WPCNR Highlands Night Out. By John F. Bailey. March 23, 2005:  The Comprehensive Plan Review Committee met to elicit comment from residents of the “Close-In Neighborhoods” Tuesday evening at Highlands Middle School. Citizens were informed by Co Chairperson Mary Cavallero that two sub groups of the committee had been formed to study the CORE (downtown) area and the Infrastructure & Financial Considerations on the city.

The subgroups, Cavallero said would report back to the committee-at-large. The committee-at-large would digest the subgroup findings. The at large committee would issue a preliminary report on the comprehensive plan, the public would be invited to comment on the Committee’s preliminary report. Finally the CPRC would be revised and turned over to the Common Council for their acceptance – perhaps with specific recommendations on changes and directions of growth that could be added to the Comprehensive Plan.

Cavallero said this could include acceptance of the plan as being on target, in need of revisions in certain areas or  as sweeping as a recommendation that a new Comprehensive Plan needed to be created.

Asked if the final review of the plan could include Comprehensive Plan Review Committee policy recommendations as to how the city should develop as changes to the Comprehensive Plan to the Common Council, John Martin, Co-Chair of the Committee said “That’s a fair statement.”

The committee and audience of 60 persons filling 10 rows of seats listened to a 36 minute presentation of Ms. Habel on the projects and issues that the administration had instituted in the “Close-In” Neighborhoods. The initial portion of the meeting was taken up by protesting citizens saying there had not been enough notification of the meetings across the city. It emerged that only Council of Neighborhood Assocations representatives and neighborhood associations in the “Close-In Neighborhoods” only were noticed. There was no citywide notification by the city. The Journal News was singled out for criticism by the Planning Department for not printing advance notices of the meetings, though sent press releases.

There was no commentary on specific development issues in any of the close-in neighborhoods. Comments centered on the CORE area for the second meeting in a row, and the issues of traffic, height, density of population, pollution, and congestion were the main themes.

 Mention was made of the St. Agnes property potential for creating further issues on the North Street corridor. The condition of parking at the railroad station was raised. Tom Rosenthal criticized the city for making progress on little issues on a piece-by-piece basis but not on big issues, saying “it doesn’t take planning, it takes brains.”

A good showing of younger residents in their late twenties and thirties appeared for the first time in the second of a series of four “neighborhood” meetings. Their concerns raised the issues of affordable housing again on a most human first-hand experience. Another resident challenged the city to stop protecting “the slumlords” of White Plains who permit illegal housing.

Mary Cavallero advised that future CPRC meetings: three more would entertain comment on all neighborhoods of the city and comments could be e-mailed to the Planning Department.

The meetings are as follows: Tuesday, Mar 29 to discuss Outer Areas, Major Properties and Gateways/Major Corridors within them; Tuesday, Apr 5 to discuss Community Resources and Implementation

The CPRC asserted they were listening to the community, and wanted to listen.