This week at the WRC: 7/26 - 7/30
- July 28, 8:00 am: Finance Committee, WRC Conference Room
Full Meetings and Events Calendar, and Warnings | Current Newsletter | June 2021 Staff Report
From the Director, June 2021: ARPA – We’re here to help. (And a thought on developing housing…)
As we all learn more about how the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding can be used by towns, we’re here to help make sense of it all along with our colleagues at the Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation, the region’s regional development corporation. We’ll be able to have one-on-one conversations with towns, and will be hosting workshops to address subjects that towns will likely have in common.
One subject we hear A LOT about from many towns is the desire to have more housing, and not just any housing. What we’re hearing is you want more housing that is affordable built in your community – housing for younger people (including your friends and children and grandchildren), for older people who want to downsize, for employees (“I can’t hire anyone because they can’t find a place to live.”), and for new residents. We’re hearing about the need for housing for all.
Guidance Available on the American Rescue Plan Act and What Funds Can Be Used for In Your Community
The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a response to the impacts of the Coronavirus on the economy, is bringing a lot of important funding to our municipalities. Windham Regional is looking forward to working with you to help answer questions, provide resource information and assist with strategizing for long term economic investment. Questions on what and how municipalities can spend the ARPA money on are numerous and we all will all have to be patient as guidelines for the use of the money are released and then interpreted.
WINDHAM REGIONAL PLAN RE-ADOPTION NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS
The Windham Regional Commission (WRC) will hold two public hearings on the proposed readoption of the 2014 Windham Regional Plan, as amended in 2018:
- Tuesday, June 22, 2021 at 12:00 PM
- Wednesday, June 23, 2021 at 5:30 PM
The hearings will be held via Zoom; to access the Zoom meeting information please click here.
With Regional Plan Assessment, WRC Prepares to Readopt its Current Regional Plan
The Windham Regional Commission (WRC) intends to readopt its current regional plan, originally adopted September 30, 2014, and subsequently amended on April 24, 2018 to include the Windham Regional Energy Plan. Per 24 V.S.A. § 4348b, a regional plan that has expired or is about to expire may be readopted as provided under section 4348 for the adoption of a regional plan or amendment. Prior to readoption, the regional planning commission shall prepare an assessment report which shall be submitted to the Agency of Commerce and Community Development and the municipalities within the region. At its meeting on March 30, 2021, the Full Commission voted unanimously to send this regional plan assessment to the aforementioned statutory parties.
GMP Proposes Use of Pole Socks Statewide
Green Mountain Power (GMP) attended the December 2020 WRC Project Review Committee (PRC) meeting to discuss the relocation of approximately 5700’ of power line along Weatherhead Hollow Road in Guilford which required an Act 250 permit (2W1365). The District 2 Environmental Commission (DEC2) had proposed to permit GMP to use alternate pole materials for several poles that were within wetland or wetland buffer. GMP was resistant to this proposed permit condition, wanting instead to continue to use chemical treated penta poles, and they called for a hearing. Because of this seeming impasse, the PRC suggested to GMP the consideration of the use of plastic ‘pole socks’ as a way to both use penta poles and prevent seepage to the surrounding environment.
Grants In Aid Program Brings Nearly Half a Million Dollars to Region’s Towns
Twenty-six towns in the Windham Region are each poised to receive anywhere from $5,000 to as much as $31,000 this year for construction projects to improve water quality and make their roads more resilient. The Grants in Aid program provides funds to towns to help them comply with the conditions of Vermont’s Municipal Roads General Permit. Construction projects can include ditching and stone lining or seeding, and small culvert upgrades.
CISMA: Fighting the Spread of Invasives Through Education
Regional organizations and foresters have banded together to form the Southeastern Vermont Cooperative Invasive Species Management Alliance (CISMA), a group looking at forest invasives and how to manage them. As part of the steering committee, WRC staff have been involved in helping form the CISMA and launch its fall and winter webinars focusing on forest invasives.
Wrapping up the Local Government Expense Reimbursement Grant
Cleanup and Assessment Funds Approved for the Garage in Bellows Falls
The WRC Executive Board approved an RLF cleanup grant for Windham Windsor Housing Trust in December 2020 for the Garage Project in Bellows Falls. The approved cleanup funds are a small but important piece of the funding stack needed to redevelop this site, which was originally built as a garage and also housed a dry cleaners and a dyers. The site will be redeveloped into apartments affordable to residents of various income levels. While the site fronts on Rockingham Street in downtown Bellows Falls, it also has incredible views to the east of the Connecticut River and beyond. Below is an architectural drawing of the revitalized site that will include a commercial space on the Rockingham Street level.
In the Field with Lisa Donnelly, WRC’s GIS/Transportation Tech
Working remotely is easy when your office is outdoors! Most of my 2020 field season was spent collecting road erosion inventory data, conducting traffic counts, inspecting Grants In Aid sites, and setting up pedestrian counters in on hiking trails. Because some of this work required several days of long commutes from Brattleboro, I had the unique opportunity to combine my love of the outdoors with my work by setting up camp at some of Vermont's State Parks. For example, camping at Jamaica State Park while working on the road erosion inventory in Winhall shortened my commute from 45 minutes to 10. As a bonus, I got to end my day relaxing by a campfire!
Check out "Energy Bites," Lunchtime Programs for Energy Efficiency
Energy Bites: Lunchtime Programs for Energy Efficiency is a short series of presentations offered to energy committees and residents to learn more about energy efficiency opportunities for homes and businesses. There are many ways that residents can save money and decrease their carbon footprint. These programs highlight partners throughout the State of Vermont who are offering incentives for residents to accomplish their energy efficiency goals.
Addressing COVID-19 Restrictions with Interim Bylaws: WRC Can Help
The WRC is available to assist towns interested in addressing issues in their zoning that may hinder re-opening of businesses under COVID-10 restrictions. If there are solutions not currently permissible, such as facilitating outdoor dining areas, you may be able to address them through short-term or temporary amendments to the zoning bylaws.
Collaborating with numerous partners, the WRC helped to develop a brief guidance document on how towns may address COVID-19 pandemic restrictions through the use of Interim Bylaws. You can access that guidance document here.
WRC Welcomes Abby Touchet as Summer GIS/Transportation Technician
Abby Touchet’s grandfather was the longtime highway superintendent of Westhampton, Massachusetts. That seems fitting, as Abby will be spending time this summer walking the roads of the Windham Region doing culvert inventories and working on a host of other GIS and transportation projects. Currently she’s focusing on Guilford’s culvert inventory.
COVID-19 Community Response and Recovery Team Forms
The WRC has been involved with the formation of a multi-sector team focused on the response and recovery needs of residents in the Windham Region. This team, called the Windham Region COVID-19 Community Response and Recovery Committee (CCRRC), is led by Sue Graff with the local Vermont Agency of Human Services district, and meets regularly to share updates, identify gaps and needs, and allocate resources appropriately. It functions as an ad hoc committee of the Southern Windham Community Organizations Active in Disaster (SWCOAD).
From the Chair & Director: WRC Operations During COVID-19 Social Distancing
The Windham Regional Commission stands ready to assist the towns of the Windham Region with their needs during this time of global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the immediate term we have provided the town contacts that we have to the local Department of Health districts so they have a direct line of communication with you, and we have sent towns information about continuity of operations planning. The following is an update.
