Piney Woods Road
In order to obtain resident’s additional input to inform the Selectboard’s decision about what to do with the Piney Woods Road, there will be informational meetings at 7:00 pm on Wednesday April 8, 2026 and Saturday April 11, 2026 at Town Hall. There will be a presentation on the various options that the Selectboard can make followed by a Q&A from the community.
By state statute, the Selectboard has authority over maintaining town roads and is required to make a decision on what to do with the road. Under Vermont law (19 V.S.A. § 304), Selectboards are responsible for laying out, constructing, maintaining, and operating town highways and bridges. They must maintain class 1, 2, and 3 highways, with class 3 roads requiring year-round negotiability for standard vehicles, though they may limit winter maintenance on certain roads. Selectboards must maintain Class 3 highways to be negotiable under normal conditions all seasons of the year, including adequate surface, base, and drainage.
Background:
Piney Woods Road has been closed since the July 2024 disaster. FEMA inspected the damage and prepared Damage Description and Dimensions reports that included mitigation measures with cost estimates to reopen the road. The VT Agency of Transportation completed hydraulic studies for the three drainage basins and provided replacement recommendations that FEMA used in preparing its reports. FEMA’s estimated cost to reopen the road is $1,200,000. With FEMA providing 75% and the State picking up 12.5% of the cost would leave Monkton with 12.5% of the cost or $150,000. The town has so far received $804,476.85 from FEMA and could receive up to an additional $89,386.31 from FEMA to repair the road so long as it aligned with the approved scope of work. The additional funding could be available if the cost for the Piney Woods work overruns the initial cost estimates.
The referenced reports and documents are available for review at the Town Office or by request by emailing the town administrator ([email protected]).
The info session will be recorded and slides available following the session. The info session will also be accessible via zoom – the link will be posted on the town website the day of the event
