VERNON — The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) will hold its third, and last, major session in the Vernon Community Visit process on July 7; all residents of the town are welcome to help line up action plans to move priority projects forward.
The meeting will be held from 6:30–9 p.m. at the Vernon Town Office building, according to a news release.
At the Community Meeting Day in June, more than 50 Vernon residents came together to set core priorities for future action in town. They reviewed 15 ideas gathered from focus forums in May with residents at the Vernon Community Visit Day and chose priorities designed to boost the community and advance the town's economy.
At the end of the session, participants signed up as volunteers to advance these new initiatives.
On July 7, these new task forces will meet in the Vernon Town Office building to frame out action plans and work with a resource team of federal, state, business, and nonprofit leaders to identify next steps and resources that can help them succeed.
So far, members of the Resource Team will include: Ben Doyle (USDA Rural Development), Craig Whipple (Vermont State Parks Director), Paul Bruhn (Preservation Trust), Gary Holloway (Vermont Department of Housing and Community Development), Susan McMahon and Jeff Nugent (Windham Regional Commission), Nancy Owens (Housing Vermont), Joan Weir (Vermont Land Trust), Patrick Olstad (Landworks), and Kate Ash (Sen. Patrick Leahy's Office).
In the news release, VCRD's Community and Policy Manager Jenna Whitson said, “We look forward to bringing the new task forces together for the first time to work with leading Vermont experts within each priority area to build a concrete list of action steps and identify both human and financial resources available to support those efforts.”
The new task force groups will be working on three core priorities:
• A Develop the Riverfront and Improve Trails, Outdoor Recreation task force will work to improve access to trail networks, clean up the riverfront area, and plan longer-term strategic riverfront improvements.
• A task force will work to open a Community Store and Café.
• The Enhance Village Center task force will envision, plan, and design a center point for the community over time, and work to make it happen.
At the Community Meeting on June 8, Vernon residents also decided to prioritize and continue to support the ongoing work of the Vernon Planning and Economic Development Commission.
VCRD will bring a team at a future session (date to be determined) to review action steps and resources that will help support economic development and business growth, develop a business incubator, improve fiber optic networks, and build a utility-scale energy project.
All members of the Vernon community are invited to participate in this third phase of the Vermont Council on Rural Development's Community Visit to the Town of Vernon.