Note: this was originally posted on NextDoor.

I wanted to share some takeaways from the Trustee meeting yesterday evening if you were not able to attend. In summary, the Trustees who are supporting the completion of the Comprehensive Plan via an extension of the development moratorium are extremely capable and hard working, and they deserve your support and votes.

While the agenda for the meeting last night featured a public hearing on the extension of the moratorium, in a surprise turn of events the time spent on that issue was dramatically overshadowed by discussion of an application that was made to open a brewery in Northfield Common.

Discussion of whether the brewery concept, as it was presented, fit into the Village Code occupied about an hour of the meeting. According to a legal opinion issued by a former building inspector, it was a legitimate use of the space according to Village Code under a section for processing of agricultural products. However, during the discussion among Trustees it became clear that the brewery concept as presented was actually at odds with several other sections of Village Code, and that it needed more refinement and review before it should be allowed to proceed.

I was impressed with the effort and ability of the Trustees during their discussion last night, and I agreed wholeheartedly with their decision to appeal the opinion of the building inspector (all Trustees voted affirmatively on this matter, except for Dan Keating who abstained). It is clearly in the best interest of Village residents to ensure that our existing Code is upheld while the Comprehensive Plan is revised, and the Trustees’ legal counsel assured them that there was minimal liability in appealing the decision. Trustee Frank Galusha mentioned that it was in fact the responsibility of the Trustees to ensure that our codes are upheld for the benefit of all Village residents. During the discussion, I did not feel that the Trustees were placing unnecessary barriers to new business. Instead, they were thoughtfully raising issues to ensure that new initiatives in the town are sustainable for the given economic area and responsible to residents in neighboring properties. In short, they were doing precisely the job for which they were elected to the board of Trustees.

According to the Agenda distributed prior to the meeting, there was also to be a public hearing on the proposed extension of the moratorium. After the discussion on the application of the brewery, the public hearing regarding the moratorium extension opened late, and only one resident spoke, asking a very reasonable question about whether an extension would in fact result in a conclusion of the update to the Comprehensive Plan. The board answered that while there is much remaining work to do, and the Comprehensive Plan has already been a very significant effort, they do anticipate that it will be completed by the end of the 6-month extension to the moratorium.

For me, the most interesting outcome of the Trustee meeting was that discussion over an application for a brewery proved without a doubt that the extension to the moratorium is absolutely necessary in order to ensure our sustainable growth as a Village. It is unfortunate that the current Comprehensive Plan, drafted twenty-three ago, is no longer able to answer even basic questions about what kinds of development Village residents want to see. The Trustees’ meeting last night was a perfect illustration of that problem in that we could see the incredible amount of effort that it took to untangle the outdated codes that were needed to understand whether the request to open this new business was a legitimate use of the space requested.

We all want to see the future of the Village of Pittsford filled with strong opportunities for economic growth, and the effort to create a new Comprehensive Plan is truly the best way to achieve this goal in a way that is in line with our desires as residents. It does appear that the development moratorium will have to be extended for an additional six months in order for the new Comprehensive Plan to be completed. However, I see the extension as a necessary step to give us space to plan our future strategically, rather than having it imposed on us by disjointed development initiatives that are presented to our board without the benefit of cohesive and current guidelines detailing what we want as residents.

The Trustees who have supported these initiatives have an incredible amount of courage, ability and perseverance that they are regularly demonstrating in our public meetings. I hope that they can continue to count on your votes and support while the new Comprehensive Plan is completed.