A way for towns to engage and bring together their residents, set common goals and directions in a neutral and facilitated structure, and access resources that will help them take action on those goals.
We completed our 3-month Community Visit process in St. Johnsbury. Community members identified 5 priority areas for future action: Improve Community Communications and Promote a Positive Town Image Develop a St. Johnsbury Warming Shelter Redevelop and Revitalize Downtown Buildings Redevelop the St. Johnsbury Riverfront Improve Housing in Downtown St. Johnsbury Read the Report and Action…
We completed our 3-month Community Visit process in Swanton. Community members identified 5 priority areas for future action: Expand Outdoor Recreation Opportunities, River Access, Bike-ability, and Bike Tourism Create the Swanton Arts Council (established following the January 28th Community Visit Day) Build a Swanton Economic Development Committee Unite the Community to Reduce Substance Abuse Improve…
We completed our 3-month Community Visit process in Cambridge. Community members identified 4 priority areas for future action: Plan and Develop a Senior Living Center and Expand Senior Services Advance a Cambridge Community Center Expand Communications, Capacity, and Efficiency for Community and Economic Development Evaluate Municipal Structure Read the Report and Action Plan. To learn…
We completed our 3-month Community Visit process in Vergennes. Community members identified 3 priority areas for future action: Improve Transportation & Parking Advance the Vergennes Economy & Expand the Community and Economic Development Capacity of the City Redevelop the Vergennes Falls Basin & Open a Riverwalk. Read the Report and Action Plan To learn more…
On Wednesday May 21, VCRD and a Community Visit Resource Team went back to Vergennes for our last session as facilitators of the Community Visit process. At this final visit, we kicked-off the Task Forces that address the three community priorities identified in the process. Over the course of the prior three months, the people…
Over the past few months, we’ve been writing about our Community Visit process that is underway in Vergennes. Through this signature program of VCRD, we are bringing together local prioritization and community engagement with state, federal, and regional experts and resources to help Vergennes define the projects that will sustain the city and make it…
On April 16, over 100 Vergennes community members gathered in a community meeting to consider the ideas that were discussed through the Vergennes Community Visit process and to set priorities for action. At the Community Meeting participants reviewed all the issues that the Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) Visiting Team had heard in focus…
The citizens of Vergennes have set the top three priorities for their city, in an effort to take a big picture approach to planning for the future. More than 100 people turned out to a community meeting last week. It was the second event in a three-month “Community Visit” facilitated by the Vermont Council on…
Last year, VCRD completed a 6-month Community Visit in the southern Vermont town of Manchester. This process helped Manchester residents whittle 22 issues and ideas about how to focus community efforts to build a better Manchester by 2020 into four priorities for future action. One of these priorities is to Attract Higher Education Opportunities. The…
Snapshot of Community Projects as a Result of a VCRD Community Visit Almost all towns have built community spirit and engaged new volunteers. Projects have been advanced and accomplished ranging from a town merger in Richford, to building a senior living project in Wilmington, revitalizing downtowns in Bellows Falls and Brandon, or building a youth…