Town of Cazenovia

The Town of Cazenovia is a community of 6500 residents in Madison County. Its proximity to major employment centers and cultural opportunities makes it an attractive area for residential and commercial development. The town's government is aware that unchecked development could have an adverse impact on vital resources, traffic, agricultural land and open space if they do not effectively manage growth. The town is interested in guiding growth in a manner that will protect and safeguard the town's infrastructure, economy and natural and historical resources.

David McKenzie, '08, a geography and English double major, worked with the town in the summer of 2007 as a Field School fellow. He created an open space inventory to categorize view sheds and undeveloped open space in a database. This inventory included a detailed assessment of each parcel history, site photos, and baseline environmental assets, and was geo-referenced using the Madison County Planning Department GIS software. The result is a searchable management tool that the town can use to identify and display parcels with key attributes, and to provide information regarding priority areas for protection.