ECOS Engagement

LATEST NEWS

Explore the ECOS Regional Plan
The ECOS Regional Plan is available below, and users can also explore the ECOS Plan in a more interactive way by visiting our new ECOS Plan website. Each plan chapter has its own webpage, and interactive data is available throughout. Explore the ECOS Plan »

Land Use Review Board (LURB) Issues Affirmative Determination of Regional Plan Compliance
On July 31, 2026, the LURB issued an Affirmative Determination of Regional Plan Compliance upon concluding that the adopted Chittenden County ECOS Regional Plan meets the requirements of 24 V.S.A. § 4348(h)(4). The adopted ECOS Regional Plan is now considered duly adopted and in effect. View the adopted plan below »

CCRPC Board Adopts 2026 ECOS Regional Plan
On May 20, 2026, the CCRPC Board of Directors adopted the 2026 ECOS Plan. After adoption, CCRPC submitted the 2026 ECOS Plan to the Land Use Review Board (LURB) for a determination of regional plan compliance pursuant to 24 V.S.A. § 4348. The purpose of this determination is to ensure that the 2026 ECOS Plan conforms with the state planning goals in 24 V.S.A. § 4302 and the required regional plan elements in 24 V.S.A. § 4348a.

The Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission is in the process of developing the 2026 ECOS Regional Plan, and engagement efforts are underway to seek community input on many topics like housing, climate, energy, land use, and more to inform our goals and priorities for the next eight years. This webpage is intended to provide an overview of the community engagement efforts CCRPC is conducting related to Act 181 and the creation of an updated Chittenden County Future Land Use map. ECOS stands for Environment, Community, Opportunity, and Sustainability.

SEE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION ON:

ADOPTED PLAN »
LURB REVIEW »
SECOND PUBLIC HEARING DRAFT »
FIRST PUBLIC HEARING DRAFT »
DRAFT CHITTENDEN COUNTY FUTURE LAND USE MAP »
2025/2026 ENGAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES »
OUTREACH SUMMARIES »
ACT 181 OVERVIEW »
2024 ENGAGEMENT »
CURRENT & PREVIOUS REGIONAL PLANS »
CONTACT »

ADOPTED PLAN

The Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission adopted the 2026 ECOS Regional Plan on May 20, 2026.

On July 31, 2026, the LURB issued an Affirmative Determination of Regional Plan Compliance upon concluding that the adopted Chittenden County ECOS Regional Plan meets the requirements of 24 V.S.A. § 4348(h)(4). The adopted 2026 ECOS Regional Plan below is now considered duly adopted and in effect.

2026 ECOS Regional Plan

The ECOS Regional Plan is available below, and users can also explore the ECOS Plan in a more interactive way by visiting our new ECOS Plan website. Each plan chapter has its own webpage, and interactive data is available throughout. Explore the ECOS Plan »

For more information about the plan and public process, review the engagement materials and summaries below.

LURB REVIEW

Land Use Review Board (LURB) Issues Affirmative Determination of Regional Plan Compliance

On July 31, 2026, the LURB issued an Affirmative Determination of Regional Plan Compliance upon concluding that the adopted Chittenden County Regional ECOS Plan meets the requirements of 24 V.S.A. § 4348(h)(4). The adopted plan is now considered duly adopted and in effect.

CCRPC Board Adoption & LURB Public Hearing

On May 20, 2026, the CCRPC Board of Directors adopted the 2026 ECOS Plan. After adoption, CCRPC submitted the 2026 ECOS Plan to the Land Use Review Board (LURB) for a determination of regional plan compliance per 24 V.S.A. 4348.  The intent of this determination is for the LURB to make sure that the 2026 ECOS Plan conforms with the state planning goals in 24 V.S.A. 4302 and the required plan elements in 24 V.S.A. 4348a. 

The LURB scheduled its public hearing on the plan for Wednesday, July 22 at 1:00pm. After the hearing, the LURB issues a written determination within 15 days.

Following the CCRPC Board’s adoption of the ECOS Plan at its May 20, 2026 meeting, the following materials were submitted to the Land Use Review Board on May 26, 2026:

More Information

An affirmative determination will provide multiple benefits for municipalities and property owners in Chittenden County. First, it will automatically enroll all Chittenden County municipalities in the new state designation program which directs state investment, particularly for infrastructure and housing, to places planned for compact development. An affirmative determination will make Tier 1B effective in municipalities that have opted-in to participating. Tier 1B provides exemption from Act 250 for all housing development projects involving 50 or fewer housing units. Lastly, an affirmative determination will also enable municipalities to apply for Tier 1A status from the LURB. Tier 1A is full exemption from Act 250 for commercial and residential development for communities that meet certain criteria standards for planning and development review.

SECOND PUBLIC HEARING DRAFT

The second public hearing draft was available for review and comment through May 20, 2026. The process and drafts are captured below.

 

FIRST PUBLIC HEARING DRAFT

The first public hearing draft was available for review and comment through January 21, 2026. The process and drafts are captured below.

 

DRAFT CHITTENDEN COUNTY future LAND USE MAP

CCRPC is working with Chittenden County cities and towns to create a regional Future Land Use map. This map, once adopted, will guide how land in the region will be used in the future. Comments were accepted through Monday, May 19, 2025, and the latest version is now available.

start here: background information

Before you review the draft map, check out these helpful resources for an overview of the Future Land Use mapping process and Act 181:

review the latest version of the draft map

Version 2.0 of the draft Future Land Use Map is now available! This version was created following an extensive six-month process of public engagement, which wrapped up mid-May 2025. The map is iterative and will continue to change until adoption of the 2026 ECOS Plan in spring of 2026. There will be more opportunities to comment in the future. View the updated FLU Map » | View a summary of the changes »

2025/2026 engagement opportunities

CCRPC is in the process of developing the 2026 ECOS Regional Plan, and engagement efforts are underway — through spring 2026 — to seek community input. See the full calendar below, and scroll down further for outreach summaries:

 

OUTREACH SUMMARIES

FOCUS GROUPS and outreach FOR REGIONAL AND STATEWIDE INTERESTED PARTIES; Environmental justice (ej) focus populations

Topic-Specific Focus Groups | Between February and March of 2025, CCRPC conducted six topic-specific focus groups: Environmental Justice; Housing and Land Access (x2); Natural Resources and Working Lands; Economic Development; and State Agency Partners.  | View a Summary of the Focus Groups »

Language-Specific Focus Groups | CCRPC worked with community liaisons through its Community Engagement Advisory Committee to host four language-specific focus groups between April and June 2025—in Arabic, Nepali, French, and Swahili—to better understand the housing experiences and priorities of New American and refugee-background communities in Chittenden County. | View a Summary of the Focus Groups »

Mobile Home Park Survey | CCRPC released a survey to mobile home park residents in the spring of 2025. | View the Survey Results »

First Public Hearing: January 21, 2026 | The first public hearing draft of the 2026 ECOS Regional Plan was available for review and comment in advance of a public hearing that was held on January 21, 2026. A public comment summary and response document is available.

MUNICIPAL LEVEL ENGAGEMENT

CCRPC has been working with each of our 19 municipalities to develop and implement an engagement plan specific to each, including at least 2-4 events per municipality. These meetings were open public meetings and advertised broadly. Please check the calendar above for event(s) in your town.

general engagement

CCRPC collected comments on the draft Future Land Use map via an online public engagement tool and through email. Comments were due on May 19, 2025.

In addition, more formal opportunities to comment on the 2025/2026 ECOS Plan and the regional Future Land Use map will also be available during the regional plan adoption process. This process will start around October 2025 and will continue through spring 2026.

Please contact Sarah Muskin with general questions and comments or submit general comments via this form.

ACT 181 OVERVIEW

Regional Planning Act 181 Summary, Housing Targets, and CCRPC’s Community Engagement Plan

Act 181, passed into law June 2024, overhauls Vermont’s planning framework for coordinating state, regional, and municipal land use. CCRPC staff have distilled Act 181’s impact on regional and municipal planning into brief informational handouts and a short video.

For a summary of Act 181 related to regional planning, as well as a housing targets summary and a community engagement plan specific to CCRPC, review the following materials:

2024 ENGAGEMENT

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current & Previous Chittenden County Regional Plans

The current ECOS Regional Plan was adopted on June 20, 2018. Learn more about the ECOS Plan »

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CONTACT

If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Sarah Muskin: (802) 540-1241.