The introduction and overview to the Mohawk Towpath Byway Scenic Conservation Action Plan

1. SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
Mohawk Towpath Byway: Scenic Conservation Action Plan
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
1.1 INTRODUCTION TO THE BYWAY
The Mohawk Towpath Scenic Byway represents an important and unique piece of our
country’s history. As the road follows the route of the Old Erie Canal between Schenectady
and Waterford or Cohoes it offers a wide variety of natural, cultural, scenic, and
recreational opportunities. From touring the Stockade, traveling the rural section of
Niskayuna, experiencing the agricultural areas in Clifton Park, connecting to the river in
Halfmoon, observing the working landscapes of Colonie, trudging the river bed below
Cohoes falls or paddling the waters of Waterford, there are numerous resources and
destinations that help visitors experience and interpret the Byway and its stories.
1.2 VISIONS AND GOALS
The goal of this Scenic Conservation Action Plan (“Action Plan”) is to guide scenic
conservation along the Mohawk Towpath Byway. In this context, scenic conservation is
concerned specifically with managing the visual quality of communities and landscapes to
preserve and enhance scenic resources. It is widely recognized that areas considered scenic
are most often elements of our natural environment, from forests and rivers to mountains
and valleys, as well as culturally significant and pastoral landscapes, including farmlands
and historic villages.
Scenic conservation along the Byway is important not only to enhance its cultural and
historical significance, but also because it is integral to maintaining a vibrant economy.
Visual quality correlates to economic gain through higher property values, greater retail
sales revenue, increased tourist spending, and increased state and local revenues.
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2. SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
Mohawk Towpath Byway: Scenic Conservation Action Plan
Furthermore, there are physiological and psychological benefits to residents – scenic
conservation and enhancement can create better places to live.
Yet, there is increasing impetus for communities to recognize that the scenic qualities that
make them special – rural character, historic and cultural resources, recreational
opportunities, and natural environment – are being
threatened by incremental growth and development.
“The Mohawk Towpath
Most often impacts to scenery are the result of haphazard
Scenic Byway is a regional
or incremental development. Projects are often reviewed
partnership of communities
that will balance the
independently on a site-by-site basis, with little
promotion of local interests
consideration of the broader landscape. Local land use
with the protection of scenic,
regulations—and the boards and commissions that
agricultural, recreational and
oversee and implement them—therefore have the most
historic resources by:
important role in helping to shape how our communities
encouraging preservation,
grow.
The Mohawk Towpath Byway corridor is not immune to
these threats, and the unique character of the Byway is at
risk due to the pressures of development. The purpose of
this Action Plan is to identify the issues and
opportunities affecting scenic resources in the Mohawk
Towpath Byway corridor and to coordinate future efforts
to enhance and protect the Byway’s treasured scenery
and its historic landscape character.
1.3 PROCESS TO DATE
visitor accommodations and
intermodal access;
coordinating interpretation,
promotion and signage; and
emphasizing the important
historic transportation role
of the river valleys and the
resultant cultural/industrial
development so important to
the westward expansion of
the country.”
- Vision and Goals Statement of the
Mohawk Towpath Byway Corridor
Management Plan
This Scenic Conservation Action Plan is the culmination
of a four-step process that began over five years ago: (a)
engaging the partners; (b) inventorying and assessing
scenic quality; (c) identifying and prioritizing scenic
issues; and (d) developing scenic conservation strategies. This process has laid the
groundwork for the continuing scenic conservation efforts within the Byway.
1.3.1 ENGAGING THE PARTNERS
In order to identify issues and opportunities related to the scenic qualities of the Byway
and engage interested parties, the Mohawk Towpath Scenic Byway Coalition Inc. (the
Coalition), with assistance from Scenic America, America’s Byway Resource Center and
New York State Department of Transportation, hosted a two-day workshop for
municipalities, businesses, local government entities, and community groups in the vicinity.
Approximately 30 people attended the workshop on June 12 and 13, 2007, located at the
New York Regional Department of Transportation Headquarters in Schenectady. The
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3. SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
Mohawk Towpath Byway: Scenic Conservation Action Plan
workshop was structured similarly to the four steps of overall scenic conservation planning
process. On the first day, participants took a tour along a segment of the Byway and
identified aspects of the area’s scenic character that would enhance or detract from visitors’
experiences. Both during the trip and on the second day of the workshop, participants
discussed how to prioritize the issues raised, opportunities for improvement, and how to
develop an action plan going forward.
1.3.2 ASSESSING, INVENTORYING, AND MAPPING THE BYWAY’S SCENIC
QUALITY
Following the initial engagement workshop in 2007, LandWorks prepared Landscape
Analysis for the Mohawk Towpath Byway to inventory and assess the Byway’s scenic resources.
In this evaluation, which forms the basis for Section 2: Inventory and Assessment of this
Action Plan, the Byway was separated into eight Landscape Categories. Under each
category, existing conditions, key issues, and opportunities, and preliminary
recommendations were identified as they relate to the Byways’ scenic character. This
evaluation of the existing conditions along the Byway served as a launching point to
identify and prioritize specific issues and to develop strategies going forward.
1.3.3 IDENTIFYING AND PRIORITIZING SCENIC ISSUES
To refine and prioritize the scenic issues and opportunities identified in the first two stages
of the process, three additional workshops were carried out in towns along the Byway. In
the spring of 2011, LandWorks facilitated workshops in Schenectady, Waterford, and
Rexford, which both presented the inventory and analysis to date and gathered input about
key issues and opportunities. These workshops helped to identify specific issues and
initiatives to prioritize, such as building a new bike path on Crescent-Cohoes Road, adding
roadside screening buffers at the Colonie Landfill, and creating new pull-offs at key scenic
locations along the Byway. These opportunities, and others, are discussed in more detail in
Section 3.3: Important Initiatives.
1.3.4 DEVELOPING SCENIC CONSERVATION STRATEGIES
The final step of the process is to identify specific scenic conservation strategies that are
relevant to the Byway context, and to assemble a toolbox of these strategies as a reference.
Section 4: Scenic Conservation Strategies of this Action Plan is this toolbox. This section
includes strategies ranging in scope and scale from regulatory techniques, to site design and
layout, to material selection. These strategies have been developed based both on
professional experience in landscape management and scenic conservation, as well as on a
number of resources that are listed in the Resources section at the end of this report.
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4. SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
Mohawk Towpath Byway: Scenic Conservation Action Plan
1.4 IMPLEMENTATION
This Action Plan provides a set of tools to help guide growth and development in a manner
that protects and enhances the Mohawk Towpath Byway’s scenic character. It is developed
around two main sections: Section 2: Inventory and Assessment and Section 4: Scenic
Conservation Strategies. The Inventory and Assessment section defines eight distinct
‘Landscape Categories’ that exist within the Byway corridor, ranging in density from ‘Open
Land’ to ‘Village Mixed-Use.’ The Scenic Conservation Strategies section provides a
toolbox of specific planning and design practices that can be used by state agencies,
municipal boards, developers and property owners to help preserve and enhance the scenic
character of the Byway.
"Birds Eye View of Cohoes N.Y. in 1859, showing Cohoes Falls, Erie Canal & Harmony Mills" (U.S. 229 - no
publisher info.) - Double postcard; not postmarked; 1915? http://www.eriecanal.org/east-2.html
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