Burke Planning Commission
Planning Commission 
Summary of Activities Meeting Minutes
Summary of Activities
Realizing that proposed development projects in Burke will continue to bring irreversible change to our town the planning commission began a major planning effort in 2008. Working with NVDA, our regional planning commission, and Smart Growth Vermont we embarked on a series of tasks including: identifying the key elements central to the Burke's rural character and scenic beauty; preparation, dissemination and analysis of a town survey; identifying and mapping boundaries for designated village center areas and preparing state applications for village center designation; evaluating the feasibility and benefits of creating a growth center in Burke; recommending growth management strategies and development standards for outlying rural areas; creating a capital plan and budget for major town projects; educating the community regarding what other town's have learned from major ski resort developments; and dissemination of information throughout the project with a quarterly newsletter.
We continue to have a strong commitment to citizen participation in all our planning initiatives to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to express their ideas for shaping Burke's future and to help formulate strategies for protecting our rural character and scenic beauty. Towards this end, in 2008 we completed a new town survey and held several focus groups with residents to better understand how residents define "rural character," to solicit opinions on various planning options for protecting rural character, and to develop an understanding of what residents anticipate to be significant secondary impacts of proposed developments. We also held a public forum to discuss the results of the survey and focus groups, explain the benefits of obtaining Village Center designation from the state for our two villages, and for everyone to learn and express their thoughts about the places others feel are special in Burke. All documents produced for this project are available from the Town Clerk's Office.
In addition, during 2008 the planning commission worked on revising Burke's zoning bylaw to allow a setback waiver which was approved at the 2007 town meeting, reviewing the bylaw regarding setback requirements for outdoor wood-fired boilers and industrial uses in the town's rural districts, processing of zoning violations, identifying and recommending a new zoning administrator, and reviewing building permit fees.
Evelyn Franz joined the planning commission, replacing Carol Krochak who joined the development review board, and Linda Corey became the commission's secretary. The present commissioners, all volunteers, are Carlos Bean, Doug Clarner, Darryel Corrow, Al Duey, Evelyn Franz, John Kresser, and Lynn Welch.
We firmly believe that greater citizen participation will lead to results in Burke's planning efforts that best reflect the desires of the community. Unfortunately not all Burke residents take advantage of the opportunity to have their opinions heard which makes it more difficult for the planning commission to develop strategies that incorporate all points of view. The Planning Commission meets on the second Thursday of each month at 6 p.m. in the Burke Town Office. Citizens are encouraged to attend these meetings and participate in all of Burke's planning initiatives.
Burke Planning Commission
Source: 2008 Annual Report, Town of Burke, Vermont