Reuse Assessment

Section Seven Results of the Public Opinion Survey

Purpose of the Survey
One of the primary reasons that the Village applied to the USEPA for a Superfund Redevelopment Initiative grant was to obtain resources necessary to determine the needs and desires of Gowanda area residents before decisions were made concerning the PCG site. The Village’s goals to educate and involve residents of the Gowanda community in the remediation and redevelopment process fit in well with the USEPA’s intent for the Superfund Redevelopment Initiative, as seen below.

“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) believes that early community involvement, with a particular focus on the community’s desired future uses of property associated with the CERCLA site, should result in a more democratic decision making process; greater community support for remedies selected as a result of this process; and more expedited, cost-effective clean-ups.”

Project personnel from the University at Buffalo designed a Public Opinion Survey on the Reuse of the Peter Cooper Gowanda site. The Survey was designed with the following key considerations in mind.

Area residents need to have a strong voice in the redevelopment planning process due to the importance of the site to the region and in keeping with the goals of the Cattaraugus Creek Basin Task Force.
Eventual acceptance and implementation of a remediation strategy and redevelopment plan will be greatly influenced by the amount of involvement the community has had in the planning process.

Recognizing that most people are ‘”time-starved” in today’s busy world, the survey was designed to be no more than two-sides of a page long and to ask clear and direct questions – the thought was that it should be able to be filled out in 15-minutes or less. A copy of the survey appears on the following two pages.

Summary of Findings
One hundred sixty-five surveys were eventually returned to the Village and the information was entered into an electronic database for analysis. Answers to each of the survey questions are discussed in detail later in this section. The overall findings of the Public Opinion Survey are summarized as follows:

Gowanda area residents recognize the important relationship between the PCG site; the area’s natural assets including Cattaraugus Creek and the Zoar Valley; and the future of the community.
A great number of survey respondents (83%) currently visit Cattaraugus Creek or the Zoar Valley, primarily for activities related to the enjoyment of nature such as hiking, walking, sightseeing and fishing.
Fencing-off the site and restricting public access is the option most opposed by Gowanda area residents.
Gowanda area residents have a strong desire to see passive and active recreation opportunities on the site – approximately three-quarters of the respondents indicated such.
Gowanda area residents continue to worry about the loss of employment opportunities in the community, therefore, almost half of respondents would support reuse of the site for commercial or industrial purposes.
Many Gowanda area residents fear the environmental contamination on the site will be dangerous for years to come.

Survey Distribution
In order to reach as many area residents as possible copies of the Survey were distributed through three main channels:

The Survey was introduced at a Community Public Informational Meeting held on October 30, 2001 in the Gowanda High School Auditorium. The meeting was telecast live on Channel 21 Public Access Television. A recording of the meeting was made and subsequently telecast several times over the next month on Public Access Channel 21. Presentation materials from the meeting appear in Attachment K.
The Survey was included with the November 11, 2001 edition of the Gowanda Pennysaver & News, which has a distribution throughout the region. Appearing with the survey was a letter from the Mayor of the Village of Gowanda, Richard Klancer, explaining the origins of the Survey and asking for input from area residents. A copy of the letter appears in Attachment K.
Copies of the Survey were made available at the Village Hall and residents who visited the municipal facility during the month of December were encouraged to fill out the form if they had not already done so.

Survey Response
One hundred and ten (110) people completed the Survey and returned it to the Village. In addition another fifty-five (55) students in the Gowanda Junior High School completed the survey as part of a class project.

Staff of the University at Buffalo entered the results of the one hundred and sixty-five (165) total surveys into an electronic database for analysis. A computer spreadsheet that compiles the responses to key questions for all of the 165 returned surveys appears in Attachment L. This spreadsheet forms the basis for further analysis of survey results as discussed below.

Survey Results
Question #1 of the Public Opinion Survey asks respondents specifically whether they would support or not support seven different types of land use on the PCG site, including:

Type of Use:	Examples:
a) Industrial Uses	light manufacturing, warehousing
b) Commercial Uses	offices, restaurant, lodging/conference, retail
c) Residential	retirement housing, group home, single family
d) Recreational – Passive	walking/nature trail, boat/tube launch, fishing access, picnic areas
e) Recreational – Active	sports fields for soccer, baseball; skate park
f) Community Uses	healthcare facility, performance pavilion, community memorial
g) Fence Off/Restrict Access

An additional area was left in question 1h) for “Your ideas” to allow people the opportunity to express their thoughts that may not have been included in the first seven land use choices. Some examples of ideas that were forwarded are listed below.

Examples of Individuals’ Reuse Ideas for the PCG Site

“Laser tron and movie complex. This may be able to be combined with active and passive recreation.”
“Pool, recreation complex, fitted to enhancing the environment. We need a recreation area for teen and senior citizens.”
“Golf course or driving range, with fees to go into village general fund.”
“A pole barn to be used for parties, auctions, etc. at the rental fee.”
“A golf course, cross-country skiing, fishing access, raft/canoeing, hiking, gorge trips, geological tours. These all can be centered at a resort-type lodge built on the former landfill site.”
“Give something back to the residents--a place for fun recreation plus a place for our teenagers.”
“If commercial or industrial usage were interested in only the first (wider) portion of the site- great to have financial gain from it -but unlikely. Great to develop this in with Zoar Valley and what's already here, plus recreational uses. In connection with the development of Peter Cooper property, if the tannery property could likewise be developed into a par 3 golf course we would have an outstanding recreational area and all this to be tied into Zoar Valley and the creek area above. I believe the golf must be par three. It would complement not compete with other courses nearby. No others in nearby area.”
“Community memorial - It would be nice to have a memorial for this property, a notice that P. Cooper was the largest glue factory in the world.”

A tabulation of responses to question 1a) – 1g) is shown in Table 7a below. Responses to question 1h) such as those shown above were individual responses and, therefore, not included in the summation below.

Table 7a
Question #1: What Type of Future Uses for the Site Would You Support?
(ranked highest to lowest of positive responses)

	Number	Percent
1) Passive Recreation	126 of 165	76%
2) Active Recreation	119 of 165	72%
3) Commercial Uses	73 of 165	44%
4) Industrial Uses	70 of 165	42%
5) Residential Uses	50 of 165	30%
6) Community Uses	49 of 165	30%
7) Fence-Off/Restrict Access	17 of 165	10%

(NOTE: Numbers above are for those responses clearly marked as “Yes”. Some respondents left categories blank, which could not be considered either a yes or no response.)

Through Question #1, therefore, we learned that Passive and Active Recreation Uses on the PCG site would be supported by approximately three-quarters of Gowanda area residents who responded to the survey. At the same time, a little less than one-half of the survey respondents would support Commercial or Industrial Uses on the site. We also learned that approximately one out of three respondents favored Residential and Community Uses. Only one out of ten respondents would support the Fence-Off and Restrict Access idea.

Beyond indicating whether they would support each type of reuse or not (yes or no), respondents to Question #1 were asked to describe why they would support or not support each of the seven land use types. Space alone prohibits listing all of the reasons given, however, we have provided examples of both supporting and non-supporting reasons for each of the seven land use categories below.

Type of Use: Industrial

Examples of Supporting Comments

Would create jobs and should be safe even if there are still chemicals in the ground
Utilizes fiber optic line and rail system/access. Best use of limited resources in land locked village for economic development and increasing tax base.
Gowanda needs a manufacturing base to keep its young people from leaving for other areas where employment is available. This site could accommodate at least five industrial campuses similar to the Gowanda Electronics plant. This is a wonderful location for clean industries. Each year, students graduating from our local schools leave the area and never return. Perhaps some of our young educated people could return here using their talents and energy to make Gowanda thrive again.