Vermont Business Magazine On Wednesday, March 4, more than 150 community members, civic leaders, nonprofit executives, and business owners gathered at Retreat Farm to build momentum around a shared economic vision for Brattleboro. The event invited responses to a draft framework organized around a single goal: grow Brattleboro's population by 802 people by 2032.
The initiative, called Next Generation Brattleboro, offers a clear way for every organization, business, and resident in town to contribute to the town's economic future. Born out of a smaller gathering in November, a working group of active community residents and leaders has since been compiling data, reviewing recent studies, and gathering community input — all aimed at ensuring Brattleboro is a place where each of us has the opportunity to thrive.
The data are clear: to become a place of broad-based opportunity and affordability, Brattleboro needs more working-age people. The town is aging faster than Vermont as a whole, and its workforce has been shrinking since 2010. More working-age residents means a broader tax base, increased spending in local businesses, a larger pool of potential employees, and stronger sustainability for the nonprofits and services the region depends on.
Next Gen Brattleboro is focused on inspiring action. The turnout and energy at the meeting at Retreat Farm suggested broad interest in a new shared economic agenda for the town. Organizers were clear that this is not a finished plan, but an outline that needs community input to determine where it resonates most. Over the coming months, Next Gen Brattleboro will work to develop the details of the initiative, including a plan to raise private funding to invest in public infrastructure.
"Brattleboro has always been a small town with an outsized impact,” said Town Manager, John Potter. “Next Gen Brattleboro is a signal that we want to be intentional about our future – bringing people together around a shared vision and giving everyone a role in building it."
This effort is the work of a growing core of Brattleboro business, civic, nonprofit, and institutional leaders who have come together around a shared question: what becomes possible if we align our approaches and direct resources toward a common set of civic priorities?
“It is exciting to see such a high level of community energy and passion for Brattleboro’s future,” said Adam Grinold, Executive Director of Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation. “Economic development is a team sport, and this collective energy is most powerful when anchored by a shared vision and a consistent, multi-year game plan that aligns with existing state and regional strategies. Committing to a disciplined, comprehensive strategic horizon and securing the professional resources necessary for execution will provide the framework and stability for this pivotal, generational impact."
At its core, Next Gen Brattleboro is about aligning goals, focusing resources, and inviting new energy and investment from every corner of the community. By building on Brattleboro's existing strengths — a vibrant downtown, a renowned arts community, key anchor employers, abundant outdoor recreation, and deep civic infrastructure — the initiative aims to lean into the assets that attract working-age individuals and families. By leveraging generational investment in major amenities like the fully upgraded Amtrak station and planned expansions of key anchor organizations - the Brattleboro Museum of Art, Boys and Girls Club, and Retreat Farm - we can invite new attention and economic investment, and generate a shared sense of momentum and vitality.
“Every great town has a moment where it decides to bet on itself”, said Kate Trzaskos, Executive Director of the Downtown Brattleboro Alliance. “I think this is Brattleboro's. We have the arts infrastructure, the civic engagement, a vibrant downtown — things that took decades to build and that many communities strive for. Next Gen Brattleboro is the framework that lets us champion Brattleboro to the fullest."
Critically, Brattleboro already has what most communities can't build: a nationally ranked arts infrastructure, exceptional civic engagement, a strong concentration of third places and open space, and the kind of authentic small-city character that working-age families increasingly seek.
“When I relocated here with my family 5 years ago, we found a town where we immediately felt connected,” said Jordan Schwartz, one of the organizers of Next Gen Brattleboro. “The challenge isn't making Brattleboro attractive — it already is. The challenge is converting that appeal into intentional population and income growth before the demographic window narrows further.”
Growing the working-age population is the highest-leverage economic strategy available to Brattleboro. This work begins with aligning around that shared strategy — and building the momentum, scale, and investment needed to make it real.
Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation
Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategies
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