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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1967-04-24 Minutes LANSING PLANNING BOARD April 24 , 1967 ; Town Hall • Special Meeting PRESENT : James Showacre , Chairman : Mrs . Viola Miller ; Messrs . Paul Barron , Alex Cima , Frederick Edmondson , John Ettinger , Herbert Ley Also attending : Harris Dates , Town Supervisor ; Mrs . Jane Bush ; Messrs . Floyd Ferris , Charles Howell , James Howell , James Kidney , and Fred Spry . The meeting was called to order by the chairman at 8 : 10 p . m . Approval of minutes of previous meeting and reports of officers and committees were omitted . Showacre Presented "Planning in Lansing - An Overview" ( Exhibit VI ) Dates Introduced members of the Town Board . Spoke about the Town Board ' s interest in planning and its support of the Town Planning Board . Showacre Introduced Mr . Shepard B . Drogin , Staff Planner , State Office of Planning Coordination . Mr . Drogin explained the Urban Planning Assistance Program or 701 Program . • Drogin The emphasis today is on making everything attractive . Urban areas have been concerned with this , now rural areas are becoming more and more interested . The population in the Ithaca area is expected to double by 1985 . This means large increases in Lansing . This development can be al - lowed to progress haphazardly , or it can be planned . The Urban Planning Assistance Program is set up to aid com - munities in their planning . In thinking of planning , Lansing should insist that its plan be tailored to conditions in Lansing . Agriculture is very important in Lansing and should be carefully considered . The recreational pattern should have careful attention . During the next 20 years , people will be working fewer hours and spending more time playing . Lansing could be very important in the recreation field . Studies should be made in these and other areas to develop a master plan for Lansing . The first step is to write to Albany and formally request planning assistance . The Planning Board must interview three consultants , choose one . He would draw up plans for the Board ' s consideration . Upon reaching an agreement on the plans , the Board would submit the plans to Albany , which would in turn review them and submit them to the federal government . The important thing is to plan for tomorrow , not just for today . Dates Have funds eased up ? When could we get into the program? • Drogin Funds are easier . With pressure , perhaps in six months . Many programs were held up because of the lack of funds , but this backlog has been processed , so new programs can now be considered . Minutes , LANSING PLANNING BOARD ; April 24 , 1967 ; Town Hall ; Special Meeting ; page 2 E ttinger Then the first step in getting started in the 701 plan is writing the letter ? • Drogin Yes . You must , of course , have a planning board which has authority to act . Funds must be set aside by the Town Board for its share of the program costs . You must inter - view three consultants before choosing one . Your consultant will prepare a scope of services to be submitted . J . Howell Would you go into more detail on agricultural zoning ? Drogin It is necessary to plan zoning which will protect agri - cultural land . You want to try to prevent situations in which non - farmers band together to force farmers to leave the area or limit operations . It is possible to plan for stable assessments for agricultural land . L ey To return to the scope of services - could local residents be used in preparing some of the basic studies ? Drogin You already have a start on your basic studies in some of the material supplied me . I would suggest that your con - sultant use local people to up -date the present material and to go into more depth . Miller Do you feel it is good to involve the people of the Town? • Drogin Yea . Your chances of getting a plan adopted and implemented are very much greater if people are involved , know what is happening and have choices in what will happen . Cima What do you recommend as lot size in new subdivision ? Drogin Perhaps one -half an . acre . Recreation is an important item in Lansing and your planning should recognize this fact . P eople will drive farther to work if by doing so they can live in an area which has recreational facilities . Your lot size should take this into account . I believe you should do some serious thinking very early in your planning about developing or at least setting aside recreational areas . Your subdividers could then work around these areas . O r you could put in the roads around your recreational areas and the subdividers would have to follow your set -up . Barron What determines whether agriculture will remain in an area ? Drogin Communities are a blend of commercial , agricultural , residential and industrial establishments . The industrial and commercial will be concentrated in the Ithaca area . Lansing will probably be chiefly agricultural and resi - dential . Whether a farmer remains in business depends on whether he can make money . You should realize that the • money a farmer makes is passed around the community faster than is any other money . He uses his money in his own community . Farmers are a most important part of your community . Dates Has the law been passed to provide for lower tax rates for farmers ? • Minutes ; LANSING PLANNING BOARD ; April 24 , 1967 ; Town Hall ; Special Meeting ; page 3 4111 Drogin Some communities now have this relief for farmers . I don ' t know whether a state law has been passed on it yet . New York State has a great stake in agriculture , and I expect that in the future control of agriculture will be managed chiefly through the tax structure . Edmondson In the preservation of natural environment , has there been much use of the principle of performance standards ? Drogin Zoning has changed greatly in recent years . At first it was very rigid . As it was realized that more flexibility was desirable , performance standards were substituted . This method requires that tests be made to decide whether a given enterprize was producing noise , smoke , clutter , etc . not desirable in a given location . These tests were difficult to administer . Now control is more often handled through permits and site plan control . Approval is given for a plan only if it is demonstrated that the enterprize would be acceptable in that particular area . C . Howell It seems to me we are more and more losing our freedom to manage our own affairs . Where are we going ? Drogin This is unfortunately so . As we live closer and closer to - gether , it is necessary to have more regulations . People • do not think in terms of the greatest good for the most people , but in terms of the greatest good for me . Thus it is necessary to restrict undesirable actions . Showacre Closed the meeting with a brief summary of points raised and expressed the appreciation of the Town Board and the Planning Board for Mr . Drogin ' s assistance . Meeting adjourned 9 : 15 p . m . •