Publications
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- Last Updated: 23 April 2024
2014 Windham Regional Plan
The 2014 Windham Regional Plan was readopted on June 29, 2021 after Town Commissioners voted to approve it by unanimous roll call vote at the Full Commission meeting held on that same date. The readopted plan is in effect for 8 years from the date of adoption, though it is the intent of the Commission to update the plan well before then. Paper copies are available at the WRC office. Digital copies are available below.
Link to complete 2014 Windham Regional Plan: PDF, 32.4 MB (includes introduction, text, regional profile, and maps)
Links to portions of the Regional Plan (smaller file sizes):
- text only, without maps or profile: PDF, 8.4 MB
- introduction only: PDF, 1.6 MB
- regional profile only: PDF, 13.0 MB (updated 8/26/2016)
- maps only: PDF, 11.5 MB
Regional Transportation Plan
The current Regional Transportation Plan was readopted by the Commission as part of the readoption of the 2014 Windham Regional Plan on June 29, 2021. The Regional Transportation Plan guides the WRC’s transportation work program activities.
Link to complete 2013 Windham Regional Transportation Plan: PDF, 17.9 MB (includes introduction/synopsis, maps, and text)
Link to introduction/synopsis and maps only (smaller file size): PDF, 8.1 MB
Regional Energy Plan
The Windham Regional Energy Plan was adopted as an amendment to the Regional Plan by the Windham Regional Commission by vote on April 24, 2018. It was readopted by the Commission as part of the readoption of the 2014 Windham Regional Plan on June 29, 2021. The plan analyses current energy use, sets targets for future use, and guides the siting of new renewable energy development.
Link to Windham Regional Energy Plan: PDF, 13 MB
Link to Windham Regional Plan, with 2018 Energy Plan Amendment: PDF, 26 MB
Fiber Broadband Studies
The Windham Region Fiber Broadband Feasibility Study was completed May 13, 2020 and the Fiber Broadband Network Business Plan was completed October 2, 2020. Both studies were created by ValleyNet in conjunction with Rural Innovation Strategies, Inc. The studies are now being used by the Deerfield Valley Communications Union District to implement broadband services throughout the region, beginning with the neediest communities.
Link to the Feasibility Study: PDF, 2.5 MB
Link to the Business Plan: PDF, 2 MB
Town Profiles
WRC has created 4-page profiles for all Windham Region towns (except Somerset). The profiles contain information from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Decennial Census and American Community Survey. Topics include population (counts and age), median age, housing units, seasonal housing, median monthly rent, household size, number of households, median household income, employment by industry, household vehicle ownership, and travel to work.
Note: these profiles contain American Community Survey data estimates for the years 2012-2016.
Regional Profile
The Regional Profile, developed as part of the 2014 Windham Regional Plan, contains a wealth of information on the characteristics and trends of the Windham Region's population, economy, housing, and transportation indicators. The information is gathered from the most current available data from the U.S. Census Bureau and other agencies. The raw data collected is available in excel or PDF format for any towns wishing to obtain this information.
Link to Regional Profile: PDF, 13.0 MB (updated 8/26/2016)
A Primer on Planning For Prevention
Starting in 2013, as part of a federally funded program, the Brattleboro District Health Office and the Windham County Regional Prevention Partnership (RPP) has been working with the Windham Regional Commission to support local municipalities in decreasing substance abuse rates in our communities.
One major component of this collaboration was the revision of a planning tool (created in Lamoille County) which provides sample alcohol, tobacco and marijuana policy and bylaw language for municipalities. The intention of this primer on planning is to provide and enhance substance abuse prevention and early intervention or Vermont youth, leading to reduction in youth alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use.
Link to report: 2.9 Mb PDF
Vermont Municipal Flood Guide
The Municipal Guidance for Flood Emergencies in Vermont document is meant to assist all types of Vermont town officials, boards, staff, volunteers and others, with considerations and resources related to flooding disasters. The Flood Guide shares actions and steps to be taken by each role at each stage: from proactive and smart advance preparations, to advance preparations to do when a major storm is forecast, and on to actions to be taken during the storm, as well as during recovery.
Link to report: 955k PDF
Landscape-Based Forest Stewardship in the Windham Region
With the goal of “keeping forests as forest,” WRC’s “Landscape Based Forest Stewardship” report outlines the characteristics of the region, and what makes our forests, and our forest economy, special, before examining the threats and barriers to sustaining our forests. Finally, the report outlines various forest stewardship methods and presents over four dozen potential action steps to help sustain our forests. The report is the result of several years of work by WRC, with support of a project steering committee made up of area natural resource professionals.
The report, and other forestry-related information, can be found here: www.windhamregional.org/forestry
Undeveloped Waters in Southeastern Vermont
This multi-year effort to identify undeveloped streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds in the Region and classify them as to their conservation status and town plan land use district includes the following products:
- set of four maps covering the entire Windham Region. PDF (3.6 mb)
- detailed report for the southern two-thirds of the Region, PDF
- detailed maps for the southern two-thirds of the Region, PDF (8 mb)
- summary report for the northern third of the Region, PDF
The WRC recognizes the value of these undeveloped waters in providing a variety of important environmental and societal benefits and the need for their protection. Given the important values of undeveloped buffers and the dwindling extent of them, it is important for stakeholders to work to protect those that remain. The information is useful to municipalities, landowners, and conservation groups to inform planning for the protection of these resources, and development and implementation of effective regulatory protective measures.
Resiliency Action Plan for the Town of Vernon in Preparation for the Eventual Closure of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station
In December, 2010, the Town of Vernon applied for a Municipal Planning Grant through the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development, “to expand the Vernon Town Plan, an update of which is already underway, to include a significant component regarding post-closure planning related to the eventual closure of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station.” While the urgency of this proposal was prompted by the possibility that the plant might close in March, 2012 as a result of the expiration of its authority to operate from the State of Vermont, the purpose was driven by the recognition of the fact that the town’s largest employer and tax generator will, at some point, close.
The Windham Regional Commission was retained by the Town of Vernon to conduct this planning effort as directed by the Vernon Planning Commission. The WRC has participated extensively in the Public Service Board dockets related to Vermont Yankee, and has maintained a neutral position as to whether or not the plant should or should not continue to operate. The WRC adopted this position in order to facilitate discussion among all sides about the plant, and to share information from those dockets with the public. Information gathered over time about the potential impacts of the eventual closure of the plant informs this report. While the WRC has adopted specific positions related to the eventual decommissioning of the plant, and the storage of spent fuel on the site, those positions are not presented or advocated for here. The goal is to provide the Town of Vernon with objective information about the eventual closure of the plant such that it can make its own informed decisions.
Link to report: 725k PDF
Windham Region Mobility Study
Coordination of Transportation Services to Improve Mobility for All of the Windham Region’s Residents
This study, completed in November 2012, came about through a collaborative effort among public transit providers, school supervisory unions, youth service organizations, institutions of higher education, human service agencies, non-profits, economic development agencies, and others. The primary goal of this study was to identify opportunities to better coordinate, and integrate, transportation resources to improve efficiency and mobility, and to identify possible new transportation resources. In terms of vehicles used, these resources include buses and vans owned by the transit providers, as well as school buses, vans and buses owned by human service agencies, municipalities, private institutions, churches, nursing homes, and others.
The Study addresses the existing transportation resources, including public transit services, school bus transportation, higher education, human service and workforce transportation, and taxi services. It identifies the transit needs through the transit dependant population and through four stakeholder outreach meetings. The stakeholders included: transit providers, the school districts, the higher education institutions, human service agencies, health providers, non-profits, the workforce and economic development sector.
Link to Report: 1.5 mb PDF
Weatherizing Town Buildings: What Local Officials and Energy Committees Need to Know
The WRC recently completed a guidance document for Towns and Energy Committees interested in completing a weatherization project. The guide, Weatherizing Town Buildings: What Local Officials and Energy Committees Need to Know, is specifically aimed towards municipal buildings in Vermont, and gives specific insights from the WRC’s experiences. This guide is meant to go beyond the basic weatherization process by providing information about working with historic buildings, identifying common obstacles found, and offering tools and strategies for dealing with these obstacles. The WRC was able to compile this document through state Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) funding.
Barriers to Low Impact Development
This WRC report, released in 2010, summarizes the barriers to using Low Impact Development (LID) in the Windham Region, while proposing solutions that would help promote its use. LID, an approach to managing storm water, uses techniques like rain barrels, rain gardens, and vegetated swales to help water infiltrate where it falls. The goal of LID is to keep runoff from picking up pollutants and particulates and carrying it into local streams and rivers. This can help improve water quality while reducing the burden on municipal sewer systems. For the next phase of its work on LID, the WRC will be promoting the use of rain barrels through a “Rain Barrel Outreach and Education” project - stay tuned!
Link to report: 431k PDF
The Municipal Guidance for Flood Emergencies in Vermont document is meant to assist all types of Vermont town officials, boards, staff, volunteers and others, with considerations and resources related to flooding disasters. The Flood Guide shares actions and steps to be taken by each role at each stage: from proactive and smart advance preparations, to advance preparations to do when a major storm is forecast, and on to actions to be taken during the storm, as well as during recovery.
Publications