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Huntington invites feedback on plan for future

BY DEBORAH S. MORRIS | deborah.morris@newsday.com

3:41 PM EDT, August 18, 2008

Cover of the draft plan

Huntington officials have extended an invitation to the community for input on what the town should look like in years to come.

On Friday the town released the "Comprehensive Plan Update: Horizons 2020," a draft version of what will become a road map for future development.

A public hearing on the plan is set for Tuesday, Sept. 23, at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 100 Main Street. Here is a link to the draft of the Huntington plan.

Supervisor Frank P. Petrone said the draft comprehensive plan will be distributed to libraries and taxing districts throughout the town for review. In addition, copies will be available for viewing at Huntington Town Hall and it will be posted on the town's Web site, http://town.huntington.ny.us in the online library under Planning and Environment. There is also a link to all comprehensive plan documents on the town's home page. Click on the "Planning for Huntington's tomorrow" on the upper left corner of the town's Web site.

"This plan is the result of years of study and input involving hundreds of citizens and civic groups who participated in workshops with the goal of creating a comprehensive document that would serve as a guide to Huntington's future," Petrone said. "We are extremely grateful to all those who participated for their time, dedication and commitment to ensuring this mission was completed in a sensible and strategic manner."

The draft comprehensive plan was prepared by the town's professional planning consultant Wallace, Roberts & Todd, which began work on the project four years ago in conjunction with citizens, community representatives and professional staff from the town. The goal was to update the plan to provide a common direction that could be utilized to proactively manage future change.

The first phase began a "Community Visioning" that involved hundreds of citizens and civic groups in workshops. The culmination of those workshops was a "Vision Statement" which broadly defined citizen expectation for future land use, development and open space preservation.

A town board-appointed 26-member Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee, comprised of citizen representatives from across the community, developed a goals, policies, and strategies report that became the structural framework for the draft update. This report, completed last fall, focused on seven key planning areas: environmental resources and open space, community character, community facilities, land use, economic development, transportation, and housing.

The final phase is the draft Comprehensive Plan Update: Horizons 2020. Town officials are encouraging community involvement and say organizations and small groups that would like to discuss the plan with town planners before the public hearing, can contact Anthony J. Aloisio, the town's Director of Planning and Environment at 631-351-3196.

The Town will make every effort possible to accommodate larger groups by addressing members at their meeting site.