Sections in PDF
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Section
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Extract
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Cover and Table of Contents
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Table of contents and adoption information
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1. Introduction
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This Comprehensive Plan updates the Town of Southeast’s 1992 Master Plan. The Town has undertaken this update in response to a number of factors affecting its quality-of-life and character.
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2. Geographic and Historic Context
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The Town of Southeast is a picturesque and peaceful community of nearly 35 square miles located in the Harlem Valley in the southeastern portion of Putnam County just north of the Westchester County border (Figure 2-1). Within that area is a diversity of landscapes and community patterns including rolling hills, reservoirs, lakes, and streams, historic farm properties, and suburban housing developments as well as areas of commercial activity, both retail strips and office parks.
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3. Patterns of Development
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The 1992 Master Plan describes the Town’s setting and historic development within Putnam County. Southeast enjoys many of the benefits of its location along major transportation routes, including access to jobs in the New York City, White Plains, and Danbury areas as well as
having its own economic base. Southeast’s proximity to these economic centers, combined with its beautiful natural topography and the aesthetic assets of the New York City reservoirs, has made the community a popular place to live.
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4. Natural Resources
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Natural resources help to define Southeast’s community character. Residents of Southeast can identify with the rolling topography, the streams and reservoirs, and the broad vistas available from many local roads. The quality of this landscape is important to the residents of Southeast.
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5. Land Use, Community Character and Zoning
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The Town’s future land use pattern is driven by its overall plan and vision for land use and community character, the zoning code that regulates the location and scale of uses, and the transportation network that ties all of the uses together. Within the overall plan and vision for land use and community character are considerations for housing, commercial development, and open spaces. Each of these issues is examined separately in this Comprehensive Plan.
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6. Housing Development
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Southeast is predominantly a bedroom community with a few concentrated areas of commercial activity. Reinforcing this pattern is a vital component of the Town’s land use plan. Housing locations should be coordinated with the growth of commercial areas and capacity of transportation networks.
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7. Economic Development
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A community’s character is a function of its residential neighborhoods, its open spaces, and its commercial districts. Commercial uses also play another role in a community: they provide opportunities for people to shop and work. A well-balanced community will ensure that residential, open space areas, and commercial districts are integrated into an overall plan.
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8. Traffic and Transportation
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The Town’s road network and railroad are integrally tied to its land use pattern and its economic development. How well people move between home and work or home and shopping is an essential determinant of quality-of-life and the attractiveness of the Town as a place to live and do business.
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9. Community Facilities and Services
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Southeast’s growth in recent years has meant the planned and actual expansion of community facilities and services. Many of the pressing needs are being addressed by the Town already.
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10. Croton Plan
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The Town of Southeast prepared its Comprehensive Plan concurrent with planning and engineering efforts undertaken as part of the Croton Plan. The Croton Plan is a document described in the NYCDEP Watershed Regulations that evaluates potential infrastructure investments to address water quality problems within the Croton watershed.
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11. List of Figures
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Tables and graphs.
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