Current Projects

Adirondack Partnership’s Adirondack Economic Development Strategies Project:  The Adirondack Economic Development Strategies Project is an effort by a range of organizations to identify the best opportunities for economic development in the Park. The Adirondack Community Housing Trust serves as administrator for this project on behalf of Hamilton County and the Adirondack Partnership. For more information, as well as the findings, please see the website http://www.adirondackstrategies.com.

Dart Brook Housing Community: This project is the product of years of diligent work by the voluntary group, Keene Community Housing Committee. It is a six lot subdivision located off of Route 9N and 73 in the Town of Keene. The homes will be built to US-EPA Energy Star Certified rating standards. The target income levels to purchase these homes will be moderate income households. The project is slated to begin in this spring.

Applications for these developments are currently being accepted.

Hamlets 3: The Hamlets 3 project is an initiative through the Adirondack Community Housing Trust to create opportunities for economic development and physical improvement of the Adirondack region through smart expansion.

Roger Trancik, FASLA
Urban Design Consultants
Ithaca, New York

Hamlets of the Adirondacks 1, published in 1983, educated persons and agencies (especially those outside of the Park) about the existence of the hamlets, addressing any perception that the Adirondacks is entirely a wilderness, without any communities or resident population. It made the case that the hamlets had pressing needs for new investment and revitalization, and that appropriate policies and programs were required to meet the needs of hamlets.

The files below are in PDF format, and can take several minutes to load.

1.0 Chapter One: The Process Begins 
2.0 Chapter Two: The Hamlets in Time 
3.0 Chapter Three: The Hamlets are Analyzed 
4.0 Chapter Four: The Hamlets are Grouped 
5.0 Chapter Five: The Hamlets in Focus 
6.0 Chapter Six: The Next Step

Roger Trancik, FASLA
Urban Design Consultants
Ithaca, New York

Hamlets of the Adirondacks 2, published two years later in 1985, provided local governments, community organizations and concerned individuals with ideas and strategies on hamlet revitalization, but not hamlet expansion, the goal of Hamlets 3.

The files below are in PDF format, and can take several minutes to load.

1.0 Chapter One: Introduction 
2.0 Chapter Two: Sample Communities 
3.0 Chapter Three: Redevelopment Strategies Section 1 
4.0 Chapter Four: Redevelopment Strategies Section 2 
5.0 Chapter Five: Redevelopment Strategies Section 3 
6.0 Chapter Six: Model Action Programs

Direct questions and/or inquiries to:
Roger Trancik
rtt2@cornell.edu

Roger Trancik, FASLA
Urban Design Consultants
Ithaca, New York

Hamlets 3, a guidebook developed through a project sponsored by the Adirondack Community Housing Trust and Essex County, presents a planning and design model for smart growth of hamlets in the Adirondack Park. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation’s Adirondack Park Community Smart Growth Grant Program provided the funding for Hamlets 3.

The book identifies principles, problems and opportunities for hamlet expansion illustrated with maps, photographs, design analysis diagrams and a step-by-step community planning process. The Hamlets 3 model features Smart Growth Rings that overlay current Adirondack Park Agency land use classes to create 15 unique expansion zones each with its own set of guidelines. The model applies to the 130 settlements throughout the park and can be used by local citizens to successfully plan for and implement future hamlet growth.

Click below to view or download sections of the Hamlets 3 guidebook. Copyright restrictions, described in Section 1.0, apply to reproduction and distribution.

The files below are in PDF format, and can take several minutes to load.

1.0 About Hamlets 3
2.0 Smart Growth Principles
3.0 Study Elements
4.0 Field Analysis
5.0 Expansion Model
6.0 Achieving Success

Planning for Smart Growth and Expansion of Hamlets
in the Adirondack Park

Roger Trancik, FASLA
Urban Design Consultants
Ithaca, New York

In the second phase of Hamlets 3, the smart growth planning model and design principles develop in the phase one guidebook were applied in five Adirondack communities through a series of local training and implementation workshops.

The PDF document below summarizes the process, projects and outcomes. Conceptual design plans prepared for these workshops included the following:

  • Caroga Lake New Town Center
  • Indian Lake Core Improvements
  • Blue Mountain Lake Hotel
  • Jennings Pond Park, Long Lake
  • Flood Re-housing, Au Sable Forks

Click below to view or download sections of the PDF. Copyright restrictions, described on page 4 of Section 1, apply to reproduction and distribution.

1.0 Title TOC H3P2 Book
2.0 Project Background H3P2 Book
3.0 Caroga Lake H3P2 Book
4.0 Indian Lake H3P2 Book
5.0 Blue Mountain Lake H3P2 Book
6.0 Long Lake H3P2 Book
7.0 Au Sable Forks H3P2 Book
8.0 Realizing the Vision H3P2 Book
H3P2 Discussion Memo