NOTICE OF HEARING
TOWN OF WILMINGTON PLANNING COMMISSION
Pursuant to 24 V.S.A. Chapter 117, § 4444, notice is hereby given by the Planning Commission of the Town of Wilmington, Vermont, that a Public Hearing will be held in the Wilmington Town Hall on June 23, 2025 at 5:00 pm.
Statement of Purpose: This is a hearing on the proposed revisions to the Zoning Ordinance for the Town of Wilmington, VT and is issued by the Wilmington Planning Commission regarding proposed changes to the Town of Wilmington Zoning Ordinance & Development Guidelines (the “Bylaws”).
The proposed changes to the Bylaws impact the following Articles: Article I – Enactment and Purpose; Article II – Administrative Procedures; Article III – Boundary Lines and Subdivisions; Article IV – Districts and Uses; Article V – Historic Design Review District, an Overlay District; Article VI – Flood Hazard District, an Overlay District; Article VII – Standards; Article VIII – Signs; Article IX – Telecommunications; Article X – General Definitions; and Appendix I – Site Plan and Design Guidelines.
A brief summary of the proposed changes are as follows:
- Article I: Section 110 (Purpose), add subsection ‘H.’ regarding equal treatment of housing and required provisions for affordable housing;
- Article II: add language regarding Special Flood Hazard Areas throughout Article, revise accessibility language in Article and throughout Bylaws, remove table of penalties and related language in Section 216 (Penalties for Violations), add language regarding notice and warning of hearing on applications under Section 226 (Development Review Board Decisions), and update definition of Interested Person in subsection ‘D.’ of Section 272 (Who May Attend and Be Heard at a Public Hearing);
- Article III: amend subsection ‘D.’ of Section 320 (Subdivision of Land) regarding approvals and filing requirements, and add subsection ‘E.’ regarding subdivision review;
- Article IV: revise Section 424 (Secondary Uses), clarify measurement standard in Section 441 (Height Limitations), revise subsection ‘B.’ of Section 447 (Agricultural Exceptions) regarding Accessory On-Farm Business, and add new subsection ‘B.7.’ to Section 448 (Community Facility Development Exceptions);
- Article V: when related to mapping throughout the Bylaws replace the word “District” with “Overlay” for the terms Design Review Districts, Village Design Review District and Historic Design Review District;
- Article VI: rewrite entire Article regarding flood hazard in conjunction with the Windham Regional Commission and in compliance with 24 VSA 4424, establish Base Flood Elevation of two (2) feet;
- Article VII: revise subsection ‘D.2.’ (Size of Parking Spaces) of Section 730 (Specific Standards) to comply with new state law and remove subsection ‘D.4.viii’, clarify measurement standard in subsection ‘C.’ of Section 734 (Affordable Housing Development Standards);
- Article VIII: remove subsection ‘I.’ of Section 823 (Other Signs), add subsection ‘F.’ of Section 832 (Number of Signs) regarding menu boards, add subsection ‘E.’ (feather flags) of Section 860 (Signs Not Allowed);
- Article IX: rewrite entire Article regarding telecommunications facilities in conjunction with the Windham Regional Commission and in compliance with 24 VSA 4424; and
- Article X:
- move all existing definitions in Bylaws to this Article;
- modify, add or remove definitions for: Accessory Structure, Bedroom/Guest Room, Building, Community, Critical Facilities, Designated Center, Disabled, Expansion to an Existing Manufactured Home Park or Subdivision, Family, Historic Structure, Junkyard, Land Developed/Developed Area, Start of Construction, Substantial Damage, Substantial Improvement, Violation and Sign – Internal Illumination, all related to flood hazard and telecommunications;
- remove outdated and impermissible language to meet new state law regulations; and
- correct typographical errors throughout the Bylaws.
In consideration of needed compliance with new Vermont statutes and in keeping with the spirit of the 2018 Wilmington Town Plan’s Goal 7 (Ensure the Availability of Housing for all Residents of Wilmington), Goal 10 (Make it Easier to do Business in Wilmington), and Goal 11 (Make Wilmington a Flood Resilient Community), the Planning Commission of the Town of Wilmington has determined that the following changes to the Bylaws were needed to serve the best interest of the town:
- updating the Bylaws to correct outdated language and regulations, correcting for clerical errors and updates, updating certain definitions and moving all definitions in the Bylaws to Article X;
- clarifying provisions that the Zoning Administrator and Development Review Board have recently received questions and concerns over;
- updating Article VI to comply with new Vermont statutory requirements and establishing a new Base Flood Elevation of two (2) feet;
- updating Article IX to comply with new Vermont statutory requirements and renaming it to “Wireless Telecommunications Facilities”; and
- other changes to align the Bylaws with recently adopted Vermont statutes.
Through its regular meetings and conversations with local and regional planning and zoning personnel at those meetings, the Planning Commission has found that the above proposed changes to the Bylaws will make it easier for Wilmington to navigate housing and business in its community and will bring the Bylaws into compliance with current Vermont law.
Approved by majority at our meeting May 12, 2025:
Matthew Moore, Chair
Description of the Area Covered: The proposed changes cover the entire town of Wilmington, Vermont.
List of Proposed Amendments to be approved and adopted:
- Article I, Enactment and Purpose – Changes as noted above
- Article II, Administrative Procedures – Changes as noted above
- Article III, Boundary Lines and Subdivisions – Changes as noted above
- Article IV, Districts and Uses – Changes as noted above
- Article V, Historic Design Review District – An Overlay District – Changes as noted above
- Article VII, Standards – Changes as noted above
- Article VIII, Signs – Changes as noted above
- Article IX, Telecommunications – Changes as noted above
- Article X – Definitions – Changes as noted above
These Articles are presented for adoption to supplement the following current, already revised and approved, Articles:
- Article I – Enactment and Purpose
- Article II – Administrative Procedures
- Article III – Boundary Lines and Subdivisions
- Article IV: District Purposes and descriptions
- Article V – Historic Design Review District, An Overlay District – Descriptions, Uses and Regulations
- Article VI – Flood Hazard District – an Overlay District
- Article VII: Standards – addition of Section 731 Cottage Cluster Development, Section 734 Workforce/Affordable Housing
- Article VIII – Signs
- Article IX – Wireless and Telecommunications Facilities
- Article X – General Definitions – additional definitions as indicated
- Appendix I – Site Plan and Design Guidelines
- Appendix II – Structures Listed on the National or State Register of Historic Places
Where the proposed Articles may be examined:
Copies of the document are available for public review at the Wilmington Town Offices and on the Town of Wilmington website www.wilmingtonvermont.us/documents/ordinances .
