Regional Planning Commission unveils draft Regional Plan 2026 future land‑use map for Rutland Town; public comments due May 21

The Rutland Regional Planning Commission presented the first public working draft of the Regional Plan 2026 and the regional future land‑use map to the Town of Rutland select board and members of the public, and the commission requested written comments on Rutland Town’s map by May 21.

“I’m Steph Eberk, planner with the Regional Planning Commission,” Steph Eberk said, introducing the third and final phase of public engagement for the plan update and explaining the statewide statutory requirements that shape the work.

Eberk said Act 181, passed in June of the previous year, standardized 11 new land‑use categories across Vermont and directed regional planning commissions to produce a regional future land‑use map that aligns with the categories. She told the board that Title 24, section 4348a defines required elements of a regional plan and that the regional plan is an eight‑year document the commission calls Regional Plan 2026.

On a regional scale, Eberk said the working map designates about 6% of the region’s land area for higher‑density growth categories (downtown center, village center, planned growth areas and similar categories) and about 94% for lower‑density or conservation categories. She said the draft includes 39 centers across the region and 16 neighborhoods; within Rutland Town the draft map identifies roughly 8% of town area as higher‑density categories (transition/infill, enterprise area, and a village center) and the balance as rural general, rural agriculture/forestry, or rural conservation.

Eberk noted that Rutland Town is not eligible for Act 250 location‑based jurisdiction for tier‑1 exemptions because the town lacks municipal zoning, one of the prerequisites for tier‑1 designation. She said tier‑3 protections for critical natural resources will be established later through rulemaking by the Land Use Review Board (LERB).

“This is the first time that the regional future land use map is being shared with the public,” Eberk said. She asked towns to review the map, consider the standardized methodology used to draw boundaries, and submit written boundary adjustment requests to Logan (contact in the packet) by May 21 if they believe the boundaries misrepresent local conditions.

Several residents raised questions about how the map would affect private property rights and whether local permits would be required for small changes such as accessory buildings. A resident with land enrolled in the current‑use program asked whether designation as rural conservation would limit their ability to build a single shed or one house; Eberk responded that the regional plan is not a permitting agency and that local bylaws and Act 250 remain the controlling triggers for permitting.

Residents and select board members raised concerns that some parcels currently not enrolled in current use appear as rural general on the draft map and that existing strip commercial development along Routes 4 and 7 may conflict with the plan’s guidance against linear strip development; Eberk encouraged specific written questions for Logan and suggested the board could direct questions to the Land Use Review Board for interpretation where needed.

Eberk said the commission will post a digital landing page with the full draft in early June, interactive maps, one‑page chapter summaries (housing, transportation, economic development, etc.) and a place to submit comments. She repeated the deadline for Rutland Town to submit boundary change requests of May 21 so staff have time to consider adjustments before the commission moves the draft toward adoption next year.

The presentation was informational. The select board agreed to place discussion of the draft regional plan on the agenda for its next regular meeting to consider whether to assemble comments.