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Master Plans

Master Plans are created to canvas populations, formulate ideas, and guide future development.

Our group watched the City of Utica's Master Plan Review carefully. It was terribly executed, and a huge waste. Our belief is it was an attempt to "write-in" a large hospital district, totally "flipping the script" of the plan and numerous other downtown initiatives.

July 9, 2016 - Read Final Review Report From Master Plan Committee: To one day be known as the "Downtown Hospital Acceptance Committee Authorization Act of 2016".

VISION 2016- 2021: A FIVE YEAR RETROSPECTIVE ON THE CURRENT MASTER PLAN (PDF)
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Plain Text Version

We will try hard to find some good aspects of the review, however the day after this "Review" was released, operatives for the downtown hospital (Former Utica College Dean Dr. James Norrie, JK Hage III and Robert Heins) showed-up on the radio touting "hospital is good, hospital is great, hospital will save Utica...". Well it's obvious; this whole ordeal (that netted only 19 citizens from a city of 60,000 for public input) was and is a complete sham.

Further testament to our belief is a search on the city's website for "master plan committee" While the newest result is dated "Jan 20, 2016", it links to nothing related to the master plan committee. Other results are linked to meaningless pages on the city's website. Lastly, the City of Utica Master Plan website's most recent news items are from 2009 and 2010...

June 18, 2016 - As a professor at Utica College oversees Joe Marino's attempted City Master Plan modifications...

Only a dozen citizens arrive, none seem very interested in the "death star", the "H project", a.k.a. a "downtown hospital".

April 9, 2016 (PM Report) - For another day, but just be aware that today a meeting was held at Utica College about Utica's Master Plan. More to be reported here at a later date.

March 2, 2016 - The UticaOD's Opinon page states, OUR VIEW: Weekly To-Do List where they report...

"Utica College will host 2 Saturday meetings on Utica Master Plan Utica College will host two roundtable meetings of the Utica Master Plan Advisory Committee to discuss the plan with community stakeholders. The first session is scheduled for Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Carbone Auditorium in the Economic Crime, Justice Studies, and Cybersecurity building on campus. The building is located off the Burrstone Road entrance. The second meeting will be held a week later — Saturday, March 26 — also from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the same location. The creation of the Master Plan, which was adopted by the Common Council on Oct. 5, 2011, cost $325,000. The 87-page plan is supposed to be a roadmap to transform the city and prepare it for the future."

February 2, 2016 - In, Utica Master Plan Advisory Committee seeking public input, we read...

"The creation of the Master Plan, which was adopted by the Common Council on Oct. 5, 2011, cost $325,000. The 87-page plan is supposed to be a roadmap to transform the city and prepare it for the future."

Master Plan Member - The current membership of the Master Plan Advisory Committee will consist of the following individuals; James Norrie, Lucretia Hunt, Lynne Mishalanie, James Buswell, Robert Heins, Steve Cox, J.K. Hage, Ronald Vincent and Anthony Salerno. (Source: Utica Common Council resolution)

2010 Master Plan

The 2010 Master Plan provides no coherent vision and substitutes a cumbersome unpredictable process in its place. The Plan injects government into what should be private-sector decisions and responsibilities, and repeats past mistakes, exacerbating sprawl with its associated costs and environmental degradation.[Ref.]

Read the 2010 Utica Master Plan Draft

1960 Master Plan

The 1960 Master Plan was strongly influenced by mid-20th century arterial highway and “urban renewal” ideas.

1950 Master Plan

This plan was produced after almost three years of work by the Bartholomew firm of St. Louis

1924 Comprehensive Plan

In 1924 Utica adopted a comprehensive plan of; Major Streets, Transportation, Recreation Facilities, and Zoning. Oriskany Street and portions of Broad Street were built over the old Erie Canal right-of-way, and many 1930s-era playgrounds and ball fields, are the visible results of that plan.

Frederick Law Olmsted Jr's 1908 Report

Earlier planning is found in Frederick Law Olmsted Jr's 1908 Report to the Utica Chamber of Commerce's Committee on Improving and Beautifying Utica...

"Olmsted also exhorted Uticans to think proactively about the general needs of their rapidly growing city. He advocated evolving Utica intentionally, rather than simply letting development happen randomly and piecemeal. And above all, he wanted the place both to be functional and to look graceful. Among his proposals was an extremely ambitious one: eliminate an eyesore and a public hazard by raising Bagg’s Square so that the train tracks would be hidden below street level. He also called for building a triumphal arch and our current railroad station on the square. It would’ve been one of the most elegant public spaces in upstate New York. It never happened. [Ref.]

Resources & Links

September 25, 2012 -OMH Disses West Utica

July 21, 2010 -Master Disaster 4: Reaching Out to Neighboring Municipalities

July 12, 2010 -Fields of Dreams, In Duplicate

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No Studies, No Reports, thus we remain #NoHospitalDowntown

Our research is ongoing, please check back. Our research is ongoing, please check back.