WESTPORT — Step into Westport’s past and gain insights into the neighborhood’s future.

Two walking tours of Saugatuck are planned this month by the Westport Museum for History and Culture, highlighting the long and diverse history of the neighborhood.

The tours are set for 1 p.m. Oct. 16 and noon Oct. 22, starting at the westbound side of the Saugatuck Railroad Station. Cost is $10 for museum members, $15 for non-members. Register here.

Saugatuck, once home to a bustling waterfront commercial  district and later the foundation of a close-knit Italian-American community, may be on the verge of dramatic change.

A sweeping proposal to redevelop the area with a mix of residential, commercial and hospitality buildings — called the Hamlet at Saugatuck by applicants — is now being scrutinized by town officials.

The walking tours will explore different aspects of Saugatuck’s history, according to the museum, from “native peoples who once lived there through the 20th century. Explore commerce, including the Atlantic trade, early 19th and 20th century immigrant and women’s experiences.”

For more information, call the Westport Museum for History and Culture at 203-222-1424.