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Over 60 people filled the Lansing Town Hall Wednesday for a public hearing on the latest draft of the Town's comprehensive plan revision.  More than three years in the making a 99 page (not counting appendixes) draft was available on the Town Web site, with hard copies in Town and Village of Lansing offices and the Lansing Community Library.  Seven people voiced opinions on the document Wednesday, siting concerns about representation of existing elderly residents, zoning and land use, town-citizen communication, growth and town-wide representation. 

"Primarily it's a guideline," explained Lansing Planning Consultant Michael Long.  "It gives you the basis for making future decisions for other processes.  the things that most likely follow a comprehensive plan is an update to your land use ordinance for your zoning rules and regulations."

The plan makes recommendations on how the Town should deal with agriculture, infrastructure, transportation, land use development, natural resources, energy and climate change, tourism, housing and neighborhoods, and economic development.  In addition to the 99 page plan appendixes in separate documents include the Agriculture Protection Plan, maps, a study on form based codes, a transportation issue assessment and the survey results from a town-wide telephone survey conducted in 2013.

While there are no dramatic changes in the draft revision, an emphasis seems to have shifted to agriculture and the use of form based code, a way of 'pocket zoning' small areas, with less emphasis on a new town center. Comprehensive Plan Committee Chairwoman Connie Wilcox said that Lansing is unique in having a large number of distinct hamlets rather than one center of town.

"Lansing is not like a Dryden, Groton, or Trumansburg.  It doesn't have a main street.  It has hamlets," Wilcox said.  "It's always had hamlets... Myers, Ludlowville, South Lansing, North Lansing, East Lansing, Lakeridge... It's very difficult to bring together a cohesive town center when there has never been one and we don't have sidewalks."

Resident James Sullivan said that the economic impact on current residents of the comprehensive plan is not considered.  Sullivan warned the the plan brings back what he called the 'specter of sewer development'.  He said that the plan implies new infrastructure will be subsidized by property taxpayers, essentially subsidizing developers at the expense of current residents.

"Right now property taxes are atrocious," he said.  Anything that doesn't take into account that we've got an extraordinarily high property tax is not a development plan that's going to succeed because I look at anything that's going to kick my taxes up and I'm going to fight it tooth and nail.  We should not be subsidizing developers' profits."

Both Sullivan and his wife Mary warned that demographics of people between the ages of 65 and 84 were missing on page 11 of the plan.

"I'm not against development," she said.  "But I am tired of it being presented as a comprehensive plan when the comprehension doesn't include me or my demographic.  The older, long term residents of this town who made this town what it is up to this day."

She said there have been a lot of changes, mostly good ones, and most not funded with tax money.

Former Village of Lansing Deputy Mayor and Trustee Diane Dawson said the draft is a great start, but not yet ready to be presented for approval by the Town Board.  She reviewed the reason the Village was formed, stressing that the Village's desire to have zoning and the Town's disinterest in it caused the Village to incorporate.

"I can tell you it's one of the most important things that we will ever do for our own generation and future generations to come," she said.  "I was interested to read about form based code, however I don't agree.  I don't think they mean mixed use development everywhere.  In my mind that is called scatter development.  In the Village of Lansing you will see that the higher density is around the higher transportation and service areas.  You want to put your higher density where the services are provided, because that reduces your costs and the services are available to the majority of the people."

Dawson also said that encouraging package plants would put the Town at risk if developers fail to maintain the plants.  She advocated pursuing municipal sewer instead.

Builder Dean Shea noted there are risks to property owners when zoning laws are changed, and said the means of communication between citizens and the town government is not addressed in the plan.  He warned that communication should be improved, especially as land use changes are being considered.

Newfield growth advocate Joel Harlan encouraged the town to promote aggressive development in Lansing to make the areas spanning between Ithaca and Cortland a commercial area similar to that in Big Flats Horseheads

Long-time critic of the Agriculture Protection Plan Doug Baird complained that non-farming residents in the northern portion of the Town are discriminated against.

"The proposed future land uses comp plan land map of 2016 a sea of green washes over rural Lansing and delineates comp plan policy to wipe out residential representation in favor of agricultural interests," he charged.

Resident Ted Laux said that the issue of hydrofracking is not addressed in the plan.  He noted there was strong support for a fracking ban, but he didn't understand how the plan addresses that.

Committee members did not respond, as Wilcox noted that the purpose of the hearing was to collect public comments that will be considered as a final draft is crafted.  She said an executive summary has yet to be written, and the plan needs to be formally reviewed by the Planning Board.  She said the committee has received written comments from several planning board members and a special meeting is planned for board members to consider the plan in its entirety.

"They are going to be the ones most affected by this," she said.  "When they go to do the land use and development upgrades to the law, they need a guide to go by."

Long said the comprehensive plan will make the Town eligible for grants to pay for many of the ideas presented in the plan.  He said he would like to see some state and federal tax money come back to the Town to pay for projects such as a visitor's center.  He noted that when he was with the City of Auburn the city realized $150 million in grants over a ten year period.

"If Lansing doesn't position itself to take advantage some of the state and federal money that's out there it's going to go somewhere else," he said.  "Some of the things we have identified as potential projects are a transportation study on the corridor between Routes 34 and 34B.  This is where density could be in the Town.  We hope to do a study on possibly putting in sidewalks, transportation corridors, what they call 'smart streets'.  The intersections need to be studied.  As you know the Town has a large tract of land right across the street (from the Town ballfields) that is ripe for development.  Trying to make that fit within this particular area.  Another thing would be a comprehensive plan for Myers Park.  Certain infrastructure things that the Town needs to worry about as well."

Wilcox said that written comments will continue to be accepted through the August 31.  She said that a final draft will be on the Web site when it is completed, and hard copies will be available.  She added that the Town Board will hold a public hearing on the final draft before voting on whether or not to accept it.

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