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Editorial: Public Has Chance to Share Their 'Southwest Vision'

February 15, 2006
EDITORIAL: Public Has Chance to Share Their 'Southwest Vision'

Last week I attended a public forum on the proposed Southwest Vision Statement—a twelve page document written by the 11-member Southwest Committee that details several ideas for a new residential neighborhood. The two parcels of land that the city hopes to build this neighborhood on are directly west of Wal-Mart and Lowe's (and their behemoth parking lots). They total about 62 acres, of which the city would save 20 acres of wetlands and natural areas. To see a map and read the statement, click here. 

What sparked my interest in this meeting was reading about the proposed development in the Ithaca Journal. The article said the city was possibly considering some sort of urban co-housing arrangement. I've long been interested in urban co-housing--sharing resources with my neighbors, creating urban gardens, communing with my neighbors for meals, and always having playmates for my kids--and I love living in the heart of the city because I hardly have to drive my car. The vision statement also recommends that the city consider forming a land trust, which puts land ownership in the hands of citizens and helps to ensure affordable housing long-term. For more info on land trusts, see the Institute for Community Economics (http://www.iceclt.org/clt/). 

Other positives about this potential development are that the Southwest committee seems to be united in the idea that the development should follow basic green building practices, to make it more ecologically friendly and sustainable. The Vision Statement speaks of utilizing passive solar, green building practices, energy efficiency, and maintaining open and green space. At the forum, Mayor Peterson spoke in favor of creating a neighborhood with little reliance on the automobile, and the Vision Statement recommends a neighborhood development that favors pedestrian and bicycle use over the automobile and is dense enough to warrant the use of public transportation.
 
The downside to this new neighborhood is its location relative to the city's big box stores, as well as its potential for flooding. The Southwest parcels contain wetlands that will need to be consolidated into one area of the site. While I commend the city for its desire to utilize sustainable building practices and its drive to save wetlands rather than pave over them, there are still unanswered questions about drainage that the city must answer before moving ahead with this project.
 
Thys Van Court, the Director of City Planning and Development, seems to believe there is no threat from flooding. He explained at the meeting that there are two types of flooding in the Southwest area: lake flooding, and water run-off from South Hill. Lake flooding is infrequent, he explained, while run-off from South Hill can be managed. Many residents at the forum, however, seemed skeptical. After all, does it really matter where the water comes from if your basement is flooded? Other residents expressed concern that the city save the wetlands.
 
Tonight, city residents will have three minutes to speak out on the Vision Statement at the meeting of the Planning, Economic Development, and Environmental Quality Committee. The Southwest Committee will give a short presentation and there will be time for public comment. The next step in this process will be to forward the Vision Statement on to Common Council, who will discuss and debate it, and decide whether to adopt it. Once adopted, the city will start looking for a developer.
 
I encourage citizens to read the statement and attend tonight's meeting to speak out on this. The meeting will be held at Common Council Chambers, on the third floor of City Hall. The Vision Statement is broad and leaves room open for different kinds of ownership and development, so if anyone is interested in sustainable development, forming an urban co-housing community, or asking the city to create a possible land trust, now is the time to let the city know.

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