Route 14 Corridor & Queen Catharine Marsh Conceptual Development Plan June 2012 Rev. Feb. 2012 Submitted By Submitted To Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS ..........................................................................................................................3 GROUP MEMBERS AND AcKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...............................................................................7 INTRODUctiON ..................................................................................................................................8 AREA ANALYSIS ...................................................................................................................................9 SITE VISITS + INVENTORY .................................................................................................................16 PRELIMINARY SITE INVENTORY .............................................................................................................. 16 FOLLOW-UP SITE INVENTORY ................................................................................................................. 20 STAKEHOLDER INTERVIEWS .............................................................................................................26 INITIAL DESIGN CONCEPTS ..............................................................................................................28 COMMUNITY FORUM .......................................................................................................................31 GOALS + RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................................................................35 DESIGN SOLUTIONS ..........................................................................................................................44 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................................60 APPENDICES APPENDIX A – STAKEHOLDER LETTER + INTERVIEW QUESTIONS APPENDIX B – COMMUNITY FORUM SIGN-IN SHEET APPENDIX C – COMMUNITY FORUM DETAILED REPORT MAP DISCUSSION POSTER FEEDBACK APPENDIX D – REFERNCES USED 3 Table of Contents LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 – STuDY AreA CONTeXT MAP ...................................................................................................... 9 Figure 2 – TrAFFiC COuNT OF THe STuDY AreA ......................................................................................12 Figure 3– SCHuYLer COuNTY TrANSiT BuS rOuTe MAP ........................................................................12 Figure 4 – AreA OF iNTereST MAP .......................................................................................................... 15 Figure 5-7 – TrAiL AND CirCuLATiON PLANS ......................................................................................45-47 Figure 8 – PLAN/OVerVieW OF AuNT SArAH’S FALLS PuLL-OFF .............................................................49 Figure 9 – VieW FrOM WeSTerN Slope (WiTH DeSCriptiON OF BuiLDiNgS) .......................................50 Figure 10 – VieW FrOM RouTe 14 APPrOACHiNg FrOM THe NOrTH ...................................................51 Figure 11 – VieW FrOM THe BASe OF WATerfall LOOkiNg East ..........................................................52 Figure 12 – WATerfall VieW FrOM THe East (Close uP) .....................................................................53 Figure 13 – WATerfall VieW FrOM THe East (WiDe ANgLe) ................................................................54 Figure 14 – Close uP FrOM THe WeST (WiTH DeSCriptiON OF BuiLDiNgS) .........................................55 Figure 15 – PLAN/OVerHeAD VieW OF QueeN CathariNe MArSH LOOkOuT ......................................57 Figure 16 – VieW FrOM CANAL LOOkiNg East .......................................................................................58 Figure 17 – VieW FrOM MArSH LOOkiNg NOrTHWeST .........................................................................59 4 Table of Contents LIST OF TABLES TABLe 1 – reCOMMeNDATiONS FOr gOAL 1 .............................................................................................36 TABLe 2 – reCOMMeNDATiONS FOr gOAL 2 .............................................................................................37 TABLe 3 – reCOMMeNDATiONS FOr gOAL 3 .............................................................................................41 TABLe 4 – reCOMMeNDATiONS FOr gOAL 4 .............................................................................................42 5 6 Group Members and Acknowledgements GROUP MEMBERS NAME AREA OF STUDY INVOLVEMENT Joanne Chen B.S. Design and Environmental Analysis Fall 2011 Caleb Cheng M.R.P. City and Regional Planning Fall 2011 and Spring 2012 An-Chi Dai M.L.A. Landscape Architecture Fall 2011 Nomoya Hall B.S. Urban and Regional Studies Fall 2011 Quintana O’Neill B.S. urban and regional Studies Fall 2011 and Spring 2012 Mujahid Powell B.S. Urban and Regional Studies Fall 2011 and Spring 2012 Illika Sahu B.S. Urban and Regional Studies Fall 2011 and Spring 2012 Hanzi Yang M.L.A. Landscape Architecture Fall 2011 OTHER MEMBERS Michael Manville Faculty Advisor, Department of City and Regional Planning rocky kambo Client Liaison, Cornell Cooperative Corporatee xtension Schuyler County ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to thank Mike and Rocky for providing guidance and encouragement to our group throughout this project. Also, we want to thank the DesignConnect Board of 2010-2011 for giving us this great opportunity to serve a local community and helping us with all the logistics behind the scene. in addition, we want to thank local leaders and community members for participating in the community forum and offering us valuable information for the project. 7 Introduction Cornell Cooperative extension of Schuyler County, approached Cornell’s DesignConnect in order to generate a conceptual plan enhancing the Route 14 corridor between Watkins Glen and Montour Falls. In the past, both Watkins Glen and Montour Falls have had gateway improve- ment projects, however the Route 14 Corridor remains neglected. Our proposal incorporates Route 14 between Montour Falls and Watkins Glen as well as the adjacent Queen Catherine Marsh, an underutilized but sensitive wildlife area. The objectives of the project include pro- viding residents and visitors with access to a multi-modal transportation link between the two communities as well as a safe and environmentally friendly trail network through the marsh. We aim to deliver an innovative, practical, sustainable plan that integrates transportation improvements with recreational enhancements while protecting the sensitive natural surroun- dings. We will do this through the following: 1. The study and documentation of the site 2. The involvement of the community and stakeholders 3. A subsequent proposal on re-design options for both route 14 and Queen Catha- rine Marsh 8 Area Analysis GENERAL GEOGRAPHY: PHYSICAL SETTING A section of the route 14 Corridor and the Queen Catharine Marsh, the focus area of this study, lies in the valley floor in between the Village of Watkins glen and the Village of Montour Falls. Queen Catharine Marsh encompasses 890 acres of this bottomland. Both villages are part of the Schuyler County, with Watkins Glen being the county seat. Seneca Lake lies just beyond Watkins glen in the north. Flanked by hills on the east and the west, the study area is relatively undeve- loped, with extensive marshes and woods, and cut in the middle by the Barge Canal, which is a part of the historic Chemung Canal. Figure 1 – STuDY AreA CONTeXT MAP 9 Area Analysis HYISTOR Prior to the arrival of european colonists, the region was inhabited by the iroquois. The first european settlement of the area did not begin until the late 18th Century but subsequent -ex pansion drove out or incorporated iroquois communities. Both villages have changed names throughout their history, however, Montour Falls was founded in the early 19th Century and the county seat was moved to Watkins Glen in 1861. In the 1940s and 1950s, car racing became popular in Watkins Glen and in 1956, the Watkins glen grand Prix race Course (now the Watkins glen international Speedway) opened. The race- course, 4.5 miles west of the study area, is still in operation today. More recently, the Catherine Valley Trail (CVT) was built on the embankment of a former railroad. (Source: Trowbridge & Wolf Landscape Architects et. al., 2000) LOCAL GOVERNMENT Both village governments have a mayor-trustee governance structure as well as their own pu- blic work, code enforcement, and emergency service departments. Watkins Glen has Park and recreation service and is served by the Watkins glen Central School District. Montour Falls is served by the Odessa Montour Central School District, though both communities are part of the greater Southern Tier Board of Cooperative educational Services. Schuyler County’s government includes representatives from three county districts led by an elected chairman. Many County agencies have offices in the vicinity of Watkinsg len. The county is served by the Schuyler County Soil & Water Conservation District. Most of the marsh is in the Queen Catharine Marsh Wildlife Management Area, owned and managed by the NYS Department of environmental Conservation (NYSDeC). (Source: Village of Montour Falls, 2012; Village of Watkins Glen, 2012; NYSDEC, 2012; Schuyler County, 2012) DEMOGRAPHICS WATKINS GLEN According to the 2010 Census, the Village