Archive: Around Town

Over a year ago Lansing town officials estimated that a comprehensive plan revision would be completed within a year.  A committee was former and met regularly, making a lot of progress.  The Village of Lansing had begun their update process around the same time, and the Board of Trustees accepted the new plan in December.  But the Town has yet to complete its plan.

Lansing Planning Consultant Michael Long says that two key areas of the plan, real estate  and economic development and  have yet to be addressed.  To do that town officials are still soliciting new members, especially individuals with real estate and development expertise.

The Comprehensive Plan Update Committee has been re-formed for 2016.  Former Councilwoman Connie Wilcox is joining the committee as chairwoman.  Some of last year's community members -- Thomas Butler, Maureen Cowan, Susan Miller, and Phillip Snyder -- will be joined this year by new members Duane R. Smith, Joseph Wetmore, and Christopher Williams.  Supervisor Ed LaVigne, Councilwoman Katrina Binkewicz and Long will also be on the committee along with Planning Board members Gerald Cowan, Larry Sharpsteen, Sandra Dennis Conlon, and Lin Davidson.

"Four members will continue working on the plan," Long says.  "A fifth member, Joe Wetmore, was coming to the meetings, but wasn't officially appointed last year.  And there are three new community members.  Supervisor Ed LaVigne will replace Kathy Miller on the commmittee, and CouncilwomanKatrina Binkewicz will replace (former Councilwoman Ruth Hopkins) as the Town Board representative."

Wilcox says she is anxious to put together the remaining pieces and present a final draft as soon as feasible.  She notes that the Agricultural Protection Plan took seven years to finalize before it was approved by the Town Board last year.  But she stops short of predicting when the Comprehensive Plan will be completed, as does Long, who will only say that he thinks it will be ready within "several months".

Now that the Ag Plan has been accepted an Agriculture Committee is also being formed.  Long has been working with Cornell Cooperative Extension Agriculture Program Leader Monika Roth, who played a lead role in creating the plan.

"We're putting together a draft that will be considered at the next Town Board meeting January 20th." Long says.  "We had an organizational meeting.  Monica Roth invited all the farmers from the community to come.  Several have volunteered to be on the committee.  I think we've got a good representation of people throughout the northern part of the Town.  We're drafting an organizational resolution right now, and hopefully it will be presented and the committee will be appointed at the next meeting."

Long says a lot of the Comprehensive Plan revision is close to finished, including demographics and census information, about 30 maps, and about 100 pages that are currently being circulated for edits.  One map, developed for Lansing by the Tompkins County Planning Department, shows all the new houses built over the last century, identified by the decade in which they were built. 

"You can see where all the development patterns have happened," Long says.   "You can see where growth is going, where it happened recently, and where it happened a long time ago.  I think that tells a lot of the story."

Williams will also be chairing a reconstituted Economic Development Committee, which is expected to contribute to the Comprehensive Plan.

"Andy Sciarabba (who previously chaired the Economic Development Committee) was gracious enough to offer his expertise," says Lansing Supervisor Ed LaVigne.  "Chris will work with him.  We are also looking for people who are involved with real estate or development, because we're looking for the housing component of this."

The work of that committee, the Agricultural Protection Plan, and a transportation report will make up key segments of the new plan.  Long says a new report composed by Cornell students for the town on Form Based Codes will bring a new approach to segments of the Town.  Long says that Form Based Code could be required in specific areas of town, particularly historic areas.  It could require specific materials, scale and quality of buildings developed in areas it is applied to, such as Ludlowville or the intersection of 34 and 34B where the Rogue's Harbor Inn is located. The idea is to regulate new construction so it mirrors and enhances historic buildings, or define a specific look for certain new developments.

"I think that was one of the thoughts behind the Town Center, and I think it makes a lot of sense there.  Another area where I think it makes a lot of sense, is to take the main intersection of 34 and 34B where Rogue's Harbor Inn.  As a person who is new to this community, that seems to be the heart and soul of where our downtown would have been if there was one.  It gives you an idea that maybe you can require that two or three story buildings be built there, rather than strip malls and things of that nature.  So you get a sense of the feel of where you want your community can go."

Long adds that creating such areas could boost tourism.

"One of the pieces we need to work on for the Comprehensive Plan is tourism.  Rogue's Harbor is a big part of that.  They have the Bed & Breakfast.  Those are the kind of things we want to encourage as part of the plan.  It's the chicken and egg, which comes first.  If you have the sewer you can get the density.  If you have a lot of land then you have a huge septic system and you can build density that way.  It's just a question of how you carve it up."

Long says the overall conclusions of the revision are not much different from the current version.

"We have identified the major needs for the Town to continue to grow and prosper are water and sewer," he says.  "The infrastructure needs are the primary drivers.  The question is, how do you obtain that?  They have done a good job of putting the water system together incrementally over time.  I think the sewer system would probably be an incremental process as well.  We'll work with the Village of Lansing to make the connections that we can."

The first Comprehensive Plan Update Committee meeting of 2016 is scheduled for next Wednesday at 6pm.

"That is still open," LaVigne says.  "People can still volunteer.  This is not a closed door now.  If you want to be on a subcommittee or be part of the committee you are welcome to attend."

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