HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Sustainable Agriculture Subcommittee - 11/04/2014Sustainable Agriculture Subcommittee of the Planning Commission
Meeting Minutes
4 November 2014
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The Sustainable Agriculture Subcommittee of the South Burlington Planning Commission
held a regular meeting on Tuesday, 4 November 2014 at 7:00 pm, at Healthy Living Upstairs
Conference Room, 222 Dorset Street.
Members Present: Jess Hyman, Kindle Loomis, Rosanne Greco, Reese Baker, Will Raap, Betty
Goldberg, Bronwynn Dunne, Sarah Dopp, Allan Strong, Rebecca Adams, Livia Donicova, Brianna
O'Brien, Julia Raggio, Sophie Quest.
Also Present: David Whitney, Larry Michaels, Jeff Nick.
1. Agenda: Additions, deletions or changes in order of agenda items. None
2. Open to the public for items not related to the agenda. None
3. SusAg committee member announcements. None
4. Small farm operations (and other “special purposes”) enabled with new Planned Unit
Development regulations.
Report from Will Raap on Planned Unit Developments with farms. a. History of Interim Zoning,
Committees, Consultant reports. b. FBC and a different kind of land regulations. Question of
FBC being for City Center or city-wide. c. Sus/Ag is following its tasks of finding more land in SB
for agriculture. Story of Raap's work with Village Homes in Davis, CA-an ecological village, first
with low to moderate income homes, which became popular and successful, leading to
expensive homes. Raap's search to replicate such a community in Vermont led to South Village
in SB. It's a large property, but the model of clustered homes/resident farm/conserved
land/trails could happen on smaller properties. A good name for these communities might be
“Multi-Benefit PUDs”. Preferably, they would include renewable energy homes, 21st century
complete water/wastewater systems, energy sources, food, low carbon techniques, open
space, and profit. Can we entice developers if we prove it is a good return on their investment?
It's best to have regulations that permit mixed usages. These have worked well in other
locations. Fort Collins, CO, in their Land Use Code, included a clause of “Additions of Permitted
Uses” that enabled new ideas to be vetted by staff and then permitted.
Present situation is that unfamiliarity of developers, banks, city permitters don't always allow
new and positive changes.
Sus/Ag has identified the best farmland in SB. Sometimes for a variety of reasons, the best
farmland is used for homes. The problem of less desirable land can be solved by high tunnels
and wise choices of food production.
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South Village began with the recession of 2008. After that slow time it is now finishing its first
phase. The farm is adding perennials, composting facilities, and will be building winter homes
for the chickens. A growing CSA customer base helps make it work.
5. Are there new development opportunities to test such special-purpose PUDs?
Nick and Michaels talked of the Hill Farm and the O'Briens' Old Farm Road development, both
the possibilities and the difficulties of including farming and conservation areas in a mixed
development. Orchards, livestock, vegetable farming-each land needs to be analyzed for its
best uses. O'Briens' have a large barn which could be a food hub or community gathering
place.
“Permitting” rather than “Forcing” is the desired regulation for developers. Understanding who
will be the buyers is important. Loomis said that as a young potential buyer, she and her friends
will be looking for the most ecological options in homes. She sees this as a growing trend
among the young.
Whitney commented that often when “Open Space” is saved because of a regulation, there is
no plan to make it desirable and useful open space. Fallow open space is useless. Might DRB
have regulations that allow them to support developers who are willing to plan ecological
homes, space, food producing land, etc. Raap said that prime agricultural land should be
protected as wetlands are today.
Decentralization can include water/waste water management that is project specific, food
production that serves homes surrounding it, energy production that is local. This is the
direction of the future.
6. Can 21st Century wastewater treatment innovations help solve South Burlington's
situation?
Because SB will probably have an inability to serve all of City Center and all of the developments
planned, Sus/Ag has been studying alternative wastewater systems. State engineers
recommended David Whitney of Eco Solutions and NaturalSystemsUtilities. David Whitney is
the civil engineer for the two Living Machine projects on the interstate and in the UVM Aiken
Building. His company, Eco Solutions does complete water projects all over the globe, water
resource management, ground water, stormwater, potable and nonpotable, overall water
balance, biological wastewater systems. Eco Solutions produces cost effective systems. The
state is looking for ecological innovations in water systems and is ready to permit them.
Whitney says that it is a paradigm shift which takes education and marketing. A challenge is in
keeping people engaged in maintaining innovative systems. Massachusetts and New York have
progressive water reuse regulations. The Vermont regulatory environment is supportive of
ecological thinking. Vergennes clay can be difficult and also useful for onsite treatment of
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wastewater. Communities need to raise awareness of low impact design techniques. For
instance, swales work better than buried storm pipes when it's necessary to clean them out.
Whitney told of a biological project he completed in Hawaii for Kaiser Permanente. It was three
years in permitting and planning. SB, itself, had a Living Machine project next to Magic Hat. It
was a test project and it stopped when it had succeeded and the funding ran out for further
work. It was never used as a permanent substitute for the wastewater treatment plant. But it
was such a pleasant environment that parties took place there.
Unlike California, the Northeast might have too much water in the future. Eco Solutions plans
for this possibility. “Water is the embodiment of energy.” A serious result of storms is the
pollution that is deposited in the lake. Water is wealth that needs to be protected and
preserved.
Costs are important. Whitney said that sewer hook up fees could cost more than low impact
design onsite wastewater systems. Reusing the water is always cost effective. An expedited
permit process gives innovators an opportunity to be creative.
7. Other business.
Baker talked of a tiny home movement in North Carolina. Owners shared kitchenhouses and
bathhouses. A “shareable economy movement.”
8. Work plan-2015 / Next meeting.
A suggestion from Whitney. Have a design contest with a money prize describing some open
land in SB that the developer/owner would be interested in seeing an ecological design for,
including homes, energy, agriculture, wastewater treatment (possibly a complete water
system.) Maybe this could be tied into the SB Energy Prize contest, with low carbon footprint
(biological systems offsetting greenhouse gases). Possibly a corporate sponsor.
The group will approach Nick with the Hill Farm, Joe Larkin with his 116 property, the Auclaires,
Underwood?, Wheelock East of UVM? What might be the incentives for all of these players?
Next step. Shape the above prize design project. Next Meeting, December 2, 7pm at Healthy
Living upstairs conference room.
9. Adjourn
Respectfully submitted:
Sophie Quest