Southwestern New York State Economic Plan

About

Engagement

Background & SWOT

Action Plan

Evaluation

Conclusion

Data Visuals

Full PDF Plan

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  Natural Environment

OBJECTIVES 1 & 2
​Assist Communities to develop best practices and coordinate efforts regionally

Rural communities are often lacking in staff, funding, and knowledge to implement best practices, and thus they fall behind other areas of the state. This can be prevented with a regional approach and shared resources.

Protect Water Quality, Improve Stormwater and Erosion Management

• Resilience lens: assist communities in creating source water protection plans
• Make training, mapping and grant writing assistance available to organizations and communities
• Resilience lens: Identify areas at risk for stormwater damage

Improve Solar Siting and Development

• Guide communities in concentrating solar development in cities, rooftops, and brownfields
• Include stormwater planning for solar development projects and advocate NYS to do so
• Assist communities in developing solar ordinances for best practices
• Create maps of lands that should be maintained as agricultural, forest, or wetlands Consider lifespan of solar, disposal and future reuse of site

Reduce Invasive Species Impact

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• Record and map areas with significant invasive impact and begin tracking changes
• Resilience lens: Encourage sales and planting of native plant species and coordinate plantings of native plants in areas impacted by invasive plant species
• Support programs for monitoring and mitigating invasive insect species
• Seek collaboration with DOT on best practices for invasive plant species to prevent mowing, which spreads growth

Resilience Lens - Begin a Regional Approach to Conservation & Water Protection

• Start quarterly meetings of a new working group with water protection and wildways stakeholders across the region
• Assist communities in starting their own small waterway protection groups that can represent their community on the Working Group and work with CCE, 4-H, Scouts, schools
• Assist land trusts, municipalities, and the Seneca Nation in securing funding for conservation easements and land purchases
• Designate a dedicated staff person at Southern Tier West to coordinate efforts
• Create regional maps of targeted wildways and waterways for protection

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OBJECTIVE 3
​Promote an outdoor recreation economy and ecotourism

Rural communities in southwestern New York have access to beautiful waterways and forests that, if carefully protected, can offer city dwellers from Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Cleveland a unique vacation and outdoor adventure experience. Collaborative efforts will help to maximize these offerings.

Develop a More Robust Trail System

• Increase signage for all trails
• Resilience lens: Begin meeting collaboratively to promote ecotourism and tourism overall, with all stakeholders from Allegany County, Seneca Nation, Chautauqua County and Cattaraugus County. Bring environmental departments and economic departments together.
• Promote trail systems jointly across the region with complete SWNY maps and a website linking all other sites

Keep Tourism Development Low-Impact

• Concentrate efforts on low-impact activities such as hiking, canoeing, and disc golf, and emphasize the region’s waters with fishing and boating opportunities
• Cluster developments of tourism rental housing to reduce impact on surrounding natural areas
• Resilience lens: Conduct careful water planning for any development occurring along water bodies and include this in training for planning, zoning and municipalities.

Use Outdoor Recreation as a Theme to Support Downtown Revitalization

• Support communities in Recreation Economy for Rural Communities and other strategic plans for a vibrant local recreation economy
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• Assist communities in creating unifying signage, public art, and nature-based themes that bring the available outdoor opportunities into the heart of downtowns
• Support new recreation-based businesses with affordable loans and collaborative regional marketing
• Workforce development lens: Utilize visitors that come for outdoor recreation as an opportunity to do talent attraction campaigns, attracting new residents who have active outdoor lifestyles​