Town of Bennington
                      Planning Commission
                    Proposed Bylaw Amendment
                         Public Hearing
                    Wednesday, June 30, 2004
                           7:15 p.m.
                    Bennington Fire Facility
            River Street, Bennington, Vermont 05201
                            MINUTES
Present for the Commission:  Barry Horst - Chair, Charles Copp, Michael McDonough, Sharon Yorke, Bob Burgess - Clerk
               Also Present:  Dan Monks - Zoning Administrator, Peter Crabtree - Rutland Herald, Mr. And                Mrs. Duncan Campbell, Meg Campbell, Renny and Jennifer Beal, Judy Murphy,                Charles Putney, Nathan Wallace-Senft, Mike Bethel, Helen Greany, T. Iselhardt                and other citizens who did not identify themselves.
          
Meeting was called to order at 7:15 p.m.
Copies of the Proposed Bylaw and a Brief History of the Development of the Bylaw were available at the hearing for the public to review.
Barry Horst welcomed everyone, introduced the Commission and explained the purpose of the public hearing.
The Planning Director presented a brief history of the development of the proposal and then summarized the proposed bylaw.
Barry Horst opened the hearing up for comments and questions from the public.
Charles Putney asked why the CB District was exempt from the cap and Community Impact Study.  The Commission explained that it was the goal of the Commission to concentrate development in the Downtown area.  Charles Putney stated that he thought that this was an appropriate goal.
Mike Bethel asked several questions regarding the proposed Bylaw and expressed his concern that the Community Impact Study may be too restrictive.  He was also concerned that the Bylaw may not adequately protect downtown from what he believed was inappropriate development.  The Commission explained that they believed the Bylaw encouraged growth that would benefit the community while discouraging development that would harm the community.
Renny Beal expressed concern that the Select Board may be hesitant to endorse the Community Impact Standard.  He stated that he hoped the Select Board would adopt the bylaw as proposed by the planning Commission.
Judy Murphy, Chuck Putney, Jennifer Beal, Meg Campbell, Helen Greany, Duncan Campbell, T. Iselhardt and Nathan Wallace-Senft all expressed support for the proposed bylaw.
Barry Horst thanked the members of the public for attending the hearing and expressing their opinions.  He noted that the Bylaw would soon be submitted to the Select Board for adoption.  Mike McDonough encouraged all who were interested in the bylaw to attend the Select Board hearing regarding the adoption of the proposed bylaw.
The meeting was adjourned.
Respectfully submitted
Daniel W. Monks
Planning Director