Wyman named newest review board member

Stephanie Wyman, a local civil engineer with nearly 10 years of experience, will fill an empty seat on the South Burlington Development Review Board.

Wyman will serve until the term ends in June — only about four months — after which she may reapply for a three-year position.

The development review board is a quasi-judicial body composed of seven volunteers who meet about twice a month to oversee land subdivision, site plans and other matters related to land development.

The position was left open by member John Wilking who stepped down earlier this year.

The short term is partly why Wyman decided to apply, she said. While she had previously considered joining the board, the amount of work and the time commitment deterred her from taking the next step.

She hopes this short term can provide a sneak peek so she can determine if the workload is manageable in addition to her day job.

“For me, this is a great opportunity to see if it’s a good fit,” Wyman told city council during a Feb. 17 meeting.

Wyman hopes to lend her expertise as a civil engineer, with experience working in land development, stormwater and transportation, to help shape what she loves about South Burlington.

For the last three and a half years, Wyman has worked as a civil engineer at VHB, an engineering and environmental consulting firm in South Burlington.

While she has never attended a development review board meeting as an audience member, she has attended meetings in various Vermont towns as an applicant and is familiar with the process, said Wyman.

She also serves as president-elect of the Vermont chapter of the American society of civil engineers.

City councilor Tim Barritt asked if Wyman’s affiliation with VHB, a company that has presented in front of the board in the past and likely will in the future, would be a conflict of interest and how she would handle that.

“Do you have any knowledge of how many projects VHB works on that end up going through the DRB in South Burlington?” asked Barritt.

Wyman confirmed that the board is considering VHB projects currently, but that she would recuse herself from commenting, voicing an opinion and voting on such projects, to eliminate her conflict of interest.

The next development review board meeting is scheduled for March 2 at 7 p.m.