Gloversville Mayor Dayton King is right to call for an overhaul of the city’s comprehensive plan.
During his State of the City address in front of the Common Council at City Hall on Tuesday, King called for the city to spend up to $15,000 to overhaul the city’s comprehensive plan.
“We currently have a document that states what we have in our city, but not where we are going,” King said.
Gloversville’s comprehensive plan hasn’t been updated for years. It’s a good idea for officials to revise the city’s plan to reflect how its future will look and where development will go.
In the near future, the new Walmart Supercenter will open and likely bring other businesses with it. The city also is considering development of an access road and curb cuts on Route 30A between South Kingsboro Avenue and Steele Avenue.
These are major changes that need to be included in a comprehensive, or master, plan.
When the city received the results of a traffic study related to the proposed access road late last year, it was noted then that the city would need to update its zoning and master plan to accommodate the access road.
During his address Tuesday, King noted developing a master plan could cost $70,000 to $80,000 for consultants and other professional services.
He suggested the city could pay $15,000 and businesses could cover the rest.
“I believe we have the support from the Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Business Improvement District and several private business owners to assist with the costs for this professional document,” King said.
It’s OK?to ask, but we suspect the city may find it difficult to get financial help from those groups. Many businesses – and nonprofit groups – have many other expenses.
We urge the mayor and council members to come up with a backup plan in case funding from businesses fails to materialize.
Now is the time to start pressuring elected representatives – such as U.S. Rep. Bill Owens, state Sen. Hugh T. Farley and Assemblyman Marc Butler – to see if the state or federal governments can help pay for the study. The city also may be able to get help from the Fulton County Planning Department.
