ANCRAM COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ADVANCES

Mike McCagg ccSCOOP News The Ancram Comprehensive Plan Committee expects to conduct a public hearing on a draft plan for the future of the town in the coming two months and make a recommendation to the Town Board by mid-May. That’s the timeline laid out by Comprehensive Plan Committee Chairman Art Bassin after a series of workshops and meetings drew approximately fifty residents to review and comment on the strategies that the comprehensive plan will reflect.

“I am absolutely pleased with the feedback the committee has received so far,” said Bassin. “From a committee point of view, the plan has come together quite well. . . . It has come together well because it reflects what the community has told us it wants for the next twenty years.”

As proposed, the Comprehensive Plan envisions an Ancram in 2030 that is the same as it is now. “The bottom line is the community wants Ancram in twenty years to look like what it does today,” Bassin said.

In fact, the Plan’s vision statement states: “Ancram in 2030 will look and feel much like it does in 2008, maintaining its predominantly rural character. We have successfully met many of the challenges facing our community, and continue to address issues that impact us. Ancram focuses on establishing policies and programs to preserve the important elements which define its rural character, which include working agricultural landscapes, open space, a strong sense of community, well-maintained hamlets, low density housing in the countryside, small businesses serving our needs, and infrastructure appropriate for a small, rural town.”

The chairman said the draft Comprehensive Plan has met little resistance and raised few concerns in the community because it was put together through an extremely inclusive process. More than 430 residents completed surveys and approximately 200 attended workshops during the two-year-long plan development process.

The survey showed the top issues concerning residents were maintaining open space, encouraging agriculture, creating affordable housing, protecting ground water, and drawing business and job opportunities for residents. As a result, the draft plan’s goals and strategies state the following:

• Agriculture & Environment: In 2030, agriculture is healthy, thriving, and is the primary land use in Ancram. New farmers and farming activities exist alongside family farms which have been operating here for generations.

• Community: In 2030, Ancram is a family-friendly, caring community working together. We have high levels of volunteerism, a strong sense of community identity, pride in our past, and confidence in our future.

• Development & Infrastructure: In 2030, water and septic issues and protection of our rural character control decisions affecting residential development, economic development, and the development of infrastructure.

Click here to view the full text of those strategies.

The Comprehensive Plan Committee is currently reviewing some of the feedback it received during the recent workshops and will make clarifications and refinements to reflect that feedback and better state the committee’s intentions.

“Some of the committee’s statements were meant to make one point, but during the workshops it was determined that it didn’t come across that way,” said Bassin.

“There were also some disagreements—very few—that have to be addressed," said Bassin, before the committee moves forward. Among them was whether the proposed plan would recommend allowing subdivisions of property that is between three and six acres in size. Existing zoning allows for three-acre lots, but the town is moving toward zoning that takes into account averages and would permit subdivisions of property that results in an average lot size of 3.5 acres. “We have to determine whether it is a good idea or bad idea,” said Bassin.

After making the necessary clarifications and refinements, Bassin said the committee will again make the draft plan ready for public viewing. That will be followed by a public hearing on the plan and a subsequent presentation to the Ancram Town Board. Bassin expects the committee will conduct workshop meetings with the Town Board before that panel puts the document up for yet another public hearing and the Town Board takes final action to adopt the plan.