New Team Named to Monitor Tarrytown’s Comprehensive Plan

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January 2, 2019

by Robert Kimmel –

Tarrytown’s new Comprehensive Plan will have a team of dedicated residents monitoring its successful implementation over the coming years. Eight persons were appointed last month by the village’s Board of Trustees to the Plan’s Management Committee for terms ranging from one to three years.

Titled “Tarrytown Connected,” the Plan’s wide-ranging work was initiated by the Board of Trustees in 2017 “to articulate the community’s vision through specific goals and policies that the village will utilize to guide and prioritize decisions across its Boards, Committees, and Councils.” A final draft was approved by the trustees this past November.

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The Plan updates a similar blueprint developed in 2007. The many changes in the village since then necessitated a new plan with a vision and goals that looked farther into the future. Utilizing the public’s input through a series of workshops, open meetings and questionnaires, as well as help from professional consultants and the village administration, the work culminated with the publication of “Tarrytown Connected.”

The mission of the Management Committee is to advise the board in regard to “Changes to the Comprehensive Plan to maintain its currency as circumstances or board policy intent evolve; and the Status of actions supporting the Comprehensive Plan, including prioritization of new actions to be launched by the board.”

All but one of the appointees to the new Management Committee were members of either, or both, the Steering Committee and Working Group that helped to guide the Comprehensive Plan’s development since 2017. The board appointed David Aukland and Joan Raiselis as Co-Chairpersons of the Management Committee, positions similar to what they held in the earlier committees. Other appointees are Joyce Lannert, Philip Johnson, David Kim, Sadie McKeown, JoAnne Murray and Robert Song. Kim is the newcomer to the pursuit.

“I think this is an excellent opportunity for the Board of Trustees to help the village move toward the future, and by setting up this team they will have a steady set of recommendations coming in for actions that need to be taken,” Co-Chair David Auckland said. “The plan that has been adopted is simply a policy statement, and in order to make it real, the Board will be making a number of actions, such as for parking or affordable housing, and the Management Committee will be advising the Board on those actions.”

Among the most pressing activities that need attention, Auckland said his personal selections were parking, affordable housing, tourism, and transit. “Local transit is important,” Auckland commented, “and we need to take a closer look at where we can do better for our residents and employers with some form of local transit arrangements.”

The Comprehensive Plan covers a broad range of themes, along with goals to be accomplished. The themes are: Economy, Mobility, Built Environment, Community, Culture & Education, Natural Environment & Open Space, and Sustainability & Resiliency.

Each theme includes what the plan describes as “a set of overarching goals…which structure the intent of the Comprehensive Plan,” and “define the village’s principal areas of focus and express the community’s most fundamental aspirations – what Tarrytown aspires to achieve through the planning process.”

Within the list of 21 goals, as examples, are subjects such as: Leveraged land use & development to promote sustainable growth, Nurture an attractive and resilient business environment, Develop resources & resources for tourism, Reduce dependence on personal vehicles, Connect & enhance open spaces and recreational resources, Strengthen connections to the Hudson River, Ensure housing stock supports a diverse, multigenerational community, Ensure sustainability of infrastructure, and Maintain a village identity.

The “Tarrytown Connected” title conveys multiple meanings: “Expand equity and opportunity — Grow and facilitate access — Engage and evolve a relationship with historic context — Protect the environment for future generations — Collaborate with regional partners.”

The Plan acknowledges that its varied implementation will require action by village trustees, other boards, administration, individuals and collaboration with organizations and institutions both inside and outside of Tarrytown.

“Tarrytown Connected” can be accessed fully online at www.tarrytownconnected.com/uploads/5/9/1/2/59125941/181119_tarrytown_connected_adopted_singles.pdf.

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