FLY CREEK - It was apparent during two visioning workshops in the town of Otsego last month that when it comes to issues facing the area, little has changed in the last three years.

Planning consultant Nan Stolzenburg and her staff are working on the revisions to the town's comprehensive plan and held two public workshops to identify the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities in the town, as well as develop a town-wide vision for the future.

Residents were asked to offer their thoughts on such topics of concern in the town as residential development, agriculture, open space, community character, and other issues.

A comprehensive plan is a document that identifies the vision, goals, policies, and strategies to guide growth and development in the town over the next 10 to 15 years.a

"It is the policy foundation upon which the future of the town will be built. The plan will be the roadmap for future decision making related to the immediate and long-range protection, enhancement, and development of the town of Otsego," she said.

The town's current plan was adopted in 1987.

Stolzenburg said many of the comments during the two sessions were similar to what was heard when she and her staff put together the Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for the Cooperstown area.

"They were very similar issues. There was nothing I would consider new or fresh," she said this week. 'There were a lot of the same issues that have not been resolved."

Stolzenburg added that many of the issues are the same ones she encounters when working in rural areas.

She said revising comprehensive plans was one of the recommendations to the village and towns in the GEIS.

"I give Otsego a lot of credit, they are the only one of the GEIS group working on their Comprehensive Plan," she said.

Some of the negative aspects identified in the workshops included traffic, a lack of affordable housing, not enough control on growth, short-term summer rentals and a lack of business diversity.

On the other side, residents pointed to the rural character of the town, its relative safety, a clean environment, scenic views, and Otsego Lake.

One thing which did stand out was Fly Creek's role or potential role in the town. The Fly Creek area did not receive a lot of prominence in the GEIS because of the larger scope of the study, Stolzenburg explained. During the two recent workshops, it came up as "a very beloved area in the town."

People were interested in maintaining the character of the buildings and were interested in seeing a greater diversity of businesses in a style and scale appropriate to the hamlet, she said.

The town began the process of revising and updating its comprehensive plan in 2002 and had conducted a survey of the residents which was provided to Stolzenburg and her staff when they were hired to complete the job last month. While the survey provided some needed information, she said they believed there were supplemental questions which needed to be asked to better target questions for another survey planned for January in which they will explore issues important to the town residents.

That survey will be posted on the town's website where people may fill it out online. Paper copies of the survey will also be available for anyone who prefers it.

Also planned for January are focus groups, interviews with individuals, officials and agencies and combination meeting and open house.

Town supervisor Tom Breiten attended both sessions and commented that it was remarkable to see how similar everyone's vision for town was.

"Residents want a beautiful, healthy, prosperous community where they can raise a family, afford a house and find gainful employment," he said.

Everyone wants essentially the same thing. The process may show some differences in how people believe those goals can be achieved, but essentially the goals are the same, he said.