TOWN OF MANLIUS – We write with an update to our last column, where we introduced our Comprehensive Plan initiative and urged people to begin tuning in. The finalized plan will define the community’s vision, establish goals and policies and set a framework for future public and private investments. Now is another critical time to lend your ideas and feedback as we continue to collect information and seek to understand where our town is and in what directions we seek to head.
We have been honored to have the participation of our colleagues in town hall, as well as from from consultant partners, Barton & Loguidice, and our volunteer Steering Committee: Joe Lupia (town of Manlius Planning Board), Nicole Potocki (Chittenango and small business), Kay Gallery (ESM School District liaison), Donald Gates (Manlius), Rick Hall, (village of Fayetteville liaison), Bobby Schepp (town of Manlius employee and village of Minoa Trustee), Marissa Mims (F-M School District liaison), Paul Bern (Manlius), Paul Whorrall (village of Manlius Mayor), Karrie Catalino (Fayetteville), Leah Kraus, (Fayetteville Free Library), Casey Koehle (Landry Farms, Kirkville), and Bill Kirchoff (Minoa and NextDoor.com ambassador).
In August, B&L shared with us a “SWOT” summary of the 547 responses we received to the initial comprehensive survey they conducted in June:
S – Our “strengths”: educational and recreational resources; small, safe community feel; town history; quality of public and private services.
W – Our “weaknesses”: lack of a downtown; monotony of existing businesses; slow redevelopment; little diversity in housing.
O – Our “opportunities”: increase diversity of housing and businesses; improve walkability; attract young adults; greater coordination between town and villages.
T – Our “threats”: increasing tax burden, lack of planning, NIMBY-ism (“not in my backyard”); climate change.
In September and October, the Steering Committee, B&L, and Community Focus Group Facilitators led conversations on affordable housing (including outreach to folks who rent housing in our community), historical preservation, environmental sustainability, farming, parents and caregivers, seniors in Fayetteville (sessions with seniors in Manlius and Minoa are forthcoming), and youth workshops at ES-M and F-M high schools.
Our hearty thanks to the community facilitators: William Nicholson, Casey Cleary-Hammarstedt, Pamela Bender, Malcolm Bender, Alice Massa, Erin Trojan, Kate de la Garza, Marisa de la Garza, Holly Greenberg, and Dominique Barr.
In November, the Steering Committee identified additional areas to gather more knowledge. We have proposed study groups on the proposed quarry and stormwater management. These groups will meet four to six times and invite experts to address various questions pertaining to the issues.
Additional Focus Groups will be held on sidewalks as well as future technology, such as broadband and infrastructure accounting for drones/driverless vehicles.
Like the video listening sessions we produced last year on Our History, Our Economy, and Our Environment, we will produce two additional sessions: the Old Erie Canal Working Group, and our indigenous heritage (ideally with the Skä•noñh–Great Law of Peace Center).
Do you have additional topics and ideas not mentioned here? Will you help us make this process the most representative of our community as it can be? Please visit https://bit.ly/ManliusCompPlan_EB for our timeline, project information, idea boards and two-minute surveys, as well as to sign up to receive alerts about future meetings. Our goal is to increase the number of active and regular participants in Comprehensive Planning from a few hundred to (at least!) a few thousand people. Your input matters – our final recommendations will not be presented to the town board until summer 2022.
Editor’s note: Town of Manlius Councilors Sara Bollinger and Heather Waters are co-chairs of the town’s comprehensive planning committee.
