Farming, housing, and business development are a few of the issues shaping the Joint Liberty Comprehensive Plan – a shared plan between the Town and Village of Liberty outlining the area’s vision for the future.
Now, local officials and leaders are mapping Liberty’s next plan. The last comprehensive plan Liberty released was in 2008.
Town of Liberty Supervisor Frank DeMayo says a lot has changed since then, especially around housing costs and population growth.
“Housing is a big issue – housing tied to economic development and zoning,” said DeMayo. “There’s a need [for housing] out there because housing costs have gone so high right now that it’s difficult… to attract, you know, good quality teachers here because they have no place to live.”
Developing a thriving business district will also be important in the upcoming plan, says DeMayo. Following Sullivan County’s tourism industry crash back in the late 1980s, he says local officials should have been more proactive in rebuilding the economy.
“It was then that we really should have been looking more diligently at diversifying our businesses, and that’s one of the things since the last comprehensive plan that we realized that’s something that needed to be done.”
Town Planner Peter Manning of Genius Loci Planning says that public input is critical to a quality plan.
“The participation of the people in expressing everything that they feel they would like to see happen, that’s really the heart of the plan,” said Manning.
All comprehensive plan meetings are open to the public. Local officials have already held two public meetings in 2026 to start gathering public input and shaping advisory groups. Residents named a lack of quality senior housing, aging infrastructure, and high taxes as some challenges to consider.
The next meeting is Tuesday, April 14, at 6 p.m. at the Liberty Senior Center in Liberty.
Image: Residents at a community fair on North Main Street in Liberty, New York (Photo Credit: Village of Liberty)