SOMERSET — Anyone in Somerset who would like to have input on the direction of the town in the next 15 to 20 years is welcome to come to a meeting on July 23 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the performing arts center at Somerset Berkley Regional High School.
At that meeting, residents and businesses will help the town to prioritize implementation actions to best achieve the vision and goals of Somerset’s master plan which is in the process of being updated. The master plan is a future vision and policy guide for the town that addresses land use, economic development, housing, natural, cultural and historic resources, open space and recreation, public facilities and services and transportation.
This will be the second and final public meeting for the updating of the master plan. Those who come to the meeting can learn more about the master plan progress to date and review the vision statement, core values, key issues, opportunities and goals developed through the public engagement process. Participants will also have ample opportunities to review the draft implementation strategies and have in-depth discussions with the Master Plan Steering Committee.
The town held a public meeting related to the economic development portion of the plan. A questionnaire about vision, goals, issues and opportunities was also distributed to the public. Somerset students were also polled about what they love about their town and what their greatest wishes for the town are in the next 15 to 20 years.
Residents at a public meeting were asked what they thought Somerset’s biggest asset is and what it’s biggest challenge is. Schools, services, community and waterfront were identified as the biggest assets while taxes were identified as the biggest challenge.
Town Planner Nancy Durfee told the Somerset Planning Board last Tuesday that great strides and significant progress have been made on updating the master plan. She said the town is 12 months into the process of updating the master plan and put an additional $20,000 into an expanded economic development plan that is part of the master plan.
“It’s been a good process,” Durfee said. “I’m excited.”
Planning Board Chairman Gary Simons and Planning Board member Timothy Turner are members of the Master Plan Steering Committee. Durfee gave all of the members of the Planning Board documents related to the master plan last week. She told them she wants them to tell her what is right and what is wrong with the plan, so that the town has a master plan to move forward with.
Durfee asked the Planning Board members to spread the word to people to come to the meeting on July 23.
“The more that come, the more input we’ll get and the better the master plan will be,” Durfee said.
Durfee said the town has already been doing some of the actions that are in the draft of the updated master plan. When it is done, she said town officials will have to role up their sleeves and work on the goals of the master plan so that it does not sit on the shelf.
“It’s a pretty ambitious plan,” Planning Board member Richard Fenstermaker said.
Planning Board member Timothy Turner said the work on updating the master plan has been more efficient than in the past. Durfee said she has been pleased with the input of the public on the master plan. She said residents, business owners and other stakeholders have given input for the master plan.
During the master plan updating process, eight opportunity sites were identified. They include the Route 6 commercial corridor, a town-owned property off Wilbur Avenue, the waterfront industrial area, the Slades Ferry area, the former Montaup Electric site on Riverside Avenue, the Route 138 corridor south, Route 138 corridor north and an historic area of town.
The Wilbur Avenue property is 98 acres and has been identified as a location that could be used for an industrial or business park, data center or offices. The consultant that is working with the town on the master plan gave five other public industrial and business parks that have anywhere from 800 to 7,800 jobs that are examples of development for the Wilbur Avenue property. They gave five other examples of private industrial and business parks that have between 1,000 and 5,500 jobs.
The consultant has found that the Montaup Electric site, which is privately owned as needing significant remediation. The Montaup site is one of only 10 designated port areas in Massachusetts.
The process so far has found that the Route 138 area could be improved through signage and design guidelines. The area has also been identified as needing better access and parking.
In a poll that was taken during the master plan process, more people said they thought the businesses that are most needed and that they would most like to see come to Somerset are restaurants, bars and taverns above all other answers. More people during that survey said they would like to see rejuvenation of existing commercial areas over other answers when asked what is most important to them for future commercial and business development.
Of those surveyed, 44 percent of the people said they are somewhat optimistic about things in general in Somerset, while 26 percent said they are very optimistic, 16 percent said they are neutral and 14 percent said they are not really optimistic.