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Late Blight Fungus Infects Northeast Gardens

Date: Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Posted in: National

Late Blight, a fungus more commonly known as Irish Potato Blight - said to have caused the 19th century potato famine - has infected the Northeast.

The fungus is believed to have originated with a large vegetable distributor based in Texas who shipped infected tomtato plants to Walmart stores in the Northeast. Signs of Late Blight can be identified by lesions on the stems and olive-brown colored spots on the leaves. The disease increases rapidly because spores are spread by the wind. Read...

Shelburnewood Project Moves Forward

Date: Monday, June 29, 2009
Posted in: Vermont

After long delays and changes to zoning bylaws, the Shelburne Selectboard recently voted to support key funding for the Shelburnewood project.

The project received sketch-plan approval at a June 17th Development Review Board meeting, but has many more local and state reviews before the first home is built. Various town committees are carefully reviewing the plans to ensure that good design features are integrated into the project to ensure that the increased density fits with the character of...

Burping Cows Emit Methane Gas

Date: Friday, June 26, 2009
Posted in: National

It's true. According to a recent study, the dairy industry contributes roughly 2% of methane gas emissions, most of which comes straight from the cow's mouth and the rest from growing feed crop and producing and transporting milk.

So, what's a farmer to do? According to Stonyfield Farms' Greener Cow Project, feeding cattle a combination of alfalfa, flax and grasses, all high in Omega 3's, reduces the gas concentration in the animals' rumen (1st stomach). Read more.

Community Update: Essex and Jericho

Date: Friday, June 26, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

Smart Growth Vermont is pleased to announce its most recent multi-town community assistance project. Over the next year and a half, Smart Growth Vermont will work with the towns of Essex and Jericho in Chittenden County to develop and implement strategies for protecting scenic views in the two towns. The project will focus on views of Mount Mansfield, which dominates the skyline in both communities.

“Protecting scenic resources is a high priority for Essex, but we don’t yet have...

Boot Camp for Planning Commissioners

Date: Friday, June 26, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

On June 5th and 6th, Planning Commissioners from around the state met at Camp Ohana in Fairlee to attend the first “boot camp” organized by the Land Use Institute of the Vermont Law School and generously sponsored by Robert Miller and REM Development Company. The planners came to learn more about capital budgets, conservation plans, the implications of the JAM Golf Course court decision and much more. While doing push ups on the lawn, Noelle from Smart Growth Vermont also presented a...

Sponsor Spotlight: Erik Hoekstra

Date: Friday, June 26, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

Development Manager, Redstone Commercial Development

We’re proud to sponsor Smart Growth Vermont’s award program, because the awards and this organization’s mission is philosophically aligned with ours. At Redstone, we work on both historic redevelopment and infill because we think it’s the right thing to do, even though it’s harder – it kills more brain cells. We want to work to further enhance the character of Vermont rather than make our towns look like anywhere USA. Smart Growth Vermont...

Brattleboro Food Coop & Windham Housing Trust Join Forces

Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Posted in: Vermont

The Brattleboro Food Co-op and the Windham Housing Trust are working together to create a larger space for the growing co-op and new affordable housing downtown. Plans show a new, four-floor building in which the first two levels will be occupied by the co-op and the top two levels will be rental units operated by the Housing Trust. This development plan was given $875,000 in state and federal money this month. The co-op is one of Brattleboro’s leading businesses despite the economic slump, and...

Community Garden Blooms in Montpelier

Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Posted in: Vermont

Neighbors at the Herbert Farms Apartments in Montpelier shared a sense of community as they came together to create a 576-square-foot garden at the housing complex. Construction of this community garden began on June 6 with the help of almost 35 volunteers and employees of the Central Vermont Community Land Trust (CVCLT). Officials of CVCLT, who are also administrators of the property, learned of the residents’ hope for a garden from maintenance workers at the establishment. Enthusiastic...

Smart Growth in Action: Village Zoning in Hinesburg

Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth

The Town of Hinesburg recently approved a comprehensive overhaul of the zoning districts and standards for its village growth area. The updated standards added several new districts and doubled the size of the village growth area from about 250 to over 500 acres, with the goal of accommodating a majority of Hinesburg’s new development over the next 20 years within this expanded village area.

The most significant feature of the revised standards is a series of incentives that provide density...

Community Spotlight: North Hero

Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Posted in: Community Spotlight

Nestled in the middle of the islands of Grand Isle County in beautiful Lake Champlain, North Hero is home to 900 full-time residents and hundreds more seasonals. Visitors are attracted to the town's strong sense of place, historic features and abundant recreational opportunities. Local and state owned parks offer trails, beaches, boating, and canoeing. The Islands Line Bike Trail provides access to great biking. This summer, North Hero Island celebrates Lake Champlain’s Quadricentennial...

New Issues, Tools and Case Studies in the Toolbox

Date: Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

Citizen planners and volunteers call us each week to ask for our help on issues ranging from protecting wildlife to restricting strip development to promoting good design. To help answer these requests, we developed our Community Planning Toolbox in 2007 and we regularly add new resources.

Many communities struggle with how to effectively engage residents in the planning process. To help, we have added an overview of public engagement to help people get started on designing a process that...

New Tool in the Community Planning Toolbox

Date: Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

This month, with the help of the Land Use Institute at the Vermont Law School we have added information on inclusionary zoning (link to Toolbox) to aid communities that are considering ways to increase affordable housing options for local residents. An overview is provided as a tool and more detailed information on the statutory provisions are available in the Land Use Law section.

Almost 1,000 people access information on our Community Planning Toolbox each month. In the coming months...

Volunteer Spotlight

Date: Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

Smart Growth Vermont is pleased to have Joey Solomon working as our legal intern this summer, researching and writing a section of the Community Planning Toolbox dedicated to Public Engagement.

Joey will begin his third year at Vermont Law School in the fall, and plans to graduate with a Juris Doctorate and Masters of Environmental Law and Policy in May 2010. After an academic career dedicated to studying environment issues, he hopes to begin a legal career in Land Use Regulation so that he...

Don't Miss an Issue!

Date: Friday, May 29, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont

Do you get our print newsletter too? Want to keep getting it? Let us know! We’re trying to conserve paper and money. Send us an email to make sure you stay on the list. Better yet, visit our online donation page and become a member! It costs us about $10 each year to send you the print newsletter, and more than that to send you this e-newsletter. Consider becoming a Sustaining Member by making an online monthly pledge of $5 or more. Not only will you ensure you don’t miss a single issue, you’ll...

Vermont to Receive $30 Million in Stimulus Funds

Date: Friday, May 29, 2009
Posted in: Vermont

Senator Patrick Leahy recently announced that Vermont will receive $30 million in stimulus funding to aid in development projects benefiting low income residents. Thirty two Organizations nationwide received funding as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The money will be issued to Vermont Rural Ventures, a partnership including Housing Vermont, Vermont Economic Development Authority, Vermont Housing Finance Agency, Vermont Community Loan Fund and the Northern Tier Center...

Smart Growth in Action: Business Invests in Downtown Location

Date: Thursday, May 28, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth

The Montpelier regional office of Phase Forward, an international data management company, is an exceptional example of a company that discovered the benefits of relocating to a Vermont downtown. In 2000, the former Company, Green Mountain Logic, saw the advantages of expanding from their Rochester offices to a strong, vibrant business community like Montpelier.CEO John Rosenblum noted one of the main benefits of relocating to a downtown district is having walkable employee access to other...

Summit on the Future of Vermont

Date: Thursday, May 28, 2009
Posted in: Vermont

Close to 500 people gathered on May 11 at the University of Vermont’s Davis Center for the Summit on the Future of Vermont, an event that culminates nearly two years of conversations across the state about what the next 20 years hold for our state. Organized by the Council on Rural Development, the event also served to showcase “Imagining Vermont: Values and Vision for the Future,” a report detailing the findings of the Future of Vermont project. Smart Growth Vermont staff participated in...

A Town Without Cars

Date: Thursday, May 28, 2009
Posted in: National

Sounds like science fiction, but it’s a reality in Vauban, Germany. This community of 5,000 was designed and built in 2006 to be car-free except for the main thoroughfare, where the tram to downtown Freiburg runs, and a few side streets on the perimeter of the community. Car ownership is allowed, but cars must be parked in large garages at the edge of the community. Parking is purchased along with your house. As a result, 70% of the families don’t own cars and 57% sold a car to more...

What Vermonters Think: The 2009 Vermonter Poll Results Are In

Date: Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont, Vermont

Since 1998, Smart Growth Vermont has included five questions on the University of Vermont’s Center for Rural Studies Annual Vermonter Poll asking respondents about their views on land use and development trends. Over the years, between 50 and 80 percent of Vermonters have expressed concern about sprawl, and between 60 and 80 percent feel that current trends in development and land use will lead to sprawl.

However, there is often a disconnect between Vermonters’ concern about sprawl and...

The 2009 Legislative Session

Date: Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Posted in: Smart Growth Vermont, State Policy

The Good, The Bad, and The "To Be Continued"

Lawmakers adjourned on May 9, but the 2009 Legislative Session is not quite over. Legislators are being called back by the Governor for a special session starting on June 2nd because of a dispute over the state budget. With one exception – the level of investment in the Housing and Conservation program – most of Smart Growth Vermont's state policy agenda is unlikely to be impacted by the special session.

Together with our legislative partner,...

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