REGIONAL NOTES
January 2020
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CCRPC Calendar of Events

All events held at the CCRPC unless otherwise noted. 


FEBRUARY

2/4, 9:00am: Transportation Advisory Committee Meeting

2/4, 11:00am: Clean Water Advisory Committee Meeting

2/4, 12:15pm:
Clean Water Advisory Committee MS-4 Sub-Committee Meeting

2/5, 5:45pm: CCRPC Executive Committee Meeting

2/6, 6:00pm: Transportation Climate Initiative Public Meeting (Contois Auditorium, Burlington City Hall)

2/11, 9:00am: Local Emergency Planning Committee Meeting (LEPC-1)

2/13, 6:00pm: Interstate 89 2050 Study Public Meeting (Williston Town Hall, 7900 Williston Road)

2/17: PRESIDENTS' DAY - CCRPC OFFICE CLOSED

2/19, 3:30pm: CCRPC UPWP Committee Meeting

2/19, 6:00pm: CCRPC Board Meeting

2/23, 8:00am: CCPSA Board Meeting (Colchester Town Office, 781 Blakely Road)

 

United Way of Northwest Vermont Volunteer Opportunities

United Way can connect you with hundreds of ways to give your time and make a difference in your community.

 
CCRPC  Board of Directors FY20 Membership

Bolton: Sharon Murray

Buel's Gore: Garret Mott

Burlington: Andy Montroll

Charlotte: Jim Donovan

Colchester: Jacqueline Murphy

Essex: Jeff Carr

Essex Junction: Dan Kerin

Hinesburg: Michael Bissonette

Huntington: Barbara Elliott

Jericho: Catherine McMains

Milton: Tony Micklus

Richmond: Bard Hill

Shelburne: John Zicconi

St. George: Jeff Pillsbury

So. Burlington: Chris Shaw

Underhill: Brian Bigelow

Westford: Allison Hope

Williston: Chris Roy

Winooski: Mike O'Brien (Chair)

For more information,  click here.
 
CCRPC Staff

Charlie Baker, Executive Director

Dan Albrecht, Senior Planner

Pam Brangan, GISP, GIS Data & IT Manager

Jason Charest, PE, Senior Transportation Planning Engineer

Eleni Churchill, Transportation Program Manager

Forest Cohen, Senior Business Manager

Bryan Davis, AICP, Senior Transportation Planner

Marshall Distel, Transportation Planner

Chris Dubin, Transportation Planner

Christine Forde, AICP, Senior Transportation Planner

Amy Irvin Witham, Business Office Associate

Regina Mahony, AICP, Planning Program Manager

Melanie Needle, Senior Planner

Sai Sarepalli, PE, Transportation Planning Engineer

Emma Vaughn, Communications Manager

For bios and contact information,  click here.
 
Good morning,
 
As the 2020 legislative session gets underway, there are a number of bills we are following closely that relate to our work, including:
 
Act 250 | The Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) and the Scott administration met throughout the summer and fall and reached consensus on a package of Act 250 updates. The package offers some encouragement of development in appropriately planned places through Act 250 exemptions in the limited areas of Designated Downtowns and Neighborhood Development Areas, and expands jurisdiction and criteria in vulnerable and valued resource areas. It also includes an alternative to the current hearing and appeal process by replacing the District Commissions with an Enhanced Natural Resources Board. The CCRPC's ad hoc Act 250 Committee met earlier this week to prepare a position statement that will be presented to the Executive Committee, Planning Advisory Committee, and Board in February.
 
Housing | Legislation is currently being drafted that proposes to adopt provisions to promote affordable housing. The Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee held regional housing discussions over the fall and winter to bring new housing stakeholders to the table as the legislature considers housing policy for 2020. The CCRPC hosted a meeting on January 9, and our presentation can be found here. The CCRPC will be following this topic closely as the session progresses, and will be in support of policies that create new housing in designated planned growth areas, as well as advance the 5-year Building Homes Together campaign.
 
We look forward to working with our municipalities, the legislature, and all of our partners as these bills advance. If you have any thoughts or suggestions, we welcome the opportunity to hear from you. Please contact me ([email protected]) or Regina Mahony ([email protected]).
 
Best regards,

Charlie Baker
Executive Director, CCRPC
 
Of Note
CCRPC FY21 Annual Work Program Process Underway
The CCRPC has begun the process of creating the FY2021 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP), our annual work program that describes our activities and specifies the deliverables for the next year (July 1, 2020-June 30, 2021) Learn More »  
 
Transportation
Implementing ECOS Strategy 2
Join VTrans at the Colchester Winter Carnival to Learn More about the Exit 16 DDI Project - Saturday, February 1
The VTrans Exit 16 Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) Team will be at the upcoming Colchester Winter Carnival on Saturday, February 1, 2020! Join us for this fun, family-friendly event and be sure to stop by our table to learn more about the upcoming Exit 16 DDI project along the US Route 2/7 corridor.   Learn More »
Transportation Climate Initiative Public Meeting: February 6
Throughout January and February, Vermont state officials and regional planning commissions are hosting four public information meetings to discuss the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI). The meetings will feature a brief overview of TCI and provide detailed information about the specific proposals in the draft regional MOU and the associated modeling results. After the initial presentation, state officials will take questions and ask for feedback on the  draft MOU. Please join us on February 6, 6-8pm in Contois Auditorium at Burlington's City Hall. Learn More »
Call for Proposals/Awards: 2020 Vermont Walk/Bike Summit
Submit your proposal to present at the 2020 Vermont Walk/Bike Summit, to be held on May 8 in Middlebury. To submit a proposal, please complete the online form by Feb. 7. The Conference Planning Committee will make selections by Feb. 21 and you will be notified soon after. Contact the Conference Committee with any questions at [email protected]. Also, submit your award nomination for a Volunteer Advocate, Walk/Bike Professional, or Notable project. Nominations are due by Feb. 7 to [email protected].
Interstate 89 2050 Study Public Participation Opportunities
During the 2018 update to the CCRPC's  ECOS/Metropolitan Transportation Plan , it was determined it is time for a fresh look at the Interstate 89 corridor within Chittenden County. This multi-year study will solicit input from a broad and diverse group of stakeholders and the public. The project's first survey is now live, and the first round of public outreach begins with public meetings to learn more about the study and provide input into the draft vision and goals.  Learn More »

Thursday, February 13th: Williston Town Hall, 6-8pm 
Wednesday, March 11th: Winooski City Hall, 6-8pm
#802phonesdown!headsup! Video Challenge
The Vermont Highway Safety Alliance is proud to sponsor the third annual 2020 Public Safety Announcement (PSA) award contest designed for Vermont high school students to combat distracted driving. The contest opened on January 15th, 2020. View the award winning videos from 2019 and consider entering a video of your own for 2020 -- and/or kindly share the contest information with a Vermont high school student you know.  Learn More »
Green Mountain Transit Adds Two Electric Buses
Green Mountain Transit announced the arrival of two new buses powered by electricity Electrifying the nation's transportation sector is widely seen as critical to addressing climate change, since cars, trucks, buses, and other vehicles spew so many greenhouse gases.  Learn More »
Low or No Emission Program (Low-No Program) FY2020 Notice of Funding
Want to bring low or no emission buses to your town? The Federal Transit Administration has announced their Low-No-Program which includes the availability of $130 million for towns or states to purchase or lease low or no emission transit vehicles. To find out more about the program and how you can get your town involved, sign up for their webinar on February 6th, 2020 at 2 p.m.  Learn More »  
Transportation Project News & Updates
For a full list of transportation projects, visit the CCRPC Transportation Advisory Committee website; a full project list is provided in every TAC agenda and is updated regularly. View the latest TAC agenda »
 
Economy
Implementing ECOS Strategy 1
Chittenden County Brownfields Program Accepting Applications
If you own or wish to develop a property that is contaminated or suspected to be contaminated, please apply. To get started, read the information on different types of assistance and fill out and send us a site nomination/assistance request form. Learn More »
 
Energy & Natural Resources
Implementing ECOS Strategies 3 & 4
DeltaClimeVT Energy 2020 Program Accepting Applications
The Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund opened the application period for the DeltaClimeVT Energy 2020 program, which will be focused on reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in buildings, and enabling better integration of distributed energy resources and smart building technologies. They are seeking innovative, early-stage, energy entrepreneurs for the business accelerator to be held in Burlington, Vermont. Applications are due Feb. 16, 2020.  
Impact Report: Button Up Vermont 2019
2019 was the biggest year ever for Button Up Vermont! View this report for high level statistics and break-outs of Home Energy Visit sign-ups by each town, event attendance where applicable, and customer engagement numbers with Efficiency Vermont's Customer Support team as a raw number and a percentage increase from 2018 to 2019.
 
Quality of Place
Implementing ECOS Strategy 2
Winooski Wayfinding Plan Community Input Meeting: February 10, 6pm
The City of Winooski is developing a new wayfinding signage plan for its downtown and gateway districts. The project's goals are to welcome visitors, direct vehicles to parking, and guide people to our amenities and landmarks. This event is free and open to all Learn More »
Downtown Transportation Fund Grants Due March 9
The Downtown Transportation Fund (DTF) is a financing tool which assists municipalities in paying for transportation-related capital improvements within or serving a Designated DowntownThis year the DTF has an additional $179,000 in funding from the Agency of Natural Resources, Clean Water Initiative. DTF projects may apply for up to $100,000 of "add on" clean water funding for eligible storm water implementation projects. Learn More »
Senate Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs Committee Hosts Chittenden County Forum
Vermonters filled the room at the Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Senate Committee meeting held in South Burlington earlier this month. It was the fifth and final stop of a series of regional housing discussions intended to bring new housing stakeholders to the table as the Vermont legislature considers housing policy for 2020 . Charlie Baker, CCRPC's Executive Director, gave a presentation and participated in the panel discussion.   Learn More »
Creative Placemaking Workshop: April 9
Join AARP and our partners to learn about Creative Placemaking, a hands-on approach to improving public spaces and making them more livable. This workshop is designed to provide those new to placemaking with ideas and tools to get started as well as for placemakers who want to build upon their existing skill set and network with other placemakers .   Learn More »
 
Emergency Management
Implementing ECOS Strategy 2
Burlington Expands VT-Alert System
VT-Alert, a statewide system run by the Department of Public Safety, sends users emails, text messages or phone calls - or all three - about a wide array of incidents, spanning from beach closures to severe weather and health risks. Burlington-specific alerts now include notices of water line breaks, winter parking bans, storm preparations or 911 system failures, and more. Learn More »
Oct 31-Nov 1 Storm Disaster Declared
The State of Vermont has received notice that the Public Assistance Major Disaster DR4474 was declared. Public assistance funding at 75% federal share will be available for eligible emergency work and repair or replacement of disaster-damaged facilities in declared counties, including Chittenden County, for those that sustained damage from the Oct.31 to Nov. 1 storm. Towns will have 30 DAYS until 2/14/2020 to apply to be included in the new disaster event. Contact Dan Albrecht with Questions »
 
Social Community
Implementing ECOS Strategy 2
At a chorus concert at Founders Memorial School in Essex earlier this month, students performed a song called "19 Towns in Chittenden County," an original by a Founders music teacher!  Watch the Video »
 
If you have any questions, feedback, or suggested content for upcoming issues, please contact Emma Vaughn, Communications Manager: [email protected] or (802) 846-4490 x *21.