SOUTH HERO DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOSRD MINUTES July 22, 2026
Members Present: Doug Patterson (Chair); Jim Brightwell (Vice-Chair); Nate Hayward; Sherry Dupont; Tim Mullen; Liza Kilcoyne.
Members Absent: Gareth Hunt; Justin Myers (Alternate).
Others Present: Jon Quackenbush; Doreen Hebert.
7:00PM – D. Patterson called the meeting to order and introduced the Board.
Changes to the Agenda
There were no changes.
Public Input
There was none.
Amendment to DRB waiver #26-46-WP084 to add a garage to the structure in the non-conforming space (Jon and Linda Quackenbush – 26-72-WP084)
7:04 PM — DRB member Nate Hayward recused. The Board had a quorum.
The warning was read and the Applicant was sworn in.
Jon Quackenbush explained to the Board that the garage design had initially been part of the design; a one-car attached garage with interior dimensions 15’x27’. The new setback to the north boundary will be 16’. The previously approved home is year-round. The Wally’s Point Rd. right-of-way is 50-ft. wide. There is no room on the west side of the road to build a garage because of the new septic mound there.
D. Patterson read an email form the neighbors to the north, DeGraff-Murphy – who generally approved of the proposal but had concerns about runoff from the extended structure bringing the slope closer to their property creating runoff issues that could result in erosion of the beach. They asked the Board to address these concerns.
**J. Brightwell moved to add the DeGraff-Murphy letter to the record; L. Kilcoyne second. All in favor.
J. Brightwell asked about the swale that is shown on the site plan along the north boundary. Will the additional excavation increase the runoff here? Jon Quackenbush – additional grading will limit the slope here. There may be gutters on the garage to divert runoff to the swale. It is to be determined whether there will be gutters on the house to divert runoff to a swale on the south side of the lot.
D. Patterson said that since there is no grading plan it is difficult to tell where runoff may go. The elevation of the garage will be raised 4 feet. The elevation of the garage floor will be 102.5’ – 1-ft. above Wally’s Point Rd. There is no plan to change the elevation of the existing driveway (102.5’).
L. Kilcoyne — Could a culvert be put under the driveway to allow runoff to reach the swale to the north? The driveway acts as a berm, blocking runoff. Water needs to be able to flow toward each direction. That could be done.
J. Brightwell – how far away is the house to the north? 25’ to 30’ from the boundary. The garage looks nice. Can the Board approve without knowing how the drainage will work?
N. Hayward – All grades go to the lake.
J. Brightwell – The area is a funnel to the lake. Do we need an updated grading plan?
L. Kilcoyne – The driveway needs a culvert. The water wants to flow north to the swale along that boundary. I’m concerned about water from across the road.
D. Patterson – Not sure a culvert will work; it is a fairly shallow grade. I think there may be a solution that will work. There may need to be some tweaking down the road.
T. Mullen – a stone-lined swale will help to slow down runoff and reduce erosion along the lake.
There were no further questions.
7:34PM — **L Kilcoyne moved to close the hearing; J. Brightwell second. All in favor.
Site Plan Review for a change of use (to retail) at 304 US RT 2 (Doreen Hebert – 26-73-RT304)
Applicant Doreen Hebert told the Board that she wants to open a Vermont handmade store, with individual vendors leasing space in the store to sell hand crafted items. There will also be a small grab-and-go café with coffee and packaged snacks. There will only be one employee working at a time. There will be an ADA accessible bathroom. The building has a rental apartment on the first floor and a second one on the second floor. The proposed retail space is the other half of the first floor.
J. Brightwell – How many parking spaces are needed for all the tenants? Doreen Hebert – there are 3 spaces in the front for tenants, and 4 spaces will be needed for the store. There is additional parking space on the west side of the building. One of the tenants parks his truck in the back of the side parking area. The site plan shows only 26’ from the building to the west boundary. Is that enough room to turn around to pull out? It would be difficult to back out from there. Tenants park in the back of the side lot and can turn around. We need a parking plan with dimensions, plus designated HC space. That can be one of the 4 spaces. An additional space is needed for the employee.
T. Mullen – the dimensions show that there’s enough room in front for 5 spaces, with room along the side for 4 more if parked parallel to the building.
The Board all agreed that there needs to be a parking plan with dimensions and recommended continuing the hearing to August 12, 2026.
8:03PM – J. Brightwell moved to recess the hearing to August 12, 2026 at 7PM; L. Kilcoyne second. All in favor.
Review of Minutes from June 24, 2026
J. Brightwell moved to approve the minutes of June 24, 2026; T. Mullen second. All in favor.
Administrator’s Report
- Martha told the Board that she will be out of the office from July 23 through August 4 but will be working remotely. Phone calls to her office will be automatically forwarded to her email.
- The Board was asked if they would be willing to meet with the Planning Commission on Wednesday, July 29, since there are no meetings that night (5th Wednesday). The DRB opted not to meet but to send the PC members their edits to the definitions being discussed for their feedback. Martha will send those to the Planning Commission members and include this discussion on the August 5, 2026 PC agenda.
Adjournment
8:25 – L. Kilcoyne moved to adjourn; J. Brightwell second. All in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha Taylor-Varney, ZA
Signed: ________________________________ Date: ____________________
For the DRB
These minutes are unofficial until approved at the next regularly scheduled meeting. All motions were unanimous unless otherwise indicated.