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Select Board keeps a 'public vistas' policy but calls for clearer wording
Summary
Board members said a public-vistas policy is a useful value statement but needs rewording to avoid implying permissions on private land; they directed staff to keep the policy but rewrite the first paragraph for clarity.
The Select Board debated whether to retain or archive a decades-old "public vistas" policy that encourages preserving scenic views on public land and urges landowners to consider view preservation. Several members called it a useful value statement but said the first paragraph reads ambiguously and risks a lay reader thinking the town is giving permission to alter private land.
Board members agreed to keep the policy as a statement of values but asked staff to rewrite it to remove the confusing first paragraph and ensure it does not conflict with wetland protections or suggest private‑land permissions. One member said the policy could be helpful in grant applications and public messaging if clarified into a short, demonstrable statement.
