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.
 Connecting Jericho Corners and Riverside - Multimodal Path |
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Planning Commission Meeting - January 7
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
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
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
2 comments
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Planning Commission Meeting Summary - November 19
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.
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Planning Commission Meeting Summary - November 5
The Planning Commission met on Tuesday November 5.
Chris Sargent, the PC's consultant for the Commercial District project, led a discussion on future zoning changes for the CD. This is the last phase with Chris of the CD project. The development of zoning is in the early stages and the Chris presented what he had heard from the CD Advisory Committee when he met with them in October. He also summarized what was agreed upon through the Master Planning process related to zoning as well as discussed preferred zoning approaches, including a possible approach like Westford uses.
The Planning Commission also discussed the importance of implementing the other action steps from the Town Plan. There was further discussion related to the different parties responsible for moving forward with the next steps; an acknowledgement that the Selectboard and CD property owners are key players in those next steps. More discussion will need to follow soon.The PC also discussed the importance of implementing the Town Plan tasks. They begin looking at the tasks for the Planning Commission and also talked about the items that they have heard from the public that they think are important that might not show up on the Town Plan list. They will continue this discussion at their next meeting.They also discussed implementing an Official Map South Burlington and Hinesburg both have official maps and have found them to be very useful. They are going to possibly plan a field trip to these towns to learn more.Minutes and the MMCTV video of the meeting will be posted on this website when available. -
Planning Commission Meeting Summary - October 15
On Tuesday October 15, the Planning Commission met at 7:00 pm in the Town Hall.
This meeting was the Public Hearing for a small round of Town Plan Amendments. They approved the amendments and sent them on to the Selectboard for their review and public hearings.
You can learn more about the Amendments by clicking the button below:
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Movie Night with the Planning Commission - October 1
Join in Planning Commission for a movie. Well, actually a webinar, featuring form based code, but we'll have popcorn!
The meeting is on October 1, from 7:00-8:30 in the Town Hall.
The PC is going to be spending some time learning about varying planning related issues and tools. For this meeting they will learn more about "form based code". The webinar they will be watching is about form based code and small scale industrial/commercial development.
On the learning track, the PC will also take a time to learn about some other planning resources, particularly the State of Vermont planning manuals.
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Planning Commission Meeting - September 17
The Planning Commission will next meet on September 17 from 7:00 - 9:00 pm in the Town Hall. Please join them. At this meeting they will discuss the following:
- Process Discussion: This will involve talking through the Commercial District Project and what remains of this project (Zoning Regulations) They will also talk about the process of implementing the Commercial District Master Plan, which they began with the Town Plan Amendments.
- Official Map Discussion: One of the recommendations in the Town Plan and the Commercial District Master Plan is the implementation of an Official Map. The PC will learn more about that process and discuss funding options.
- Next Planning Projects: The PC will spend some time talking about what they want to do/learn about next. This will likely include learning about alternative zoning regulations.
- Planning for the September 26 Farmers Market: The PC is attending an upcoming Jericho Farmers Market. They will talk about what they will do at the Market.
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Planning Commission Meeting September 10
The Planning Commission will be meeting next on Tuesday September 10 from 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm in the Town Hall. Please feel free to join them.
At this meeting they will be discussing several things, including the following:
The Jericho Town Plan:
- The PC will hold an Open House on Saturday September 7 from 9:00 am - 2:00. They will discuss that open house and the comments received and how to integrate into the Town Plan draft.
- They will plan on finalizing the draft chapters: Natural Resources Overlay, Commercial District changes, new Healthy Community Chapter, and the Energy Chapter. Read more about these changes and see these changes on the 2019 Town Plan Amendment Page of this website.
- The PC will be working with the Commercial District consultant, Chris Sargent, to develop new Zoning Regulations for the Commercial District. These changes are based on the Master Plan developed over this past year and new Vision Statement. Learn more about that on the Commercial District Project page. They will discuss how that process will work as well as work on an education process about different types of zoning regulations.
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Planning Commission Meeting - August 20
The Planning Commission will be meeting next on Tuesday August 20 from 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm in the Town Hall. Please feel free to join them.
At this meeting they will be discussing several things, including the following:
- The Commercial District Project Master Plan. The current draft is dated July 26, 2019. A new draft will be discussed and will be uploaded on the Commercial District Project page prior to the meeting. You can visit the Commercial District project page now to view the August 16 draft as well as draft maps and supporting materials.
- They will discuss the following Town Plan chapters:
- Health in Jericho: This is a new chapter and the is the August 12, 2019 can be viewed HERE.
- The Commercial District changes: These changes are as a result of the Commercial District project. Visit the Commercial District page to learn more about the project. The most recent draft of the chapter (dated August 19) is posted on the Town Plan Amendment page.
- Energy Chapter: Changes made in order to comply with the state's energy plan. View the draft and maps HERE.
- Natural Resource Chapter: These changes are being made to reflect the adoption of the Natural Resources Overlay in the Land Use Regulations. The changes proposed are still under construction and will be posted when available HERE.
- The Planning Commission is holding an open house where the public can see the changes proposed and have a chance to offer any comments or ask questions. That Open House is on September 7 from 9:00 am - 2:00 pm. They will be discussing and planning the Open House.
2 comments
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