Cavendish

The town of Cavendish, Vermont also faced a legal battle surrounding the creation of an aeronautics facility. In 2008, a Cavendish resident applied for a permit to build a helipad on their property. The town government, having no town statutes regulating the creation of restricted landing areas, neither accepted or rejected the permit. After the town continued to refuse to rule on the permit request, the applicant appealed to Vermont state authorities.

In the following years, the case was heard by multiple entities within the Vermont State government, including the Vermont Supreme Court and the Vermont Transportation Board. Finally, in a 2012 hearing on the matter, the Transportation Board ruled that, because the town of Cavendish acknowledged they had no current zoning, land use, or other municipal ordinances pertaining to the construction of helipads, the town government had no authority to rule on the construction. The Transportation Board then proceeded to grant the applicant an approved permit to construct a helipad. 

In the aftermath of this decision by the Transportation Board, the town of Cavendish passed a law prohibiting the future construction of private landing facilities. According to Cavendish Town Manager Richard Svec, “One of the important goals of the town plan is to maintain [a] quiet rural atmosphere. Having (helipads in Cavendish) was contrary to that.” (Kathryn’s Report, 2013)

Explore the following articles to find out more about the events in Cavendish:

1. Story that covers the legal process leading to this application being granted and the subsequent ordinance banning personal-use restricted landing areas in Cavendish

2. Transcript of the meeting between the helipad applicant and the Vermont Transportation Board, 6/21/2012

3. Cavendish Municipal Ordinance concerning the creation of aircraft landing or takeoff facilities, enacted 4/28/2013