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YOU HAVE A VOICE'
As residents of Burlington, it incumbent upon us as citizens to voice our thoughts and concerns regarding proposed development projects that have the capacity to permanently alter the appearance and dynamics of the community we collectively share. On June 6th, it was announced by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources that BC Community Housing LLC, the developing firm associated with the Cambrian Rise project, had formally submitted an application for an Act 250 permit. In turn, the prehearing conference for the application’s review has been scheduled for 9 AM on Monday, July 10th at 351 North Avenue. The prehearing conference will be preceded by a site visit at 8 AM at the same location.
The Act 250 review is an application process mandated by the 1970 Vermont Land Use and Development Act. The intention of the Act 250 review process is to ensure that development projects in the state of Vermont take adequate measures towards minimizing negative environmental and community impacts associated with development. Rulings and permits derived from the Act 250 review process are issued by the District Commission, which in turn reaches its ruling based off of the extent to which the application in question complies with ten environmental and community evaluative criteria articulated in the Act 250 statute. Development projects located in Chittenden County are reviewed by District Commission 4.
With the Act 250 review process constituting the final major hurdle to the Cambrian Rise community housing development’s approval, now is the time to make your voice heard as a citizen of Burlington. While there are no restrictions on who may attend the prehearing conference associated with the Cambrian Rise application on July 10th, any party seeking to participate in subsequent hearings must be present for the prehearing conference. In turn, eligibility to participate in ensuing proceedings and the nature of permissible testimony thereafter exists in three capacities, articulated below. If you are interested in participating but are unable to attend the pre-conference hearing, please send your specific concerns to District #4 Coordinator Stephanie Monaghan at stephanie.monaghan@vermont.gov
1) Party Type: Statutory Parties
Qualifications: Municipality, municipal/regional planning commission, affected state agencies
Permissable Testimony: May participate to the extent that they have a particularized interest that may be affected by the project in question under the ten evaluative criteria of Act 250
2) Party Type: Adjoining Property Owners
Qualifications: Property owners whose land directly borders the project site in question
Permissable Testimony: May participate to the extent that they have a particularized interest that may be affected by the project in question under the ten evaluative criteria of Act 250
3) Party Type: Non-Party Participants
Qualifications: Must provide written description of organization and purposes, documentation proving authorization to represent organization prior to hearing announcement, and articulated position with respect to project’s impacts under ten Act 250 criteria; status subject to approval by District Commission
Permissable Testimony: May participate to the extent that they have a particularized interest that may be affected by the project in question under the ten evaluative criteria of Act 250