Almost 1,500 residents have given their opinions on what the city of Huntsville should do with its historic downtown train depot.

Still, city continues to seek the public’s help on what to do with the depot and the 7 acres it sits on, including the Roundhouse event center.

The city has an online survey to help it decide how to reimagine the depot grounds.

It also held two public forums at the Roundhouse, which the city said were well attended.

“It’s generating a swell of interest, which is excellent news for the city. It demonstrates community passion for the Depot and provides a wealth of insight into future uses,” city communication specialist Paul Gattis said on the city of Huntsville website.

During a meeting last month at the Roundhouse, Mayor Tommy Battle said the city was starting with a “blank page,” and the site could be used for special events, education purposes and possibly a farmer’s market.

“The Depot is not going anywhere,” Battle said during one of the meetings this week. “We are not tearing it down. It will be here.”

There will be more public meetings and online surveys as the project continues to evolve, the city said.

“There is a lot of space here,” Manager of Urban and Long-Range Planning Dennis Madsen said. “We’re not going to pick one use and run with it. There is a lot of different opportunities to program this space.”

Madsen and City Historic Preservationist Katie Stamps are helping lead the revitalization effort.

During the meeting last month, Madsen said the site serves as a link in the city’s greenway plan, connecting Gateway Greenway Park off Meridian Street and the Huntsville Madison County Veterans Memorial along Monroe Street with Big Spring Park through the bike lane along Spragins Street.

It is also near the city’s transit station.

According to the city website, Stamps provided examples of former depots around the country during the public meetings this week and how they are now functioning in their new roles. Those include restaurants, retail, museums and office spaces.

The depot building at 320 Church Street is three stories with more than 10,000 square feet The Roundhouse is another 10,000 square-foot facility, commonly used as event space, with open-ended possibilities, city officials said.

Completed in 1860, the depot is the oldest surviving railroad depot in Alabama and one of the oldest in the United States. Located on the Norfolk Southern Railway line, the depot is listed on both the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage and the National Register of Historic Places.

A historical marker was installed outside the depot in 1971, commemorating its storied past when Union soldiers captured it in 1862 and severed a critical east-west Confederate railroad. Confederate prisoners were held at the site.

Newcomers to Huntsville during its initial boomtown status in the 1950s, including Wernher von Braun, first arrived at the depot as well.