Planning Commission Minutes 10-7-2021
Planning Commission Minutes 10-7-2021
TOWN OF RUTLAND PLANNING COMMISSION
MEETING MINUTES
DATE: October 7th, 2021
Publicly accessible conference line
OPEN MEETING 6:30 P.M.
Commission Members Present: Chair Barbara Pulling, Dana Peterson, Howard Burgess, Sherman Hunter, Mary Beth Poli, Jerry Stearns, Jim Hall, and Norman Cohen
Members of the Public Present: David Cleary
The meeting opened with the pledge of allegiance.
Approval of the Agenda:
Mr. Stearns moved to approve the agenda. Mr. Burgess seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
New Business: Stormwater Online Map Link on the town webpage
- Discussed the placement of the link to get to the ordinance map.
- An article is being written for The Circle and a more direct link would be easier to write.
- The current link is under the “Ordinance” tab, then “Stormwater”. The link is on that page, which contains all the stormwater ordinance information.
- The page URL is short enough to be able to be used.
Old Business: McKinley Avenue boundary line adjustments
- Dave Cleary was present to discuss the changes requested.
- The survey has been finished outlining the changes in the request. There are 3 parcels involved.
- The copies of the map presented show all the proposed changes to the lines and how the parcels sizes will be adjusted.
- The are 3 lines which should be added to Parcel “A”, the Disomone property, to complete the survey.
- The application was reviewed and the additional requirement of the 3 lines were added. All other items met the requirements.
- A digital copy of the new map was requested.
- The hearing will be planned for Thursday October 28th.
Old Business: Finalize Model Rules of Procedure
- Reviewed the draft rules discussed at the previous meeting.
- Discussed the wording on passing a motion. Several modifications to the language were proposed. Ultimately a small change was proposed and implemented.
- Discussed wording on limiting discussion. Several options were discussed. No change was made.
- Discussed the use of the word “shall” vs “will” in the document. For consistency, “shall” would be used primarily.
- Discussed establishing rules for primary and alternate Commission members voting.
- Members joining the meeting late or leaving early can affect who is eligible to vote.
- Discussed having any adjustments made after the meeting has begun take effect at the conclusion of the business under discussion.
- This would only affect voting, and not discussions.
- Language will be developed and reviewed at a future meeting.
Old Business Compile a list of questions for VLCT on Ordinances
- Discussed which ones the group would like to review and discuss.
- Hall suggested asking the Selectboard if they had any priorities which should be addressed first.
- Discussed a noise ordinance being among the first looked into.
- Discussed the proposed helipad / landing strip ordinance currently being worked on.
- Discussed the flood ordinance. The most recent one is 2008 and it needs to be updated.
- The Subdivision Ordinance will be one that should be reviewed for changes.
Announcements
Discussed an issue being brought to Town Hall. Residents in the area of Cedar Avenue and North Grove Street have noticed a large volume of construction traffic coming in and out of the parcel on the Northeast corner. There is concern they are operating a sand pit, or other commercial activity. Mr. Burgess said the property owner, the McLaughlin’s, own the property and are building a new primary residence and barn. The construction activity seen is due to this. The timeline of the construction is not currently known. After further discussion there does not appear to be any regulation the town would be involved in. An informational building permit is needed, and this will be requested.
Mary Beth Poli asked about going back to the Selectboard in the near future to discusses a definitive answer about forming a Conservation Commission. The Commission did not have an objection to this being asked. In following with established procedures in the past, Mr. Peterson moved to designate Barbara Pulling and Mary Beth Poli to clarify with the Selectboard their intent with respect to the recommendation to establish a Conservation Commission or not. Mr. Hunter seconded the motion. After discussion the motion passed unanimously.
Mary Beth Poli spoke about a group working on creating a bike trail system. Rutland Town, Rutland City and Mendon are involved. Ms. Poli is working with this group and asked about how her participation should be aligned. It was decided she would participate as a private citizen for the time being.
Mary Beth Poli is working with a non-profit through the school called 4 winds. They are a group of volunteers helping educate kids about the environment. They are looking for additional volunteers to help teach. Ms. Poli has more information if anyone is interested.
Howard Burgess discussed a request made by VELCO regarding parcels they recently had subdivided. They would like to label the parcels. A new sub-division should not be necessary. They would like permission to record a new plat with the designations. The Thomas family owns the parcels. After discussion, Mr. Peterson moved to authorize Mr. Burgess to contact a representative from the Thomas Family and ask them to label the 3 parcels in question for clarification purposes on the properties located off of Post Road. Mr. Stearns seconded the motion. This would need to be on a new plat and brought in for approval at the meeting on the 28th.
Approval of minutes for September 16th, 2021:
Mr. Peterson moved to approve the minutes. Mr. Hunter seconded the motion. After some clerical changes, the motion was amended to include the changes. Mr. Hunter seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
Adjournment:
Mr. Stearns moved to adjourn. Mr. Burgess second the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 8:42 PM.
Respectfully submitted, Bill Sweet
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Barbara Pulling
Rutland Town Planning Commission Chair