3.29.11 MEETING OF THE PLANNING SUBGROUP
Present: Rick Hauser, Brian Bieger, Sue Bieger, Eleanor Jacobs, Adam Gullo, Pilar McKay, Jason Beck, Jim Genduso,
Mandi Harvey
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
Introductions were made.
Brian suggested a Glossary of terms be added to the Vision Statement
Village Comprehensive Plan. Mandi shared Stu Brown’s proposal for an update. Mandi will report to us on the
status of the actual update work if it has commenced. (via email and/or next meeting?)
Phased Main Street work: Rick suggested considering a target district (Village Center) for improvements with
money found locally or in partnership with regional/state programs.
Planned Giving. Sue has experience here. Will share with Eleanor and Treasurer Jim Genduso.
How to tackle the Vision 2020 work, and the role of the planning group going forward:
a. QUARTERLY PLANNING GROUP MEETINGS. So, next meeting would be around the end of June.
b. TASK FORCES. We agreed to break the Vision Statements into Task Forces, preliminarily as follows:
i. BUILT ENVIRONMENT, Rick Hauser, coordinator
1. Main Street Master Plan (V1) Task Force. Rick Hauser, with Jim Genduso
a. Sidewalk, curbing and streetlights were discussed.
2. Beautification component (V1): Mandi Harvey with Eleanor Jacobs
a. Trash receptacles, bike racks, planters, gateway treatments were discussed.
3. No Blight Task Force (V2). Adam Gullo, coordinator.
a. Purchase strategy was discussed
4. Pro-active Zoning/Assessment component (V3): Anne Humphrey with Rick Hauser
a. Complaint-driven zoning, revamping zoning, revamping enforcement staffing;
rethinking nature of market-based (resale vs potential income/sf) assessments
5. Vital Infrastructure component (V4): Dick Barth (?)
ii. STABILITY AND BUSINESS GROWTH. Pilar McKay, coordinator
1. Thriving Entrepreneurs component (V5). Pilar McKay with
2. Think Local First component (V6). Sue Bieger (?) with
3. Diverse upper floor tenants component (V7).
4. Recruitment/destination retail and services component (V8).
iii. QUALITY OF LIFE. Sue Bieger, coordinator
1. Recreation Destination Branding (V9): Sue Bieger, with Promotions Committee
2. Recreationally Rich Trail (V10): Meredith Beck, with Silver Lake Trail Council
PMSA FRAMEWORK: VISION 2020. DRAFT (3/29/2011)
BUILT ENVIRONMENT
1. VISION: A pedestrian-friendly, well-appointed, high-quality Main Street corridor modeled on the
completed Master Plan concepts – new street lighting, curb widening in places, medians to create gateways
and sense of arrival, bulb-outs to ease pedestrian comfort, new sidewalks and curbing, etc.
 Strategies need to be reviewed and augmented.
 Explore Perry ROA process for engineering work/funding opportunities?
 Timeline needs to be established
 Village and Town support are required
 See #4 “vital, functioning infrastructure”
 Grants: mechanisms, priorities
 Leadership at the municipal level
 Ideas
 PHASING:
o Model the Village Center block(s)
o Look for some owner-village partnership
o Fix curbing, brick tree-zone treatment, street lights
 PERP SIGNAGE MATCHING GRANT PROGRAM
o Cheap
o High Profile
o Effective
2.
VISION: No blighting/blighted properties downtown. Instead, renovated, well-cared for buildings that
are attractive, affordable and available. (See Main Street LLC concept and technique for identifying returns
on investments; see Shuman books/talk)
 Work on PERCEPTION as well as reality
 Large, medium and small scale
 PNY and private
 Incentives for interested owners to participate
 Tax assessment abatements and holding property tax rates
 Incentives for uninterested owners to sell
 NYMS and other grants
 Historic District tax credit opportunities
 Local, small signage-improvement matching program
 Leadership at the municipal level
 Explore Local MARKET ASSESSMENT valuation technique based on potential value per
leasable square foot
 Leadership at the state level re: property tax assessment reversal of incentives
 See zoning
3. VISION: Zoning which is pro-active, anti-blight, neighbor-friendly, reliably and fairly enforced, and
encourages development in keeping with the mixed-use pedestrian-oriented spirit of downtown.
 Revisit allocations and commitment to more dedicated, even enforcement
 Leadership at the municipal level
 Partner with GFLRPC and Wyoming County Planning towards revised language, etc.
4. VISION: A vital, functioning downtown infrastructure that puts owners and businesses at ease and at an
advantage in locating and remaining downtown.
 Infrastructure Assessment – under-street water and sewer
 Parking as infrastructure
 Electric and gas
 Phone and high-speed internet conduits (DSL, cable, fiber optics)
 Good cellular service from multiple carriers
 Consider village-sponsored wi-fi downtown
 Leadership at the municipal level
STABILITY AND BUSINESS GROWTH
5. VISION: A thriving network of entrepreneurs, young adults, retrained adults, and financially savvy
businesspeople to create businesses for Perry overall and to locate downtown where appropriate.
 Training programs in entrepreneurship
 INCUBATOR SPACE (Adam)
 Recruitment efforts to attract nearby entrepreneurs (see 2010 Market Research Study) (Pilar?)
 One-year rent-subsidy program restored
 Other technical assistance
 Other financial/loan assistance
 Assistance from the County Level – IDA,WCBC, WCCC
6. VISION: Perry area residents who Think Local First, supporting local businesses, volunteering,
participating in the community, etc.
 Collaborative, cooperative, smart marketing efforts
 Coupon books, Perry Bucks (WCCC gift card?), downtown gift cards, etc
 Nurturing of existing downtown events and addition of other downtown events each month to
draw residents, keep local businesses in their consciousness, and build owner-customer
relationships.
 (See Marketing Study Turgeon-Coogan-Turgeon; Twelve months of Perry from NYMS grant
application)
 Assistance from WCCC, WCTPA
7. VISION: A diverse community of downtown upper floor tenants - residents, artist studios, professional
office space, etc - who put feet on the street and support the 1st floor retail, restaurants and services.
 Continued growth of upper floor rehab
 NYMS funds where applicable to help reinvestment in upper floor apartments in order to grow the
quality of the units and attract stable residents with disposable incomes.
8. VISION: A critical mass of destination retail and services that positions Perry in people’s minds as a
destination: Gravity
 Market Research Study will help
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

We have now: Books…Toys…Gifts…Music…Art and Craft…Flowers…Dance…
Communications/cell phones…Furniture…Tattoos… Auto Parts…
Videos…Bowling…Churches…Appliances…Wine/Spirits…Hair and body
care…Fitness…Legal…Dental…Dining…Municipal & Professional Services…Laundry
What fits that we don’t yet have:
A strategy for recruitment (tied to #1 and #2 above)
QUALITY OF LIFE
9. VISION: Clear branding to the outside world of Perry as a RECREATION DESTINATION, which
builds on nearby natural amenities and existing or newly formed events, grows those events where
appropriate and the creation of new ones in that spirit:
 What we have now downtown: Farmers’ Market x 16 weeks, Chalk Art Festival, Holiday
DeLights Festival, Soapbox Derby, all things ACWC, Tour de Perry,
 Other things we have now that are not explicitly downtown but could attract those from
outside the area: everything LSP, Silver Lake, WCIS and Charcoal Corral/Drive In, Last
Night Perry, Softball Tournament(s); Pioneer Picnic; occasional Dairy Fest, Tractor
parade…
 Others not listed:
 Perry Festival Plaza to encourage growth of downtown events and make them logistically
simpler.
 ACWC as County Tourism clearinghouse (Jackie)
 Suggestions from meeting: motorcycle, kayak, and snowmobile events (along with
classic cars, speedway cars, bicycle rally, tractor parade that we already have!) sidewalk
sales,
10. VISION: A recreationally-rich, safe, well-maintained Silver Lake Trail linking Main Street to Silver
Lake:
 well-marked and well-publicized,
 Trailmarkers and Trailhead as cheap, effective ways to raise awareness and use
 Geocaching
 celebrates the corridor’s history through markers, walking tour guides, etc.
 Implements recommendations from the Silver Lake Trail Master Plan
 Opens up boating opportunities from Silver Lake through raised Walker Road bridge
redesign and dredging
 Improves Memorial Park
 Creates a pedestrian link from Walker Road Bridge to the Public Beach
 Enhances facilities at Public Beach per recommendations