IN THIS ISSUE OF NEWS & NOTES
Project Updates and Reminders | TRORC Updates | Regional Grant Awards | Grant Opportunities
PROJECT UPDATES AND REMINDERS
Patti Clark Receives TRORC Volunteer of the Year Award
Patti Clark is awarded TRORC 2022 Volunteer of the Year.
Patti Clark was award the TRORC 2022 Volunteer of the Year Award at this years Annual Meeting.
Patti is a Newbury resident and manager of two branches of the Wells River Savings Bank. She has a demonstrated track record for volunteering for local community groups. Her volunteerism has included fundraising, serving on the Boards of the Lower Cohase Chamber of Commerce and the Tenney Memorial Library in Newbury, and participating as a regular member of Vermont’s Green Up initiative. Congratulations Patti!
3CVT Business Development Trainings
Through a grant from the Federal Economic Development Administration, TRORC was able to host its first of four business development trainings for the 3CVT Creative Zone. The workshops are designed to provide professional knowledge as a sustainable investment in creative enterprises and individuals.
The first training was Grant Writing 101 hosted by grant writing professional and creative Carey Crozier. The one and a half hour, virtual training covered topics like how to find grant opportunities and determine your eligibility, best practices for writing a compelling grant narrative, how to set up a simple budget for a grant application and what to do once you receive a grant. All materials including the slides, recording and a grant writing information packet can be found on the 3CVT website.
Future training topics include internet presence, budgeting and finances and branding and marketing. The next training on internet presence is set to take place on August 2nd from 10am-12pm and will be hosted by digital Marketing and business solutions specialist Andrea Bacchi. Click this link to register.
If you are an artist or creative in the 3CVT zone, this grant is designed to help you. For more information on 3CVT or to register for upcoming trainings contact Meghan Asbury at [email protected].
Carey Crozier hosted a Grant Writing 101 Training for creatives and artist. To view this training and the materials click here.
Upcoming Local Hazard Mitigation Plan Meeting in Barnard
The Town of Barnard is in the process of updating its Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP). Local Hazard Mitigation Plans enable towns to qualify for grant funds, and they make our communities safer. The second Barnard Hazard Mitigation planning meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 19, 2022 at 7:00 PM at the Barnard Town Hall, Barnard VT 05031. The focus of the meeting will be to review mitigation strategies, review top hazards, and identify vulnerabilities.
The meeting is open to all interested community members. Local Hazard Mitigation Plans are part of an effort by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to reduce damage from foreseeable natural and human-caused hazards. Examples of projects in local plans include increasing culvert sizes, regulating flood hazard areas, stabilizing landslides, and tree trimming near power lines. For more information, please contact Kyle Katz at [email protected].
The LHMPG planning meeting will be held July 19 at 7:00 PM at the Barnard Town Hall, Barnard VT 05031.
Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program Workshops
The Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program will host two days of technical workshops for municipal staff actively managing trees in their communities. Vermont Local Roads Scholar credits available.
- Safe Tree Removal Training for Municipal Staff is a hands-on workshop led by Montpelier City Arborist Adam McCullough focused on using ropes to safely guide trees to the ground while keeping workers out of the strike zone. Participants will leave with skills necessary to use this technique in their communities. The first six municipal registrants in each workshop will also receive a rope-throwing kit with the lines and throw weights needed to throw ropes with their crews. The workshop will be held in two locations – attendees should register for just one: 8am-noon on July 20th in Burlington OR 8am-noon on July 21st in Montpelier. Registration required; $25 for a single attendees, $40 for a team of two or more attendees from a single municipality. Vermont Local Roads Scholar credits available.
- Tree Risk Evaluation Training for Municipal Staff and Volunteers focuses on common tree health conditions that should factored into any assessment of tree risk in public places. Join Burlington City Arborist VJ Comai on July 20th from 1pm-4pm in Burlington OR State Forest Health Specialists Jim Esden and Savannah Ferreira on July 21st from 1pm-4pm in Montpelier. Registration required, free and open to tree wardens, municipal staff, or other active tree stewards. Vermont Local Roads Scholar credits available.
Questions? Contact Joanne Garton, VT UCF Technical Assistance Coordinator, [email protected] or (802) 249-4217.
The Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program will host two days of technical workshops.
Vermont's Oldest Regional Conservation Partnership Article
VT Digger wrote an article highlighting the Chateauguay No Town Conservation Project. Barnard, Bridgewater, Stockbridge and Killington have come together to form a regional conservation partnership to conserve land in a 60,000-plus acre mountainous region. Pete Fellows coordinates the conservation project and points out the importance of this ecosystem for resiliency in the face of climate change. To read the full article, click here!
Waterfall inside the Bramhall Wilderness Preserve. Read the article here! Source: Ethan Weinstein/VTDigger
Upper Valley Housing Crisis Article
Dartmouth College's article about the role planners can play in the housing crisis featured Two Rivers- Ottauquechee Regional Commission. Due to the housing shortage and lack of access to affordable housing, Dartmouth's Foundations in Social Impact partnered with the TRORC, Upper Valley Lake Sunapee and Mount Ascutney regional commissions to explore possible solutions to the housing crisis. To read the full article, click here!
Dartmouth's Foundations in Social Impact partnered with the TRORC, Upper Valley Lake Sunapee and Mount Ascutney regional commissions to explore possible solutions to the housing crisis. Read the article here!
VT DEC Permit Navigator
The DEC has created an online "Permit Navigator" tool. This resource can provide downloadable/printable guides to help you guide through the permitting and planning processes and to help you learn about what may be required based on your unique situation. It can be helpful in answering questions regarding Act 250. The tool can be found here!
The State of Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources Permit Navigator tool can be found here!
TRORC UPDATES
Staffing Changes and Updates
Steven Bauer has left TRORC, but not the profession or the area. He has been hired as the Town Planner for Woodstock, shortening his commute from a mile to a few blocks! We look forward to working with him on updates to their town plan and bylaws.
Sarah Wraight has been promoted from Regional Planner to Senior Planner at TRORC. Sarah leads our brownfields reuse program, and she is also the in-house expert on local ARPA funding. Some of Sarah’s other duties include assisting communities with state village center or downtown designations, and running our newly broadened effort on planning for health.
REGIONAL GRANT AWARDS
SFY23 VTrans Grants in Aid Awards
Congratulations to our TRORC towns participating in the SFY23 VTrans Grants in Aid program. Our region has a 97% participation rate (31/32 municipalities) translating to $960,000 of construction funds towards implementing Best Management Practices on hydrologically connected road segments that currently do not meet Municipal Roads General Permit standards. For more information about the program: https://vtrans.vermont.gov/highway/Municipal-Grant-in-aid-Program
Randolph is one of the towns participating in the VTrans Grants in Aid program.
Photo Source: Randolph, Vermont John Knox
GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
VTrans Municipal Park-and-Ride Grant Program
The Vermont Agency of Transportation (AOT) today announced that it is now accepting grant applications for the SFY 2023 Municipal Park-and-Ride Grant Program, which provides funding for improvements of small park-and-ride facilities in Vermont communities. These facilities will assist in the effort of reducing the number of single occupancy vehicles on the roadway, which in turn helps to reduce vehicle pollutants and traffic congestion.
A total of $215,275 is available for this program for the 2023 state fiscal year. Applications are due by e-mail by September 2, 2022.
To learn more about this year’s grant program and to access the Municipal Park-and-Ride Program information and applications, visit http://vtrans.vermont.gov/highway/parkandrides.
Check out the website: http://vtrans.vermont.gov/highway/parkandrides for more information.