WHAT? Still no master plan?

So here we are again, with committees each trying to solicit proposals for this and plans for that, with no master plan for the County. No priorities, no "big picture", just small groups of legislators trying to take a piece of the pie and not looking at the County-wide needs.

Will it end? For months the 5th and 8th ward residents were calling for -- no, demanding a master plan. From the start of this whole debacle, all we asked for was a PLAN. One plan that is thought out, with all of the space needs identified, addressed, prioritized, and planned. One that had departments that shared services/billing/clients in close proximity, one that will actually propose a building that will FIT the departments, and weighs the impact on the surrounding community.


WE HAVE SEEN NOTHING! And they haven't learned a thing. As reported by the Cortland Standard:
'The General Services Committee supported sending out a request for proposal for properties the county could lease for its motor vehicles office, while the Judiciary/Public Safety Committee seemed intent on moving forward with plans for either relocating or expanding the county jail.
Brown (D-8th Ward) said that both issues would be addressed by the ad hoc committee, which she hoped to have formed prior to the May 22 legislative session.'

Basically, I hear "Let's all be fiscally irresponsible and push a whole lot of taxes on the County residents because we have no idea how to plan."

Plan - wikipedia definition - a proposed or intended method of getting from one set of circumstances to another. They are often used to move from the present situation, towards the achievement of one or more objectives or goals.

We do not have a plan. We have several circumstances - DMV, jail, health... most likely more that we don't know about.

What does it take to develop a plan?
There are 10 simple steps...
1) Identify existing conditions
2) Identify current and future needs
3) Identify Code requirements/implications
4) Develop options
5) Identify costs
6) Prioritize needs
7) Develop duration (5,10,15 years) to carry out meeting the needs
8) Develop budget to meet the needs
9) Consensus on the plan
10) Implement the plan

It is a little more involved, but you can "get the picture".

Several of the steps are already in place from past studies, including the jail study which was JUST COMPLETED! It would merely take a minimal effort from the County - and would not require a consultant (no $$$) to update the data in house.

Form a committee - fine! - and look at the MASTER PLAN! That is the only way you will get consensus on anything. Individual committees will not have the big picture and the master plan; only the plan of the department(s) which they have direct interaction with.

More later.