Still Time to Register for the 2009 Smart Growth Awards

September 16 is quickly approaching, and if you act now you'll have an opportunity to attend this exciting event! Let us know by Friday, September 11 to ensure a place at the table.

This year's awards will be held at the Basin Harbor Club in Vergennes. The evening will start with a cocktail and appetizer hour, followed by the awards ceremony and a full dinner. You can easily register for the event on our website, or you can contact Serena at 802-864-6310.

We are looking forward to a fabulous evening, honoring the following smart growth plans and projects: Finney Crossing in Williston; Proctorsville Green in Cavendish; BankNorth Block in Burlington; and ReCycle North's ReStore in Barre. We will also honor Rob Woolmington of North Bennington with the 2009 Arthur Gibb Award for Individual Leadership. We hope to see you there!

---

Community Involvement Key in Pittsford

Pittsford Community Corporation (PCC), a local nonprofit organization in Pittsford, is in the process of buying 14-acres in the center of Pittsford Village. Their goal is to develop it in ways that strengthen and revitalize the village center. They have asked the Vermont Smart Growth Collaborative members, Smart Growth Vermont and the Preservation Trust of Vermont to assist in developing a feasibility study for the site. PCC sees this as an exciting opportunity for the community to come together and consider what assets the community has and what would enhance the whole community. We are reaching out to the community in many ways – large community meetings, smaller focus groups, comment boxes, and on-line surveys – to gather input from residents. If you would like to learn more, visit the Pittsford page on our website.

---

Member Spotlight: Marie Kirn

I first learned about Smart Growth Vermont at a statewide presentation for planning commissioners in Montpelier. I was attracted to the organization’s deep commitment and intense involvement in wise thinking. While on the Planning Commission in Hartland, I helped get Village designation for the town and realized how hard it is to create affordable housing in Vermont. As more of us get on in years and want to stay in our towns, we will need someplace to live. That's one of the reasons I was attracted to co-housing. At Cobb Hill, 23 families live on four acres and farm the remaining 270 acres. We're particularly proud of our award winning Ascutney Mountain cheese that we make by hand from milk from our own cows.

---

Smart Growth Vermont On the Road

Town of Orwell

Nice weather means more requests from towns for trainings about how to implement smart growth principles. Recently, our Executive Director, Noelle MacKay, traveled to the southern town of Wilmington to discuss ways to protect the gateway and views into the village and also increase housing options in and around the Village. It was a perfect opportunity to discuss these issues, as the Planning Commission is working on updating their Town Plan.

The Town of Orwell recently invited Smart Growth Vermont staff to do a presentation on how to protect the scenic and agricultural qualities of the village gateway along 22A. While the area is currently zoned for strip commercial development, there are currently only two commercial establishments in the district, which means Orwell has the opportunity to rewrite the standards so as to ensure that new development is village-oriented rather than highway-oriented. We are excited about the possibility of helping the town with this important work!

---

Vermont climate change activist and founder of 350.org, Bill McKibben, is hosting an international day of climate action on Saturday, October 24. In response to this call to action, Vermont 350 Dance Party has taken shape and is encouraging folks across the state to boogie down for climate change. The event will take place at Higher Ground, in Burlington, with two great bands performing. The event will also be simulcast on UStream and on cable. So, get your friends and family together and tune in to take climate action! Details are at the Vermont 350 Dance Party website.

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

Farmers Learn in Living Laboratory

Farmers gathered at the UVM extension service’s living laboratory at Roger Rainville’s Borderview Farm in Alburgh this past August for the fifth consecutive year to learn from their findings and exchange ideas. The Extension Service and its soil scientists have been testing yields of different grain and seed varieties at the Rainville farm. Growing grain locally for cow feed could reduce the need to import phosphorus-rich feed from the Midwest and reduce runoff into Lake Champlain. Local grain is also highly sought by Vermont brewers, processors, and consumers. Seeds being tested may be used to produce oil, another component missing from Vermont’s local food system, and also biodiesel.

---

Regional Funds to Preserve Lake Health

Senator Leahy has secured $500,000 from the Great Lake Fishery Commission budget to benefit five initiatives protecting the ecological integrity of Lake Champlain. The funds will be channeled through the Lake Champlain Basin Program and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Projects include a feasibility study to prevent the spread of the invasive spiny water flea from the Great Sacadanga Lake to Lake Champlain via the Champlain Canal, wetland restoration, riparian habitat and in-stream aquatic habitat restoration, fish and wild life habitat restoration, and removal of dilapidated buildings and hazardous material along the lake shoreline in Law Island, Colchester.

---

Redevelopment Aid for Barre

On August 13th, the city of Barre received a $1.77 million grant from the Vermont Neighborhood Stabilization Program for redevelopment initiatives. With the highest percentage of foreclosures in the state, Barre certainly proved eligible for the grant, which stems from $19.6 million allocated to Vermont by the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development after the foreclosure crisis in late 2008.
 
About $1 million of these funds will be spent on the purchase and renovation of a foreclosed, three-story, four-unit apartment house on Laurel street. The renovated property will be available to moderate and low income families.

Remaining funds will be spent on the Depot Square Redevelopment project, which involves demolishing a vacant store front on North Main Street and acquiring an adjacent parking lot. The new 18,700 ft property will present a unique opportunity for redevelopment in the heart of Barre’s Designated Downtown area.

---

From Landfill to Energy: Biogas in Santa Fe

San Jose, California is on its way to becoming America’s first zero-waste, energy-independent city. Food and organic solid waste will be diverted from landfills and converted into high-quality compost to be used for local agriculture, as well as methane-rich biogas energy. The biogas facility proposed for this endeavor will be the largest in the country. Located next to a water pollution treatment plant, the biogas energy generated will first be directed to the water pollution plant, and then the utility power grid.

Analogous initiatives in Vermont include the “Cow Power” program, which runs generators from cow manure. The program, started in 2004 and coordinated by Central Vermont Public Service, currently consists of six dairy farms throughout central Vermont, which together generate between 0.78-3.5 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.

The municipal biogas generator at the Essex Junction Wastewater Treatment facility has produced methane gas from sewer sludge. Since 2003, the plant has generated about 350,000 kwh of electricity per year. The project is supported by the carbon-offset and consulting firm, NativeEnergy.

---

The Evolving American Downtown

The city center, historically the hub of industrial and commercial growth, has become a renewed venue for civic and cultural activity. As businesses moved out to suburban areas, many city centers have shifted from economic engines to central meeting places for entertainment and recreation. Tourism, both in regional and national scope, has proven both a major stimulant for the revitalization of downtowns as cultural and civic centers. Downtown models range from the huge metropolitan centers most people associate with downtown to those on a smaller scale, such as we have in Vermont, that feature historic buildings, shops and reaturants. Both large and small downtowns are becoming centers that tout their museums, vibrant music scenes and sports events.

---

Talking Heads Lead, David Byrne, Plays Buildings

Buildings, whether historic, modern, or abandoned, have long proven epicenters of artistic inspiration. In terms of architectural aesthetics, our built environment can certainly be beautiful. But can it also be musical?

David Byrne, former lead of the Talking Heads, thinks so. He has converted an abandoned building into a huge musical instrument, which can be “played” with the help of a pipe organ. The organ is attached to pipes and strings, which are in turn attached to structural elements throughout the building. Sounds include the clang of metal columns, the vibration of crossbeams, and the flute-like notes of air forced through heating and water pipes.

---