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Springfield hears public concerns as Selectboard reviews comprehensive Land Use Ordinance rewrite
Summary
At a June 22 public hearing, the Selectboard considered a complete rewrite of Springfield’s Land Use Ordinance that loosens some dimensional rules for infill, tightens environmental protections and rewrites quarry rules; residents urged larger blasting setbacks and removal of extraction from small residential districts. The board will consider Ordinance Committee redlines on July 20 and send any revised draft to the Planning Commission for a formal report and second hearing.
The Town of Springfield Selectboard heard a public hearing June 22 on a comprehensive rewrite of the town’s Land Use Ordinance, including major changes to housing rules, environmental protections and a substantial rewrite of earth resource extraction provisions.
Mike Martin, presenting the Planning Commission’s report and the Ordinance Committee’s red-lines, described the draft as "a complete rewrite, not a red-line of the prior ordinance." He said the rewrite aims to align the ordinance with the 2024 Town Plan, the Selectboard’s strategic objectives and relevant state statutes, including HOME legislation and Act 181, while also clarifying enforceability and compatibility with existing municipal codes.
The draft would expand housing and land-use flexibility by addressing short-term rentals, home occupations, accessory dwelling units and tiny homes, and by lowering dimensional requirements to enable realistic infill. Martin cited a specific change in the Downtown district that reduces required road frontage from 75 feet to 25 feet to match existing lot patterns and make redevelopment more feasible.
Environmental protections in the draft include stronger safeguards for priority forests and habitat, improved river-corridor and riparian-buffer language, and incorporation of newer state and federal wetland and stormwater standards. For extraction operations, the draft requires a groundwater monitoring plan and a stormwater management plan that meet state standards.
Article 9, the section on Earth Resource Extraction (quarries and gravel pits), was substantially rewritten. The Ordinance Committee reviewed Act 250 case decisions statewide and sought to mirror conditions commonly imposed under Act 250. The rewrite adds specific controls: licensed independent blaster oversight for blasting plans, real-time seismographic monitoring of blasts, pre-blast surveys of nearby properties, fly-rock controls and explicit limits on acceptable vibration at residences. The draft also clarifies when Act 250 jurisdiction may apply (for example, large lot sizes) and how local discretionary review would interface with state permitting.
Walter Martone described the adoption process as a "blended" approach, reconciling state planning statutes with the Town’s municipal ordinance adoption procedures and charter requirements — a reconciliation that affected notice and hearing timelines.
Public commenters focused heavily on the draft’s extraction provisions. Multiple residents — including Dan Keebler, Heidi Trimbach, Kelly Burke, Kelly Stetener, Kathy Kratz, Susan LeDrew, Elsa Ward, Hadley Whitcome and Dave Coleman — raised concerns about blasting, noise, dust and heavy truck traffic; potential damage to wells and older stone foundations; loss of wildlife habitat; and possible depression of property values near extraction sites. Several speakers described enforcement gaps they have seen where complaints are bounced between town and state agencies and urged stronger local protections.
Many residents urged the Selectboard to require a 1,000-foot blasting setback; the Ordinance Committee settled on a 500-foot setback to preserve commercial viability. Commenters also requested removing Earth Resource Extraction from the use tables for 2- and 5-acre rural residential districts or prohibiting extraction in districts where people live.
The Selectboard must decide whether to accept, reject or further modify the Ordinance Committee red-lines. Any revised proposal will be filed with the Town Clerk, sent to the Planning Commission for a written report, and followed by a second public hearing. If the board adopts the ordinance, adoption would take effect 21 days after filing. The matter is scheduled for the Selectboard agenda on July 20, 2026, when the board will deliberate on extraction standards, allowed districts and which version to send back to the Planning Commission.
