Winooski opts into CCRPC’s regional future land use map, approves Tier 1B Act 250 exemptions for eligible areas

Winooski’s City Council voted Monday to adopt the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) regional future land use map recommendation and to authorize Tier 1B eligibility for Act 250 exemptions over the city’s eligible planned-growth areas, while excluding the downtown core.

Sarah of the CCRPC presented the mapping and explained the decision before council related to Act 250, the state’s larger-development permitting program. She said the regional map is a planning tool and will not change local zoning regulations; local zoning, she said, will continue to determine the exact allowable density on individual parcels.

Sarah said the Tier 1B designation makes certain areas eligible for Act 250 exemptions based on statutory criteria and the regional plan. The map areas recommended by CCRPC include the city’s gateway corridors and much of the residential districts; industrially zoned areas near Memorial Park were not recommended for exemption. The council’s action authorizes those eligible areas to be considered for the exemption, but local zoning and municipal plan rules remain binding for individual projects.

Councilors said the statutory changes that removed the prior "priority housing" Act 250 carve-out created urgency to adopt a broad Tier 1B approach; staff and CCRPC explained that inclusionary zoning and local incentives are being pursued to preserve local affordable-housing tools. Planning commission recommended the Tier 1B coverage (three members in favor, one opposed, one abstention noted in the minutes; the opposed vote was raised over historic-resource concerns).

The motion (Thomas, second Charlie) carried by voice vote. Councilors and CCRPC staff emphasized that the regional map is a planning tool that may qualify areas for state designation benefits and does not alter local zoning or require development at higher densities.