Planning Commission
The Jericho Planning Commission (PC) is made up of seven volunteer-members appointed by the Select Board. We do our work through a lens which attempts to balance the public good with private rights and interests by listening to public input, researching issues and solutions, and following state and regional laws and guidelines.
The primary duties and responsibilities of the PC include:
Prepare the Comprehensive Plan, for consideration by the Selectboard. The Comprehensive Plan, also known as the Town Plan or Municipal Plan, describes the future visions and goals of the community, and it sets forth how the Town intends to achieve its goals.
Propose by-laws, for consideration by the Selectboard. The by-laws, also known as Land Use and Development regulations or zoning regulations, implement the growth and development goals of the community, and they must conform with the Town Plan.
Meetings are held on the first and third Tuesday of each month. Public participation and comment is welcomed and encouraged. Click Here For PC Meeting Procedures
Other roles of the PC:
Advises the Selectboard and other Town committees (e.g. Conservation Commission, Trails Committee, Affordable Housing Committee) on planning topics, projects, and the capital program.
Assists town committees and staff with actions that will implement the visions and goals of the adopted Town Plan. Each town committee has a liaison on the Planning Commission so we remain apprised of each others' work.
The PC is assisted and guided by the Town Planner, who is a town employee. Through this collaboration the PC and Planner:
- Collect information and recommend town policies related to land use and development, housing, public spaces, transportation, economic and social development, historic and scenic preservation, recreation, energy use and conservation, and natural resources protection.
- Identify grants from government and nonprofits to fund projects.
Ensure Jericho complies with state planning goals and smart growth principles.
Work with the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission, our neighboring towns, and state agencies like the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development and the Agency of Natural Resources.
Click on any of the buttons below to read the documents:
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Click this link to view more planning documents on the Town Documents Page. You can also find all old versions of the Town Plan and Land Use Regulations Here. You can also find more Planning Documents on the sidebar of this page.
Here are some of our current projects - click on each image for more information.
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May 19 PC Meeting
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linkedin Email this linkThe Planning Commission met on May 19. There was no physical location for this meeting and it was held virtually.
During this meeting, the Planning Commission discussed a new draft of the Commercial District Zoning. That draft can be viewed on the Commercial District project page on this website, clicking the blue text in the previous sentence. They explained that on the Commercial District page there is application set up where anyone can leave comments on any part of the draft regulations. This will be available to all to see.
The PC also discussed some possible ways that the town can encourage local agriculture.
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May 5 Planning Commission Meeting
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linkedin Email this linkThe Planning Commission, after taking a break in April, meet on May 5. There was no physical location for that meeting.
The following items were on the agenda:
- COVID-19 Meeting Procedures
- Public Comment
- Approve Minutes of March 10, 2020
- Liaison Updates
- General Updates
- Discussion– Upcoming Meeting Schedule
- Discussion– Upcoming Draft Commercial District Zoning Language
- Schedule - The PC hopes to get another round of edits from their consultant at the beginning of May.
- Review Process - Considering the current social distancing measures in place, the PC will discuss how to move forward with the review of the draft.
- Discussion – Next Projects , Short-Term and Long-Term
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March 10 Planning Commission Meeting
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The Planning Commission met on Tuesday March 10. The following items were discussed:
- They interviewed Sabina Ernst for a Planning Commission vacancy and voted to recommend to the Selectboard that she be appointed to the PC. She will be interviewed by the Selectboard at their next meeting on March 19.
- Liaison updates - Sarah shared updates related to the Trails Committee.
- They discussed the draft language they have received from their consultant for the Commercial District. Specifically, the discussed the use table. They will have a more involved discussion on the draft at their next meeting on March 24.
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Planning Commission Meeting - February 18
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The Planning commission meets next on Tuesday February 19 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm in the Town Hall. They have a busy agenda. The full agenda may be viewed on the sidebar of this page.
- The PC members, as become a custom, will update each other on their interaction with other boards and committees. We call this "Liaison Updates."
- They will discuss where they are on developing an Official Map.
- The chair, Jason Cheney, will provide an update on the Ride Share project that he is working on with the Council of Rural Development.
- The majority of the evening will be spent in discussion with their consultant, Chris Sargent, reviewing the draft zoning language for the Commercial District. That draft language can be viewed on the Future of the Commercial District project page.
- They will also discuss their plans for their table at Town Meeting Day.
All are welcome to attend. If you cannot make it, the MMCTV video will be available for viewing later in the week following the meeting.
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Planning Commission Meeting - February 4
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The Planning Commission met on Tuesday February 4.
They spend much of their meeting discussing their future projects and organizing their workload. They are currently working with their consultant on new zoning the the Commercial District. That will be wrapping up soon. The decided that they will focus on the following items next:
- An Official Map for the Commercial District and trails around Town;
- Edits to the Riverside Character Based Zoning District, they will be working with the DRB on this;
- Edits to the Zoning Planned Unit Developments;
- Edits to the Zoning to include energy efficiency; and
- Protecting agricultural land and encouraging agricultural businesses.
They looked at their survey on renaming the Commercial District and have a proposed new name - the Mansfield Neighborhood & Business District. AKA Mansfield or the MN&BD. What do you think? They'll be reaching out to folks about this name in the near future.
The PC will have a table at Town Meeting in March. This is a great time for anyone to stop by and chat about planning with the PC.
The minutes of the meeting will be availalbe on this page later this week and the meeting was recorded by MMCTV. That is available on this web page.
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Planning Commission Meeting - January 21
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The Planning Commission meets next on Tuesday January 21 from 7:00 - 9:00 pm in the Town Hall.
The meeting will focus mostly on setting out a road map for short and long term planning projects. They will will be looking at their task list to help inform their next steps. You can view their Planning Task document here.
All are welcome to attend.
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Planning Commission Meeting - January 7
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The Planning Commission would like to invite the public to their next meeting on January 7, 2020.
This meeting will be more informal than normal. The PC will be hosting a "cookie social" for all other Jericho Town Boards as well as the public. It is designed as a time for people to come and chat and share their thoughts with the PC and other board members. Please feel free to show up at Town Hall any time between 7 and 9 and be prepared to eat some cookies!
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Planning Commission Meeting - December 17
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The Planning Commission met on Tuesday December 17th and they heard and discussed following items:
- A presentation from the Conservation Commission regarding a conservation fund that they are recommending to the Selectboard. More details on are posted on the Conservation Commission page.
- The Planning Commission and the Commercial District Advisory Committee discussed their comments on the Zoning Approach documents provided by their project consultant. You can view the documents provided by their consultant as well as a summary of both group's comments on the Commercial District project page.
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Planning Commission Meeting - December 3
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The Planning Commission meets next on Tuesday December 3rd from 7:00 - 9:00 pm. The following items are on the agenda:
- The Planning Commission has been spending time over the last couple of years on a public process of better shaping the future of the Commercial District. One action item that surfaced is to change the name of the district. The district is not really just for commercial uses nor is that all that is there currently. In fact, it is just about evenly split between residential and commercial uses. What should the name be? They set up a poll on the PC page for folks to weigh in on. They will discuss the results so far. Participate in the Poll HERE
- They will continue their conversation on the next planning projects, based on this spreadsheet that includes Town Plan tasks as well as public comment.
- They also added an agenda item to discuss the potential zoning approach suggested by their consultant also with some supporting documents. See those below.
- Mind Map of Zoning -
Planning Commission Meeting Summary - November 19
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The Planning Commission met on Tuesday November 19th.
The PC discussed what their focus should be (outside of the Commercial district project). They began their discussion with a quick presentation on Why Jericho should have a Town Plan.
Then, to move the discussion further on what to work on next, they looked at the implementation tasks from the Town Plan as well as on comments they have heard from community members over the last few years.
They also discussed the process for renaming the Commercial district based on the new vision statement agreed upon in the Commercial District Master Plan, which was finalized in August of this year. This is the vision statement:
“A Commercial District that creates a valuable connection between Jericho Corners and Riverside Village; providing a location for mixed-use development and expanded commerce at an appropriate scale for the community which preserves rural character, the natural beauty of the landscape and distant views.”
Do you any ideas for a new name for the district? If so, come an suggest them or leave a comment here. Additionally, soon the PC will have a survey up on the Commercial district page where you can vote on which name you like best. Stay tuned!
If you were unable to attend, the minutes will be posted on this website following the meeting and the MMCTV video will also be linked on this page.
Watch MMUCTV Recordings
Questions? Contact Us
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Committee Chair
SBEmail Pchair@jerichovt.gov -
Jericho Town Planner
Phone 802-899-2287 x103 Email lblasch@jerichovt.gov