[Adopted 2-3-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-1 (Title IX, § F of the 1987 Code)]
Pursuant to the authority of General Statutes § 7-149a, the Planning and Zoning Commission is hereby authorized to designate any Town public highway or any portion of any Town public highway as a scenic road in accordance with the procedures in this article.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: On 10-23-2001 the Planning and Zoning Commission designated Burrows Hill Road in its entirety as a scenic road.
No road or portion of road shall be designated as a scenic road unless it is free of intensive commercial development and intensive vehicular traffic.
Prior to designating a road as a scenic road, the Planning and Zoning Commission shall first specifically find that at least three of the following criteria are met:
A. 
The highway is unpaved.
B. 
The highway is bordered by mature trees or stone walls.
C. 
The traveled portion of the highway is no more than 20 feet in width.
D. 
The highway offers scenic views.
E. 
The highway blends naturally into the surrounding terrain.
F. 
The highway parallels or crosses over brooks, streams, lakes or ponds.
No road may be designated as a scenic road by the Planning and Zoning Commission unless the owners of the majority of the lot frontage abutting the portion of the road proposed for such designation agree to its designation as a scenic road by filing a written statement of approval with the Commission on a form prescribed by the Commission.
The Planning and Zoning Commission shall consider a road for designation as a scenic road upon receipt of a request for such designation or may itself initiate proceedings to designate a road as a scenic road. No road shall be designated as a scenic road upon an application therefor unless the application, on a form prescribed by the Commission, contains the following:
A. 
The name of the road proposed to be designated as a scenic road and a general description of the road or portion of it to be designated, which includes the total frontage of the road section proposed and the names and addresses of all abutters. The above information shall be shown on a plan at a minimum scale of one inch equals 200 feet, showing the limits of the proposed designated section of the road.
B. 
A written description identifying those characteristics of the road which qualify it for scenic road status under § 313-5 of this article.
C. 
A statement or statements of approval on a form prescribed by the Commission signed by the owners of a majority of the lot frontage abutting the proposed scenic road consenting to its designation as a scenic road. (Where the Planning and Zoning Commission itself initiates the designation of a road or a portion thereof as a scenic road, it may waive the requirement that the written statements of approval precede its consideration of the proposed designation; provided, however, that no designation of a scenic road shall be effective unless the written statements of approval executed by the requisite number of owners are filed with the Town Clerk and the Commission within such time period as the Commission shall specify.)
The Planning and Zoning Commission may rescind the designation of a road as a scenic road, provided that the owners of a majority of the lot frontage abutting the scenic road have executed a written statement of approval of rescission on a form prescribed by the Commission. Upon rescission, the statements of approval shall be filed with the Town Clerk.
The Town shall maintain its scenic roads in good and sufficient repair and in a safe, passable condition, pursuant to its regular schedule for maintenance of Town roads. Routine maintenance of a scenic road shall be carried out so as to preserve its scenic and rural characteristics, compatible with safe road operations. In the case of natural disaster in which a scenic road becomes impassable for usage or unsafe for public travel, emergency repairs may be made only to the extent needed to restore the scenic road to its pre-emergency condition.
As used herein, the term "alteration or improvement" of a scenic road shall mean all repairs or improvements other than routine road maintenance or repairs made necessary by a natural disaster, and shall include any widening or straightening of the right of way, any widening, straightening or change of grade of the traveled portion of the scenic road, the paving of a scenic road having a gravel surface, the removal of stone walls, the removal of mature trees, the regrading of roadside slopes and all other similar improvements. As used herein, the term "reconstruction" of a scenic road shall mean the complete removal of the road surface or subsurface for the purposes of reconstructing the scenic road in its entirety, including any extension of the width of the scenic road. Any alteration, improvement or reconstruction of a scenic road shall be approved by the Town Manager in accordance with the following standards:
A. 
Curves. Curves shall not be eliminated unless they are found to be a hazard.
B. 
Grades. Hills and valleys shall not be destroyed by cuts and fills unless essential for road safety.
C. 
Widths. Scenic roads should only be widened if the amount of traffic, safe road operations and maintenance needs require such widening.
D. 
Side slopes. The existing steepness of side slopes is preferable to the reduction of gradient by extensive removal of soil and rock, especially where the slope is fully stabilized and where it is rich with existing ground cover, shrubs and trees.
E. 
Vistas. Vistas of distinct landscapes should be preserved by suitable vegetation management techniques.
F. 
Vegetation. Vegetation on the side of scenic roads shall be managed in such a way as to preserve wildflowers, shrubs of ornamental and wildlife values, trees overarching, isolated trees and trees forming a canopy of a closed forest.
G. 
Stone walls. If stone walls or portions thereof must be removed, they shall be rebuilt along the affected portion of the scenic road wherever practical.
H. 
Utility lines. Wherever practical, utility lines should be placed underground; where not practical, cooperation of the utilities should be sought to ensure suitable vegetation management techniques are in place to preserve wildflowers and shrubs.
I. 
Billboards and sand, gravel and salt piles. The placing of billboards, sand, gravel or salt piles, refuse disposal or other unsightly depositions or structures shall be forbidden.[1]
[1]
Editor’s Note: Former Art. IV, Snow and Ice Removal, adopted 9-28-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-1, and which immediately followed this section, was repealed 9-14-2017.