Comp Plan Public Hearings Saturday and Monday

I heard today that the Town Board has scheduled two public hearings on the Comprehensive Plan -- one tomorrow, Saturday, April 14 at 10 am, West Hurley Firehouse. The second, Monday evening, April 16, 6:30 pm at Town Hall. This may be your last chance before a vote. I hope you'll try to make one of the meetings. You can review the plan on-line or download a large PDF -- both at the Town of Hurley new website.

Come to the Hurley Comprehensive Plan Hearing

The Comprehensive Plan is wending its way through the approval process. The Town Board holds its required public hearing Monday night, March 19th. You can read the draft plan here. One of the papers listed an old, unusable email address for comments. If you have comments please send them to the Town Board or post them here. (You can send them to me, too, if you want. Thanks to so many of you who helped put the plan together. There are some great photographers among you. I appreciate your generosity letting us use your photos on the site. I'm glad it's finished. I hope to see you Monday. Ruth Wahtera, Chair

Hurley Comp Plan Published Finally!

The plan is finished and has been officially submitted to the Town Board. The County Planning Department has it in-hand to review. The Town Board will schedule hearings shortly. The plan hasn't been moved to the new Town Website but you can review it here.

Freeman Info on Comp Plan Incorrect

Oh, I feel like everyone will come to the Saturday meeting upset with me for giving wrong information in the paper. But I never talked with the Freeman, HONEST. You can't get a copy of the plan at Town Hall. You will be able to get a summary of the plan Saturday at the meeting. You can't see the plan on the new (or the old) town website. The old one is static. The new one is under construction. You can see the draft, which is still being edited, on the worksite. My apologies for the confusion. Please let others know. Thanks, Ruth

Comprehensive Plan Public Hearings Scheduled

Pass the word along, please. We're holding public hearings on the draft plan on Saturday morning, August 26th, at 10 am, and Thursday evening, August 31, at 7 pm. If you want to start reading the draft plan (I'm still editing and adding resources and images) you'll find it here. It will be moved to the new town site later this week. In the past we've held one meeting in West Hurley and one at Town Hall, but due to the lack of air conditioning in West Hurley, Mike Shultis arranged for both meetings in Old Hurley.

Where is that Comp Plan?

I know, it's July and we were aiming to finish in June. I won't bother to explain; it's too personal to be relevant to you. But I am making progress. I'm working on it full time now. (I worked on it full time for a bit in May, too, but just couldn't get it finished.) I'll keep you posted. Ruth Wahtera

Vision for the Future

Where do we hope we'll be in 2026? Here's a draft the committee thinks captures the Town's sentiments. What do you think? Today (2026) we enjoy living in a community that has maintained its beauty, charm, and neighborliness. Although our population has grown, more than 60% of our land is still open space. [In 2005, 79% is open space] Our efforts to balance protection of the environment and the rights of property owners through creative land use policies has been successful. The rich history of the Catskills, our stone houses, and the Maverick Center inform the design of our new construction. New pedestrian and bicycle paths connect residential areas with town services and recreation. Our children can move safely about the town despite traffic. Neighborhoods encompass a richness of diversity and a culture of neighborly support. Our visitors enjoy our history, the out-of-doors, our antique and crafts shops and our annual festivals. We consider ourselves fortunate to live here.

Photos for the Comp Plan

I forgot to ask -- do you have photos, or could you take digital photos, of Hurley locations we discuss in the comprehensive plan? Do you know someone you could ask? (for love, no money) Things we could use -

• Examples of Hurley's history
• Rural character and environment
• Route 28 Overlay deterioration
• Samples of current housing stock and developments
• Safety issues
• Transportation/roadway illustrations
• Home businesses
• Logging
• Unused light industrial district buildings
• Parks/ball parks/recreation areas
• Cornfields and bluffs
• Reservoir
• Scenic roadways and view corridors
• Storm water run-off and flooding problems
• Smoke from open burning
• Senior citizen gathering or individual portraits - with permission
• Schools
• Main Street
• Maverick
• Design Standards at work - maybe Hurley Ridge Market
• Tourism destinations
• Traffic hotspots

Got the idea?

Send pictures or inquiries to me at wahtera@adhoccopy.com

Thanks,

Ruth Wahtera

Traffic, Transportation, Road Network

Any comments on transportation? The County is currently studying 209 but their preliminary feeling is that it is adequate for the next 20 years, with the possible addition of left turn lanes. Route 28? A collector/connector system needed between Van Dale and 375? A connector road between Lucas and 209? Another bridge across the Esopus somewhere between Wynkoop and Marbletown - recommended in the 1969 plan. Other?

Design Standards - applied to what, by whom?

Dennis described communities developing design standards for commercial development, streetscapes, residential developments. The Open Space Plan recommends design standards for scenic roads (eg fences, signs) and view corridors. Hurley currently has no design standards. What do you think?

Town Center - Where is it?

Dennis Doyle has raised the question - Does Hurley need a town center? We've been discussing a connector road between 209 and Lucas Ave. One was proposed in the 1969 Comprehensive Plan. It could be developed with a town center in mind. What would we want located there, if we had one?

Smart Growth - Where?

We know that Hurley will grow over the next two decades. Where do we want that growth to occur? In the early '90's, the town adopted zoning changes with the expectation that growth would occur in the R-1 and R-2 areas. (Primarily the eastern portion of West Hurley and most of Old Hurley. Can anyone post a zoning map?) Does that still work?

Housing Affordability

Post your thoughts about housing affordability here--

• Would you like to see affordable housing integrated into any/every new development?
• What groups would you like to see have priority on the available units? Hurley residents? Elderly and disabled? Town employees? Civil servents? Young families?
• What percent of the median should we be targeting?

Comprehensive Plan Issues

Dennis Doyle raised a lot of issues last night. We'd like your feedback. I'll start message threads on each of the topics so we can keep the discussion about each focused. To summarize some of his points for those of you who weren't there -

• Change will happen, so shape it however you can.
• Ulster County will grow by 40,000 - 80,000 by 2030. Hurley will probably absorb about 1800 of that growth.
• In 1998 a household at 100% of the median income in Ulster County could afford 63.5% of the homes on the market. In 2004, that dropped to only 28.2% of the homes. (The median income in Hurley in the 2000 census was $51,055)
• Local communities have more control over how that growth occurs than any other level of government, if you use the tools available
• The more specific (he used the term precise) a comprehensive plan is, the more useful in controlling or shaping that growth. And, the more controversial.
• Think long term but focus action steps on the immediate
• Hurley, by state mandate, must accommodate a fair share of below market housing. We need to establish a way to do that. We can determine how and who gets priority.
• Design standards are a useful way to ensure the on-going 'character of the community.'

Those were some of the things I took away from the presentation. How about you?

Hurley Rail Trail Needs Some Help!

The Rail Trail following route 209 through Hurley was built with help from many friends. More work is planned, but a little help is needed. Eleven hillocks, or berms, were built to NY State specifications, in order to provide a buffer to the highway. Thanks to NYSDOT and landscape designer Tom Brodhead, over seventy trees and close to 400 shrubs were planted on and around the berms this November. Spring will be beautiful as the new additions take root and grow. But the berms could become and eyesore if not properly maintained. We’re asking for volunteer groups to “adopt” a berm for maintenance purposes. What does this mean? It can be as simple as occasional weeding. Further effort could involve planting ground cover or flowering bulbs, if desired. The Town Highway Department has committed to watering the berms during the crucial months of June and July. In addition, Linda will try to obtain mulch from the Landfill. Three of the berms have been adopted (Hurley Heritage Society and two by private individuals), leaving eight to go. It’s a good time to pick your real estate! We will even place a small sign at each berm to recognize the sponsoring group. Please contact hurleytrail@earthlink.net if you have interest in participating. Click on "Link" below for Rail Trail information. Posted by Wally Cook