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STEUBEN COUNTY
PLANNING
DEPARTMENT
2001 ANNUAL
REPORT
PROJECTS
Office Space Study
In early 2001, the Agriculture,
Industry,
and Planning Committee asked the Planning Director to investigate the
growing
lack of office space for County operations. A detailed survey was
completed of all County departments, with follow-up interviews as
needed.
In June, a report was presented to the AIP Committee which outlined
current
departmental space, and space needs as perceived by the
departments.
The report then presented two options for addressing the space needs:
construction
of
a Human Services Building, and construction of a new Administration
Building,
with the current County Office Building renovated for human service
departments.
The Chairman of the Legislature appointed a committee to further study
space needs. The committee will begin its work in early 2002.
Steuben County Sewer District
#1
In early 2001, the County
Legislature established
Steuben County Sewer District #1. This district was created
specifically
to allow the construction of a sewer line from Mercury Aircraft in
Hammondsport,
through the Mercury Central / Pleasant Valley Wine facility, and on to
the Ira Davenport Hospital. This will address a significant wastewater
problem at Mercury, which was under a deadline from NYDEC for finding
an
acceptable solution. Mercury Aircraft will pay all the costs
associated
with the district and subsequent sewer line, but a County sewer
district
is needed because the line will pass through more than one
municipality.
The Planning Director was elected chairman of the Board of Directors
for
the District. During 2001, the board worked with Malcolm-Pirnie
Engineers
to develop the applications to NYSDEC for the sewer line construction,
as well as the application to the Great Lakes Commission for the
diversion
of water from the Great Lakes basin to the Susquehanna basin.
Both
applications were submitted in late 2001.
Agriculture and Farmland
Protection
Plan:
In August 1999, the County, with
Cooperative
Extension as lead agency, received a grant from NYS Ag. and Markets to
develop an agriculture and farmland protection plan. With
consultants
Shepstone Management, the Steuben County Agricultural Expansion and
Development
Plan was completed in late 2000 and approved by the County Legislature
in January 2001. It was approved by Ag. and Markets in August
2001.
During 2001, the plan was reproduced and distributed to municipalities
and involved agencies. The Planning Department worked with
Cooperative
Extension to implement aspects of the plan including adoption of a
County
Right to Farm Law and sponsorship of a Farm-City Day at Egresi
Vineyards
in Pulteney.
ON-GOING
ACTIVITIES
County Administration
The Planning Department provides the
Legislature
and the County Administrator with information necessary to formulate
policies
and implement programs. The Planning Director serves as Deputy
County
Administrator, and assists the County Administrator in a variety of
administrative
tasks.
Economic Development Fund
During 2001, the Economic
Development Fund
was used to assist two County projects. The first was a grant of
$10,000 as part of the local match of a USDA Rural Development Grant to
conduct a feasibility study of the redevelopment/enhancement of
Pinnacle
State Park in the Town of Addison. The second was a $400,000 grant to
the
Steuben County Industrial Development Agency to assist in the
development
of a new Corning, Inc. Diesel Ceramic Manufacturing Plant in the Town
of
Erwin. This plant will manufacture diesel catalytic converters,
and
the County funding will be used to construct a new 115kV line from the
NYSEG substation approximately five miles to the new facility.
The
line will also be available to other potential new industrial
development
in the Erwin Industrial Park and along Route 417.
Agricultural Districts:
The Planning Department is
responsible for
mandatory eight-year reviews of the County's 19 Agricultural
Districts.
In 2001, reviews and consolidations completed in 2000 for Districts No.
7 and No. 8 and for Districts No. 2 and No. 15 were approved by
Ag.
and Markets. Reviews for Districts No. 6, No. 9, and No. 16
were completed and their consolidation into one district, No. 6, was
approved
by Ag. and Markets. A review of District No. 10 was completed and
submitted to Ag. and Markets and approval is anticipated in
2002.
The department often provides information about the benefits of ag.
districts
and determines whether properties are in a district or not.
Internet
The Senior Planner monitors the
email which
is generated by the County’s web page. She answers requests
whenever
possible, or forwards the questions to the appropriate County
department.
The Planning Department also frequently uses the Internet to research
planning
topics.
Environmental Management
Council:
The Senior Planner provides
technical and
clerical assistance to the EMC. In 2001, the EMC held educational
programs in schools and cosponsored two programs on oil and gas
drilling,
one for landowners and one for local officials. Issues the EMC
studied
include: solid waste, recycling, hazardous waste collection, and
the county landfill; salt storage and groundwater contamination;
seismic
activity at the Avoca Gas storage site; CAFO regulations and hog farms;
and the Millennium Pipeline Project.
Capital Budget
The department again developed the
proposed
capital budget, including small equipment, major equipment, and capital
projects, to be incorporated in the Legislature's budget process.
Geographic Information System
(GIS)
Coordinator
The Geographic Information System
Coordinator
continues to produce numerous maps for the 911 Coordinator as part of
the
effort to improve the addressing in the County. Quality
assurance/quality
control, with the aid of the Real Property Tax Service Agency, has
continued
to insure the accuracy and integrity of the GIS. Other GIS-related
assistance
was given to the Towns of Campbell, Corning, Cohocton, Jasper, Erwin,
Urbana,
Hornellsville, the Cities of Corning and Hornell (including the newly
formed
Empire Zone), and the Village of Hammondsport. In addition, files
and maps were prepared for numerous private concerns, especially energy
firms. Within County operations, maps were prepared for the Real
Property Tax Service Agency, Treasurer (specifically for the Tax Sale
website), Emergency
Mgt. Office, Public Works, as well as numerous applications for the
Planning
Department. The GIS Coordinator made a presentation to the Steuben
County
Assessor’s Assn., was appointed the County’s contact person for the
State
GIS Data Sharing Cooperative, and was appointed to an advisory
committee
for the NYS Office for Technology. The GIS Coordinator also serves as
the
department’s primary source for Census information and floodplain
information
for property owners and real estate agents.
Building Code Administration
The department administers the New
York State
Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code, through a contract with
Atlantic-Inland,
Inc., for municipalities which have opted out of enforcement. The
municipalities under county jurisdiction are the Village of Riverside
and
the Town of Addison.
Regional Planning Board
Activities
The Planning staff are active
participants
in many facets of the work of the Southern Tier Central Regional
Planning
and Development Board. The Planning Director is a voting member
of
the STC Board of Directors, chairs the Regional Human Services
Committee,
and is a member of the Regional Economic Development Policy Committee,
the Rural Leadership Committee, and the I86 Task Force. The
Senior
Planner and the GIS Coordinator represent the Department on the
Physical
Resources Advisory Committee.
Committee Memberships /
Activities
In addition to the Regional Planning
Board
activities cited above, the Planning Department staff represents the
Department
and/or the County on numerous boards, committees, etc. These include:
1)
Steuben County Traffic Safety Board; 2) Steuben County Water Quality
Coordinating
Committee; 3) Steuben County Conference and Visitors Bureau; 4) DEC
Region
8 Open Space Plan Committee; 5) Route 15 Project Advisory Committee; 6)
Sullivan Trail RC&D Council; 7) Schuyler-Steuben Rural
Transportation
Advisory Committee.
TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE
The department provided technical
assistance
to numerous municipalities during 2001. Planning and zoning
assistance
was provided to the Towns of Avoca, Campbell, Cohocton, Erwin, Fremont,
Hornellsville, Hornby, Lindley, Pulteney, Tuscarora, and Wayland; the
Villages
of Avoca, Bath, and Painted Post, and the City of Hornell. The
Department
also regularly assisted the regional planning board staff with local
planning
issues in the communities they serve. In addition to the on-going
assistance,
the staff sponsored a training session for local board members,
presented
by the NYS Department of State, on site plan review and special use
permits.
Also the Planning Director and Senior Planner participated in a mock
ZBA
session at the Local Government Conference at Corning Community
College,
sponsored by STCRPDB. Staff also provides an on-going service to
local lending institutions and real estate appraisal companies by
providing
flood plain and Census tract information. The department
regularly
provides Census, economic and other data to individuals, agencies and
private
firms writing grants or business plans, and those working on various
development
projects.
Gregory P. Heffner, AICP
Planning Director
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