Vermont Business Magazine Members of the Northfield community came together Tuesday, April 18 for the second step of the Northfield: Our Common Future community visit process and set four concrete and actionable priorities for the future of the town. All area residents are encouraged to sign up for these task forces online at bit.ly/FutureNorthfield.
As part of the Community Visit process, community members discussed and voted on over 20 action items that were identified in the first phase of the process on March 21, developing ideas around building community communication, addressing housing, engaging youth, developing a community center, supporting the downtown, building bike paths and trails, and more. Through the voting process to identify top priorities to move forward, Northfield community members identified four task forces that will work to:
- Develop a Community Center
- Improve Accessibility, Walkability, & Pedestrian Safety
- Create a Plan for Downtown Development and Housing
- Build a Norwich/Northfield Partnership Council
After identifying these priorities, community members signed up for task forces to work together to move each item forward. Regardless of attendence at the April 18 meeting, community members are welcome and encouraged to sign up for a task force online at bit.ly/FutureNorthfield.
The third and final phase of the Community Visit process will take place on Tuesday, May 16 at the Northfield Middle/High School at 6:30-9:00pm. Pizza, dessert, and drinks will be served and childcare will be provided. This meeting will be the first opportunity for task forces to come together to build action plans and identify resources to move this work forward. All members of the Northfield community are encouraged to attend.
The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD), a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to the advancement of Vermont communities was invited to the community by the Northfield Selectboard. Over the past 20 years, VCRD has worked with 87 communities in Vermont to bring residents together through their facilitated and structured process to share ideas and move towards common solutions.
For more information, visit bit.ly/FutureNorthfield.
Vermont Council on Rural Development
The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the support of the locally-defined progress of Vermont's rural communities. VCRD is a dynamic partnership of federal, state, local, nonprofit and private partners. Actively non-partisan with an established reputation for community-based facilitation, VCRD is uniquely positioned to sponsor and coordinate collaborative efforts across governmental and organizational categories concerned with policy questions of rural import. The organization has successfully completed 86 community visits, resulting in locally defined projects like new childcare centers, wastewater infrastructure, and downtown redevelopments.
Source: 4.27.2023. Montpelier. Vermont Council on Rural Development www.vtrural.org
