Town of Inlet's Town Comprehensive Master Plan

Town of Inlet's
Town Comprehensive Master Plan
Updated July 11, 2003

Questions or Comments?
Email the Inlet Supervisor at inletsupervisor@eagle-wireless.com

INTRODUCTION

Formation of Special Board
Town of Inlet Regular Meeting on February 9, 1999 Resolution #50.99 - Comprehensive Plan - On the motion by Councilman Norkus, seconded by Councilman Schmid, the following resolution was adopted 5 Ayes to 0 Nays Resolved, to have members of the Town Board, Planning Board and the Economic Development Group develop a Town of Inlet Comprehensive Plan that the Town of Inlet may adopt.

Resolution #103.00 - Councilman Schmid offered the following resolution and moved for its adoption - where as, the Town of Inlet Town Board has officially approved a formal group of Inlet residents including Planning Board members to develop and present a Comprehensive Master Plan per Town Law, be it Resolved, that the following include the updated list of members to the TCP Board: Daniel Levi, David Scranton, Richard Willis, Greg O’Hara, JR Risley, Virginia Germer, Arthur Brockner, Paul Chambers, Connie Perry, Carol Schmid, John Townsend II, John Reittinger Seconded by Councilman Cislo and duly adopted by the following vote Ayes: Bird, Norkus, Cislo, Schmid, Risley Nays: none

Mission Statement
The Mission of this Town Comprehensive Plan is to present the collective vision of our community as a tool for building upon our current assets. This plan will guide us into the future as we seek to preserve our environment while improving the quality of life, economy and image of Inlet.

Land Use Plan
Prior to 1993, Inlet had only a Zoning Ordinance, approved in December 1966. Then in 1989, the Town Board passed a Local Law regulating mobile homes, travel trailers, mobile home parks and travel trailer parks in the Town of Inlet. In 1992 the Town Board began to compile information for the Inlet Land Use Plan.

The need for such a Land Use Plan arose from a possible change in ownership of a well known resort, requesting to build and restructure its housing and land use. The board, then working with a consultant and the Hamilton County Planning Division, contacted the residents of Inlet. All residents received a survey, which was similar to the one used in 1972. The survey covered the residents’ needs and what they believed Inlet should offer to residents, seasonal and year round. The Inlet Area Chamber of Commerce questioned business owners and visitors, and determined that additional year round visitor housing was sorely needed.

This Land Use Plan also incorporates existing development patterns as well as future development possibilities, natural and cultural resources, Adirondack Park Agency classifications for both State and private lands, and existing zoning.

Inlet’s Land Use Plan is one part of the foundation for the current Inlet Town Comprehensive Plan. While the Land Use Plan document is narrow in focus due to time constraints, its use as a building block for the Comprehensive Plan was beneficial. The Inlet Land Use Plan was approved in April 1993.

Visitor Survey & Inlet Property Owner/Registered Voter Survey
An ad-hoc group of Inlet citizens was formed and the first organizational meeting was held on 10/14/97 under the direction of J.R. Risley, now Inlet Town Supervisor, and Ginny Germer, then President of the Inlet Area Chamber of Commerce. Many more meetings were held to establish the group's Mission, get sanctioned and receive support from the Inlet Town Board (11/20/97) and the Inlet Area Chamber of Commerce (11/26/97), and to develop a Visitor Questionnaire and an Inlet Property Owner/Registered Voter Questionnaire.

ORIGINAL MISSION:
·     Develop and administer a survey for the Inlet Property Owners and Registered Voters to determine what they think is good about Inlet and should be retained, and what should be changed or improved in Inlet.
·     Develop and administer a survey for the Visitors to determine what brought them to Inlet, what they presently enjoy about Inlet, and what they would like to have available for their future enjoyment in Inlet.
·     Compile, summarize and publish the results of the surveys.
·     Develop a Plan for Inlet Economic Development to be presented as a recommendation to the Inlet Town Board and the Inlet Area Chamber of Commerce.

The Visitor Questionnaire was completed in January 1998, printed and distributed to visitors through local businesses and the Inlet Area Chamber of Commerce. To date, 141 Visitor Questionnaires have been returned, responses tabulated on spreadsheets and summaries written.

A draft of the Inlet Property Owner/Registered Voter Questionnaire was critiqued by John Zogby, President of the Zogby Group, at a Communities 2000 meeting on March 26, 1998. He gave the questionnaire high marks and provided valuable constructive criticism. The Inlet Property Owner/Registered Voter Questionnaire was then completed and tested over a period of six months. 990 questionnaires were sent out in late September 1998, with 273 completed questionnaires being returned. The return rate was 27% for both year round Inlet residents and seasonal property owners. 271 responses were received in time for input into the SPSS data analysis software by the Inlet Police Dispatchers in December 1998. Bill Pelz, a professor on the faculty of Herkimer County Community College, who was contacted through the Communities 2000 initiative, processed the data on his own time, which provided us with four binders of survey results. The results of the surveys were then compiled, summarized and published in 1999 and are a resource to the Special Board in developing the Inlet Town Comprehensive Plan.

Questions or Comments?
Email the Inlet Supervisor at inletsupervisor@eagle-wireless.com

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