Want to keep homes affordable? Reduce your carbon footprint? Save our wildlife and open spaces? Become a member of Smart Growth Vermont. We need your support to make sure we are there when towns ask for help creating compact neighborhoods around their town centers. With planning grants eliminated, your gift has urgency; you can help a town close the gap between flying solo and working with our staff. Your membership gift will help:

Several members have found that our Sustaining Membership is an easy way to maximize their gift. For instance, just $45 per month – little more than one cup of coffee a day – adds to $500 a year. Click on our Donate Now button and go directly to the form. Be one of the first 50, and we’ll send you one of our mugs! Already a member? Thank you! Please consider a second gift this season to help us continue our work.

We also take gifts the old fashioned way. Print out our donor form and mail it in. However you choose to give and at whatever level, please give generously today for the future of Vermont.

Smart Growth Vermont Welcomes New Program Director

Suzanne Blanchard has just joined the Smart Growth Vermont team as Program Director. Suzanne brings energy and passion to the organization and we are delighted to have her on board.

Prior to joining Smart Growth Vermont, after practicing environmental law for a decade in Washington, D.C. and Princeton, N.J., Suzanne was an editor and consultant. Suzanne graduated from Colgate University and Vermont Law School, worked for the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, and clerked at the U.S Department of Justice. She has volunteered for community and professional organizations throughout her career.

Suzanne also serves on the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission and is a board member of the Chittenden County Metropolitan Planning Organization. She has worked on housing, land use and environmental issues for two decades. And, when she's not working or volunteering her time, Suzanne likes to get out on the lake or the Island Line with her partner and two children.

Outlook for 2010 Legislative Session

Soon the holiday season will be a distant memory and the 2010 legislative session will be in full swing. With tough budgetary times and a gubernatorial election on the horizon, it could be a challenging session. Nevertheless, Smart Growth Vermont and our legislative partner, Preservation Trust of Vermont will be tracking and working on the following issues:

Look for our periodic electronic Legislative Alerts during the session to stay abreast of the issues. And, if you’re not already, take a moment to become a member of Smart Growth Vermont. Every membership allows us to continue working on critical State Policy issues.

Member Spotlight

Whether it’s Pittsford, Danville, Shoreham or any other Vermont town, we all have the same challenge – getting people together to discuss issues like: how can we keep our downtowns vibrant and our countryside open? Town meetings are getting smaller and shorter and there aren’t the great debates we used to have. Smart Growth Vermont has helped us bring people together here in Pittsford to talk about our vision for our town. In Vermont, we have the opportunity to be good concerned neighbors and to shape the future of our communities. I support Smart Growth Vermont because this organization does just that – it helps foster connections between people.

The holidays are here! This season, and always, remember to shop local. Vermont artisans and agricultural producers offer a wide variety of food and crafts, and supporting the local economy is an investment in your community!

Also, check out Upcoming Events on our website! You'll find information about conferences, lectures and presentations on a wide variety of topics.

Smart Growth in Action: Current Use in Vermont

Vermont’s current economic climate has raised alarm in the Legislature, leaving all state funded programs vulnerable for cuts– including Current Use. Legislators are looking to raise income or cut expenses for the program to the tune of $1.6 million. Unless carefully considered, the impact of this deep a cut could threaten the state’s most valuable resource, our working landscape.

Enacted in 1978, Current Use is designed to protect owners of agricultural and forest lands from the threat of high taxes by assessing their property for its “use“ rather than for its fair market or, development value. Today, about 1.5 million acres of working farm and forest lands are enrolled in the program.

For more than 20 years, this policy has strengthened the economic feasibility of family farms and other agricultural businesses, as well as actively managed forest lands, that are crucial to Vermont’s economy and environment. For example, Don Pouliot of Pouliot Farm in Westford has successfully maintained a 500 acre dairy operation during the current economic downturn, due in part to Current Use. Pouliot’s farm resides along highway 128, just south of the village of Westford, an area that would otherwise be at risk for development. Pouliot points out that if this active farm became a development, costs to Westford will rise because with development comes road maintenance, sewer expansion, and other infrastructure expenses.

Current Use has also allowed property owners who are interested in conserving and managing forest lands to maintain diversity and health. Bill Burgin purchased 650 acres of forest land near Killington, in a remote natural area, and because of Current Use, he has been able to maintain the property for its ecological value. Burgin and his family purchased the land because they wanted to preserve the natural quality for the sake of wildlife and for people to enjoy.

Current Use policy will be heavily examined during the upcoming Legislative session, and Smart Growth Vermont will play an active role in ensuring its protection, along with organizations like the Vermont Land Trust, who has taken the lead on this issue. Please show your support for this important policy by sending comments to your state legislators.

Community Spotlight: Vermont's Downtowns Shine

Pictured from left to right: Bonita Bedard, Carol Wells, Leanne Tingay and Joss Besse.

During this holiday season as you shop in one of our 23 designated downtowns, take a moment and look around. Notice the details of a restored historic building; participate in a holiday event; relax in a newly created pocket park; be cheered by the festive decorations.

We are proud of our downtowns, but it takes a lot of hard work, dedication and creativity to ensure that these centers remain the heart and soul of our communities. The State’s Downtown Program recognized this hard work with the Green Mountain Awards at their November Conference.

The recently renovated Town Hall Theatre in Middlebury, which was the site for several Conference sessions, was celebrated as the “Best Building Renovation.” Once abandoned, it's now a key landmark. Wilmington received kudos for “Best Public Space Improvement” for a community gathering place in the center of town. The first annual Pocock Rocks Music Festival and Street Fair in Bristol won as the “Best Special Event.”

People are at the heart of these efforts and one of the most touching moments came when Karen Bresnahan of Downtown St. Albans won for “Outstanding Staff Achievement” – and she was nominated by a fellow downtown director. Paul Trudell of the Morristown Alliance for Culture and Commerce in Morristown was chosen as “Volunteer of the Year” for his work fundraising and donating his professional drafting and landscaping skills. View photos of the awards.

So, take time this season to support the efforts of countless volunteers, businesses, and non-profit organizations that work to make our downtowns special – shop local!

Municipal Education Grants are Available for 2010

Municipal Education Grants (MEG) are once again available for 2010 through the Vermont Department of Housing and Community Affairs.

The MEG program provides funds to municipalities for trainings to volunteer land use boards and commissions. Communities may apply for grants up to $800, anytime before May 15, 2010. Find out more.

Snap a Photo for Orton's Heart and Soul Project

The Orton Family Foundation is accepting entries for their Heart & Soul photo contest.

What do you love about your community? Whether its the landscape, an annual event, or a gathering space in your town, snap a photo and send it to the Orton Family Foundation. Find out more.

Trash Plus Street Lamps Equals Light!

Streetlights powered by trash? Why not? Take the trash we throw in bins on the sidewalk, attach them to streetlights, and turn the bins into composters that can supply methane byproducts to power the lamps. An added bonus? Compost to use in street plantings. Haneum Lee designed these “Gaon Street Lights.” It is not currently known how effective these products will be, but they are headed in the right direction. Read more.

Denser Neighborhoods Save Money

Residents who live in walkable neighborhoods and near public transportation emit fewer carbon emissions and rely much less on cars to get around, a trend that could save California as much as $31 billiion per year, according to a study conducted in California's largest cities. Read more.

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E-News December 2009

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