Growing pains
Reader feedback
Author’s new book tackles grief and growth
Low-income housing vital to Vermont economy
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Volume 53 Number 2
Library seeks $100K increase
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shelburnenews.com
January 11, 2024
On the boards
LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER
Coming out of an age of isolation, libraries are more than places to check out books. They offer access to a plethora of information and, more important, a place to find community and connections. The Pierson Library in Shelburne has seen its visits double post-pandemic, and this year is asking for a nearly $100,000 increase to its operating budget, mostly to cover the cost of bringing employee pay up to current market value for the area. Over the past four years, annual library budget requests have remained relatively steady but the increase in programming also highlights the need to pay some full-time employees nearly 20 percent more, according to library director Michael Hibben. Hibben said that not only is the Shelburne staff the lowest paid he has ever worked with, but also the smallest number of staff to operate such a facility on a daily basis. In some cases, Hibben said employees could go to several other area libraries and make more than they’re making in Shelburne after working nearly 15 years. “Part of it is when we built a new building, which was about four years ago, so much of it went into the capital expense of the building,” Lisa Merrill, chair of the library board of trustees, said. “We were asked to hold our costs steady, which we did, but to really invest in this new building, we need to pay our staff and keep offering more programs.” While the dramatic increase in visiSee LIBRARY BUDGET on page 9
PHOTO BY AL FREY
CVU’s Ted Connery fights for possession of the puck in Saturday’s tie against Spaulding High School. See roundup, page 11.
Planners align bylaws with HOMES Act LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER
While still in the thick of regulatory reform, Shelburne’s planning commission has also begun work aligning the town’s zoning bylaws with the new HOMES Act passed by the Legislature last year that reforms local and state land use regulations to spur more diverse housing development. “Our regulations do not conform to the 2019 Shelburne Town Plan or statute in many areas, not just changes required by the HOMES Act,” wrote the town’s director of planning and zoning Aaron DeNamur, noting that applicants, developers and review boards have been vocal about the complexities of current regulations. “The HOMES Act is a key component of the project, but not the only thing we are focusing on.” Shelburne’s bylaw project is funded in
part through a state bylaw modernization grant to bring regulations into compliance with state statute around the town’s supply of housing. The HOMES Act specifically mandates that any land with municipal water and sewer infrastructure can have five dwelling units per acre while also allowing duplexes anywhere single-family homes are allowed. Additionally, the act requires that three and four-unit buildings be a permitted use on land serviced by water and sewer. “Previously such proposals would have been treated as ‘conditional use’ applications before the development review board, adding expense and delay and allowing for community opposition to influence the outcome,” DeNamur wrote. “Now proposals for two units will receive a permit from the zoning administrator, and three and four-unit applications will be subject to site
plan review before the development review board.” The goal of the act, DeNamur said, is to increase overall housing supply while also minimizing sprawl. In Shelburne, this kind of density was already possible in the Shelburne Road form-based overlay district and the village district. Now it will be available in any zoning district serviced by sewer and water. According to the 2019 Shelburne Town Plan, those areas are Growth Area 1 and Growth Area 2. “Roughly speaking these combined growth areas can be described as starting in the north Shelburne Road, to Spear Street in the east, the lake to the west and south of the village roughly to Bostwick Road,” he See ZONING on page 6