Chautauqua County Greenway Plan Receives Planning Excellence Award

The New York Upstate Chapter of the American Planning Association (NYUAPA) is pleased to announce that the Chautauqua County Greenway Plan has been awarded the 2013 Planning Excellence Award for Comprehensive Planning.  The 2013 NYUAPA Chapter Awards recognize outstanding work being done by planners, planning firms, elected officials, and citizens to advance the science and art of urban and regional planning in upstate New York. The award was presented at the NYUAPA’s annual conference in Schenectady. Chautauqua County received this same award for its Comprehensive Plan: Chautauqua 20/20 in 2011.

The Planning Excellence Award in Comprehensive Planning recognizes plans that advance the science and art of planning. Winning projects are distinguished for originality and innovation, quality, thoroughness, degree of public participation, and identified steps to put the plan into action.

Summary of the Chautauqua County Greenway Plan and why it is Special

Chautauqua County’s rich system of four season greenways positively impacts the economies of our communities. The recommendations proposed in the Greenway Plan, which was a top recommendation in Chautauqua 20/20, creates a new enthusiasm for active living and healthy lifestyles; promotes outdoor activities; improves our quality of life within Chautauqua County; acts as a catalyst for economic development related to outdoor living; and establishes Chautauqua County as a destination center for outdoor adventure and lifelong learning opportunities.

This plan defines steps for the community to take to:

• Formalize and maintain the rural outdoor lifestyle;
• Fulfill the desire to be a four season destination for active outdoor living; and,
• Capitalize on the positive economic impact that can be realized through providing goods and services that visitors to Chautauqua County desire.

One of the many objectives of the Chautauqua County Greenway Plan was to develop a unique, concise, easy-to-read, high quality plan developed within the constraints of a limited budget. The Project Team, comprised of the Chautauqua County Department of Planning & Economic Development, Pashek Associates, and other key stakeholders, strove to not overburden the document with superfluous information and facts. The crux of the plan is 162 pages in length, and the team produced an attractive Executive Summary that is only 12 pages in length (available upon request). The supporting documentation is available on a CD and on the department website so that the plan can be reproduced at a reasonable cost. The plan integrates a unique style, is enhanced with colorful pictures taken locally, and incorporates modest graphics to convey its message. 

Besides identifying and proposing the development of recreational greenways using existing Rights-of Way and natural corridors, the Plan also identifies towns based on their potential to provide amenities to trail users. These "Trail Towns" are ranked based on their ability to provide the goods and services needed by Trail Users. The project team felt it was essential to identify ten (10) demonstration projects that are to be the first projects pursued in the coming years (several are currently being implemented). Enough description about each project is provided so that it can be discussed and considered for implementation. 

The Chautauqua County Greenway Plan also utilizes a unique methodology for defining its natural systems greenways by using natural, ecological and hydrologic infrastructure as building blocks for determining high-value natural areas, and allows these special areas to be ranked.  This information will help guide decision-makers towards or away from potential projects based on the sensitivity of natural areas where they are being proposed.

Trails Revitalize River Towns

This morning Jim Pashek was riding into the office on his bike and had a nice chat with Chris, a young man riding his bike to work downtown.  Chris works in the Mental Health field and is studying at Pitt in Social Work.  Chris recently moved to Millvale from the East End.  He loves Pamela’s and the other great shops in Millvale but the primary reason he moved there was the trail connection from Millvale Riverfront Park to downtown.  Chris's story is a great example of how trails revitalize river towns.

Not only do trails provide recreational opportunities, but they truly are alternatives to driving and parking in the City.  They become magnets for young professionals like Chris (and older professionals like Jim) who want to live near a trail so they can ride their bike to work or school.

Chris, thanks for talking with Jim and making the 7 mile trip seem much shorter today.

Graduate Student Mixes Work, School, and Play at Pashek Associates

Christine Kercell, a graduate student in Park and Resource Management at Slippery Rock University, has begun working as a part-time planner for Pashek Associates on the Butler County Comprehensive Recreation, Parks and Open Space Plan.  She will be working closely with Bob Good, Principal in charge of the project preparing park inventories and with Mike Kotyk, GIS manager and Greenway planner on the proposed greenways and trails.  

She often spends her free time cycling with her family, kayaking with her finance, and swimming.  A new goal of hers is to compete in a triathlon.  Welcome Christine!

New York City Five Boroughs Ride

Pashek Associates staff member Mike Kotyk made his first journey to New York City for the 34^th annual Five Boro Bike Tour.   The ride took place on Sunday, May 1^st with more than 30,000 cyclists participating.  Featuring 42 miles of car-free streets through all five boroughs, the tour cruised by sites such as the Empire State Building, historic Harlem, Central Park, and the Statue of Liberty.

Mike and his wife stayed on the Upper West Side throughout the trip, which afforded them the opportunity to utilize the Hudson River Greenway to travel to and from the tour.  The Greenway is known as the most heavily used bikeway in the United States and is the longest trail in the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway system.  The planning and design of the greenway is remarkable as it provides a completely car free multi-use trail for commuters as well as for recreation.  The trail follows along the Hudson River for more than 13 miles providing great views and open air breezes off the water as it passes through several parks, playgrounds, and court complexes.  The southern terminus of the trail is at Battery Park in Lower Manhattan, which is where the tour began.

One of the things Mike was most looking forward to along the course of the tour was gaining a new perspective of the architecture throughout Manhattan.   Though he tended to focus more on not crashing into the plethora of other closely packed cyclists, the experience of being on a bicycle along Avenue of the Americas was awe inspiring.

The sharp contrast of leaving the skyscrapers of midtown Manhattan and entering the lush green of Central Park was fantastic.  Taking in the beautiful scenery riding through the Park with 32,000 fellow cyclists was truly an experience Mike will never forget.

The first major rest area in Astoria Park was the most memorable.  Located along the East River in Queens, Astoria Park is situated adjacent to the Robert F. Kennedy (Triborough) Bridge.  The park contains New York City’s largest swimming pool and utilizes the space underneath the bridge deck for a skate park.  The views of the Triborough and Hell’s Gate Bridges, as well as the Manhattan Skyline across the East River, were absolutely beautiful.

The ride finishes dramatically by taking cyclists across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.  When opened in 1964, it was the world's longest suspension span bridge.  The entrances of the bridge are at historic Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn and Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island.  The Five Boro Bike Tour and the New York City Marathon are the only two events that allow people to cross the bridge without using a motor vehicle.

The tour culminated with a Festival at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island.  Finally, there was a short three mile ride to the Staten Island Ferry which was packed with bicycles as it floated by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor on its way back to Battery Park in lower Manhattan.  In all, the ride was a very rewarding experience and one of the most spectacular events Mike says he has ever participated in. Needless to say, he’ll be making the trek back to New York City for the 2012 Five Boro Bike Tour.

What is Green Infrastructure?

When you think of infrastructure, you usually think of things like roads, sewer systems, water supply, power grids, etc…  It is the basic physical structures needed for a community to enable, sustain, or enhance a certain standard of living for its residents.   It enables the buying and selling of goods and services at a more efficient level.  Could you imagine your workplace without internet, electricity, or even roads connecting you to your clients? 

Wetlands and riparian buffers are green infrastructure.

 But what does it mean when “green” is placed in front of the word infrastructure?  Green Infrastructure is a concept that can, and should, be applied to all different scales of planning and design.  Basically, it includes everything from strategically planned and managed networks of natural lands, to working landscapes, to recreational landscapes, and other open spaces that conserve ecosystem values and functions.  In other words, greenways, parks, riparian buffers, wetlands, floodplains, rivers, and even stormwater Best Management Practices such as rain gardens, porous pavements, green roofs, and trees are all part of Green Infrastructure.  It recognizes the importance of natural systems and processes within our communities.

Green roofs and rain gardens are green infrastructure.

Why has Green Infrastructure become so important in the last 10 or 20 years?  Well, because it is beneficial for the environment, human health, the economy, and our society as a whole.  Working with and using natural processes ensures that we’ll have resources for future generations.  Stormwater BMPs reduce flooding, pollution, and the strain on our storm sewers.  Street trees beautify our neighborhoods, increase property values, reduce the urban heat island, and absorb air pollution and stormwater.  Greenways help protect steep hillsides from being developed and eroded, protect wildlife habitat, and offer recreational opportunities.  Constructed wetlands not only provide wildlife habitat but filter pollution and even human waste. 

So the next time you step outside, try to identify what types of green infrastructure are present and how they help to make your community a better place.

New Website Promotes Greenways in North Cental PA

As part of the North Central Greenways Plan, the website was designed by Pashek Associates as a tool to assist with the implementation of greenways and trails in the North Central Pennsylvania region. 

The website serves as a as a one-stop shop for organizations, advocates, and municipalities in the North Central Region. It provides the opportunity for trail organizations and other agencies and associations to: post information about current projects and activities; obtain information from the region’s greenway plan; provide trail groups, interested organizations, and citizens with contact information for potential partners; identify potential funding sources; and provide a toolkit of information where visitors can access topics ranging from the economic benefits of trails and non-motorized and motorized trail resources to environmental ethics.

 

Contact us if you are interested to learn more!