CHARLOTTE TOWN PLAN Adopted March 6, 2018 / Amended November 5, 2019
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
CHARLOTTE TOWN PLAN Adopted March 6, 2018 / Amended November 5, 2019 On the Cover Photos: Flower, Farm, Cornfield, and Charlotte Congregational Church by: Lee Krohn Town Offices and Rainbow by: Daryl Arminius Sign Design: Polly Heininger, 2012 Charlotte Town Plan (Adopted 6 Mar 2018 / Amended 5 Nov 2019) TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Introduction v Chapter 1: Charlotte Tomorrow 1-1 1.1 Vision & Goals 1-1 1.2 Future Land Use 1-2 1.3 Regional Context 1-7 1.4 Natural Resources 1-10 1.5 Lake & Shoreline 1-16 1.6 Agriculture & Forestry 1-19 1.7 Historical & Cultural Resources 1-25 1.8 Demographics & Housing 1-30 1.9 Economic Development 1-33 1.10 Utilities, Facilities, & Services 1-37 1.11 Transportation 1-47 1.12 Energy 1-53 1.13 Implementation 1-64 Chapter 2: Charlotte Today: Community Profile 2-1 2.1 Natural Resources & Physical Geography 2-1 2.2 Cultural & Historic Resources 2-18 2.3 Demographics 2-26 2.4 Housing 2-33 2.5 Economic Conditions 2-40 2.6 Utilities, Facilities, & Services 2-46 2.7 Transportation 2-58 2.8 Energy 2-63 2.9 Existing Land Use 2-72 Chapter 3: Charlotte Yesterday 3-1 3.1 Early Settlement 3-1 3.2 Pattern of Settlement 3-3 3.3 Role of Agriculture 3-5 3.4 Municipal History 3-7 3.5 The Process for Developing the Plan 3-8 3.6 The Layout of the Plan 3-11 3.7 Use of the Town Plan 3-11 3.8 Process for Managing & Amending the Plan 3-12 iii Charlotte Town Plan (Adopted 6 Mar 2018 / Amended 5 Nov 2019) List of Maps: Town Base Map Map 1. Geology & Groundwater Map 2. Soils Map 3. Surface Water, Wetlands, & Flood Hazard Map 4. Public Water Supply Source Protection Areas Map 5. Wildlife Habitat Map 6. Cultural & Historic Resources Map 7. Utilities, Facilities & Services Map 8. Transportation Map 9. Trail Vision Map Map 10. Existing Land Use Map 11. Future Land Use Map 12. Conserved & Public Lands Map 13. Existing Renewable Energy Generation Sites Map 14. Potential Solar Energy Resource Areas Map 15. Potential Wind Energy Resource Areas Map 16. State Known Constraints Map 17. State Possible Constraints Map 18. State Designated and Potential Town Preferred Sites for Net-Metering Map 19. List of Tables: 1. Population Growth in the Town of Charlotte: 1790-2015 2-26 2. Population Growth in the Town and Region: 1960-2010 2-27 3. Population Forecast 2020-2030 2-27 4. Racial and Ethnic Make-up of Residents 2-28 5. Municipal Growth as Percentage of County Growth, 1980-2010 2-30 6. Median Household Income 2-32 7. Total Number of Dwelling Units, 1990-2010 2-33 8. Market Conditions 2-34 9. Vacant Units 2-34 10. Types of Housing 2-34 11. Median Value of Owner-Occupied Housing Units 2-35 12. Owner-Occupied Housing Costs, 2009-2013 2-36 13. Rental Housing Costs, 2009-2013 2-36 14. Average Housing Sale Prices in Charlotte 1986-2006 2-36 iv Charlotte Town Plan (Adopted 6 Mar 2018 / Amended 5 Nov 2019) 15. Summary of Demand in Primary Market (# of Households) 2-38 16. Residential Values in Charlotte, 2006 & 2006 2-39 17. Civilian Labor Force, 1990-2015 2-40 18. Establishments, 2000-2014 2-42 19. Employment, 2000-2014 2-43 20. Wages and Earnings, 2000-2014 2-44 21. Population Density, 1960-2010 2-44 22. Charlotte Central School Enrollment & Staff Trends, 1980-2017 2-47 23. Emergency Response Volunteers for Charlotte, 2005-2015 2-49 24. Police Activity Summary, 2014-2016 2-50 25. Town Grandlist and Tax Rates, 2012-2016 2-50 26. Town Land and Facilities 2-52 27. Wastewater and Potable Water Supply Permits Issued, 2008-2015 2-55 28. High Crash Location (HCL) data for US Route 7 near the Intersection of Ferry Rd. 2-60 29. Current Transportation Energy Use 2-65 30. Number of Homes in Charlotte Heating with Delivered Fuels, 2015 2-65 31. Recent Residential Energy Efficiency Projects 2-65 32. Electrical Energy Use in Charlotte, 2015 2-66 33. Existing Renewable Electricity Generation 2-67 34. Existing Renewable Electricity Generation by System Size 2-67 35. Existing Renewable Electricity Generation by Ownership Type 2-67 36. Charlotte Modeled Transportation Energy Use, 2025-2050 2-68 37. Charlotte Modeled Commercial and Industrial Thermal Energy Use, 2025-2050 2-69 38. Charlotte Modeled Residential Thermal Energy Use, 2025-2050 2-69 39. Charlotte Modeled Electrical Energy Use, 2025-2050 2-69 40. Charlotte Modeled Total Energy Use Per Capita (Including Industrial Electricity 2-70 Use*) 2015-2050 41. Charlotte Modeled Total Energy Use Per Capita (Excluding Industrial Electricity 2-70 Use) 2015-2050 42. Land Available for Wind and Solar Generation 2-71 43. Estimated Renewable Electricity Generation Potential 2-72 44. New Renewable Electricity Generation Targets 2-72 List of Figures: 1. Town of Charlotte – Areas of High Public Value (AHPV) 1-3 2. Planning Area Designation 1-7 3. West Charlotte Village Delineation 1-27 v Charlotte Town Plan (Adopted 6 Mar 2018 / Amended 5 Nov 2019) 4. East Charlotte Village Delineation 1-28 5. Land Area Needed by 2050 to Meet Charlotte’s High Target/100% Solar Energy 1-55 6. Stafford Hill Solar Farm, Rutland-2,000 kW (2MW) 1-56 7. Copeland Furniture Solar, Bradford-500 kW 1-56 8. Shelburne Farms Solar Orchard, Shelburne-150kW 1-57 9. Ayers Brook Goat Dairy, Randolph-180 kW 1-57 10. Shelburne Farms Solar Roof on Barn, Shelburne-18 kW 1-58 11. Flood Resilience & Hazard Mitigation 2-12 12. Charlotte’s Population 1790-2015 2-29 13. Population Trends for Charlotte, Chittenden County, and Vermont 1970-2010 2-30 14. Median Age in 2010 2-31 15. Age Distribution of Charlotte’s Population, 2010 2-31 16. Household Size (persons / household), 2010 2-33 17. Residential Building Permits Issued, 2000-2014 2-39 18. Educational Attainment, Charlotte 2-41 19. Monthly Employment, Charlotte, 2015 2-41 20. CVFRS Emergency Responses, 2009-2015 2-50 21. Historical / Projected Enrollment, Charlotte Central School (PK-8th Grade), 2005- 2-56 2026 22. Traffic Volumes, Speeds, and High Crash Locations within the Town of 2-59 Charlotte, 2003-2017 23. Chittenden County Energy Demand by Energy Source, 2015-2050 2-71 24. Existing Land Use, 2016 2-79 25. Beers Atlas, 1869 3-13 Appendices (under separate cover): * Agricultural Land Use Map, 2000 * Charlotte Local Emergency Operations Plan, 2015 * West Charlotte Village Wastewater Study * VT State Rail Plan, 2015 * Groundwater Study * East Charlotte Village Design, 2010 * Significant Wildlife Habitat Protocol * Hazard Mitigation Plan * Historic Resource Inventory * Conserved Lands Map, 2015 * CCRPC Multi-jurisdictional All Hazards Mitigation Plan, 2016 * Report on 1999 Map of Charlotte Public Roads with High Scenic and Conservation Value, 2011 * 2018 Chittenden County ECOS Plan, Supplement 6 – Energy Analysis, Targets, & Methodology, CCRPC * Analysis, Targets, and Maps for Enhanced Energy Planning (Memorandum), CCRPC, 2018 * A Natural & Cultural Resource Inventory & Planning Recommendations for Thompson's Point, 1990 vi Charlotte Town Plan INTRODUCTION The Charlotte Town Plan is the principal policy statement for the Town of Charlotte. It presents existing conditions in Charlotte, a vision for the future, and means to achieve this vision. This Plan addresses many areas including town services and facilities, housing, transportation, economic development, and resource protection. The Plan will be implemented through the Town’s land use regulations and will help guide the work and decisions of the Selectboard, Planning Commission, and other town committees, groups, and employees, as well as the actions of residents, property owners, businesses, organizations, and developers. In some sections, the plan specifies policies that are to be used to review and guide development proposals and the use of public resources. In other sections the plan offers suggestions of possible strategies that would need to be enacted, for example, in the Land Use Regulations or through a Town Committee. These suggestions are intended to guide discussion and need further action and scrutiny before implementation. The plan is divided into three parts; Chapter 1 “Charlotte Tomorrow”, Chapter 2 “Charlotte Today: Community Profile”, and Chapter 3 “Charlotte Yesterday”. Chapters 1 and 2 each have complementary thematic sections addressing; Natural Resources, Cultural and Historic Resources, the Economy, Utilities and Facilities, Housing and Demographics, Transportation, Energy, and Land Use. Chapter 1 covers the future planning and visioning for the Town and includes additional sections on the Regional Context, the Lake & Shoreline, and an Implementation Plan that addresses a timetable for the strategies of the plan. Chapter 2 reflects the current status of the Town via its historical data, trends, and policies. Chapter 3 presents the municipal history of Charlotte from its European settler origins of the eighteenth- century to its twentieth century modernization, as well as the planning history beginning with the 1990 Town Plan. Purpose The authority to prepare and implement the Plan is granted through Vermont Statutes Annotated (VSA) Title 24, Chapter 117, Municipal and Regional Planning and Development. The purpose of the Chapter is to “… encourage the appropriate development of all lands in this state by the action of its constituent municipalities and regions, with the aid and assistance of the state, in a manner which will promote the public health, safety against fire, floods, explosions, and other dangers; to promote prosperity, comfort, access to adequate light and air, convenience, efficiency, economy, and general welfare; to enable the mitigation of the burden of property taxes on agricultural, forest, and other open lands;