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Schuyler County Agricultural Development and Farmland Protection Plan |
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Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River
Shepstone Management Company played a major role in development of the Management Plan for the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River and, in that capacity, worked very closely with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the State of New York and five different Counties to forge agreement with the Department of Interior for the protection of this valuable River corridor. The project involved a great deal of controversy among competing interests and reconciling those differences was a major challenge.
The most important aspect of the Plan that Shepstone Management assisted in creating was its provision of opportunities for the tourism industry and associated local business to grow and prosper. The Land Use Guidelines authored by the firm and adopted by the Secretary of the Interior constituted a unique and successful experiment in addressing multiple needs under the umbrella protection provided by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This work received the endorsement of not only the National Park Service but also the Council of Upper Delaware Towns representing State and local officials.
Wayne County Comprehensive Plan
The Wayne County Comprehensive Plan was a major multi-year project incorporating not only traditional comprehensive planning elements, but also an Economic Development Plan and two large opinion and information collection surveys - one of resident landowners and the other of second-home owners. This produced a substantial volume of original data on the County which provided the County Plan with a unique element of public participation and an excellent base of knowledge on the tourism industry. Such surveys and community involvement processes are a particular strength of Shepstone Management and its approach to land use planning. This project also involved a series of several public meetings to expose Plan concepts to the public and stimulate citizen input. The final document was published in four large volumes and summarized in a wall-sized, double-sided foldout for wider distribution to the general public. This approach was highly successful in generating both interest and public involvement in the planning process. Shepstone Management Company was the lead consultant on this project.
Sullivan County Economic Development Strategy
Shepstone Management Company assisted Sullivan County, New York in developing an Economic Development Strategy. Working with the County's Division of Planning and Community Development, the firm engaged in a 6-month process of interviewing economic development leaders, researching solutions employed by other communities and developing recommendations to guide the Sullivan County Legislature in devising tools for economic progress.
Five different texts were produced including a "Second Home Study" and two "Rebuilding Sullivan County" reports - one encompassing a comprehensive set of recommendations and the other describing a host of projects or "Key Initiatives" subsequently submitted to the State of New York for funding consideration. The latter was used by Governor Pataki to award an unprecedented grant of $2,000,000 in unrestricted funds for assembled projects. The Legislature has approved and been actively engaged in implementing recommendations of the Plan. It includes a number of innovative suggestions for marketing, tax incentives and revitalization of the County's tourism industry.
Catskill Watershed Corporation Economic Strategy
Shepstone Management Company was one of a team of consultants, headed by the New York City firm of Hamilton, Rabinovitz and Alschuler, which worked with the multi-jurisdictional Catskill Watershed Corporation to develop an economic strategy for the five counties in the West of Hudson portion of the New York City water supply system watershed.
View from Peekamoose Mountain
near Sundown, New York
Photograph by Tom Shepstone, October 8, 2000
The challenge of this planning process was finding ways to achieve real economic development while living under the stringent water quality standards imposed by the City, State and Environmental Protection Agency. The focus was largely upon maintaining and enhancing a "working landscape" built around agricultural, forestry and tourism industries. Issues addressed included creation of a regional branding program and the establishment of funding mechanisms for achieving the most effective use of $60,000,000 in City funds being dedicated to the region for economic development. Shepstone Management Company was the project leader for agricultural and forestry matters and was heavily involved in all aspects of the project.
Sullivan County Rural Transportation Plan
Sullivan County, New York formed a public/private coordinating committee in 1996 to pursue upgrading of its rural public transportation system and hired Shepstone Management Company to assemble a comprehensive inventory of unmet needs and services and develop a coordinated action plan, completed in 1997. The essence of this plan is to upgrade both the frequency and the reach of Shortline Bus service by negotiating a contract with that operator to provide for better schedules and pull certain existing public routes, such the senior shopping runs, into one coordinated system. The plan also provides for privatization of certain government-provided services and use of contracted transportation brokers selected through a bid process. Each broker will be responsible for meeting all the special transportation needs of the zone it is selected to serve for a flat fee, either using its own equipment or through a sub-contract relationship. This unique program has received the endorsement of the New York State Department of Transportation and the Sullivan County Legislature. It is now being implemented with the help of Shepstone Management.
Lackawaxen Township Zoning Ordinance
Lackawaxen Township, Pike County, Pennsylvania, is a rapidly growing rural community located in the Upper Delaware River valley. The growth of the Township led the Board of Supervisors to put a referendum question on the ballot regarding adoption of zoning regulations. The voters approved development of a first zoning ordinance for the Township and Shepstone Management Company was employed to help draft it. There were a number of issues to be addressed, including protection of the river corridor, junkyard regulations and providing for mobile homes. The principal challenge was providing a simple set of land use regulations that could effectively guide growth, be easily administered and not unreasonably restrict the development of the Township or the activities of individual landowners.
Roebling Aqueduct - Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania
Shepstone Management Company guided the Township Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission through the drafting of a zoning map and text, public hearing process, adoption and development of an administrative process. Creating a first set of zoning regulation for any community requires sensitivity to the concerns of those who are skeptical of zoning benefits. It also demands an appreciation of the value of streamlined regulations to effective administration, a critical factor for many rural municipalities with scare resources. The Lackawanna Township Zoning Ordinance reflected these concerns. Shepstone Management Company has also assisted numerous other communities in drafting their first zoning regulations. These include Blooming Grove Township, Canaan Township, Cherry Ridge Township, Dreher Township, Herrick Township, Milford Township, Scott Township (Lackawanna) and Waymart Borough in Pennsylvania as well as the Town of Callicoon, and Village of Jeffersonville in New York State.
Monroe County Housing Assessment
Shepstone Management Company was employed by the Monroe County (Pennsylvania) Housing Authority to prepare a "Housing Needs Assessment" for the County. The Needs Assessment involved a comprehensive overview of housing problems, needs and opportunities within this area of the Poconos and recommended numerous specific courses of action the Authority could take to improve the situation and meet the challenges imposed by the rapid growth of the County. These included development of a new project on County-owned property, establishment of a Family Self-Sufficiency program and other public/private initiatives. The report was used, too, by other County agencies as a guide in pursuing housing initiatives.
Several new projects for the Authority resulted, producing additional new units of housing in the process. Thomas J. Shepstone also filled in during this transition period as consulting staff leader to the Authority and assisted that agency in employing a new full-time Executive Director and updating its policies to comply with Department of Housing and Urban Development guidelines.
Richard Snyder Charitable Remainder Trust
Shepstone Management Company helped produce a successful resolution of a land condemnation case in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. The 190 acre property near Milford, Pennsylvania was owned by the Richard Snyder Charitable Remainder Trust and condemned by the National Park Service, which offered to pay just $1,250,000 for it. Case law demanded the value be based not on the current highest and best use but rather the use to which the property most likely would have been put without the park. Assessing value in such circumstances was difficult because appraisers had to consider how the Route 209 area would have developed over the last 30 years absent other Federal land acquisition. Shepstone Management was requested by legal counsel to conduct a "Land Use and Market Feasibility Analysis" to make that determination. This report documented long-term growth trends and demonstrated high levels of traffic to the area in question would have resulted in a land uses much more valuable than the government suggested. This work is acknowledged by the Trust to have significantly helped in producing the $2.9 million settlement.
D&N Management Corp. of Ellenville, New York employed Shepstone Management Company to conduct a Market Feasibility Study for a 100-unit senior housing/assisted living project in the Town of Fallsburg. The study focused on three specific markets; local, vacationer-retiree and New York metropolitan Chinese-American communities. Demographic analyses and interviews with health care and social service providers in these markets were conducted, along with studies of competition locally and regionally. The specific needs and characteristics of the Chinese-American population were carefully examined with a view toward evaluating potential to build on existing patterns of Chinese-American migration to the community. The project was found to be feasible and approximately $6,500,000 will be spent to create these moderately priced market-rate units and provide amenities. The local Industrial Development Agency has, on the basis of the report, offered sales, mortgage and real property tax abatements to aid the project. Shepstone Management Company also conducted required cost/benefit analyses of the project.
Dingman Township Comprehensive Plan
Dingman Township, Pike County is now preparing a Comprehensive Plan update with the assistance of Shepstone Management Company. Data gathered on the Township indicates Dingman's housing and population growth have been nothing short of astounding. What was, in 1970, a tiny piece of the "Pike County woods" with only 518 persons, now has, as of 1996, some 6,867 people - a 1,225% expansion. Housing units tripled between 1970 and 1990 and there are now more than 4,181 of them, 57% of which are second homes. Permanent homes have increased by 1,073%, from only 169 units in 1970 to 1,813 houses in 1990.
The impacts on the Township and the Delaware Valley School system, of course, have been substantial and a survey of public opinion was conducted to see where residents and taxpayers wished to go from here. Some 500 twelve-page fifty-question surveys were mailed in equal proportions to residents and non-residents and, despite the detailed nature of the questionnaire, the return rates were phenomenal at 42.4% for residents, 21.1% for non-residents and 31.8% overall. Shepstone Management is now helping the Township use this information to formulate long-term plans.
Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar
The Rose Group of Newtown, Pennsylvania is an Applebee's International franchisee and desired to establish a new restaurant in Monroe Township, Snyder County, near Selinsgrove. This required a liquor license which, in Pennsylvania, demands proof of resort area status and necessity, the latter being a function of such factors as; size and demand of the resort area; nearby recreational facilities; number and types of persons attracted to the area during peak seasons and requiring additional licensed facilities to meet their needs; the inability of existing licensed establishments to meet those needs due to steady growth and development in the area; limitations of existing restaurants with respect to capacity, location, design or operations; and special circumstances of the applicant in terms of the combination of services offered.
Shepstone Management Company conducted a thorough study of these factors and, as it has done in well over 50 other similar cases, successfully proved to the Liquor Control Board that it should issue such a license, allowing Applebee's to begin construction of its restaurant.
Western New York Beverage Industry Collection and Sorting
Western New York Beverage Industry Collection and Sorting ("BICS") is an affiliate of TOMRA, an international manufacturer of reverse vending machines. It proposed to relocate its Erie County, New York recycling facility to the Lancaster Industrial Commerce Center, a planned unit industrial park located in the Town of Lancaster, Erie County. The new site consisted of approximately 10.5 acres of land and Shepstone Management Company was hired to complete an Environmental Assessment for the project under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act.
Natural features, soils, sewer and water infrastructure and other site characteristic were examined. Also, three different analyses of highway capacity were made using the Highway Capacity Manual models for assessing Levels of Service and it was determined that the traffic impacts were properly considered "small and moderate" and no other mitigation was necessary. This project is expected to maintain 100 permanent employment positions in conjunction with the facility operations. It was granted sales, mortgage and property tax abatements by the Town Industrial Development Authority allowing it to proceed.
Hudson Valley Meat Processing Facility Feasibility Study
A group of livestock producers and others with vital interests in the meat industry hired Shepstone Management Company to help them assess the feasibility of a new meat processing facility for the Hudson Valley region of New York. The study process was designed to assist the group in defining goals, evaluating options and identifying appropriate courses of action. Included were guidelines for starting a meat business, a definition of the meat markets available and inventory of livestock potentially available to process. Existing and proposed processing and slaughtering operations within the region were studied from a capacity perspective. Facility requirements were developed. Alternative solutions, including mobile units, were investigated. Costs were determined and cash flow analyses prepared to project rates of return for the most practical options. Financial requirements and possible sources of capital were also detailed, along with marketing recommendations. The study concluded a regional meat processing facility was feasible and included a general business plan. Interim solutions were also suggested. The Hudson Valley Livestock Marketing Task Force is now engaged in formally organizing producers, many of whom are engaged in producing natural meats, to pursue these plans.
Schuyler County Agricultural Development and Farmland Protection Plan
Schuyler County is located in the heart of New York's Finger Lakes region. It received funding from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets to develop an Agriculture and Farmland Protection Plan and hired Shepstone Management Company to assist. The project was conducted over an 18 month period and included interviews with dozens of farmers and agri-business representatives. An extensive survey of these producers and suppliers was also made. An analysis of the value of the agricultural sector to the County's economy formed the foundation of the Plan. It was followed by a detailed inventory of resources and preparation of a measurable set of goals. Several major recommendations were offered including development of new added initiatives to complement the Seneca Lake Wine Trail, a Purchase of Development Rights program and an agricultural education initiative.
The County Legislature adopted the Plan in April, 2000. More importantly, the County is already implementing it. The Industrial Development Authority has approved a special Agricultural Industry Tax Abatement Program to stimulate the development and expansion of agricultural support businesses. A group of wineries and dairy farmers have also joined forces to explore the development of cheese processing operations. Other Plan recommendations are also being pursued.
7th Avenue Gas and Wash Market Feasibility Study
The owners of the Scranton, Pennsylvania Kwik N Easy Car Wash chain desired to establish a convenience store and automatic car was operation at one of their self-service locations. The 7th Avenue location was profitable but before investing several hundred thousand dollars of new capital in it, the principals wanted a detailed traffic and market feasibility analyses. They hired Shepstone Management Company to conduct traffic counts and perform these studies. The traffic data was collected using automatic recording equipment and formed the foundation for projected gasoline, convenience store and automatic car wash sales. These, in turn, were used to develop a business plan, prepare detailed cash flow projections, identify financing needs and offer management recommendations. This Plan was the basis of a successful loan request and the 7th Avenue Gas and Wash was opened in 1997. It has been a successful operation and is now a Nice and Easy franchised location. Sales steadily increase and Shepstone Management Company continues to consult with the owners (F & M Real Estate Company) in evaluating business locations. It also assists the firm in securing zoning approvals for new car wash sites where it supplies the equipment.
Consolidated Rail Corporation announced plans, in the early 1980's, to abandon a line of railroad running from the State of Delaware to Snow Hill, Maryland. This rail service, however, was critical for bringing in feedstuffs to support the Eastern Shore poultry industry. It was also very important to a large printing manufacturer at the end of the line. Moore Business Forms, the printer, and three of the poultry processors, Purdue Farms (headquartered on the Eastern Shore), Showell Poultry and Holly Farms banded together to acquire it and preserve service.
Shepstone Management Company was hired to assist in the organization of the group as the Snow Hill Shippers Association, Inc. and helped negotiate a purchase of the line from Conrail. A contract with a regional rail service provider, the Maryland and Delaware Railroad, was also arranged. Most importantly, financing was secured through the State of Maryland and the cooperation of Worcester County to acquire the line. Setting up this shortline operation required extensive documentation of value to secure a fair purchase price. Freight rate divisions also had to be negotiated. Shepstone Management Company managed these tasks for the Association, assisted it in securing specialized legal services and helped it develop a cost-sharing formula relating to the on-going costs of supporting the operation. The line proved invaluable to the poultry industry the year following acquisition when drought conditions forced it to import large quantities of corn.
The Town of Cochecton is a Sullivan County, New York municipality that first adopted zoning in the early 1970's. Over the years this ordinance became out-dated with respect to the New York State Town Law and State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) requirements. It also suffered from a very generalized and inaccurate zoning map. Still another problem was the presentation of district regulations in a somewhat hard to follow text format. Finally, issues had arisen with respect to specific land uses, such as cellular towers and mobile home parks, that demanded new supplementary regulations. Shepstone Management Company was contracted to assist in a complete update of Cochecton's zoning regulations. District regulations were put into an easy to understand and easy to apply schedule format. Arbitrary restriction on non-conforming uses were replaced with more flexible criteria. The zoning map was redrafted based on a GIS-derived parcel map. Supplementary regulations regarding a number of individual Special Uses were developed consistent with best industry practice. Procedures were revised to comply with Town Law and SEQRA requirements. The regulations were also formulated as a Local Law to take advantage of the flexibility inherent in New York's Municipal Home Rule Law. Numerous public meetings and hearings were conducted and the new Cochecton Zoning Law was adopted in 1998. Shepstone Management Company has assisted with similar updates for the Town of Delhi, Town of Deerpark, Town of Liberty, Town of Lumberland, Town of Tusten and Town of Wawayanda in New York State as well as Covington, Dingman and Palmyra (Pike) Townships.
The Fountains Senior Care Assisted Living Community
The Fountains is an assisted living and personal care community located in Pennsauken, New Jersey near Philadelphia. Part of The Seniorcare Group, Ltd. family of assisted living communities, the facility (a former hotel) included a significant amount of under-utilized space in 1994. The owners desired to add 60 new units, so as to be able to reach their full complement of 240 licensed beds. Shepstone Management Company was contracted to conduct a senior housing marketing analysis for use by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and other financing entities. A full market study meeting HUD requirements was prepared. This included gathering detailed information on the existing supply of competitive units throughout the greater Philadelphia region. Demographic data was also assembled using PCensus-USA technology. Comparison of amenities and rents with other facilities and projected demand as contrasted with supply were essential elements of the study. Market feasibility was assessed in terms of potential effective demand for the 60 units the developer proposed at rent levels sufficient to amortize the cost of renovations and provide the services proposed. The project was determined to be feasible and, through the efforts of Tolchin Financial Corporation (Los Angeles, CA) the owners were able to use the Shepstone Management Company report to obtain the necessary financing that allowed the project to go forward. The Fountains is, today, a fully occupied and very successful part of The Seniorcare Group of assisted living communities (now a CareMatrix Corporation holding).