HomeMy WebLinkAboutReport by US/UK Countryside Stewardship Exchange Team Nov 1991REPORT BY THE 1991 US/UK COUNTRYSIDE STEWARDSHIP EXCHANGE TEAM
TO
THE PEOPLE OF THE TOWN OF SOUTHOLD, NORTH FORK, LONG ISLAND
November, 1991
Team Members=
Richard Brown, Countryside Officer
Hertfordshire County Council
Hertfordshire, England
Richard W. Carbin, President
The Countryside Institute
Barnard, Vermont
Vincent Goodstadt, Head of Strategy
Strathclyde Physical Planning Department
Glasgow, Scotland
John Humbach, Professor of Law
Pace University Law School
White Plains, New York
Shelly Mastran, Rural Heritage Specialist
National Trust For Historic Preservation
McLean, Virginia
Terry Robinson, Corporate Planning Officer
Countryside Commission
Cheltenham, England
Joel Russell, Land Use Attorney and Planning Consultant
Woodlea Associates
Salt Point, New York
Nigel Stone, Executive Director
West Cumbria Groundwork Trust
Cumbria, England
The common good is the pursuit of good in common.
-Dennis McCann
A REPORT BY THE 1991 US/UK COUNTRYSIDE STEWARDSHIP EXCHANGE TEAM
TO
THE PEOPLE OF THE TOWN OF SOUTHOLD, NORTH FORK, LONG ISLAND
Table of Contents
Page 1 ..........
Page 4 ..........
Page 5 ..........
Page 5 ..........
Page 15 .........
Page 16 .........
................. Executive Summary
................. Report Introduction
................. Overall Impressions
................. Findings and Recommendations
................ Conclusion
................. Appendix-Some Thoughts on
Coalition Building
Page 17 .......................... Principles of Tourism in the
Countryside
Page 18 ........................... Transcript of US/UK Oral Report
to the Town of Southold, July 18,
1991
A REPORT BY THE 1991 US/UK COUNTRYSIDE STEWARDSHIP EXCHANGE TEAM
TO
THE PEOPLE OF THE TOWN OF SOUTHOLD, NORTH FORK, LONG ISLAND
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
INTRODUCTION
From July 14-18 a professional team of eight consultants, four from
the United Kingdom and four from the United States, conducted a
study of the North Fork area of Long Island. The Team members were
participants in the 1991 US/UK Countryside Stewardship Exchange, .a
program which provides pro bono consultant services to selected
case study sites to address the issues of sustainable economic
development and countryside stewardship. The North Fork was one of
seven case study sites participating in the 1991 Exchange.
At the invitation of the North Fork Planning Conference, the US/UK
Team was asked to address four issues important to the future of
the area:
1. Farmland Retention;
2. Water Quality;
3. Tourism Development; and
4. Affordable Housing;
After an intense four days of discovery and discussion the Team
presented its conclusions and recommendations to a public meeting
at the Southold Town Hall. The following summarizes these findings.
CONCLUSIONS
The North Fork area is one of scenic beauty and rich resources,
both natural and human, with a deep and meaningful history, truly
one of America's great places. Yet the North Fork is under threat
of drastic change spreading east from the New York metropolitan
area. Unfortunately, local controls are inadequate to cope with
these changes. New directions and programs are needed now to change
this situation for the benefit of the entire community.
The most important conclusion of the Team in this regard is that
the people of Southold share a vision in some detail of what they
would like the future of their community to be, but they currently
lack the programs to get there. This overall conclusion led the
Team to make the following recommendations:
Page 2 - Summary
RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendation # 1: In order to be clearer and more efficient in
dealing with land use and development issues the Southold Town
Board should streamline governmental organization and establish a
new planning process based on consensus around the Town's shared
vision.
Recommendation # 2: Community-oriented non-profit organizations in
the Town of $outhold and the North Fork area should form an Action
Coalition to promote their shared vision and to develop
interrelated projects to achieve that vision. The Coalition would
take a positive, non-confrontational approach to community issues
and needs, working cooperatively with each other and with
government.
Recommendation # 3: The Town of Southold should work in cooperation
with the Action Coalition to restate in clear, specific terms
Southold Town's shared vision, concentrating on six basic areas:
farmland protection, concentrating development within villages and
hamlets, provision of quality affordable housing, preservation of
the community's historic and rural character, economic development
based on the existing resources of the area, and maintenance and
improvement of the area's environmental quality. The concept of
Community Stewardship which integrates these concerns should be
emphasized.
Recommendation # 4: The Town of Southold together with the Action
Coalition and others, should create a visual map - a blueprint -of
the Town based on the six basic areas of its shared vision.
Recommendation # 5: The Town of Southold in cooperation with the
Action Coalition should institute creative, practical, steps to
implement the blueprint of its shared vision.
Recommendation # 6: The Town of Southold should consider a combined
Purchase of Development Rights and a Transfer of Development Rights
Program.
Recommendation # 7: The Town of Southold should consider expanding
the current tax abatement program for farmland into a working farm
tax abatement program which would eliminate property taxes on
farmland and farm buildings in return for a right of first purchase
on the land if it is ever to go out of farming use.
Recommendation # 8: The Town of Southold should develop a capital
improvement program for water and sewers limited to those areas
designated for growth in and around villages and hamlets and to
protect surface and ground water quality. Priority should be given
to eliminating pollution in creeks and bays, identifying and
eliminating non-point sources of pollution and solving the "brown
Page 3
tide" problem in Peconic Bay.
Recommendation #9: The Town of Southold should create an economic
plan which promotes sustainable development, using existing
agricultural, water-related recreational, fishing, historical and
cultural assets, and the area's unique sense of place as its theme.
Tourism would play a central part in this plan.
Recommendation # 10: The Town of Southold should develop an
affordable housing plan which would encourage a diversity of
quality housing, including rental units, equity-sharing concepts
and ownership, designed to be in keeping with the historic
character of the area and mostly located within existing villages
and hamlets. This plan should be developed in partnership with the
Action Coalition and with the neighborhoods in which the housing
would be located.
Recommendation # ll: In order to implement these recommendations,
leadership must be provided. In some areas town government will
have to take action, in others private resources can be more
effective. Southold Town government in cooperation with the Action
Coalition should develop a mutually agreed-upon strategic action
plan for implementation of specific tasks, assigning responsibility
for leadership in fulfilling them to the appropriate agency or
organization.
Page 4
A REPORT BY THE 1991 US/UK COUNTRYSIDE STEWARDSHIP EXCHANGE TEAM
TO
THE PEOPLE OF THE TOWN OF SOUTHOLDt NORTH FORKt LONG ISLAND
To see and know a place is a contemplative act.
It means emptying our minds and letting what is
there, in all its multiplicity and endless
variety, come in. - Gretel Ehrlich, Introduction
to Legacy of Light (1987)
INTRODUCTION
From July 14 to 18, 1991, a group of eight consultants conducted a
study of the development and conservation needs of the North Fork,
Long Island area. This team represented a wide variety of
professional backgrounds in the areas of land use planning,
environmental resources, law, historic preservation, housing,
farmland protection and other aspects of community development. The
eight, four from the United States and four from the United
Kingdom, were participants in the 1991 US/UK Countryside
Stewardship Exchange, a program which provides pro bono consultant
teams to selected case study sites to address issues of sustainable
economic development and countryside stewardship. The North Fork of
Long Island was one of seven case study sites participating in the
1991 Exchange.
At the invitation of the North Fork Planning Conference, the US/UK
Exchange Team was asked to address four issues important to the
future of the area:
1. Farmland Retention;
2. Water Quality;
3. Tourism Development; and
4. Affordable Housing.
To accomplish this the team members were immersed for four days in
the life of the community from dawn until late evening. Days were
spent meeting groups and individuals representing virtually all
segments of the community: farmers, businessmen, water specialists,
planners, social service administrators, historic preservationists,
and elected officials. Evenings were spent in homes of community
members, meeting more people, asking questions, and discussing
issues. The team flew over the North Fork and other parts of Long
Island in a small plane and toured parts of the coastal waters by
boat. Previous studies, plans and other documents, were made
available for the team's review. The result was a comprehensive
view of the North Fork "in all its multiplicity and endless
variety."
Page 5
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS
Most of the Team members had little prior knowledge of the North
Fork area. What we found was an area of extraordinary beauty and
resources, both natural and human, with a deep and meaningful
history, truly one of America's great places. The Team agrees that
the North Fork deserves special care and that the concern and
talent exist to achieve a sound future for Southold and the
surrounding area.
At the same time, the North Fork is seriously threatened by
residential and commercial development spreading east from New York
City. One of the last places within the New York metropolitan area
where a semblance of rural life still exists, the North Fork is now
on the fringe of suburban sprawl. The effects have already been
felt. Land values have soared as speculators and developers have
acquired land. North Fork housing prices are so high that few young
families can afford to settle there and the population is aging
with each year. In the current economic climate there is a lull in
this pressure which can represent an opportunity. Now is the time
to take action before the pressure returns, as it surely will.
Another drastic sign of the times is the "brown tide," which
plagues Peconic Bay and threatens the shell-fishing industry. A
combination of hot summers, shallow water, effluent and non-point
pollution runoff, along with yachts and boat parks crowding the
creeks, may all be contributing to the problem.
Unfortunately, the team found that local controls are inadequate to
cope with the economic and environmental changes. The Southold Town
government is inefficiently organized and discussions of current
and future needs are too often polarized. Southold Township
developed a Master Plan in 1984 which reflected a community vision
of sustained agriculture, pastoral villages, and environmental
integrity. Yet, Southold has not put into effect programs that can
assure implementation of this Plan. The 1989 zoning ordinance does
not reflect the Plan and has actually contributed to land
fragmentation and sprawl.
The US/UK Exchange Team recognizes that many people in Southold are
aware of the dangers facing the community. Where we hope to be of
help is in reflecting these concerns back to the community in a way
that can generate confidence in overcoming them.
FINDINGS AlqD RECOMMENDATIONS
Much work has already been done in the North Fork in laying out a
map for the future. The Goals and Objectives in the 1984 Master
Plan are still valid. The weakness is in the execution. Yet, as we
found, the talent and resources exist to do the job well.
Page 6
The most important finding the Team made, after talking to a cross-
section of community representatives and citizens, is that ~he
people of Southold share a vision in some detail of what they would
like their community to be. Yet, for a variety of reasons, ranging
from misinformation, old arguments, special interests to a lack of
confidence in dealing with fundamental issues such as the line
between private property rights and community need, the vision
remains just that.
In order to move forward, the Team recommends first that two
structural steps be taken, one in the public sPhere and one in the
private sector:
Recommendation # 1: In order to be clearer and more efficient in
dealing with land use and development issues the Southold Town
Board should streamline governmental organization and establish a
new planning process based on consensus around the Town's shared
vision.
The Town of southold is not efficiently organized with regard to
land use issues. The Table of Organization of Town government shows
at least 12 separate boards, councils and committees handling in
one form or another matters related to land use and development.
The US/UK Team sensed little communication and/or coordination
among them. In accordance with the Table of Organization all of
them report directly to the Deputy Supervisor. Where possible under
New York State Law, these functions should be consolidated and
reporting lines should go to appropriate department heads such as.
the community development department and the planning department
who also should establish clear communication links between them.
The Team also recommends that the Town Board develop a written
statement defining and separating political responsibilities and
executive responsibilities. Decision-making on the latter should be
assigned to the lowest administrative level in order to better
serve Southold's citizens as directly and efficiently as possible.
To assist in this regard job descriptions should be written for all
town employees.
With consolidation of planning, land use and development functions
the stage would be set to create a new, non-partisan, non-
confrontational planning and implementation process under the theme
of community stewardship (see Recommendation # 3).
The Team understands that this streamlining process may take time
to work out. This should not slow down work on the other
recommendations. These should be pursued immediately and indeed may
help in suggesting effective means of reorganization.
Also, government alone cannot achieve a successful community
stewardship program, although it obviously has a major role. Human
Page 7
and financial resources can be greatly expanded through activities
of a coalition of community non-profit organizations and government
should welcome, encourage and support such activities in meeting
its ~oals. Thus:
Recommendation # 2: Community-oriented non-profit organizations in
the Town of Southold and the North Fork area should form an Action
Coal~tion to promote their shared vision and to develop
interrelated projects to achieve that vision. The Coalition would
take a positive, non-confrontational approach to community issues
and needs, working cooperatively with each other and with
government.
The Town of Southold and the North Fork area is fortunate to have
an active range of community non-profit organizations such as the
North Fork Housing Alliance, the Peconic Land Trust, the Southold/
Greenport Chamber of Commerce, the Long Island Farm Bureau, the
North Fork Environmental Council, Southold 2000, five historical
societies, the North Fork Planning Conference and others. These
organizations should all come together to form an Action Coalition
to develop non-regulatory programs for implementing the Town Plan
and to recommend actions government should take as well.
While the Coalition would be independent of government it would
work as a complement to government by harnessing private resources
- both human and financial - that would be instrumental in
resolving challenges to the Town's future. Wherever possible it
would strive to work in partnership with others, including
government at all levels, to strengthen the governmental process.
The Coalition should be staffed at least part-time by a
professional facilitator and should tie into a broader network of
advice that could be useful in responding creatively to local
issues and problems.
This approach would help bring a wider perspective to Southold.
Many other communities in this country and elsewhere (the United
Kingdom, for example) have gone through similar conflicts and
problems and resolved them. It is important to know one is not
alone and that there are examples of problem-solving which work and
could be of help to Southold.
Before taking up the implementation of specific steps, however, it
is necessary to return to the vision of Southold's future. With the
commitment of town government and the formation of an Action
Coalition of community groups, the two should work together on the
next recommendation:
Recommendation
Town's vision
Stewardship as
# 3: Restate in clear, specific terms Southold
for the Future. Utilize the concept of Community
an overall theme.
The Team is not recommending here the development of a new town
Page 8
plan or going through a long, drawn-out planning process. The
Goals and Objectives of the 1984 Plan form the outline of a vision
and need to be reaffirmed. Beyond that, however, is the need to be
more specific in terms of what these goals and objectives actually
mean. When calling for the protection of farmland, for example, the
Town needs to know which pieces of farmland in what locations and
how much land would be involved. It is difficult to separate such
a discussion from questions of feasibility in actually
accomplishing the ideal. At the same time, the ideal should not be
immediately compromised because it seems hard to achieve. The
problems of implementation should be noted, but they should not
thwart the overall effort to define the vision.
In restating the Town's vision the Team perceived six basic areas
of agreement and/or need:
1. Protection of all farmland currently in productive use;
Concentration of new residential and commercial development
in and around existing hamlets and villages, with perhaps
one new area designated as a village or hamlet center;
3. Provision of quality housing to lower income families and
individuals at prices they can afford;
Preservation of the historic character of the villages and
hamlets, carefully controlling design of new development to
maintain compatibility;
Economic development based on the existing resources of the
area: farms, scenic areas, recreation, fishing and tourism,
in a way that enhances rather than detracts from the
community; and
Maintenance and improvement of the environment through
provision of an appropriate infrastructure to protect water
quality and to manage natural resources properly, and to
guide development to appropriate locations.
The people of the Town of Southold need to establish a
public/private process to reaffirm in specific terms their vision,
focusing on the above 6 areas consistent with the concept of
community stewardship, i.e., looking at all community resources as
important, interrelated assets that must be nurtured for current
and future generations.
Community stewardship, as defined by The Countryside Institute,
integrates concerns in the following areas:
1. Stewardship of natural resources and environmental quality;
2. Stewardship and quality management of land for
Page 9
agricultural, forestry, scenic and recreational needs;
3. Stewardship of historic and cultural resources, buildings
and landscape, archeological sites, new design consistent
with historic patterns and appearance, care and improvement
of existing buildings, maintaining a sense of place;
4. Stewardship of economic resources, building on resources
and skills that already exist in a community, working
actively to maintain and create high quality jobs and
economic enterprise carefully integrated into the fabric of
the community, not in conflict with it;
Stewardship of the community's housing, care and
improvement of the existing housing stock, providing low-
cost, quality housing for those who need it, careful design
and location of new housing of various types, working with
neighborhoods to provide social diversity;
e
Stewardship of human resources and services, education, the
arts, health, social services and activities, with programs
designed from the bottom up; and
Stewardship of the political process, assuring that it is
responsive to needs defined by the community itself through
broad-based coalition building.
A basic precept of a community stewardship program is that any
activity in one of the above areas affects all the rest. No
activity in one area should be undertaken without measuring its
relationship to the other areas of concern, always striving for
multiple positive benefits.
Recommendation # 4: The Town of Southold together with the Action
Coalition and others should create a visual map - a blueprint - of
the Town based on the six basic areas of its shared vision.
There are many ways to go about mapping a community's special
assets. In the United Kingdom approaches have been developed to
involve people of all ages in the community in appraising what is
special about a place, mapping these out and extending local
visions into the future. The Town of Southold needs to do this.
The starting point is to codify and nail down what is special about
Southold and the North Fork, then develop that into the future.
Put on a map all natural resource lands and say these should not be
developed but protected for all time. Show the productive farmland
you would like to see stay in farming. Designate boundaries around
your villages and hamlets beyond which growth should not occur. Map
out your historic resources and show how they should be preserved.
Identify areas where growth could reasonably occur and visualize
what kind of growth (commercial, housing, other) and what that
Page 10
development would look like. Let your shared ideals draw the
picture for you. ( Note: There are many resources available to help
the people of Southold to do this. Saving Place~ A Guide and Report
Card for Protecting Community Character, recently published by the
National Trust for Historic Preservation, would be an excellent
place to start).
Once this is accomplished the Town of Southold will have a
blueprint to follow into the future to serve as a guide for
specific actions:
Recommendation # $~ The Town of Southold in cooperation with the
Action Coalition should institute creative, practical, steps to
implement the blueprint of its shared vision.
Often, when one thinks about implementing town plans, the fear of
regulation leads to ineffective or counterproductive compromises of
a community's vision. The Town of Southold is in this situation.
There are a number of fundamental reasons for this. In order to
overcome them it is important to recognize these obstacles and to
design programs that deal with them.
Some of the more important issues that act as roadblocks to plan
implementation are:
1. A fear that town planning and regulation will unfairly take
away private property rights;
2. A concern that if land is conserved economic development
opportunities will be limited;
3. A loss of local property tax revenues will result from
limiting land use from development; and
A limitation on development will result in an increase in
property values beyond the reach of local people to afford
their own homes.
These and other similar "roadblock" issues must be discussed more
clearly than they usually are, if they are to be overcome.
To be effectively implemented town plans must build on community
consensus through an imaginative mix of both regulatory and non-
regulatory methods. There is no question that the United States
Constitution leaves local government with broad powers to regulate
land use which can be exercised without compensating landowners. As
long as some economic use remains of property after government
regulation, no compensation is required. It would be legally
possible, for example, to prohibit any non-agriculturally related
development on farmland. Although, regulating land to such an
extent is politically challenging, it has been done in a number of
states, including under Oregon's statewide Land Use Program.
Page ll
There are ways to conserve land that do have less impact on
property owners' concerns. The Peconic Land Trust, for example,
works with landowners to find voluntary ways of conserving lands.
The Town of Southold itself has a program to purchase development
rights on farmland. These approaches may represent a compromise
between full realization of the conservation objective and the
landowners' private concerns. Strengthened and combined with other
programs, however, they may become even more effective than they
have been (see Recommendation # 6).
The idea that protecting land and natural resources results in the
loss of economic opportunity has no basis in fact. Certainly,
taking some land out of use for development might eliminate certain
economic activities such as strip development, but it conserves
that resource for other potential economic activities, such as
agriculture. It also directs economic activity into desirable
locations, maximizing the return on public investment in roads,
sewage treatment, water supply, and other public utilities. In
Southold's case, if development were unrestricted, greater public
investment would eventually be required because of its sensitive
natural environment, and would detract from its greatest economic
asset, the beauty and heritage of the area. Concentrating
development within villages and hamlets using the growth zone
concept would allow for sufficient growth while making the most of
public investments and conserving the quality of the community's
environment. It might even be possible to create a new village or
hamlet area in town (around Peconic Lane perhaps?).
Many studies have been done to show that conservation of land and
environmental resources have a positive economic impact on
communities and actually enhance the property tax base. First of
all, it is people, not the land, that demand public services.
Communities which take care of their assets generally have
healthier economies and lower tax rates. Southold, with its mix of
farming, fishing, recreation and natural beauty, is in a wonderful
position, if it implements its vision, to be one of those
communities. If it develops as it neighbors to the west have, then
it will suffer both environmentally and financially.
Property values will be enhanced through sound planning and
implementation. This does have an effect on housing prices, but
that doesn't mean there aren't ways of countering the effect to
assure quality, low-cost housing. One goal of building a high
quality of life in a community is to recognize the responsibility
of maintaining a diversity of opportunities for everyone. With
regard to housing this means a public/private investment to assure
the availability of quality housing in a variety of forms at all
income levels. Organizations such as the North Fork Housing
Alliance should be supported in their efforts to accomplish this.
The Vermont Housing and Conservation Fund, which could be adapted
to Southold's situation, should be explored as a way to meet both
Page 12
affordable housing and land conservation goals.
The %IS~UK Team identified a number of possible ways to implement
Southold's vision and to overcome the common obstacles in doing so.
This leads to the following series of recommendations on
implementation:
Recommendation # 6: The Town of southold should consider a comhlned
Purchase of Development Rights Program and a Transfer of
Development Rights Program.
The Town of Southold already has a Purchase of Development Rights
Program for farmland, as does Suffolk County. These programs could
be expanded and combined with the concept of Transfer of
Development Rights. The two programs, working together, should be
seen as a long-term investment program to both protect important
~ lands and to direct and encourage community development needs,
including low-cost housing. There are a number of ways to approach
this. Here are some possibilities to consider:
The Purchase of Development Rights Program could be
expanded to include all lands that should be conserved,
including farmland, natural areas, scenic lands and
recreation lands.
A Purchase of Development Rights Bank could be established
to hold development rights for resale to specific transfer
(growth) areas. Perhaps even private funds could be used to
purchase development rights to be deposited into this bank.
Growth areas (see Oregon's Urban Growth Zones as a model)
could be identified within and around existing villages
and hamlets which could be developed at increased densities
over current zoning, if development rights are purchased
from the PDR bank. The Town could consider donating PDRs
to non-profit housing groups such as the North Fork Housing
Alliance to meet low-cost housing needs.
Profits, if any, from the sale of development rights,
should go back into the PDR bank for purchase of additional
development rights or for use in meeting other related
community needs such as provision of necessary
infrastructure for development, historic preservation,
civic improvements, low-cost housing, etc.
Southold landowners, particularly the farming community, should be
involved from the start in designing such a program.
Recommendation # 7: The Town of Southold should consider expanding
the current tax abatement program for farmland into a working farm
tax abatement program which would eliminate property taxes on
farmland and farm buildings in return for a right of first purchase
Page 14
to the problem. The Peconic Bay should be treated as an inland body
of water, not a self-flushing oceanic system. Boat discharges
should be prohibited. A monitoring program of septic systems should
be established, and sewage treatment systems should be analyzed. A
substantial portion of the Town of Southold is within the fragile
coastal zone and this must be taken into account with regard to all
activities.
The people of Southold have to be prepared to invest in an improved
infrastructure to assure water quality improvement and to allow for
appropriate growth. They should work with others beyond town
boundaries (this is a regional problem) to do this.
Recommendation # 9: The Town of Southold should create an economic
plan which promotes sustainable development, using existing
agricultural, water-related recreational, fishing, historical and
cultural assets, and the area's unique sense of place as its theme.
Tourism would play a central part in this plan.
This recommendation has a number of important aspects to it. If the
previous recommendations are implemented the basis of future,
quality economic development will be established. More can be done.
For example, elimination of all present zoning designations that
allow strip commercial development - with the exceptions of
roadside agricultural markets and home occupations - would go a
long way in this regard. Another example would be allowing bed and
breakfasts in villages and hamlets and in farmhouses and wineries.
Equally important is the protection of historic buildings and
making sure that any new development respects the traditional
character of the area. One area of new regulation that is badly
needed is control of design for both proposed changes to existing
buildings and for new construction.
Tourism could be a bane or a bounty, depending on how its promoted.
The North Fork area already promotes tourism. But, without a plan,
this potentially important source of economic development could be,
in the end, destructive. No effective plan dealing with tourism
exists. There is no doubt, given the natural attractions of the
area and its proximity to the New York City metropolitan area (not
to mention the potential ease of access on the Long Island
Railroad) that a major untapped market is on Southold's doorstep.
Before promoting Southold, protection of its resources must be
accomplished. Once that occurs, something which should also be a
vital goal of any economic development plan, tourism could become
a positive, vital source of income and jobs to the area, as well as
contributing to the long-term protection of the area.
The major theme and goal of economic development in the North Fork
should be the promotion and enhancement of the area's unique
environment and sense of place (see Appendix for Principles of
Tourism in the Countryside, a set of principles written by the
Countryside Commission and the English Tourist Board).
Page 13
on the property if it goes out of farming use.
Currently, the Town does have a tax abatement program for farmland.
Yet, after the eight year contract runs out, the Town does not
receive anything in return for its investment. The Town of Southold
should consider changing this program to eliminate all property
taxes on working farmland and buildings, except for farm family
residences. In return for this community investment, farmers should
be willing to give the town the right to purchase the farm at
appraised development value, if the farm is ever to be sold for
non-farm use.
If the town does not exercise this right of purchase within a
reasonable period of time, then the farm owner could take the land
out of farm use or sell to a non-farmer. Farms could be transferred
or sold to family members or to other farmers without setting off
the Town's right of purchase as long as the land continues to be
farmed.
The Vermont Working Farm Tax Abatement Program could serve as a
model for such a program. Participation in the Program would be
voluntary on the part of the farmer.
To implement this recommendation might require amending state
legislation. If this proves too difficult, the program could be set
up in a different way, through leasing development rights for the
amount of property taxes, which would include a purchase option,
only to be exercised if the land were to be withdrawn from farming.
This might also provide a cost-effective use of funds from the
Purchase of Development Rights Program.
Recommendation # 8: The Town of Southold should develop a capital
improvement program for water and sewers to allow for growth areas
in and around villages and hamlets and to protect surface and
groundwater quality. Priority should be given to eliminating
pollution in creeks and bays, identifying and eliminating non-point
sources of pollution and solving the "brown tide" problem in
Peconio Bay.
In order to implement a program of both purchase and transfer of
development rights, additional growth beyond present densities
would have to be allowed. This growth should be carefully targeted
into and around existing villages and hamlets. To assure
environmental quality for this new growth improved water and sewer
facilities will likely be needed. A capital improvement program
should be developed for this purpose as well as for correcting
existing problems.
While many people have different opinions as to the cause of the
brown tide, the US/UK Team was concerned that inadequate sewage
treatment, too much development along the coastline, discharges
from boats, and non-point pollution run-off may all be contributing
Page 15
Recommendation #10: The Town of Southold should develop an
affordable housing plan which would encourage a diversity of
quality housing, includlng rental units, equity-sharing concepts
and ownership, designed to be in keeping with the historic
character of the area and mostly located within existing villages
and hamlets.
The need for quality housing at prices people can afford.is high.
Multi-unit rental housing is lacking and current regulations work
against its provision. Property values have increased to the point
that many people, particularly young people, must look to leave the
area. Current programs to assist in the provision of affordable
housing are inadequate to meet the need. A plan is needed to
correct this situation.
Again, there are a number of approaches that could be taken. The
Town in partnership with the Action Coalition, with the North Fork
Housing Alliance playing a major role, should look into
establishing a diverse set of programs. In many places around the
country, historic preservation programs have joined hands with
housing groups to rehabilitate historic buildings for multi-unit
dwellings. Community land trusts have pioneered housing efforts
through the concept of shared equity, and public funds have been
leveraged many times over through creative financing methods in
partnership with non-profit organizations. These and other ideas
should be incorporated into a Southold - North Fork housing plan
and program.
Recommendation # 11: In order to carry out these recommendations,
leadership must be provided. In some activities, town government
will have to take action. In others, the private sector could be
more effective. In still others, a public/private partnership would
be required. Southold Town Government in cooperation with the
Action Coalition should develop a mutually agreed-upon strategic
action plan for implementation of specific tasks, assigning
responsibility for leadership to the appropriate agency or
organization and time schedules for completing them.
CONCLUSION
While the US/UK Team's recommendations may seem daunting, the basis
for accomplishing them exists.
The people of the Town of Southold share a vision for the
community's future. They possess the human and financial resources
to fulfill that vision. Through a combination of a streamlined Town
government and a private non-profit Action Coalition, working
cooperatively, Southold's natural beauty, cultural heritage, social
diversity, environmental quality and economic vitality can be
assured.
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APPENDIX
SOME THOUGHTS ON COALITION BUILDING
Arthur Turovh Himmelman, a former senior fellow at the Humphrey
Institute of Public Affairs of the University of Minnesota and
currently a private consultant in community-based collaboration has
written a useful description of community coalitions which he calls
"collaborative empowerment":
Collaborative empowerment is initiated by community-based
organizations and is then linked with large or powerful
public, private, and non-profit institutions. An empowerment
strategy is used to organize a collaborative whose purpose is
determined by community-based organizations. Once this is
done, collaborative empowerment strategically integrates
larger institutions within this purpose. The empowerment
approach can produce positive policy changes and improvements
in program delivery and services. It also tends to produce
longer-term ownership of policies, programs, and services in
communities. This means that these benefits of collaboration
are more sustainable and contribute to the capacities of
communities to gain control of their own destinies.
Chuck Clusen of the Alaska Coalition recently spoke about coalition
building to the Northern Forest Lands Alliance. The following is a
summary of his points:
Coalitions need to have:
1. Purpose - vision
2. Members - people and organizations
3. Leadership - someone to help build trust, to act as a broker, to
coordinate efforts
4. Overall trust of the partners in the coalition
5. Division of work - based on trust
6. Creative environment - do not stifle inventiveness
7. Resources - if you have the other six the resources will follow
The Northern Forest Alliance has adopted the following principles
of behavior:
1. Agree on vision and strategies
necessary)
2. Establish working groups
3. Set deadlines
4. Be creative
5. Be bold
6. Be respectful of each other
7. Assign Responsibility
8. Trust each other
(but agree to disagree when
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B. PRINCIPLES FOR TOURISM IN THE COUNTRYSIDE
The Countryside Commission in England in cooperation with the
English Tourist Board recently published a set of principles for
tourism in the countryside which are worthwhile to consider for
adaptation in the U.S.:
"Tourism in the countryside is a desirable activity of economic
benefit to the nation and local communities, and of personal
benefit to the individual.
"The quality both of the environment and of the tourist experience
can be threatened by excessive and insensitive tourism development
and activity.
"The Countryside Commission and English Tourist Board believe that
tourism in the countryside should be guided by the following
principles:
ENJOYMENT
"The promotion of tourist enjoyment of the countryside should be
primarily aimed at those activities which draw on the character of
the countryside itself, its beauty, culture, history and wildlife."
DEVELOPMENT
"Tourism development in the countryside should assist the purposes
of conservation and recreation. It can, for example, bring new uses
to historic buildings, supplement usage and incomes to farms, aid
the reclamation of derelict land and open up new opportunities for
access to the countryside"
DESIGN
"The planning, design, siting and management of new tourism
developments should be in keeping with the landscape and wherever
possible should seek to enhance it."
RURAL ECONOMY
"Investment in tourism should support the rural economy, but should
seek a wider geographical spread and more off peak visiting to
avoid congestion and damage to the resource through erosion and
over use, and to spread the economic and other benefits."
CONSERVATION
"Those who benefit from tourism in the countryside should
contribute to the conservation and enhancement of its most valuable
asset - the countryside, through political and practical support
for conservation and recreation policies and programmes."
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MARKETING
"Publicity, information and marketing initiatives of the tourism
industry should endeavor to deepen people's understanding of and
concern for the countryside leading to fuller appreciation and
enjoyment."
C. US/UK COUNTRYSIDE STEWARDSHIP EXCHANGE TEAM ORAL REPORT TO THE
SOUTHOLD TOWN~ JULY 18~ 1991
An edited transcript of the oral report follows on the next page.
A video tape of the presentation was also produced. For more
information contact the North Fork Planning Conference.