspiring to small-town greatness is much of the reason it sometimes needs more parking.

Many recall the relentless decline of the Liberty Theatre, which in the 1990s appeared at some risk of demolition. Like the dystopian vision of the future shown to George Bailey by Clarence the angel in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” it’s possible to imagine a blighted hole in the ground in place of a beautiful community centerpiece. That this tragedy didn’t happen is a tribute to a complex community-driven campaign that set out to achieve a series of goals.

Astoria’s default pattern in much of the post-World War II era was for negativity to get in the way of progress. It was stuck in a rut. But improvements including the Liberty, redevelopment of the old plywood mill site into Mill Pond Village, creation of the Riverwalk and a diverse host of private entrepreneurs willing to take chances all worked with a dynamic city leadership to shape a brighter future.

Now there’s a fresh surge of momentum. Astoria is a construction zone. Any attempt at a list risks leaving something out, but expansions of Columbia Memorial Hospital and the Columbia River Maritime Museum are among the most notable. The long-awaited redesign and renovation of Astor Library, now well underway, might be somewhat more similar in civic scope and expense to what could lie ahead for Heritage Square.

Fifty attendees at a late January scoping session developed a consensus for an option called the “Round Space” by a Portland design firm. As detailed by the Astorian’s Jasmine Lewin (tinyurl.com/Astorian-Heritage-Square), it would combine an array of greenery, covered areas and a large, round gathering space at the corner of Duane Street and 12th Street that could also serve as an amphitheater for performances. It would cost between $2.1 million and $4.3 million.

This is no small amount of money. There was a time when Astorians might have despaired of raising it. However, to put it into perspective, we live in a time when million-plus-dollar houses are not uncommon in Clatsop County. It’s impossible to predict how Congress and the White House might respond to a request for help, though presumably the system of congressional earmarks will continue in some form. And there are other sources of money, including private fundraising. Astoria has credibility. It has certainly proved it’s capable of making big things happen.

Public spaces are hard to pull off. After lengthy discussions, Manhattan’s Central Park was approved in 1853, construction began in 1857 and took 15 years to complete. It cost nearly three times the $5 million initially budgeted. And yet all that time, trouble and money was a world-class bargain. The same is likely to be true of Astoria’s Heritage Square.

We envision a time in the not very distant future when it will be a leafy plaza, alive with fluttering birds and contented people.