PLANNING ACCORD FOR TUG HILL (PATH)
A 15-town Plan
for the Future of the Cooperative Tug Hill Council Area
1991OUR PURPOSE IS RETAINING TUG HILL'S CHARACTER THROUGH HOME RULE
This PLANNING ACCORD FOR TUG HILL, referred to as the ACCORD in most of the rest of this document, is a guide for what we want our area to be in the years ahead. It is intended to serve as a statement of shared goals for each of our member towns to use in shaping their individual town plans, land use controls, and other decisions that will influence what our communities will be.
We drafted a PLANNING ACCORD FOR TUG HILL under the authorization of our intermunicipal agreement as revised in 1991. Our intermunicipal agreement is authorized under Article 5-G of New York State's General Municipal Law.
Our intermunicipal agreement, signed by all our member towns, lists among its objectives: 1) creating a plan (this ACCORD) for our area, 2) retaining its rural character through home rule, 3) providing technical and project review assistance as requested to member towns when development is proposed in designated special areas, and 4) providing project review services to member towns when projects are proposed a) in town-designated special areas on or near town boundaries, or b) that are of Cooperative Tug Hill Council area wide impact.
We are firmly committed to home rule. Action taken on goals listed in the ACCORD should be taken by towns. The Cooperative Tug Hill Council would only provide advice to towns when asked, or when proposed development would occur in special areas at town boundaries or would have an effect on other towns that are members of the Council.
To support the principles of democracy we hold dear, it is essential that home rule be preserved in acting on these goals; that decisions stay as close to the people affected as possible. Fifteen years ago, in our 1976 plan, we said it this way:
Tug Hill people feel that whatever planning and regulating is done, should be done by the towns. They feel they know the natural and other values of the area best and are capable of taking care of its future. At stake is the principle of "home rule" which the Cooperative Tug Hill Planning Board values highly.
That is as true today as it was in '76.
WE REAFFIRM OUR GOALS OF '76
In 1976, nine of our towns, then joined together as the Cooperative Tug Hill Planning Board, developed a RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN that laid out a set of goals for our area that hold true today. This ACCORD adds to those goals, based on new information we have about our area and its natural resources, and based on additional public comment over the past several years. It also updates the original plan by adding the six towns that have joined the Council in the intervening years.
In the 1970s, we developed our goals through public meetings held by the Tug Hill Commission and numerous town and council meetings. Over the past three years, the Tug Hill Commission has held additional public forums on the future of the region, and the Cooperative Tug Hill Council has held numerous open meetings with member town boards in developing and adopting our new intermunicipal agreement, and in developing and approving state legislation that would recognize our ACCORD.
Those meetings have identified new trends and additional concerns that have been incorporated in the goals as stated here in the ACCORD.
THE COOPERATIVE TUG HILL COUNCIL AREA IS RURAL AND REMOTE
The Cooperative Tug Hill Council area encompasses fifteen towns in the center of the Tug Hill region as designated in state law. Those towns are:
BOYLSTON, FLORENCE, HARRISBURG, LEWIS, LEYDEN, LORRAINE, MARTINSBURG, MONTAGUE, OSCEOLA, PINCKNEY, REDFIELD,
RODMAN, TURIN, WEST TURIN, WORTH
The 15-town core area covers about 860 square miles, with a population of about 11,600. Much of the population of our towns is located in the villages and hamlets at the edge of our area, with the center of our area being mostly forest land used for hunting camps, fishing, logging and snowmobiling.
All of our area is rural. The forested core is remote. The core' supplies headwaters of Fish Creek, Sandy Creek, and the Mohawk, Mad, Salmon, Sugar and Deer Rivers. Streams that flow off our eastern escarpment out gulfs and add to the flow of the powerful, working Black River. The core's vast forests make fishing, hunting and trapping a key part of our way of life.
Tug Hill's wealth of water and woods comes primarily from its plentiful rain and snow. Rising from Lake Ontario to the west, Tug Hill reaches 2,000 in elevation, wringing rain and snow from the moisture drawn up from the Lake. This precipitation makes the core the wettest part of New York State, as well as the snowiest place in the eastern US
TUG HILL IS VITAL TO OUR AND NEIGHBORING ECONOMIES
Our forests and waters are not only vital to our way of life; they sustain our livelihoods and those of our neighbors.
Tug Hill water supplies many surrounding villages and the cities of Rome and Oneida. Our Fish Creek is the main source of pure water for Oneida Lake, the largest lake completely within New York State, and its vital fisheries. It also supplies Rome's drinking water. Our Salmon River supports some of the finest sport fishing in the world as its reaches Lake Ontario. The Tug Hill Aquifer sustains communities and supplies some of the state's purest water essential to the Salmon River state fish hatchery and industries, such as technical paper and dairy plants, that require absolutely pure water.
About 90 percent of our lands are forested. These forests support saw mills in the area, and large mills at the edge of the area. Lyons Falls Pulp and Paper, Harden Furniture, AMF bowling supplies, Champion Paper, Cortland Wood Products, are among the major industries in-part dependent on the continued productivity of these lands.
Much of this forest land is owned in large, private parcels -- some owned by industry, but most individually owned in acreages of several hundred to a few thousand acres. This ownership increases the likelihood that it will continue to be used to produce pure water and forest products, and that it will be available for hunting, fishing and trapping through leasing to sportsmen's clubs.
GROWTH AND CHANGE IN OUR AREA
Our area has seen growth during the past decade or so. Fortunately, much of that growth has been guided by the land use controls most of our member towns put in place more than a decade ago. We have seen signs however that our earlier measures need refinement as we learn more about the value and location of our natural resources.
We are not opposed to growth. We support growth in our communities so long as it does not damage our natural resources; our livelihoods; our opportunities for hunting, fishing, and recreation; and does not raise the cost of government unreasonably.
Our area has changed dramatically over the past century. One hundred years ago, most of our towns are at their peak populations. Roads that now have no development, or just scattered camps, had year-round homes, schools, cheese plants and sawmills lining the way. Our harsh climate, poor soils, and a changing economy eventually forced many down off "the Hill". Populations declined until growth started again after World War II. Not until 1970 did most of our towns have populations that equaled those of the 1800s.
In the past ten years, our population has grown six percent in our fifteen towns and four villages, according to the Census Bureau. Worth and Montague, our two towns smallest in population have grown significantly. Osceola, West Turin, and Martinsburg have seen declines.
ChangeBoylston Florence Harrisburg Lewis Leyden Port Leyden Lorraine Martinsburg Montague Osceola Pinckney Redfield Rodman Turin Turin W. Turin Constableville Lyons Falls
Worth Forces other than population growth are more likely to bring change in the near future. For example, the forests and waters of our area are threatened by the economic forces that are leading to the breakup of forestlands elsewhere in the Northeast. In addition, our low population density has made some think our area is best suited for waste disposal. To retain our forests and clean waters, and thereby our way of life and economy, we developed this ACCORD.
HOW IT WILL WORK
All members of the Cooperative Tug Hill Council have signed our intermunicipal agreement and this document, the PLANNING ACCORD FOR TUG HILL. They outline general goals for our work together to protect our area.
Local Controls
Based on these goals, each town will reexamine its land use controls and the other measures it takes to shape the future of its lands. In particular, each town will identify those special areas it feels are most important to the character of their town and our multi-town area. An area wide perspective on what natural resource and cultural areas are most important to our area are contained in this document. The Cooperative Tug Hill Council will supply technical assistance in this town-by-town effort.
Major Project Review
Once all towns have agreed to the PLANNING ACCORD FOR TUG HILL, and as towns one-by-one adopt special area maps, the Cooperative Tug Hill Council will begin to provide assistance to towns in the review of major projects proposed for special areas and projects of area wide significance.
State Legislation
The Cooperative Tug Hill Council has drafted state legislation that would recognize the ACCORD, and would require state agency actions to be consistent with the ACCORD. We feel this is important, since the state is both one of the major developers in rural areas, and a major reviewer of proposed development.
GOALS FOR OUR FUTURE
1.0 Retain the quality of our area's surface and groundwater. These waters are essential to providing individual and municipal water supplies. They are essential to many industries of our area. They are important to retention of fishing opportunities and wildlife habitat.
1.1 Avoid adverse development near major wetlands and concentrations of wetlands.
1.2 Avoid adverse development near major stream corridors.
1.3 Avoid adverse development near significant springs, wellhead areas of water supply systems, and aquifers.
1.4 Identify and map town-by-town major wetlands, concentrations of wetlands, major stream corridors, significant springs, water supply well head areas, and aquifers.
1.5 Share information on water resources among CTHC towns.
1.6 Raise awareness of the importance of Tug Hill waters through school and citizen education programs.
2.0 Retain major forested areas most important to forest industry, hunting, fishing, and recreation.
Major blocks of forest land on Tug Hill are not only important for retaining the area's economy and recreation opportunities, they are also important in providing wildlife habitat and the very character of the area. In addition, Tug Hill's vast reaches of forest are key to maintaining the purity of its waters and to controlling rates of runoff.
2.1 Avoid subdivision and development that would take major forested lands out of productive use for forest industry, hunting, fishing and recreation.
2.2 Avoid unreasonable local restrictions on forestry activities that adversely affect businesses in and near the area.
2.3 Encourage forestry-related businesses in and near the area as a means of maintaining a healthy economy, and as a means of retaining large parcels of forestland.
2.4 Identify major forested areas on a town-by-town basis.
2.5 Share information on major forested areas among member towns.
2.6 Encourage educational programs that show the importance of forested lands to the area's environment, economy and recreational opportunities.
3.0 Retain the area's most important wildlife habitat and unique areas to conserve hunting, fishing, and recreational opportunities, and to help retain the character and biological richness of our area.
Important wildlife habitat areas and unique areas such as our gulfs are a significant part of the character of our heritage, and can provide important recreational opportunities. They also are of great importance to our economy because of the economic contributions hunting and fishing make to the area, and the economic benefit that comes from the viewing of wildlife and scenery by snowmobilers, skiers, hikers, motorists, and others.
3.1 Avoid adverse development in deer wintering yards, other important wildlife and plant habitat areas, and in and near gulfs.
3.2 Support town-by-town identification of important wildlife habitat and unique areas. Encourage further research to identify such areas.
3.3 Share information on important wildlife habitat and unique areas among member towns.
3.4 Encourage educational programs regarding the importance and benefit of habitat and unique areas for use in schools and with civic and adult groups.
4.0 Retain area's existing farms and best farm soils for farm production. Local action alone cannot retain our farms. This depends on the individual actions of our farmers, the natural economy and state and national farm policy. Locally, we can take actions that help keep good farm land from inappropriate development and help farm diversification.
4.1 Support town-by-town identification of important farm lands, and updates of existing farm land inventories.
4.2 Support town actions to update land use controls that would limit farm lands being taken out of production.
4.3 Support voluntary actions taken by individual farmers to keep their farms in production, through tools such as ag districts, and ag land assessments.
4.4 Support programs to help strengthen dairy farming and to help farmers that wish to diversify their operations.
4.5 Share information on important farm lands between CTHC member towns.
4.6 Encourage educational programs that demonstrate to school students and adults the importance of farming to our area.
Agricultural Districts
5.0 Retain private and public hunting and fishing opportunities, and outdoor recreational activities, in our area.
5.1 Avoid actions that would lead to the subdivision of lands important to hunting, fishing and recreation where that subdivision would remove lands from such use.
5.2 Support voluntary actions, of private. Landowners to improve hunting, fishing and recreational access to public lands designated for these uses, such as the sale of access easements, or involvement in fish and wildlife cooperator programs.
5.3 Identify areas important to recreation on a town-by-town basis. These might include, designated public recreation trails, public roads opened to snowmobiling, and parking areas.
5.4 Encourage educational programs that demonstrate the importance of hunting, fishing and recreation to our way of life and our area's economy. Also encourage educational programs and appropriate law enforcement to protect private property rights and to provide safe hunting, fishing and recreational opportunities.
6.0 Retain scenic vistas and roads that are important to the character of our area.
6.1 Assist member towns in the identification of scenic vistas and stretches of road on a town-by-town basis.
6.2 Share information on scenic vistas and roads among member towns.
6.3 Avoid development that would diminish the quality of scenic vistas and scenic stretches of road through town planning and land use controls.
7.0 Control the costs of public road maintenance.
7.1 Avoid new public roads into or across remote areas not now served by public roads, especially in the core forest of our area, in areas that would lead to the breakup of lands important to forest management, wildlife, fanning, hunting, fishing and recreation.
7.2 Identify on a town-by-town basis portions of roads that might be appropriate for some form of abandonment or seasonal use designation. Share this information among member towns.
7.3 Support state legislation that would limit town responsibilities for maintenance on designated remote roads.
8.0 Help keep village and hamlets good places to live.
8.1 Share information among member towns on actions that could be taken to enhance water, sewer and recreational services, to include grants to assist in improvements.
8.2 Assist member towns in planning for village and hamlet improvement projects, to include applying for grants to assist in such work.