From the Director, Spring 2018 - Beginning the Update of the Windham Regional Plan
An update of the Windham Regional Plan is getting underway. We invite everyone to read the current regional plan, the Windham Regional Transportation Plan, and even the just-adopted Regional Energy Plan to let us know what you feel could be improved. Are the underlying assumptions about existing and future conditions valid? Are the goals and objectives for the future of the region the right ones? Do the current policies get us to where we want to be? Have those policies been effective? What specific actions can the Commission take to move the region forward per the direction of the plan? The Committees of the WRC will be discussing these questions and more over the coming 6 months. Everyone's input is welcome!
WCREP Projects Featured at Tiny House Fest!
Windham Regional Commission’s successful Windham County Renewable Energy Program will be featured at the Tiny House Fest on Saturday June 23rd. Three of the program’s installations will be featured in the panel discussion “Energizing Windham County: a glimpse at local renewable energy installations.” The panel will introduce the featured installations and will discuss the impacts the installations have made in our local and broader community. More information on the speakers, the schedule, and ticket information is available here: https://tinyhousefestvermont.com/the-schedule/.
WRC Receives Determination of Energy Compliance from the State of Vermont
The WRC is pleased to announce the Regional Energy Plan has received a certificate of energy compliance from the Public Service Department. This certificate enables the WRC to review town enhanced energy plans for the town’s determination of energy compliance. With an affirmative determination, the town will receive substantial deference from the Public Utilities Commission during section 248 proceedings. We’d once again like to thank everyone who contributed to the plan.
A copy of the certificate can be viewed here, while Commissioner Tierney's comments can be viewed here.
Lisa Donnelly and Andrew Starace Join WRC Staff This Summer
Armed with a digital level and a tablet, and sporting orange safety vests, two new WRC staff will be walking the back roads this summer conducting road erosion inventories. Lisa Donnelly and Andrew Starace are WRC's GIS/Transporatation Technicians for 2018. Besides road erosion inventories, they'll be doing a host of other field work including helping with traffic counts and bike/ped counts, and doing some GIS tasks in the office as well.
Green Mountain Power Representatives Presented to WRC Committees- Slides Available for View
The Energy and Natural Resources Committees hosted speakers from Green Mountain Power on June 7th to present to the committees and interested members of the public on the intricacies of the grid, grid resilience, and planning for increased electrification and distributed generation. The speakers, Robert Dostis VP, Stakeholder Relations and New Product and Mike Burke, Chief Field Operations Executive, gave a very informative and accessible presentation which engaged the committee members on the details, upkeep, and planning of our electrical grid. The presentation is accessible here.
Request for Proposal- Funds available for renewable energy installations in Windham County!
The Windham County Renewable Energy Program is looking for project proposals of renewable energy installations in Windham County. The projects require a minimum of 50% cash or in kind match. This program has funded 9 projects within Windham County (see below). Questions on the RFP must be submitted in writing by June 4th and will be compiled, answered and posted to this page.
Municipal Roads Grants in Aid Program Resumes in 2018
Last year (spring of 2017), Vermont DEC developed a pilot project to provide fundingfor municipalities to begin implementation of best management practices (BMPs) to get Municipal Roads General Permit (MRGP) standards compliance underway on towen roads. VT DEC had asked the Regional Planning Commissions (RPCs) to help with the implementation of this Municipal Roads Grants-In-Aid Program. This work was very successful, and DEC is working with RPCs once more to administer this program.
So, the Municipal Roads Grants in Aid Program is continuing into this 2018 field season. On May 14th, the Windham Regional Commission sent hard and soft copies of the Letter of Intent to Participate to regional municipalities, along with estimated VT DEC award amounts (based on a town’s number of hydrologically-connected road segments). Municipalities may submit their Letter of Intent to Participate by June 22, 2018, signed letters can be sent by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
The Green River Watershed Alliance rolls out the Confluence Project
In 2017, the Green River Watershed Alliance (GRWA) was formed with the support of the WRC and through a Watershed Resilience grant from the High Meadows Fund, to be a "community-led voice for the stewardship and protection of the Green River and its surrounding landscape." It aims to bring together residents from Marlboro, Halifax, and Guilford so they may establish the importance of their river, learn about its systems, and create watershed identity and a sense of place. One of the ways it plans to do this is through the Confluence Project, a collaborative effort between the WRC, Vermont Performance Lab, and three area schools.
WRC Formalizes the Clean Water Advisory Committee
Since the passing of Act 64, Vermont's Clean Water Act (VCWA), in 2015, the State as a whole has effectively adopted its "all-in" approach to water quality efforts. Directly relevant to regional planning commissions, the VCWA states that, "...if funding is available, ANR shall contract with regional planning commissions to produce or assist in producing basin plans." While this assistance is mandated with the passing of this legislation, the WRC has independently enjoyed a long-standing working relationship with its respective DEC Basin Planner, Marie Caduto. In partnership with the DEC, the WRC's Natural Resources Committee has led efforts to assist in drafting the Tactical Basin Plans (or, a large watershed-scale planning document that identifies priority water quality projects in a basin), providing outreach to affected municipalities, and help prioritize projects based in part on local needs and interests. All this work related to Basin Planning, water quality outreach, and project implementation had been done through the existing Clean Water Advisory Committee (CWAC), which is an extension of the Natural Resources Committee.
WRC Offers Lidar and Ortho Viewer
Have you heard about all this new lidar data and wondered what it is and how to view it? WRC has created an on-line viewer that lets anyone explore not just lidar data, but also orthophotos (air photos) and USGS topographic maps.
New Year, New Renewable Energy Installations
The Windham Regional Commission received funding from the Clean Energy Development Fund in 2017 to run another round of the successful Windham County Renewable Grant Program. The last round yielded five projects ranging from combined heat and power units to rooftop solar arrays, experimental agriculture in solar fields, to a feasibility study for an anaerobic digester. The projects began their construction last May and have taken great strides since (project details below).
A Heated Event: The Annual Wood Energy Users Conference hosted in Windham County a Success!
Windham Wood Heat co-hosted the State Wood Energy Team’s Annual Wood Energy Users Conference in November 2017. The event was held in Brattleboro with over 60 attendees. The day consisted of an informative morning session including presentations from the BERC on the basics of modern wood heat, the Northern Forest Center on promoting wood heat, Windham Wood Heat Initiative on lessons learned and opportunities, and a panel from state program leaders.
Algiers Village Explores Living Community Challenge Master Planning
On Wednesday, August 16th , four community non-profit organizations based in Guilford hosted a community meeting at the Guilford Community Church to start a dialogue about what people envision for the future of Algiers Village. Those organizations are the Friends of Algiers Village, Community Collaborative for Guilford, Guilford Preservation, Inc, and the Guilford Community Church; and they have taken on the role of proactively planning the Village.
Notes from VCDA's Meeting on Trails and Economic Development
On May 10, WRC's GIS Planner Jeff Nugent headed north to Burke Mountain to attend the Vermont Community Development Association’s spring meeting. The topic was Blazing A Trail: The Economic Impact and Future of Vermont’s Trails & Recreation Paths. With over 100 people in attendance, the energy and excitement around this topic was plapable. For those that could not attend, here are Jeff's notes from the meeting.
WRC Planners Attend 2017 Leahy Summit with Green River Project Partners
The 2017 Leahy Summit was hosted at the ECHO Center in Burlington, on March 24-25. The intent of the meeting was to bring together project groups and partners that have a watershed resilience-related project idea that they'd like to pursue. The two-day meeting was primarily a working session, as attending project partners were facilitated through a series of exercises that encouraged the teams to reflect on their goals, identify community needs, and begin to develop an action plan for carrying out their projects and to have a plan with which they can receive funding.
RiverSmart Communities Report Available
The RiverSmart Communities program at UMass Amherst has released a report "Supporting New England Communities to Become RiverSmart: Policies and Programs That Can Help New England Towns Thrive Despite River Floods." The result of work with numerous partners in MA and VT, the report combines social and river science, institutional and policy research, and community outreach to research and address river floods in New England.
