Richford Planning Commission Holds a Streetscape Audit

The Richford Planning Commission and Northwest Regional Planning Commission held a streetscape audit of River & Main Street in Richford on Monday June 13, 2022. Residents scored the condition of existing infrastructure, how safe it was to walk, and how the streetscape feels as a place to be. The results from the streetscape audit will be used to inform a conceptual streetscape plan for downtown River Street & Main Street. The next step for the project will be to hold a visioning workshop, which is tentatively scheduled for July 19, 2022. The project is funded by a Municipal Planning Grant from the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). For more information on the project contact Emily Klofft or Greta Brunswick. 

It's that time of year! The snow has finally melted for the last time and summer in Vermont is here. Now that the streams are moving again, we can see the litter and trash that has accumulated on its shores. Join the Franklin County Stormwater Collaborative and Friends of Northern Lake Champlain on Sunday, June 26th, at 10am to clean up Stevens Brook! We will be meeting at and commencing cleanup at Sunset Meadow Road in St. Albans. Event info and sign up (so we know you are coming!) can be found here: Stevens Brook River Clean-Up RSVP. Hope to see you there!

FY2023 Building Communities Grants Funded

The Building Communities Grants Program has been funded for FY2023 and with increased funding! This program, administered by BGS, includes the following:

1. $300,000.00 – Recreational Facilities Grant Program
2. $300,000,00 – Regional Economic Development Grant Program
3. $150,000.00 – Human Services Facilities Grant Program
4. $150,000.00 – Educational Facilities Grant Program

These grants are for construction and capital improvements to support and strengthen Vermont towns and regions. Descriptions, the application criteria, and the new deadline for all four of these grant programs are available on the Department of Buildings and General Services website.  

Applicants including municipalities, nonprofit agencies, and regional economic development organizations, are all encouraged to apply for these opportunities to fund construction, infrastructure support, and needed projects. 

Although the award of the grants is competitive, the application process has been designed to be simple and straightforward. Grant applicants will be awarded funding as determined by a special committee comprised of Vermonters, legislative branch members, and executive branch administrative staff appointed by the Governor. Grants recipients will be awarded in the fall of 2022. 

For more information go to the BGS website or contact NRPC staff.  

Welcome to NRPC Summer Intern

My name is Avery Feeley and I just finished my sophomore year at UVM. I am studying Natural Resources ecology with a minor in Geography. I was born and raised on a small dirt road in Franklin, VT and I have always had an interest in the outdoors. Climate has always been my center of interest. I love the weather and am always looking at past years to see how they compare to the present. I am driven to make a difference during my life by educating others, living as sustainably as possible, and trying to make an environmental difference because we only have one planet! 

Increasing the Economic Impact of the

Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail 

NRPC Senior Planner Greta Brunswick a featured

panelist at Downtown Conference

Greta Brunswick from NRPC was a panelist at Vermont’s Historic Preservation and Downtown conference held last week in St. Johnsbury. In a session on Connected Communities, Brunswick joined other panelists to discuss the economic potential of rail trails and other paths. She highlighted the recent Wayfinding and Marketing Plan completed by NRPC for the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail, including emphasizing the current economic benefit of the trail for our communities and the State of Vermont. A link to her full presentation can be found here.