Planning Commission

Second Draft of Town Plan 2026 now ready for review and comment!

Please send comments to koborne@ richmondvt.gov or drop off comments at the Planning and Zoning office during business hours.

The second draft, which incorporates Steering Committee recommendations based on recent public comment, will be considered at a Selectboard public hearing on January 5, 2026. A second Selectboard hearing is scheduled for January 21^st, at which point we hope to post the approved final draft on the warning for a town-wide vote on Town Meeting day (March 3, 2026).

The second draft consists of an Introduction, the 11 required sections that are the body of the Plan, an Implementation Table, an Appendix of Data and Additional Information, and a number of maps. This complete Plan has received an initial approval by the Planning Advisory Committee of Regional Planning (CCRPC), and we expect it to receive full approval after the Town has approved it. Please note that the revisions from the 11.19.25 Planning Commission meeting are in red.

Public comment received by December 5, 2025 will be reviewed by the Town Plan Steering Committee, and appropriate amendments will be formulated to accompany the draft to the Selectboard hearings.

Link to the Town Plan 2026 Second Draft ►►►► HERE

For Town Plan Mapping, please see Planning Department mapping link and/or November 12, 2025 Town Plan 2026 Steering Committee meeting page for updates.

The schedule for moving forward to adopt the Plan is as follows:

November 4, 2025 - Presentation of the Plan to the Selectboard and the public at a special Selectboard meeting in the Richmond Free Library Community Room. This hybrid event will feature an overview of the Plan, a Q&A / discussion period, and desserts, with coffee and tea. Comments will be noted by the Steering Committee members. COMPLETE
November 19, 2025 – Planning Commission Public Hearing in the Town Center Meeting Room from 7 -9 pm (hybrid). COMPLETE
Month of December 2025 - Refinements to Plan based on public comment will be considered by Steering Committee and Planning Commission, and the Plan will be reviewed by the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC), which must approve the Plan for it to be legal.
January 5, 2026 – Selectboard’s first required Public Hearing. If Selectboard accepts the Plan with no substantial changes to the context, meaning or extent of the Town Plan as per 24 VSA §4385, the second required Public Hearing will be scheduled for January 21, 2026.
January 21, 2026 - Selectboard’s second required Public Hearing. If approved, the Plan will be placed on the Town Meeting Day warning for a town-wide vote in March 2026.
March 3, 2026 – we hope to have a vote to approve our new Town Plan 2026!

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The Planning Commission serves as leaders of the community on planning matters. Based on the input the public provides, the Planning Commission conducts its primary responsibilities of preparing and amending the Town Plan and the town’s land-use regulations (zoning and subdivision). The commission holds discussion sessions and public hearings to determine whether our current regulations are meeting our present and future needs, and whether they align with new state regulations concerning land use.

We meet 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month at 7 to 9 PM. Meetings may be fully remote on Zoom or may be hybrid, with an in-person presence in the Town Center Meeting Room as well as on Zoom. Please check the meeting date and the agenda to see what type of meeting will be held and what is to be discussed. This information will be posted 5 days prior to the meeting, and often there will be additional materials for you to look at before the meeting. The public is invited to attend any of our meetings and provide comments at any stage of our deliberations. You may also view the video recordings of our meetings (at MMCTV) and email us your comments.

Thank you,
Virginia Clarke
Chair, Richmond Planning Commission