John Bennett to Retire After More than 20 Years of Service to Region
- Details
Associate Director John Bennett will be retiring on September 30th after more than 20 years of service to the region. John first started working for the WRC in 1996 as a Special Projects Planner. His responsibilities then included managing the update of the Windham Regional Plan, developing a Strategic Plan for the Economy of the Windham Region, conducting regional Act 250 review for Mount Snow development projects, and aiding region towns with land use planning and regulation and assorted other general issues.
After the special project funding ran its course, he worked for the City of Northampton, MA for two years, returning to the WRC in 2000. His initial primary responsibility was to serve as the Municipal Project Manager for the towns of Grafton and Rockingham overseeing full-depth reconstruction of three miles of Route 121 from Saxtons River to Cambridgeport. That included working with VTrans and more than 60 landowners to acquire the necessary rights of way, and with numerous state agencies to secure Act 250 and other permits and permissions for wetlands, stream alterations, and historic preservation.
Within a few years he assumed the role of lead staff person for natural resources planning and regional project review and provided staff support for the two related committees. He then became the Commission’s lead on municipal planning, land use regulation, and other general assistance. This involved helping towns with updating town plans and zoning, applying for and renewing Village Center designations, and applying for a variety of planning and natural resource related grants. He staffed the Planning Coordination Committee, including managing the WRC’s town plan review and approval process, and developing and implementing land use planning and regulation training programs for town boards and staff. John was promoted to Associate Director in December, 2018.
His institutional knowledge and seemingly encyclopedic and photographic memory will be missed! But he may assist with some projects in the months following his retirement. This is a major transition for the Commission and the towns we serve. If you have a need, contact Executive Director This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Many thanks to John for his decades of service to the Commission and the 27 towns of the Windham Region! We wish him a well-deserved retirement.
