Hinesburg Village Steering Committee

Meeting Minutes December 13, 2006

Present: Brian Busier, George Dameron, Donna Constantineau, Karla Munson, Dona Walker, Tracy Applin

Absent: Rolf Kielman

George opened meeting with discussion of Center Road project mentioning a report should be finalized by end of year. We’ll have to wait until report before further ideas can be discussed. Brian added size of ball field in that location is too small and space could be better used. He asked if we should ask select- board about relocation of these fields. There was also some general discussion around the concerns of traffic increase in regard to the Center Road Project. Some Lyman Meadows residents don’t want a thru traffic road in such close proximity to their units.

Brian gave a summary of Vermont Transit meeting with Jeanne Wilson, i.e. where crosswalks/ lights would be located , three light poles at Lantman’s versus one hanging light, time frame for Silver Street turning lane, etc. Brian hopes that VTO will monitor interval of lights for maximum traffic flow. The committee then talked briefly about concerns around Saputo truck’s that exit north onto 116(we felt it was unsafe given current density of traffic), instead of using the Charlotte Road intersection. Because the lagoons behind can’t be traversed, there can’t be another exit other than the two mentioned above. Does this necessitate a more formal document to the Select board expressing our concerns?

We then went on to talk about rationale for the prioritized sidewalk list we had previously developed. The primary reason for the order we chose was to provide safe walk-ability for all residents, but particularly the children who walk to and from school. Secondly, we thought we would be able to access safe walking grants if we show a strong commitment here, lessening the financial burden on the town.

Donna thought this might be a good item for Town Meeting Day. George felt it was important to bring the school into these conversations around the sidewalk. George offered to write up the rationale for the priority list and Karla added she thought health reasons were obvious benefits of the entire list. There was talk of a yearly budget of $10,000 for sidewalks that could also cover some of the maintenance costs/plowing. Again, this is an item for Town Meeting. Someone mentioned the Planning Commission has some money for this?

The next topic of discussion was traffic calming. Dona, Donna and Karla spoke about putting a speed indicator in front of the Town Hall so people could see their speed through the village. George and Dona spoke about the need for increased ticketing of drivers who speed in this area. Dona also mentioned she supports lowering the village speed limit and others agreed. Brian wondered how much curbing was planned. Several of us thought barrels at all the crosswalks would increase awareness of the need to stop for pedestrians.

Donna then brought up gateway signage, Welcome to Hinesburg signs and landscaping that would provide visual interest and slow drivers upon entry to Hinesburg Village. Karla mentioned they had talked about this during the charrette. Tracy said the Hinesburg Business group has also expressed interest in signs and landscaping. We talked about possible location for these signs: past Buck Hill Rd, Charlotte Road, Mechanicsville Road, and along 116 before village. We went on to discuss flags. George mentioned we have a budget and one of the ways we might spend some of the money would be for flags. The U.S. and Vermont flags would be displayed regularly from Town Hall. We delved very briefly into on-street parking and decided we need more information from VTO as to what is allowed. George and Dona suggested the committee should walk the village to better grasp the layout for on-street parking and sidewalks. Donna C. spoke about potential businesses we’d like to see in Hinesburg, encouraging a local re-circulation of money. We all agreed how important it is for residents to actively support the changes they wish to see, i.e. shop locally if you want the convenience of nearby shops, etc.

The last topic of the evening centered on Hinesburg’s history and ways to develop historical guidelines Donna has a listing of the historical buildings in Hinesburg which she made available to the rest of the group. George said he’d like to bring Paul Bruhn (Preservation Trust of Vermont) and Jan Albers (author of Hands on the Land) to speak locally about preserving historical guidelines (perhaps an evening talk at the library…). Brian gave several interesting anecdotes about some of the town’s houses and presented the idea that it isn’t always age that makes a house historical. George and Donna talked about developing a walking tour of Hinesburg that would include history/significance. It was felt a census of the houses of Hinesburg would be really useful.

Meeting adjourned at 8:45pm