Since 2011 ECOS strategy 2 to focus 80% of new residential development in areas planned for growth was achieved. Click the Toggle Comparison button to view the percent of residential development in the rural planning area.

This indicator measures the percentage of new homes in areas planned for growth. These are defined as Center, Metro, Enterprise, Suburban, and Village Planning Areas as seen on the map below. To view an interactive map of the the Planning Areas go to the ECOS Map Viewer. 

Center Planning Areas are intended to be regional centers or traditional downtowns that serve the County and beyond and contain a mix of jobs, housing, and community facilities. Center Planning Areas also contain the County’s highest density and largest-scale developments with residential densities generally ranging from 7 to more than 60 dwelling units per acre. Center Planning Areas may contain a state designated New Town Center, Growth Center, Tax Increment Financing District, or high density Village Center. Development in downtown centers primarily happens through infill development of underutilized vacant land and adaptive reuse of older structures whereas, development in municipal growth centers occurs in targeted areas that will accommodate future anticipated growth. These land uses are locally planned and managed to coexist successfully with neighborhoods and natural areas. Places within Center Planning Areas are served by wastewater facilities, other infrastructure, and offer a variety of transportation options, including non-motorized modes

Metro Planning Areas are areas where local zoning authorizes places to accommodate jobs and housing in a compact development pattern that supports transit service and encourages pedestrian activity and are within the sewer service area. Commercial land uses found in the Metro Planning Area are intended to serve the nearby residential area. Existing densities within Metro Planning Areas are typically higher than those found in the Suburban, Rural, Village, and Enterprise Planning Areas and generally range between 4 and 20 dwelling units per acre. Future development in the metro area should be encouraged to occur at the higher end of this range to ensure that there are adequate housing and jobs in these areas.

Suburban Planning Areas are areas near a Center Planning Area, Metro Planning Area, Village Planning Area, or Enterprise Planning Area where local zoning authorizes future development to occur at scales, densities, and uses compatible with existing development and with general residential densities greater than 1 and less than 4.5 dwelling units per acre. Many parts of the Suburban Planning Area already have been developed, often in suburban styles of development and are predominantly within the sewer service area. Future development and redevelopment in this Planning Area should be publicly sewered, minimize adverse impacts on natural resources, and protect strategic open space.

Enterprise Planning Areas are areas where local zoning authorizes a future concentration of employment uses that attract workers from the County and multi-county region. Development in these Planning Areas should have adequate wastewater capacity and access to transit or be near these services. Typically, this area encompasses major employers or a cluster of single employers and has current or planned transit service.

Village Planning Areas are areas where local zoning authorizes a variety of future residential and nonresidential development at densities and scales in keeping with the character of a Vermont village, generally between 2 and 12 dwelling units per acre if sewered and between 0.2 and 4 units per acre if not sewered. Village Planning Areas are compact areas of mixed-use activities that maintain the character of a Vermont village. This type of Planning Area is intended to serve its local surroundings as a place where people can live, work, shop and recreate.

Rural Planning Areas are areas where regional and town plans promote the preservation of Vermont’s traditional working landscape and natural area features. The Rural Planning Area also provides for low density commercial, industrial, and residential development (generally 1 dwelling unit per acre or less) that is compatible with working lands and natural areas so that these places may continue to highlight the rural character and self-sustaining natural area systems. Development in the rural planning areas is typically outside the sewer service area.

The location of housing in areas where the infrastructure, services, and jobs are nearby instead of development in rural areas will create a built environment that uses less energy, preserves rural areas, and maintains Vermont's historic settlement patterns. Over the past 60 years development trends, zoning regulations, and consumer preference have shifted growth away from the metropolitan areas around Burlington, to more suburban and rural locales. This shift has resulted in scattered development at low densities that consume large amounts of land, high infrastructure costs, with little opportunity for social interactions, and less ability to walk to services. Over the last several years this trend has reversed for the better

In September 2017, this data was updated for each year from 2010 to 2016 to account for demolitions and refinements made in the database. 

Chittenden County Municipalities