BY TIMOTHY LAROCHE
[email protected]
CLAREMONT — City councilors unanimously accepted a plan on Wednesday that establishes a multi-year a strategic framework for city decision-making.
Acceptance of the updated Claremont Master Plan follows nearly two years of work from of the Planning Board and the Master Plan Steering Committee to develop the document. It’s acceptance from the council means that the plan will serve of the framework for decision-making based on the collective work of citizen groups and appointed officials.
“This is an important document for the city. Master plans usually last about seven or eight years until you make the decision to update the masterplan,” City Manager Ryan McNutt said. “All of the economic development and planning decisions support the master plan.”
Development of the plan began in early-2016 with public visioning exercises and a survey that saw more than 200 responses from residents. From there, the Planning Board formed subcommittees to address each of the plan’s 11 chapters, including two new chapters covering energy and public health that were not included in the 2011 master plan.
“You will find that once we move forward … we will constantly refer to the master plan in our work,” Mayor Charlene Lovett said.
Embedded throughout the master plan’s transportation, economic development and housing chapters are an increased focus on developing the city center. Throughout the 1960s, much of Claremont’s economic development centered at the Historic District. A slow retreat from development in the mixed-use downtown in the following decades saw declining business in the city center.
The Main Street Reconstruction Project, slated to begin in the spring of 2018, includes an overhaul of the roadways, underground infrastructure and sidewalks on Main Street leading to the city center.
In addition to acceptance of a long range strategic plan, the council finalized a series of goals to direct administrative and governmental efforts throughout the year.
Councilors also cited city center improvements as more immediate goals for the council and city manager to address throughout the year as well. For instance, Councilor Jon Stone requested that the city staff focus on finding improvements to downtown parking.
While city staff plan to increase housing in the downtown district, development is limited by parking requirements for dwelling units. According to McNutt, fixing the lack of parking is key to future economic development initiatives.
Fixing the downtown parking situation also coincides with Koloski’s request to make a goal of incentivizing workforce housing development throughout the city. With more than 200 open jobs between the city’s major manufacturers, economic development is limited by workforce shortages, Koloski said. By expanding housing options, the city might be able to attract more workers.
The council will continue working towards several items included on last year’s list of goals, including code enforcement and improved public health.
Follow Timothy LaRoche on Facebook at Eagle Times – Timothy LaRoche, or on Twitter at @TimothyLaRoche.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.