Southeast: Have Your Say On Route 22 Master Plan

SOUTHEAST, NY — Town officials are starting on a process of updating Southeast's master plan for the Route 22 corridor, and the public has a chance to weigh in now.

The issue is development along Route 22 from the end of I-684 to the Patterson town line.

Starting in September, the town Planning Board will look at the corridor in three sections:

• Section 1: End of I-684 to Clocktower Commons
• Section 2: Clocktower Commons to Brewster Town Center
• Section 3: Brewster Town Center to Town of Patterson (including Old Doansburg Road)

Source: Town of Southeast

As the planning board members get started, they are asking the public to participate in a survey. It includes a number of questions, such as what kinds of uses should be encouraged or discouraged. Elder and day care, restaurants and recreation, multi-family and mixed-use are just a few of the categories. Survey-takers are also asked about traffic and improvements they'd like to see.

Thirteen years ago, the town's ambitious vision for Route 22 was to create a new "town center."

"However for a number of reasons — such as changes to New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s wetland map, the Great Recession, lack of sewer infrastructure, poor soils for subsurface on-site wastewater treatment, and a shift in public opinion towards revitalizing the Village of Brewster rather than creating a new downtown — this plan was never fully realized," town officials said online.

The corridor is still vital to the town's economy. Also, town officials pointed out, there are several large vacant or underused properties along it.

In January, New York state announced money to renew two stretches of Route 22 as part of a $151 million New York State project for roadways affected by extreme weather events:

• $1.9 million from Doansburg Road to Old Route 22
• $521,000 from Milltown Road to Overlook Lane

The Southeast Planning Board intends to discuss this Master Plan and Zoning Update in conjunction with its regularly scheduled meetings. Town officials promised at least two public hearings will be held during the process.

Learn more here.