The following is a summary of the activities of the Genesee County Department of Planning and its various boards and agencies for the year 200 9.

COUNTY PROJECTS

The Planning Department continued its assistance to the Genesee County Water Resources Agency and County Legislature with the County Water System.   Two Department staff members serve on the Administrative Review Committee for the purposes of reviewing requests for water hook-ups outside of the Smart Growth Development Areas.

Planning staff served on several County committees and boards including the Agriculture and Farmland Protection Board, Geographic Information System (GIS) Focus Team, Traffic Safety Board, Criminal Justice Advisory Council (CJAC), County Chamber of Commerce’s Business Development Committee and Local Development Corporation, Genesee Transportation Council Regional Trails Steering Committee, Emergency Relocation Planning Committee, Oatka and Black Creek Watersheds Project Advisory Committees, Genesee-Orleans Rural Environmental Health GIS Initiative Committee, Records Advisory Board, Special Needs Sheltering Committee, Medical Coverage Committee and the Cost Per Copy Committee.

Staff prepared GIS and Pictometry mapping for: the GLOW Region Solid Waste Management Committee, the Genesee County Economic Development Center, Sheriff’s Office, Health Department, Highway and Parks Department, Information Technology Department, Emergency Management Services, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Oatka Creek Watershed Committee, Tonawanda Creek Watershed Committee, Alabama Fire District, East Pembroke Fire District, City of Batavia, Towns of Alabama, Batavia, Bethany, Darien, Elba, LeRoy, Oakfield, Pembroke, Stafford, and the Villages of Alexander, Corfu, LeRoy and Oakfield.  Planning staff assisted the Office of Real Property with the printing of all tax maps.

The Department continued working cooperatively with the Department of Information Technology , including the deployment of Electronic Field Study (Pictometry) software to local governments, and local volunteer fire departments.  The software enables users to view high resolution aerial photos of the County for zoning or other land use related inquiries.  Staff also participated in the migration of the County’s ArcIMS (Internet Mapping System) to the new ArcGIS Server Flex API (application programming interface) platform. The system allows 24-hour access to zoning maps, agricultural district maps, development area maps, property information, flood zone and wetlands information and several other key geographic resources needed during the land development process.  The Department also prepared GIS data for local governments engaging in capital projects, Federal Stimulus funds or comprehensive planning projects. 

Staff aided the Health Department in the development of the Genesee-Orleans Rural Environmental Health GIS Initiative, a GIS system to detail and maintain well and septic records in the County.

In 2009 , the Planning Department published its newsletter in digital form, "Genesee County Planning News".  The newsletter reaches approximately 500 elected officials, zoning and planning officials, and interested citizens.

The Department continued to participate in the Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council's programs, including the review of 47 projects under the Intergovernmental Review Process.

During 2009 , the Genesee County Planning Board and Department reviewed 138  zoning and subdivision referrals under New York State General Municipal Law Sections 239 l, m, and n.

The Department continued to be a clearinghouse for GIS, housing, census, land use, wetlands and floodplain information and fielded numerous requests.

Planning staff continued its involvement with administrative activities associated with the Genesee County Comprehensive Plan including the development of monitoring reports and meetings of the Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee and individual focus groups.  Staff developed a PowerPoint presentation outlining the Comprehensive Planning Process for the County Legislature.

The staff, along with the County Manager and County Treasurer, assisted in the development of a draft six-year capital and asset acquisition program and capital and asset acquisition budget, which were submitted to the County Legislature for their consideration.

Planning Staff assisted the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) with ongoing processing of various proposals and attended a number of coordination meetings related to specific projects, including the possible STAMP (Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Project) Project and the Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park.

The staff assisted the Sheriff’s Office in the GIS implementation of Computer Aided Dispatch, and in updates to streets, common names and address location data .

AGRICULTURE

Planning Department staff continued to assist the Genesee County Agricultural and Farmland Protection Board with implementation of the County’s Farmland Protection Plan. 

The Genesee County Agricultural Districts Consolidation Plan is being implemented.  This plan calls for the consolidation of Genesee County’s Agricultural Districts as they come up for their eight-year review into four Districts by the year 2015.  This consolidation will lead to a more efficient and streamlined renewal process for the farmers involved, for the Legislature, and for the Planning Department.

Staff continued to assist the Legislature with the eight-year review process for Agricultural Districts.  District No. 12 located in Elba and Byron was consolidated into District No. 2 through its eight-year review that was completed in 2009.

The Department also assisted the Agricultural and Farmland Protection Board and the Legislature publicize the 30-day annual Agricultural District enrollment period.

Staff also assisted the Towns of Batavia and LeRoy in the process of developing their own Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plans.

LOCAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

The Planning Department continued to provide assistance to local planning, zoning, and legislative boards.  The scope of this assistance ranged from providing information regarding the development and revision of various land use regulations to the preparation of amendments and maps.  Planning staff conducted zoning and land use training for the County Planning Board and all municipalities at County Building 2 and in Albion through a partnership with Orleans County.  Assistance with project reviews was provided to the City of Batavia, Towns of Alabama, Batavia, Bethany, Oakfield, Pavilion, Stafford and the Villages of Alexander, Elba and Oakfield.  The Towns of Bethany, Elba, Pavilion, Pembroke and Stafford were assisted with zoning text and/or zoning map amendments.

The Department co-sponsored local government workshops on May 15th and November 20th in Pittsford and Batavia respectively.  These workshops provide zoning and land use training to local officials.

The Department served on the Genesee Transportation Council’s Priority Trails Advancement Steering Committee.  This committee selects trail projects in the GTC region for grant funding.

SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT

Planning staff continued to serve on the GLOW Western New York Region Solid Waste Management Committee and its Planning and Advisory Subcommittees.  Assistance was provided with projects including: household hazardous waste collection; the Materials Exchange Catalog (Mat-Ex); participation in America Recycles 200 8 events, backyard composting demonstration sites; and compost bin sale.  Planning staff provides secretarial support services to GLOW in lieu of GLOW hiring its own clerical staff.

ENVIRONMENT

Planning Department staff was involved with the SEQR environmental review process for various projects including:  STAMP (Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Project), Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park, Agricultural District Annual Enrollment, and Agricultural District No. 2 Renewal.

HOUSING

The Planning Department staff attended meetings of the Genesee Region Housing Initiatives Committee (GRHIC) and assisted in the distribution of the County Housing Assistance and Information Directory and publicity of its Housing Programs .  The Department continued to staff the Genesee County Comprehensive Plan Housing Focus Group.  Department staff also reviewed proposals for various housing related programs and projects.

James Duval, Director

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