TOWN OF HINESBURG
PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
Approved April 7, 2004
Commission Members Present: Jean Isham (Chair), Joe Iadanza, John Buckingham, Nancy Norris, George Bedard, Fred Haulenbeek, Carrie Fenn, Deb Howard.
Commission Members Absent: None.
Also Present: Alex Weinhagen (Town Planner), George & Karla Munson.
The meeting began at approximately 7:40pm.
Town Plan Revision – Discuss Draft 1:
Vision Statement & General Goals – The Commission discussed the draft vision statement prepared by Nancy and modified by Jean. The Commission agreed this was a good, concise vision statement. Alex suggested reducing the number of objectives following each of the general goals listed in the current Plan. Jean and Fred thought these objectives were actually helpful. Nancy suggested deleting the word “decent” in objective 2.1. Deb agreed. Joe recommended adding the Industrial 5 district to the introductory list of accomplishments. Deb suggested changing the word “efficient” to “well designed” in objective 3.4 since efficiency could be interpreted as increasing traffic speeds, which runs counter to the pedestrian focus the Commission has discussed. Deb suggested changing 3.4 to begin with, “ To strive for safe and well designed transportation systems; …” Alex said that preservation of agricultural and forestry lands should be specific to the rural regions of Town and not the growth center. Jean recommended changing objective 1.2 to read, “To encourage the economic viability of agriculture and forestry uses.” John suggested changing objective 4.5 to read, “To conserve viable agricultural and forestry lands in the rural regions of Hinesburg.” Given this change, the phrase “productive forest land” can be deleted from objective 4.2. The Commission discussed goal 5, and decided it was OK, even though the Town may have limited influence on policy or legislative matters at the State or Federal level.
Joe said the draft needs to be clearer on ensuring access to agricultural lands. He suggested using the language from recommendation 3.5.4d to address this on agricultural lands. Joe also suggested several grammatical corrections.
Deb questioned the housing recommendation to modify existing regulations to encourage the establishment of new mobile home parks. She thought the Commission had decided to encourage improvements to existing parks, but not to encourage or discourage new parks. Joe agreed that this was his recollection from prior meetings. George said encouraging new parks would help address the housing shortage, but that new parks wouldn’t be viable without changes to the required density. Deb reiterated that she has no problem modifying the regulations to encourage improvements to existing parks. Nancy suggested a compromise that the Plan should indicate that regulations will be modified to encourage improvements to existing parks, and will consider changes related to the establishment of new parks.
In the transportation section, Deb reiterated her desire to change the word “efficient” to “well designed”. George said Hinesburg should seek to establish a reputation as a Town that strictly enforces speed limits. George said enforcement is the key to improving safety in the village, and that currently the police department is not focusing enough attention on speed enforcement. The Commission agreed that a recommendation on this issue should be added to the transportation section. Joe suggested adding to section 6.1, and Jean suggested the following language, “To implement a zero tolerance policy for speeding”.
Summary of Plan Changes – The Commission reviewed the summary of Plan changes that Alex prepared for inclusion in the Hinesburg Record and dissemination to the Selectboard. A variety of modifications and corrections were suggested. The Commission discussed the concept of establishing a gateway or transitional zoning district around the village that promotes open space. The Commission felt this should be added to the summary of changes. Alex will reorganize the summary to make the major, new initiatives more clear.
Minutes of the March 3, 2004 Meeting:
Deb MOVED to approve the March 3, 2004 meeting minutes. John SECONDED the motion. The motion PASSED 8-0.
The meeting adjourned at approximately 10:00pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
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Alex Weinhagen, Town Planner Date