Conservation Board — Burlington, VT
Date: 2026-01-05
Time: 16:30

Open Space Subcommittee Meeting Public Notice
 Monday, January 5, 2026, 4:30 PM

311 North Avenue, Conference Room or Remote via Zoom

Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/93003665627?pwd=z7VErCCmr0Td9mIr7AZabt8b8b5fvL.1

Webinar ID: 930 0366 5627

Password: 415789

Telephone: 1 309 205 3325


1. Public Comment

2. Discussion Items
  2.1. Burlington wetlands map
  2.2. 451 Ethan Allen Parkway

3. Adjournment

4. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements

  The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political or religious
  affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
  marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim status or genetic information. The City
  is also committed to providing proper access to services, facilities and employment opportunities. The programs
  and services of the City of Burlington are accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special
  arrangements, auxiliary aid, service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to
  participate in a program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
  Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled
  event.

Open Space Subcommittee Meeting Public Notice
 Monday, January 5, 2026, 4:30 PM

311 North Avenue, Conference Room or Remote via Zoom

Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/93003665627?pwd=z7VErCCmr0Td9mIr7AZabt8b8b5fvL.1

Webinar ID: 930 0366 5627

Password: 415789

Telephone: 1 309 205 3325


1. Public Comment

2. Discussion Items
  2.1. Burlington wetlands map
  2.2. 451 Ethan Allen Parkway

3. Adjournment

4. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements

  The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political or religious
  affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
  marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim status or genetic information. The City
  is also committed to providing proper access to services, facilities and employment opportunities. The programs
  and services of the City of Burlington are accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special
  arrangements, auxiliary aid, service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to
  participate in a program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
  Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled
  event.




 Page 1 of 3
From: Dale Azaria >
Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2025 7:22 AM
To: Dan Cahill < >; Scott Gustin >; Rebecca Roman
 >
Cc: Ryan Crehan >
Subject: Re: Open Space SubCommittee - January

For what it's worth, here are the notes I took at the Wetlands Rulemaking meeting held by ANR
yesterday:

I attended yesterday’s public meeting on the proposed changes to the Vt Wetlands Rules related
to Gov Scott’s Executive Order on Housing. This should not be considered a full summary of the
meeting. I was particularly interested in how DEC will deal with mapping issues given how
much more important the VSWI becomes from a regulatory perspective under the proposed new
rule. There’s another meeting today at 1:00 if anyone wants to attend.


  They discussed the improvements to VSWI and said that they would be completing the
 updates soon. These updates are still based on aerial imagery but they are much better
 than the old maps. For example, in the Winooski Basin they increased the mapped areas
 by 140%. <I'm not sure if Burlington has already been updated but that should be easy to
 determine.>
  The areas identified as “Pending VSWI” on the map ANR is using in association with
 this rulemaking still have to go through public process and formal approval before they
 are considered “mapped” for purposes of the proposed rule.
  They said that if they have an actual delineation that differs from the aerial imagery data
 they will used the delineation– but in practice they have a backlog of adding actual
 delineations onto the VSWI and didn’t say when they would clear that backlog. <It would
 have been good to ask whether they intended to clear that backlog before implementing
 the new rule, but I didn’t think of it at the time.>
  There’s a petition process for adding areas to the VSWI, with a form online. If there are
 extensive changes proposed it would be good to start with a conversation with them.
 These changes must go for a 30-day comment period.
  In response to the question “what if a location is added to the VSWI while a project is
 underway? When do the developer’s rights vest?” they said they would provide a
 response in the responsiveness summary. <But note, this comes after the comment period
 is over.>
  I thought this slide was interesting. It shows that under the proposed rule it would be
 permissible to build in a delineated wetland if it’s not included in VSWI:




 Page 2 of 3





 Page 3 of 3

Burlington Conservation Board
Open Space Subcommittee
645 Pine Street
Burlington, VT 05401
www.burlingtonvt.gov/dpi
Telephone: (802) 865-7188




 Open Space Subcommittee Meeting Minutes


 January 5, 2026 at 4:30 PM
 311 North Avenue, Conference Room and Remote Meeting


Present: Scott Gustin, Dan Cahill, Sarah Morgan, Zoe Richards, Rebecca Roman, Ryan Crehan, Kelly
Farrell, Dale Azaria & Sharon Bushor.


 I. Public Comment

 Sharon Bushor said she was mainly here to listen. She’s concerned with what’s happening at
 the state with respect to wetland rules. Her understanding is that Burlington is just
 considering the map.
 II. Discussion Item

 - Wetlands Map

 Discussion about new VSWI maps and the current city map. Update the city map to reflect
 the VSWI, but also retain city-delineated wetland boundaries where available.

 RR, make this an item for the February 2026 BCB meeting. Sarah recommended that BCB
 memo to PC articulate why class 3 wetlands should be included in the city’s layer.
 - Executive Session

 Those present voted to move into, and out of, executive discussion to discuss real estate.

 III. Adjournment

 5:25 PM.




The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political or
religious affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation,
gender identity, marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status or genetic information. The
City is also committed to providing proper access to services, facilities, and employment
opportunities. For accessibility information or alternative formats, please contact Human Resources
Department at 865-7145.