From the Mayor and Manager’s Office
of the Village of Brockport
The Village Code is a set of local laws, enacted by the Village government, that apply within the geographic boundaries of the municipality. These laws or ordinances are publicly available on the Village’s website.
The Village of Brockport has been engaged in a multi-year effort to modernize our code, recently unveiling the proposed code for review by the public. Below is an explanation of the reasons for the update, the work leading up to it, and what we hope to gain from this investment in our community.
Past and current village board members understood developing a comprehensive plan focused on the village would be in our best interest. The effort to lay the groundwork began back in 2013 and took several years before the commitment was made to move forward with a Comprehensive Plan separate and distinct from the one previously shared with the Town of Sweden.
In 2019 the Comprehensive Plan for the Village of Brockport was approved and filed with New York State, becoming a local law. It was developed with the assistance of Ingalls Planning, LLC, and a committee of village stakeholders, over a period of nearly two years. Its development included multiple public meetings and two public hearings. The plan identifies priorities and actions for the village, including land use. It is not just best practice, but also legally imperative, to have a zoning code that matches an adopted comprehensive plan. The village intended to initiate a zoning code rewrite with Ingalls Planning’s assistance in 2020 but the Covid-19 pandemic hit and the code work had to be paused.
In 2021 the Village Board committed to a full modernization of the code, not just the zoning chapter. The effort to update the entire code was undertaken, with consultant Ingalls Planning, for several reasons.
Our existing code is:
•Non-compliant – The zoning code needs to be rewritten to be compliant with the Federal Fair Housing Act as well as the Village Comprehensive Plan.
•Outdated – It prohibits the “rattling of bones” in the Peace and Good Order Chapter, as well as “no baseball on Sundays”. While humorous and historical, these have no place in today’s code. Also, new state laws such as the legalization of cannabis, called for local regulations.
•Unclear and/or contradictory – The lack of clear definitions impacts what can be enforced, essentially tying the Code Enforcement Department’s hands.
•Duplicative – Brockport adheres to the New York State Building Code and does not need to reiterate those standards in our local code.
•Hard to understand – The new version will have images and measurements that make it easier for property owners to understand what is allowed and allowable in the building code within village limits.
Monthly meetings regarding code revisions were held over the last 24 months. The Building Inspection and Code Enforcement Office and Brockport Police Department provided significant input into the code revisions.
In conjunction with our consultant, the village held three public hearings in April 2023 to review the proposed code, highlight changes made, and to take public comment. The comments gathered are being fully investigated to inform modifications to the draft code, which is available for review on the Village website, https://brockportny.org/draft-municipal-code/. Some modifications, based on public comment, have already been incorporated. On May 1, the entire draft code was made available online. Comments will be taken until June 1, 2023 and may be submitted using the comment box at the link provided above, emailing the Village Manager directly at elinden@brockportny.org, or dropping off or mailing comments to 127 Main Street, Brockport, NY 14420.
After the public comment period closes on June 1, comments will be reviewed to inform any new edits or amendments to the proposed code. The Village Board will meet with Ingalls Planning to review comments, responses, and possible changes in a workshop, tentatively scheduled for June 26, 2023.
Following the workshop, the code will be finalized and put before the board for a vote at a regularly held July or August board meeting. The final draft will be posted online in advance of that meeting at https://brockportny.org/draft-municipal-code/.
The Village of Brockport’s goal is to have an easy-to-use code that the public can understand and enforcement officials can implement to keep our community safe. We endeavor to enact a code that is compliant with local, state, and federal law, and provides for a high quality of life for everyone.
We invite your comments and appreciate your care for our community.
