Planning Board finding its feet after shake-up

The Shelter Island Planning Board, although two members short with the resignation of former chairman Emory Breiner and retirement last week of John Kerr, expects to have a reconstituted board within a few weeks.

This will include newly-elected Chairman Ian McDonald, Deputy Chairman Marcus Kaasik and veteran member Edward Hindin along with two members to be named by the Town Board.

Planning Board members are expected to work at the suggestion of the Town Board on reshaping the town’s Comprehensive Plan.

The planners aren’t looking to abandon the existing Comprehensive Plan, but to “massage it,” Mr. McDonald said. It’s a 25-year-old document that has basically sat on a shelf since its development. Now the Town Board and the planners want to streamline it and make it “a living document,” as Mr. Kaasik said, that can be used to judge ways the town continues to develop. Throughout the process, there will be public meetings to discuss it and get input from residents and business owners, members said.

Mr. Hindin wants to look at the Comprehensive Plan to determine what has changed since it was written and assess what has worked and what hasn’t. At some point in the process, it’s possible town officials would want to hire a professional consultant to assist in a rewrite. Consultants have experience with other municipalities and can make suggestions about ideas that might be transferable to Shelter Island.

Mr. Kaasik expressed concern about hiring a consultant, but agreed, providing the consultant doesn’t “lose organic Shelter Island.”

Mr. McDonald pointed out that the idea of using a consultant isn’t new to the town; the comprehensive plan was written with the help of a consultant.

On the issue of site plan reviews for commercial developments, Mr. McDonald said he wasn’t pleased that the latest word from the Town Board was a move to take some decisions out of the hands of the planners.

The Town Board is still looking at the subject, but has suggested it could issue special permits for smaller projects instead of requiring what Councilman Paul Shepherd said could become more oversight than he and some others think is necessary.