GUILDERLAND — Jeff Thomas wants to put in a 2,550-square-foot State Employees Federal Credit Union at the northern entrance to the village of Altamont at the corner of Gun Club Road and Route 146. The town planning board approved the site plan for the SEFCU branch last week.

The proposed building would have a setback similar to the Altamont Rescue Squad building next door, said architect Dominick Ranieri. The one-acre site would have 42 parking spaces, and a sidewalk installed along Gun Club Road. The proposal includes a 24-hour automated teller machine, which would require lighting that Ranieri said would be kept on the site.

Town Planner Jan Weston and several board members said that 42 parking spaces were “excessive,” but real-estate consultant Charles Carrow said that SEFCU would have up to 20 employees there at one time.

“We feel we need the extra parking,” Carrow said.

The building would be one story and would have an aesthetic Victorian tower, Ranieri said. The main entrance would improve an existing driveway on Gun Club Road, he said.

The plan would need a space variance from the zoning board of appeals, and Thomas must submit storm-water management and lighting plans, the planning board said.

Thomas will maintain ownership of the corner, while SEFCU rents from him, he told The Enterprise.

“SEFCU is a really good client,” Thomas said. He said that SEFCU has worked with him to keep the branch “more in character with the architectural styles in the village of Altamont, to create a quality impression as the gateway to the village of Altamont.”

Plans include coach lighting and pole lights that match those found in Central Park in New York City, Thomas said.

“There’s a beautiful design element in the tower…with a finial on the top. As you drive into Altamont, it’ll look residential,” Thomas said. “Normally, SEFCU would come in and do their own thing. They’ve been very open working with me…to give it that quality impression. They’ve been very receptive to my design ideas.”

At the meeting, Carrow suggested that Rotterdam and Hilltown residents would use the Altamont branch. Thomas later said that the branch would not increase village traffic.

“I don’t think anyone’s going to drive to Altamont to go to SEFCU. They’ll pick up the traffic that’s normally going through,” he said.

Thomas owns the Gun Club Road property and the lot across the street on Route 146, where the Penguin Diner used to stand. He said that he marketed the Gun Club Road corner for three years before a quality tenant was found. He said that, having a SEFCU at the gateway to the village, before the village proper, would help business along and encourage businesses in Altamont.

“They provide tax incentives,” Thomas said. If architectural submissions grant the proper permits, Thomas said, construction could begin soon.

“Maybe [there could be] a SEFCU branch there in less than a year’s time,” he said. “It’ll be one of the more attractive SEFCU branches, if not the most attractive. I was very pleased with that.”

Thomas plans to place a feature on the bank property noting the entrance to the village. On the site of the former diner, he hopes to put a similar feature, to create a gateway of sorts. He is currently marketing the diner property, but has not yet found a client.

“I’m being picky,” he said.