KENMORE, N.Y. (WKBW) — What should Kenmore look like 10 years from now?
That’s the question village leaders are asking residents as work continues on a new Comprehensive Plan designed to help guide Kenmore’s future.
The village is collecting community feedback through surveys as officials look at what is working well and what could be improved. Areas of focus include walkability, transportation, business development, parking and infrastructure.
For Kenmore resident Adam Scheldt, who moved to the village from Brooklyn about 13 years ago, preserving the community’s character is important.
“Kenmore has become so charming, imminently walkable, very cute, plenty of little cafes and restaurants," Scheldt said. “I don't have to go far for just about anything."
Scheldt said he hopes residents from different backgrounds and with varying lengths of time living in Kenmore participate in the process.
“A 10-year plan is meaningless if only 5% of people speak up,” Scheldt said.
WATCH: Kenmore residents asked to help shape Village’s future through new comprehensive plan
Brooke Kibrick, executive director of the Kenmore Tonawanda Chamber of Commerce and a member of the steering committee, said community participation will help determine which ideas and projects are prioritized.
“The more people that fill out that survey, the more we'll be able to hear what everyone's saying and then come up with different projects, ideas, and plans to make those a reality,” Kibrick said.
Two separate comprehensive plans
While the Village of Kenmore develops its own Comprehensive Plan, the Town of Tonawanda is working on a separate plan covering the entire town, including Kenmore.
Town of Tonawanda Councilwoman Jill O’Malley said the two plans have different areas of emphasis.
The Kenmore plan is focusing more heavily on the village’s walkability, the Village Green and business corridors, while the town’s plan includes broader issues such as waterfront redevelopment and community connectivity.
"Both plans are going to impact our residents either way,” O’Malley said.
Because Kenmore is located within the Town of Tonawanda, residents can provide input on both planning processes.
For Scheldt, the goal is to see Kenmore grow while maintaining the qualities that already make the village attractive to residents.
“I really hope that that is something that Kenmore can do, that it can build on and capitalize the strengths it already has to grow and produce even more of them in the future," he said.
Residents can find information about the Village of Kenmore and Town of Tonawanda comprehensive plans and survey here.
