SHELBURNE OPEN SPACE PLAN

The Shelburne Natural Resources and Conservation Committee (SNRCC) completed work on Shelburne's first Open Space plan early last year and the Shelburne Selectboard approved the Plan at a meeting held February 14, 2006. The final "plain vanilla" version of the Open Space Plan, including maps, and the information from public meetings has been available since spring of last year. Now, in order to disseminate the plan in a more attractive and readable format, the Town has released an attractive, generously illustrated, multi-color edition of the plan (see link below). Residents who would like to purchase a printed copy may order it through the Town Office at the cost of printing.
Alternatively,  PC readable CD's can be requested free through the Town Planning and Zoning Office. 

A number of years ago, SNRCC (made up of volunteers appointed by the Select Board to advise the Town and Planning Commission on conservation and natural resource issues) identified the development of an Open Space Plan as its number one priority. As Public Involvement was a key to the creation of such a Plan, numerous meetings were held to gather public input and ideas on open space issues. The Plan, which reflects the outcomes of those meetings, includes sections on the Types and Benefits of Open Space;  Existing Open Space Lands; Resource Value Estimation; Cost Projections to assist in budgeting for future acquisitions; Shelburne's Conservation Priorities; and an Action Plan for Conservation. 

Also included are sections on Development of the Open Space Fund and a mandate to formalize the process for optimal use of that Fund.
Finally, the Plan lays out a series of additional strategies to encourage and support conservation of Open space such as Landowner Outreach; Neighborhood Initiatives; Promoting Agricultural Use of Open Space Lands; Encouraging Private Conservation Efforts; Updating the Town's Data Resource Mapping; and development of Management Plans for Town Owned Lands. 

This new publication includes full-color maps depicting current Open Space Lands, Properties with High Open Space Value, and Properties Conserved with Financial Assistance from the Open Space Fund, and photographs depicting the fruits of that investment. This full color version was created with the graphic assistance of Becky Wang.

New Open Space Plan