Small Group Discussions

Natural and Built Environment

Lynda Schneekloth, facilitator.

Session one:

Summary sheet:

The opportunity is...

• To consider natural and built environment as economic development.

• To link natural environment with culture and historical heritage.

• To capitalize on tremendous resources.

• To re-imagine the region.

Obstacles are...

• Lack of education about what exists and could be.

• Fragmentation: jurisdictions, places, systems.

• Lack of vision.

• Too much focus on "the Falls."

• Fear of change.

• Negative self-image.

• Lack of appreciation of what we have.

• Lack of entrepreneurial thinking.

• Lack of continuity.

• Lack of leadership.

• Lack of planning (boards? Tools?)

Strategy No. 1:

Regional Planning.

Inventory – assessment of...

• Resources.

• Plans.

• Organizations and jurisdictions.

• Private industry/ sectors.

• Property uses/ land uses.

• How elements fit into various plans.

• Objective: building on existing work.

Principles for a regional plan:

• Diversity.

• Eco-system thinking.

• World class destination:

– quality design,

– make it accessible.

• Build on resources – start with "park."

– River and assets.

– Green infrastructure.

– One park – peace park.

• Sustainability.

– Appropriate development on appropriate location.

– Smart growth – anti-stupid development.

– Nature/ green as engine for economic development.

– Links:

Moving people to interior.

Idea.

Attractions.

Parks.

Etc. etc. etc.

– One Region.

Brainstorming notes:

What are opportunities? Assets?

• Niagara gorge restoration.

• Niagara river – geology – creeks into upper and lower river.

• Collaboration – environment/ nature coexist with industries.

• Erie Canal – Albany to here, etc. etc.

• Expansion of trails across and along river.

• Brownfields along river – more green.

• "Smart growth" strategy – dense centers, open sub-urban areas, green.

• Recognition of diverse interests, residential, commercial, industrial, cultural, environmental.

• Built environment/ industry holds opening for trails.

• Quality linkage areas/ improve way-finding, like improving tourist welcome center to link.

• Cooperation among tour leaders – operators – at alternate (???) to make environment(??) more accommodating.

• Zone along river with guidelines (exist along some portions – like Robert Moses Pkwy.)

• Redirecting growth to protect agricultural lands.

• Natural heritage is fragmented – connect, save best special features of natural heritage system, like the escarpment.

• Natural, greener urban environment.

• Economic benefit provided by natural area – need to outline.

• Green infrastructure is economic development strategy.

• (Transportation?) border planning bodies to coordinate, protect, rationalize transportation.

• Transportation – critical issues.

Strategies.

• Stitching natural areas together so we recognize them as part of a system.

• Bi-national education about what already exists, what is, what can be done right now.

• Fishing industry/ recreational fishing.

• "Sustainable" natural system costs: up front vs. log-term maintenance.

• Education and technology – learn about (????) creative ways to learn.

• Focus on benefits, outreach, without telling exactly what will be. Leave space for group imagination.

• Inventory assets.

• Identify activity in ("sustainability") community that helps/ is detrimental to these assets.

– Economic development model makes sense.

– Value of behaving "sympathetically."

• Inventory what’s changeable, what’s not.

• Things need to be done -- like creeks.

• Long range revitalization plan/ land use plan.

• Coordinate needs and resources.

• Environmental quality – pollution central – long term sustained effort.

• Image problem. We’re dwelling on how awful. Reconcpetualize.

• Quality design!!!!. Design competition. Natural materials.

• Regional urban planning to control quality in corridors.

• Need eco-system approach to planning – everything’s connected to everything else.

• (Rebranding?), rethinking images.

• Think of "The Great Park."

• Amazing natural resources. (Archaeological, Rivers, canal, gorge, geology). Fragmented – coordinate into experiences. Links.

• Inventory/ assessment/ research/ planning.

• Quality and standards of visual, natural environment; environmental pollution control.

• Regional planning principles.

– Diversity – support.

– Rational transportation.

– Sustainability.

– Eco-system approach.

– Limit sprawl, "smart growth."

• Benefits: image, economics, quality of life.

The Great Park: The whole is greater than the sum of its parks.

 Education:

• For ourselves.

• Region citizens.

• Efficiency.

• Sectors.

• Language.

• Tech links.

Economic Development.

• Benefits of cooperative structure, public–private.

• Study: advantages/ benefits of smart growth, green structure.

Imagination – therapy – re-brand.

Building on what’s been done. Learn from others.

Community partnerships/ Public-private business partnerships.

• Citizen stewardships in cooperation with governments.

• Connecting needs and resources.

• Bringing diverse interests together.

Session Two

Strategy 1:

Regional plan:

• Long-range inter-jurisdictional plan for:

– Heritage corridor

– Green infrastructure.

– UB Institute for Local Growth and Regional Governance – "state of the region."

Strategy 2:

• Focus investment in Niagara Falls, NY as center of our regional development strategy.

• Regional support for revitalizing Niagara Falls, NY as regional strategy. "Destination of the millennium."

Strategy 3:

• Separate large, huge problems from do-able issues.

Strategy 4:

• Small do-able things:

• Re-imagination. Focus on agriculture. "Niagara Naturally." Variety of images – cultural, heritage, natural.

Brainstorming notes.

What are opportunities, assets?

Assets.

• River and edges (?????) Both sides (of Niagara Falls).

• Geology, escarpment.

• Eco-system.

• Climate.

• Grain elevators and connection to Bauhaus, Gropius.

• Hydro-electric.

• Canals.

• Parks system – Olmsted (5) (?????) Originators of landscape architecture originally in Canada.

• Waterways, fresh water.

• Historic structure – burial mounds (?????) Seneca land upstream from neutral (????)

• Strategic importance of region historically.

• Architecture: concentration of Frank Lloyd Wright East of Chicago; Richardson; Sullivan.

• Brownfield sites; urban space.

• Year round recreational opportunities.

• Available real estate, office space, hotel.

• Real cities – inexpensive housing stock, residential, single-family.

• Diverse livelihood and lifestyle opportunities.

• Quaint hamlets.

• Diversity of opportunities for citizens, tourists.

• Wilderness inside cities.

• Transportation system, excellent, over-capacity, ease of transportation system.

• Potential of Niagara Falls Airport and light rail system, Amtrak.

• Potential for heritage river.

• Important bird area designation.

• Love Canal.

• Historic assets – native people – present place of conflict, lots of wars.

• Climate.

• Agriculture: agri-tourism – who owns? Promotional opportunity.

• Underground railroad.

 Difficulties.

• Lack of interpretive materials.

• Tough inner city neighborhoods.

• Legacy of bad land use decisions.

• Legacy of pollution.

• Lack of continued capital investment to maintain natural and build environment (architecture, canals, etc. etc.)

• Lack of initiative to get going – leadership.

• Niagara Falls, especially across from NF Canada, can’t address independent of state, federal funding.

 Liabilities.

• Disconnect between waterfront and city – driving focus, not people focus.

• Lack of support from state for WNY.

• Encroachment on farmland.

• Don’t look at river as Natural Resource.

• Cheesy souvenir shops, bad design, signage.

• Fragmentation – private ownership, bureaucracies.

• International problems – INS – need easy crossing.

Strategy.

Assist Niagara Falls, NY as linchpin to revitalization.

Niagara River as heritage corridor.

Sustainable development.

Rethinking river as resource.

Thinking long term.

Reinforcement of Seaway Trail.

Bike path – Small things.

Management of corporate support for quality of life.

Waterway transport.

Regional plan – priority – joint plan, counties, countries.

Using web as education, as planning, new ideas. Computer network infrastructure usable by communities.

Who brings groups together?

– Parks role as mediator.

– A neutral table.

– Working together gets more done.

– Education function.

– Tourism: process of minimum wage to unionism to professionalism.

Capitalize on "interest" to help bring investment to other areas. (Marsha Corp.) Doesn’t matter where it comes from, i.e. race track... multiplex.

Sharing best practices. (Chattanooga as model; Dortmund; Emscher). Using successes of others.

Weave initiatives together. Multiple benefits. Weaving. Start where and how.

Image – reimagination of region – brings jobs to all sectors.

Bringing in other communities. Beautification programs as a start. Taking advantage of good morale.

Permitting process. Protocols simplified for permission to do projects. Make multi-year plan so not approved project by project.

This is ours. For State land we can plan how to manage jurisdictions.