Planning Commission DRAFT Minutes – 09.23.26
Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 6:30pm, 236 School Rd, Guilford VT
Planning Commission members attending: Charlie Light, Jeannette Tokarz, Christina Belogour and remotely Jethro Eaton, Marty Ramsburg, Nathaniel Matthiesen and Mike Szostok (Selectboard)
Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 6:34pm.
Recognition of the Public: Allen Bellville
Rules and Procedures: No changes, as outlined by Select Board. Basic respect and civility
Changes to Agenda: None
Meeting summary
Quick recap
The Guilford Planning Commission meeting focused on several key topics, including the approval of meeting minutes, updates on logging plans in the Weeks Memorial Forest, and the process of updating the town plan. Members discussed concerns about the impact of logging on the ski trail and the lack of collaboration with the New England Forestry Foundation, expressing frustration over the perceived dismissal of community interests. The group also reviewed the recent Act 250 public hearing for a local development project, noting its thoughtful design and minimal impact. Additionally, the commission discussed ongoing efforts to rationalize and update the town plan, with input from Bob Tobin and Michael Knapp, aiming to streamline goals and align them with state planning objectives. The conversation touched on the potential need for enhanced energy planning and the broader implications of land use regulations in the town. Finally, the commission reviewed a draft webpage about ADU development, which was well-received.
Next steps
- Post a reminder about the Weeks Memorial Forest walk with the forester on Front Porch Forum, ideally on Sunday – Jeannette
- Correct the typos in the September 10th minutes (year and time) before submitting the draft to the town – Jeannette
- Look up the 2020 conservation easement for the Weeks Memorial Forest and review it for information on logging and public access – Christina
- Send out the link to the Vermont Planning Manual to the attendees again – Jeannette
- Move forward with posting the ADU development information to the Planning Commission’s landing page – Jeannette
Jethro
- Attend the walk with the forester at Weeks Memorial Forest on Tuesday, September 29th, to gather information.
Collaboration
- Michael Knapp and Bob Tobin: Present the clustered town plan goals and the next steps at the next meeting.
Summary
Meeting Minutes Approval Session
The meeting began with a quorum present, including Marty joining remotely. The group unanimously approved minutes from both the August 26 and September 10 meetings, with corrections noted for the September minutes regarding typos in the date and time.
Jeannette led the meeting and mentioned that town policies now require stating if minutes were produced with AI.
Ski Trail Logging Concerns Meeting
The group discussed concerns about upcoming logging operations that will impact a ski trail. Jethro reported that Linda Hecker and Linda Lemke met with representatives from New England Forestry Foundation who related that the ski trail will be closed during active logging due to safety concerns and conventional equipment use. The proposed logging map overlays significantly with the existing ski trail.
PC members who are able to do so will attend the September 29th walk with a licensed forester at Weeks Memorial Forest (10 -11:30 am). Afterwards the PC will consider drafting a letter from the PC, Conservation Commission and Selectboard to NEFF regarding the situation, though they acknowledged the logging company has the legal right to operate on their land.
They researched the Forestry Foundation, discovering it’s a non-profit that may receive government funding, which could provide grounds for challenging their decisions. The discussion focused on finding collaborative solutions between logging and trail preservation, with participants noting that while logging is permitted on the land, there seemed to be a lack of willingness on the part of the New England Forestry Foundation to work collaboratively.
Viking Village Act 250 Major Hearing recap
The Planning Commission discussed the planned Viking Village expansion project that was the subject of an Act 250 Major hearing on 9/16/26. Participants expressed appreciation of the thoughtful location and environmental oversight implemented by Paul and Christina Belagour in the project design. The major hearing was educational for all of those who participated. The process reinforced the need to include well considered language in the next Town Plan if the goal of protecting Guilford’s lands is to be achieved.
Town Plan update
The group reviewed progress on updating the town plan, with Marty, Jeannette, Michael Knapp & Bob Tobin working to evaluate goals from the Strategic Plan 2023 and the Town Plan to consolidate them and remove those that are no longer relevant. The next step is to overlay those results with the 15 state planning goals. The group will aggregate those goals into 5 themed clusters, similar to Bennington’s approach in its Town Plan.
In response to a community comment, the commission also discussed some examples of how land use regulations could make for better neighbor relations, such as having noise standards.
Briefly it was mentioned that an enhanced energy plan would need to be included in the Town Plan in order for it to have more input on utility projects.
The proposed content on ADU creation to be posted on the Town website was endorsed by all members.
Christina moved to adjourn the meeting, Charlie seconded and the motion passed unanimously. Meeting was adjourned at 7:38.
Meeting minutes were drafted by Zoom AI companion and reviewed and edited by Jeannette Tokarz.