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    		  Scenic Roads Enhancement and Protection Plan


    TOWN OF WAITSFIELD
    SCENIC ROADS ENHANCEMENT & PROTECTION PLAN
    As Adopted by the Selectboard on October 9, 2006

    I. Purpose: Scenic roads in Waitsfield are a valuable community resource serving motorists, recreationists and pedestrians. The purpose of this Plan is to provide opportunities for public input regarding the enhancement and protection of the scenic qualities of Waitsfield’s road system, and to implement effective and efficient best practices for road maintenance, recognizing that scenic qualities can be preserved without compromising safety.

    II. Designation of Scenic Roads: Scenic roads in Waitsfield shall be designated by any of the following procedures:
      1. Roads listed as scenic roads in the Town Plan adopted from time to time, shall automatically be included as scenic roads under this Plan, unless subsequently deleted following these procedures.

      2. Nomination of scenic roads may be made for addition to the list included in the Town Plan by the Selectboard by its own discretion; by the Selectboard in response to initiative from the Planning Commission or Scenic Roads Committee; or by petition of 5% of registered voters.

      3. Final determination of designation of scenic roads will be made by Town Meeting advisory vote. Such votes will be taken at regular March Town Meeting. Nominations made by petition will not require a special town meeting, but rather may be held over at the discretion of the Selectboard for regular March Town Meeting.

      4. Removal of roads from the scenic roads list will be made by the same process as nomination, followed by a regular March Town Meeting vote.

      5. Roads may be adopted as scenic in their entirety.

      6. Efforts should be made to assure that the lists of scenic roads appearing in this Plan, the Town Plan, and the Town’s Zoning and Subdivision bylaws are consistently maintained.
    III. Scenic Roads Committee: A Scenic Roads Committee shall be formed to carry out various provisions as called for by this Plan, and will consist of seven members including the Tree Warden; the Road Commissioner; one representative each from the Selectboard, Planning Commission and Tree Board, each being selected annually by its respective body; and two at-large citizen members appointed annually by the Selectboard. The Road Foreman may serve in the place of the Road Commissioner if the Road Commissioner is also a member of the Selectboard, at the discretion of the Selectboard. The Committee will elect its own chairperson and set its own meeting schedule.

    IV. Inventory of Protected Features: The Scenic Roads Committee will prepare, and from time to time update, an inventory of protected scenic features of designated scenic roads. The inventory, and any updates, shall be forwarded to the Selectboard for review and acceptance as to format, content and level of detail.

    V. Routine Maintenance:
      1. Routine maintenance shall be defined to include cleaning of existing ditches; resurfacing of gravel roads with up to 3 inches of new material; resurfacing of paved roads with up to 3 inches of new asphalt overlay; replacement of existing culverts with same size or upgrade to meet minimum sizing requirements of the Town’s FEMA policy; brush cutting in areas where the inventory has indicated open views are to be protected; removal of dead or dying trees or trees encroaching upon ditches with approval of the Tree Warden; stone lining of existing ditches where adopted scenic roads maintenance manuals call for such liners; and other activities typically and reasonably understood to be routine maintenance.

      2. Routine maintenance shall be undertaken at the discretion of the Road Department under the supervision of the Road Commissioner and Selectboard. In the course of such routine maintenance work, the Road Department shall not disturb protected features identified in the inventory without prior review and approval of the Selectboard following the notification and decision process outlined below.
    VI. Significant Reconstruction:
      1. Significant reconstruction shall be defined to include the construction of new drainage ways; the installation of road fabric; paving of previously unpaved roads; resurfacing of gravel roads with over 3 inches of new material; the reconstruction of paved roads (removal or bomaging of existing asphalt surface, reconstruction of base, etc.); widening of traveled surface of the road by more than one foot or to the extent that existing ditches must be moved; upgrade in size of existing large culverts (36 inches or larger); removal or disruption of inventoried scenic features such as large tree canopies or stonewalls for maintenance or safety purpose.

      2. Significant reconstruction shall only be undertaken after following the notification and decision process below.
    VII. Notification and Decision Process: All significant reconstruction and those instances of routine maintenance that will disturb inventoried scenic features, shall only proceed upon completion of the following process:
      1. A public hearing shall be held at which the project(s) shall be described and public comments will be accepted by the Selectboard.

      2. A hearing notice will be published in the newspaper 15 days prior to the hearing.

      3. Abutters of proposed projects shall be given notice by first class mail notice sent to the owner of record, mailed 15 days prior to the scheduled public hearing.

      4. The Scenic Roads Committee and Planning Commission are encouraged to submit comments and recommendations to the Selectboard regarding proposed projects. The Selectboard will consider granting of extensions of time for comments to be received from the Scenic Roads Committee and Planning Commission, when such extensions are so requested.

      5. The Selectboard shall make the final decision about whether to proceed with proposed projects after taking into consideration the public input gathered at the public hearing, submitted written comments, and the input received from the Scenic Roads Committee and Planning Commission.

      6. Multiple projects may be combined for consideration in a regular annual process that the Selectboard shall establish as part of its annual budget preparation and development of the summer work-plan for the Road Department, but still subject to the notification and public hearing requirements above.

    VIII. Emergency Repairs: Road repairs necessary to protect public safety as the result of flooding, washouts, utility line damage, wind or ice storms, and other disasters natural; or otherwise, may be undertaken by the Road Department under supervision of the Road Commissioner and Selectboard as deemed necessary. However, to the extent that any such disaster or emergency repairs have caused damage to scenic features identified by the inventory, the Scenic Roads Committee will be given opportunity after the emergency repairs have been completed, to examine the site and make recommendations, including budget considerations, for the restoration of the road’s scenic values. Such recommendations shall be considered following the notification and decision process outlined above. Decisions of the Selectboard shall be final.

    IX. Annual Scenic Roads Enhancement Projects: For one week each summer, the Road Department’s schedule will be dedicated to work identified by the Scenic Roads Committee for special projects to enhance the appearance of scenic roadsides. Such projects may include removal of brush or trees which obstruct scenic vistas, removal of unsightly tree stumps, removal of dead or dying trees, thinning of new growth to promote new canopy trees, repair of stonewalls, and other similar projects. The Scenic Roads Committee shall prepare a list of recommended projects for review and approval of the Selectboard prior to the scheduling of the summer work-week. The Selectboard shall have full discretion to determine when and whether to schedule such work-week. The Selectboard may consider an annual budget for such projects to be presented to voters as part of the annual Town Meeting budget approval process.

    X. Standards & Guidelines for Scenic Roads Maintenance Practices: The Scenic Roads Committee shall review guidelines and manuals for best practices for scenic roads maintenance methods from time to time and recommend useful materials for adoption by the Selectboard as standard operating guidelines for the Road Department, and to encourage their use in employee training and education programs. Sources for such materials would include the Vermont Agency of Transportation, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, Vermont League of Cities and Towns, Vermont Local Roads Program, Friends of the Mad River, and the Better Backroads Program.

    XI. Disclaimer Section: This plan is not intended as a scenic roads designation under 19 VSA §2502. Scenic roads shall not be listed on the Annual Certificate of Highway Mileage, nor broken out on the Annual Financial Plan for Highways.

    XII. Adoption: This Plan is duly adopted by the Waitsfield Selectboard this 9th day of October , 2006.Waitsfield Selectboard:
      /s/ Elwin Neill, Jr., Chair
      /s/ Charles Hosford
      /s/ Paul Hartshorn
      /s/ Roy Hadden
      /s/ Sal Spinosa

    Updated April 8, 2007
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