The full Commission holds a public hearing, normally as part of a regular meeting on Thursday at 6:30PM. In the case of modification or concurrence reviews, the Commission will first meet to determine if a hearing is necessary. If a hearing is not necessary, the Commission may remand the project to the town in the case of concurrence reviews, or vote to approve or deny the project in the case of modifications. For discretionary referrals, the Commission will hold an initial hearing to determine whether to hold a full hearing on the project, of remand the project to the town. (See Step 1 - Referral for an explanation of different DRI types.) 

Notification

A notice for the hearing is posted in each of the town halls and is sent to the permit-granting boards in the town where the project is located. In addition, abutters within 300 feet of the parcel(s) where the project is proposed are sent a notice of the hearing.

Purpose

The main purpose of the hearing is to allow Commissioners to gather the information it needs to judge the benefits and detriments of the proposal by hearing the applicant's and DRI Coordinator's presentations, and by hearing testimony from staff, local officials, and the public. The hearing also serves to inform the public about the proposal so it can give informed testimony, and provides an opportunity for the applicant to modify the proposal in response to concerns raised by Commissioners, local officials, and the public.

Site Visit

Often, a site visit is scheduled following the LUPC meeting, to allow the Commissioners a chance to familiarize themselves with the property. The Commission may use this time only to ask the Applicant questions of clarification specific to the site. The public is welcome to attend the site visit but is asked to refrain from comment.

Staff Report

Before the public hearing, Commission staff will prepare a staff report outlining the project history and proposal, administrative matters, planning concerns, and any other information that may be useful during the decision-making process. 

Hearing Officer

A hearing officer, usually the chair of the LUPC, chairs the public hearing. He or she has the responsibility of ensuring that it is conducted civilly and effectively, and that all interested parties have a chance to testify. The hearing officer may give priority to people who have not yet spoken, who are unable to return for another session of the hearing, who are bringing up new issues, or who have not also provided written testimony.

Written Testimony

Public officials and members of the public are encouraged to submit comments in writing before and during the hearing. Any documents submitted become part of the public record. Commissioners consider it their responsibility to read all written testimony. All documents are available on the Commission website or at the office.

Information received one week before a session of the hearing will be distributed to all Commissioners in advance of the hearing. Information received less than a week before a hearing will be distributed as time allows. New information from the applicant (including changes to the proposal), and technical information from the public, must be submitted in writing no later than 5PM three business days before the scheduled session of the hearing in order to be considered during the session.

If new information is to be provided after that date, or if the information needs additional staff analysis, the hearing officer may choose to continue the hearing to another date or to keep the written record open after the close of the hearing in order to allow for comments by staff, the applicant, and the public. 

Hearing Procedure

Following is the typical agenda for a public hearing, although the hearing officer may change the order depending on the situation:

1. Staff Presentation
2. Applicant Presentation
3. Testimony from Public Officials
4. Public Testimony
5. Commissioner Questions

See Public Hearing Protocols for more information. 

Time Limits

The hearing officer may set reasonable time limits for testimony with a view to hearing all relevant testimony while ensuring that the hearing is completed in a timely fashion.

Giving Oral Testimony

In order to give effective oral testimony, speakers are encouraged to:

• Organize their thoughts in advance.
• Start by stating their name and address.
• Keep testimony short and to the point, addressing only issues directly relevant to the project as proposed.
• Avoid repeating information or opinions already given (other than briefly noting their support for a given point of view).
• Avoid reading more than about one page of text; longer texts should be summarized.
• Maintain a tone of politeness and avoid talking about personalities.

Hearing Closure

The hearing officer will close the public hearing when he or she determines that the applicant has had a reasonable opportunity to present the project, that local officials and the public have been given an opportunity to provide written and oral testimony, and that any outstanding issues as identified by commissioners or staff have been resolved to the Commission's satisfaction. Any information submitted after the close of the hearing will not be considered during deliberations on the project, unless the hearing officer leaves the written record open and such materials are received during that period.

The hearing officer may continue the hearing for the sole purpose of leaving the written record open, primarily to allow clarification or confirmation of information already discussed at the hearing. The date of the closure of the written record will be announced before the close of the public session of the hearing. If substantial new written information is submitted that the hearing officer determines was not adequately discussed at the hearing, he or she may reopen the hearing to take further testimony.