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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPB-05/27/1968 Joint Meeting on Master Plan . I . Southold Town Planning Board 50UTHOLD, L. I., N. Y. 11971 PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS John Wickham, Chairman Henry Moisa Alfred Grebe William Unkelbach Joint Meeting on Master Plan May 27, 1968 A joint meeting of Southo1d Town and Greenport Village Boards and Planning Boards was held at the Supervisor"s Office, 16 South Street. Greenport, New York on Monday evening May 27, 1968. Present were: Mayor Arthur Levine. Trustees William Quinn, George Hubbard, Samuel Katz, Village Clerk Harry Be1ing. Village Planning Board: Chairman John J. Sherwood, Henry Bunce. Dr. Leo Goldin. Jerry King. Superintendent of Village Utilities James Monse11 Supervisor Lester Albertson, Councilmen Louis Demarest and Howard Valentine, Justice Martin Suter. Town Clerk Albert Richmond. Town Attorney Robert Tasker. Town Planning Board: Chairman John Wickham. Henry Moisa. Alfred Grebe. Frank Coyle. William Unke1bach. Building Inspector Howard Terry. Town Board of Appeals: Chairman Robert W. Gillispie Jr.. Serge Doyen Jr.. Charles Grigonis Jr., Fred Hulse Jr.. Robert Bergen. From Cornell University, Dr. David Allee, Arthur Sullivan Howard Quinn, New York State Department of Commerce. Division of Planning. I . Joint Meeting on Master Plan -2- May 27, 1968 Richard May Jr. and William Barron of Raymond & May Associates. Mr. Whitlock of Malcolm Pirnie Engineers sent his regrets as he was unable to attend the meeting. He feels especially close to the Southold Town Project and wants to be kept informed of our progress and is willing to assist any time we need his services. The meeting was opened at 7:45 P.M. (E.D.S.T.), by Supervisor Lester Albertson who stated the purpose of this meeting was to review the Master Plan Proposal as submitted by Raymond & May Associates. A motion was made, seconded, and carried to approve the minutes of our last meeting as they were mailed out. The meeting was turned over to Mr. May, who stated that a shipment of booklets, Part I and Part II, for each of the Town pa~t and Village part, has been made, but none of the material, including the maps, has yet arrived. Copies of the Village Plan Part II were distributed so that all could see the map enclosed. The shipment included 4000 copies of the development plan for the Town and 1000 copies of the Village development map. An attempt had been made to see that each board member had a copy of Part I and Part II prior to this meeting (most have them.) The maps are intended for distribution at or prior to a public hearing on the Master Plan. Copies of a Press release were left with the secretary for our use if we want them (a copy is attached to the minute book and file.) Howard Quinn stated that the Southold Town and Greenport Village study is the most complete one ever done under a "701" program in the state of New York. Our three consultants, Raymond & May Associates, Cornell University, and Malcolm Pirnie have turned up more information than is normally required for a planning project. Mr. Quinn hopes that the Town and the Village will use this information to its fullest value to get an approved plan on record. Once adopted, the plan should be kept properly updated from time to time. Mr. Quinn expressed satisfaction with the attendance at the meetings we have held and with the interest shown by both Planning Boards. I , Joint Meeting on Master Plan -3- May 27, 1968 Mr. Robert Gillispie Jr. inquired as to how the program was financed and what share the Federal Government paid. Mr. Quinn replied that the Town paid 1/6, the State 1/6, and the Federal Government 2/3 or about $35,000. In addition Cornell University supplied Research Funds for the larger part of their work and the Town paid most of Malcolm Pirnie"s costs. Dr. David Allee spoke on the studies that Cornell University did for us. This ties in with other studies now underway in other parts of the State and will become part of a large scale study of agriculture and resort business. Southold Town has a unique situation and should take advantage of its opportunities. Some upstate areas would like to establish an "agriculture and vacation" economy similar to ours. Professor Sullivan is interested in our marine possibilities, both the local creeks and bays as well as the deep water fishing business. He thinks that we should do more to develop this source of income with particular emphasis on the cultivation of clams, oysters and other shellfish and possibly processing "fin fish". Mr. May stated the Master Plan is an unofficial document, not an ordinance, but a guide. It should be studied and adopted as soon as possible after a public hearing, as it is a policy being set by the Town and Village. It should be reviewed and updated at least every five years. It will help sustain the Zoning Ordinance and Subdivision Regulations in event of a suit or attack on either of them and will be a guide for the expansion of utilities and other public services. It is also the background for the "official map" and capital improvement program, as well as controlling development, saving open spaces, and improving housing in both the Town and the Village. Three separate studies project a population of 34,000 year round residents for Southold Town (including Greenport Village) by the year 1985. Each study used a different approach and was made for a specific and different purpose. Our open land should be held in agriculture as long as possible and our "wetlands" preserved permanently as we do not need all of this land for a population of 34,000. This amount of growth can be accomplished on about 25% of our land, estimating water use of agriculture as the same as two families per acre, and agriculture holding at its present level. Preserving the open area is going to help preserve our under- ground water supply as nearly free of polution as possible. I . Joint Meeting on Master Plan -4- May 27, 1968 It is strongly recommended that we go into a program of purchasing development rights, contract restrictions or a similar program to hold back development of our farm lands and wet lands. We should make every effort to preserve access to public waters and to control commercial uses such as marines. dredging operations, boat yards, etc. Dredging or filling of wetlands should be prohibited except in special case where loss of fresh water and salt water intrusion can be controlled. All wells especially the large ones should be kept back from the salt water areas to prevent overdrafting and salt water infiltration. The tourists and summer residents along with retired people help to keep down our tax expenses. We have no "industry" as it is commonly called to strengthen our tax base. We must preserve our natural assets to attract these people. The studies show no need for large business centers or shopping centers such as Walt Whitman Shopping Center at Huntington. We should try to deepen our present business centers with malls and off street parking rather than have "strip business" along' major roads. All business zones should be prohibited along present Route 27 to keep this road as free as possible for through traffic. Raymond & May see the Greenport Village's largest problems as housing, rebuilding of the waterfront, and some renewal of the business section. This should be done to make the Village more attractive to the tourist and summer visitors who contribute so mush to the income of the area. They recommend going into some of the Federal Programs to finance this work as it is important to the welfare of the entire Village. The Town has some "housing blight" particularly outside the Village limits, and a few other areas. This should be corrected before it actually becomes a "slum". This can be done by code enforcement and Federal Assistance Funds. There must be some provision for additional industrial property, although there does not seem to be a particular demand for it now. Some land preferably west of Greenport in the annexed area and some land west of the Mattituck business district between the Main Road and Sound Avenue should be set aside for this purpose. A small area north of the railroad at Southold will probably be needed. A by-pass from the Main Road to Route 27, west of the Village property probably in the Chapel Lane area should be provided for through traffic that does not want to or need to pass through the Village. This will lessen the load on the Narrow streets , e Joint Meeting on Master Plan -5- May 27, 1968 and reduce the chance of accidents in the Village. Some effort should be made to improve the Village owned water-shed property to make some park and improved playground areas. Mr. Gillispie questioned some of the park areas shown on the map. Particularly the golf courses and the isthmus between Orient and East Marion. Mr. May explained that certain amounts of recreational land must be set aside for a certain amount of population. The Color Code used covered this type of land use but it did not necessarily have to be in the exact spot shown on the map. It could be located as area conditions permit. The question of resort areas was raised. Mr. May explained that the color coded areas are mostly in use for Motels, etc. This will soon have to be expanded to accomodate additional facilities. Dr. Allee thinks the IIresortll business is the most important area to expand as it is one of our largest sources of income. Howard Quinn spoke of the importance of the tourist and recreation section of the Town's ecenomy. Supervisor Albertson stated that they had originally planned a press conference for this afternoon, but had called it off as we are not ready to publish the proposed map at this time. He suggested that the park area at Orient Point was too large for the present time, the Truman Beach area shown was built up and the park area should be relocated, the Peconic Inlet park area as shown was too large for present needs. The Paradise Point area was built up with large homes, almost estates, too valuable to change to park area. Also the heavy business and industrial area of Southold north of the railroad was not shown on the map and the proposed road along the Sound between Peconic and Mattituck will cross some subdivisions whose owners will object to it. Altogether this map would probably upset too many people if shown as is at this time. Mr. May explained that this is only a proposal for the Town"s needs in the not too far future, none of the areas are intended as defined parcels of land. This will have to be done by the Planning Board and the Town Board when the proper time comes or the needs of the people require it. The facilities are important and exact location can be adjusted. Mr. May and Mr. Quinn both spoke about the proposed airport north of Oregon Road and its importance to the growth of the Town and all of North Fork. This proposed airport is on the Federal and State Airport Program as a IImustll airport. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is planning financial aid for its construction and operation. John Wickham stated that the Planning Board is going to assume the job of attempting to change the direction of our development, it will be a hard job. We want to make the town more attractive , . Joint Meeting on Master Plan -6- May 27, 1968 and preserve all of our assets, we will present the broad side of the picture to the public. We have revised this plan several times already and will have to refine it more before final details are settled. We believe the central part of the Town should be two acre zoned, and we are going to make every attempt to preserve our agriculture, fishing, and shellfish industry and tourist business. Supervisor Albertson requested that the Paradise Point park area be removed from the map and that more business area be put on for Orient. Mr. May stated again that this is a generalized program, the areas are suggestions only, we expect that the present business districts will in all probability stay as they are. William Barron reminded everyone that the maps will not stand without the text and this is very generalized. (He read part of the text.) Supervisor Albertson stated that as we do not have 4000 books of the text to go with the 4000 maps it will get our people very upset if we release this map now. Robert Gillispie Jr. expressed the thought that since the business districts now in use do not show on the map it will tend to be very confusing to the average person. Mr. May stated that this proposal is an attempt to balance the needs of the entire town by population and area. Serge Doyen inquired as to our obligation to the Federal Government as they have put up 2/3 of the money. Mr. May explained that this is the same as a gift. No action is required on the towns part. The plan can be filed or used, or parts only used as far as the Government is concerned. William Unkelbach inquired about replacing the Mattituck Creek Bridge as the proposed roads east and west of this creek along the Sound Shore will dump all of this traffic into the present 4 lane road, Route 27. This is to be the outlet for the L.I. Expressway in the near future. This brought on a discussionof the development of the north- west Mattituck area, the industrial park in the northeast part of Riverhead Town, the salt water conversion plant, and new subdivisions proposed in this general area. John Wickham reviewed the State's two proposals for a high level bridge over Mattituck Creek and informed us that both have been dropped. He suggested that we might bring it up again in light of increased traffic on Route 27. Mayor Levine stated that this is net the time to pick the plan apart as we have not given enough study and thought to it. We should appreciate it as a starting point and not fuss over details now. Mr. May again stated this is the starting point and a statement of general policy. It does #i# have to be studied and refined. . . , , Joint Meeting on Master Plan -7- May 27, 1968 Robert Tasker expressed the op~n~on that the Master Plan will be cited on nearly every application for a change of zone and certainly in every attack on the Zoning Ordinance on change of zone applications which are challenged. It is his opinion that the whole plan should be refined and everything spelled out before it goes to the public. Mr. May suggested that the proposed map and text be submitted to the public for suggestions, at least to a few representative citizens for their comments and suggestions before it is revised. John Wickham suggested that a letter be attached to each map giving a brief explanation of the proposal and ask for written comments. Mr. May suggested having the text (part2) published in the local papers with a press release and then ask representative citizens to comment on it before revision. John Wickham expressed the idea that the Planning Board should handle the whole matter, not the Town Board, as it is a Planning Board matter. All letters, publicity, etc. should be sent by the Planning Board and all comments should be directed to the Planning Board, not the Town Board, than when all of this has been sorted and classified, the two Boards can get together and make the revisions before a final draft is put out at a formal public hearing. Trustee Samuel Katz inquired as to the accuracy of the map of the Village limits and property. Mr. May assured him that the map used was supplied by the Village office and was the latest one available, it did not come from Albany or any other place. John Wickham brought up the matter of the capital improvement program for discussion. It is his feeling this is a Town Board Matter and that the Planning Board should only recommend certain things to the Town Board so that they can be budgeted about 5 or 6 years ahead of construction. He doesn't think it proper for the Planning Board to do any part of the budgeting. Supervisor Albertson and Mr. May agreed this should be a joint effort of the two Boards. Mayor Levine expressed his thanks to Raymond & May Associates, the New York State Department of Commerce, the participating Federal Agency, Cornell University, Malcolm Pirnie Engineers, Mr. Whitlock, and the Town Board for all of their efforts to get this plan underway. We are glad that there is only one town and one village involved as it makes it much easier and simple. Supervisor Albertson expressed the Town's agreement with the Mayor for the participating organizations efforts in preparing the plan. . . , t Joint Meeting on Master Plan -8- May 27, 1968 Mr. May stated that this is the beginning of the plan and a declaration of policy, the final lines will have to be drawn. This is for the people to accept as a direction in which we are headed. He offered to attend a public hearing to help explain either or both the Town or Village plans. He also suggested sectional or regional meetings to discuss the plan. John Sherwood expressed a feeling of disappointment for the Village Planning Board not being recognized for the attend- ance at all of the Master Plan meetings and for the work they have done. He also expressed a great appreciation for the work done by Malcolm Pirnie Engineers. Mr. Quinn inquired as to the future order of procedure. Mr. May suggested it would be in order for the Town Board and Planning Board also the Village Board and Planning Board to have an executive session to plan their chnages and arrange for meetings or public hearings. John Wickham inquired as to how much up another small scale map when suggested Mr. May estimated the cost including staff work at $500.00 to $800.00. John Wickham commented on the fact that we do not yet have a program for development rights restrictions, or leasing of rights on agricultural land, or any plan to hold back development of our open areas. Mr. Quinn stated this is something that will have to be worked out locally, assistance can be had from the Opan Spaces Action Committee in New York City as they specialize in this field. Mr. May suggested a committee be appointed to woXk out a program as it must be flexible and be adapted to local conditions. He explained how it had been done in other places. Robert Tasker suggested that we should first find out if such a plan would be acceptable to the farmers and owners of open spaces before we make up such a program. If it does not appeal to a majority of them it is best not to bother with it. John Wickham suggested that the "negative easement" type plan would probably be the best for our area, rather than restricting the development rights plan. Supervisor Albertson questioned why the North Fork Club and the .__ishers Island Club were shown on the map and why the Island End Club at Greenport was left off. William Barron explained it was left off as it did not show on any of their werking maps or aerial photos. it would cost revisions are labor, paper, to print ready. and .. . . ... , ~ Joint Meeting on Master Plan -9- May 27, 1968 After some discussion on various aspects of the plan presented and comments by members of the various boards on items in their localities it was agreed to adjourn the meeting. John Wickham offered a motion thanking Raymond & May Associates and their staff, Cornell University and their staff, Malcolm PirniaEngineers, especially Ernest Whitlock, and both Planning Boards and Town and Village Boards for all of their work and efforts put into this Master Plan draft. Seconded by Supervisor Albertson and unanimously carried, the meeting was adjourned at 10:00 P.M. !~-- Howard Ter~ Acting Secretary \ ....... -