Waterford - A majority of residents here want to see more walkable neighborhoods, more biking and hiking trails and the creation of mixed commercial and residential zones in the town.

But residents are also not willing to pay more in taxes to achieve any of those goals.

These are some of the findings in the draft report of the updated Plan of Conservation and Development which the Planning and Zoning Commission will discuss tonight at 7 p.m. at Town Hall.

"This plan is something that will help direct us," director of planning Tom Wagner said.

The comprehensive plan also considers how the town will adapt to climate change and reduce energy use.

The plan will replace the conservation and development plan which dates to 1998 and governed the creation of new shopping plazas on Boston Post Road and the purchase of 150 acres of open space.

"We've had a busy decade," Wagner said.

With the new plan, Wagner said residents who were surveyed in the past year tended to push back slightly against the automobile-oriented development that has defined Waterford for more than 60 years.

According to the results of public information sessions and a telephone survey, 64 percent of participants want the town to develop a village-type "town center" which would be more hospitable to pedestrians.

Seventy percent said the town should provide more sidewalks and 64 percent said the town should provide for alternative modes of transportation such as bike lanes and buses.

But only 30 percent would be willing to pay to personally maintain sidewalks instead of the town.

Nearly 80 percent of those surveyed said the town should create a townwide trail system for pedestrians and cyclists, though only one-third would be willing to pay more in taxes to create such a system.

In concert in creating more walkable neighborhoods, Wagner said the new conservation plan would seek to allow more neighborhood businesses, such as general stores, in different parts of town.

'We've lost a lot of the mom-and-pop stores," Wagner said.

But close to 90 percent of those surveyed said Waterford had just enough or too much retail.

A majority of those surveyed said there are enough single-family homes and condominiums in the town, but 51 percent said there should be more rental housing for young people and 47 percent said there should be more affordable housing for first-time home buyers.

The draft plan is available on www.theday.com or on the town of Waterford website.

s.chupaska@theday.com