October 28, 2020

Grant Opportunity: Better Roads Program 

The Vermont Agency of Transportation has announced the 24th year of funding to provide grants for projects on municipal roads that improve water quality and maintenance cost savings. The grant is funded by the Vermont Agency of Transportation with partnership through the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. 

The application scoring of the Better Roads Program is intended to be line with the State's Clean Water Act (Act 64), as well as the Municipal Roads General Permit (MRPG). In order to prioritize funding, applicants must indicate whether or not the projects that are seeking funding are in compliance with the MRPG. 

Applications for funding will be accepted until December 18th, 2020. For more information or to download a copy of the application please visit the website : 
 
http://vtrans.vermont.gov/highway/better-roads

NRPC is able to provide assistance for any municipality that is interested to apply for this grant. Please feel free to contact Bethany Remmers for more information. 
Vermont Temporary Broadband Subsidy Program

The Temporary Broadband Subsidy Program provides eligible Vermont households with a credit to assist with Internet service subscriptions. Qualifying residents may receive a temporary credit of up to $40 per month toward an Internet service subscription. 

Grants will be awarded on a first come, first served basis until funding runs out or the program ends in December 20, 2020. You must apply before November 30, 2020. 

First step is to register at : https://vermont.force.com/economicrecovery/s/dps-register?covid=false and fill out the information required. This includes providing an account number, service address and the account holder's name. You will also need a copy of the bill and upload a copy of the bill in the online application. 

After you've registered, you can log back in at : 
https://vermont.force.com/economicrecovery/s/login/?ec=302&startURL=%2Feconomicrecovery%2Fs%2F

Questions? Call your Internet service provider for more information or the Department of Public Service at 800-622-4496 or email psd.consumer@vermont.gov.

Vermont COVID Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program 

November 6, 2020 will be the last day for Vermont homeowners behind on their mortgage payments due to COVID-19 to submit applications to the Mortgage Assistance Program. Funded by the CARES act, mortgage assistance grants for up to 6 months of missed payments are available to any homeowner who meets eligibility criteria, even if they have already arranged a forbearance agreement. 

For more information about application materials please check out VHFA's website at www.vhfa.org/map. Vermont Legal Aid's hotline at 1-800-889-2047 is also available to answer questions about the program via phone. This program is open to all eligible homeowners, regardless of whether they have a VHFA mortgage or not. 

The Rental Housing Stabilization Program is available for renters in need of rental arrearage assistance due to COVID-19 through the Vermont State Housing Authority. For more information visit www.vsha.org or call 802-828-2040. 
Upcoming LCRR Technical Webinars   

The International Lake Champlain-Richelieu River Study Board is hosting technical webinars. Each week starting on Thursday November 5th, LCRR will host a webinar on one of the eight topics currently being investigated under the study. A study member will be presenting an in-depth presentation on a particular topic and will be followed by a Q & A period.  

LCRR is offering the webinars in English and French. For English sessions, please attend the morning sessions. For French sessions, please attend the afternoon sessions. See the schedule below for upcoming webinars. 

Date & Time 
Topic of Technical Webinar 
Thursday, November 5th
10:00 (EN); 13:30 (FR) 
Thursday,
November 12th  
10:00 (EN); 14:00 (FR) 
Wednesday,
November 18th  
10:00 (EN); 14:00 (FR) 
Tuesday,
November 24th  
11:00 (EN); 14:00 (FR) 

Municipal Engagement for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Guide 

To help municipalities and local leaders expand the vibrancy of their communities and ensure that recovery benefits all Vermonters, the Local Solutions and Community Action Team of the governor's Economic Mitigation and Recovery Task Force created the Municipal Engagement for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Guide.

The guide is designed to assist Vermont cities and towns to go further in their efforts to promote a welcoming and inclusive spirit in their communities. It is not intended to be prescriptive, but rather to provide ideas that can be adapted as necessary. Read the guide here. 
Energy Utility Bill & Appliances Savings Survey: Raffle to Win a Gift Card!   

Want to save on your energy bills? Take NRPC's survey to learn how you can make your home more energy efficient! Upon completion of the survey, survey takers will be entered into a raffle for 1 of 10 $10 St. Albans Downtown Dollars gift cards, which can be used at participating downtown businesses.
For those interested: please follow this link to take the survey
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United Way - Public Health Survey 

United Way of Northwest Vermont, The Larner College of Medicine at The University of Vermont, and other Vermont United Ways are currently doing a survey asking individuals across the state to share their perceptions about the health of the community.  

If interested in being part of this survey, click this link. Anyone who is age 18 or older and is a Vermont resident is invited to complete the survey. 
The Vermont Community Leadership Network Fall 2020 Workshops 

The Vermont Community Leadership Network (VCLN) was launched to connect and support local leaders as they built local projects, organizations, and systems that serve their communities and Vermont's urgent and long-term needs. 

The Network supports community members by providing workshops on skill training, the sharing of best practices, and inspiring success stories. The Fall 2020 series of workshops will be held bi-weekly on Tuesdays from 10-11:30 am. Registration is required.


To register for upcoming workshop, click the links for the workshop.
For more information on the Vermont Community Leadership Network click here. 
Congrats to our Intern Adelle Brunstad! 

Adelle Brunstad from NRPC has won a UC Berkeley Community Impact Scholarship to participate in their Professional Writing Program! The university wrote a blog post about Adelle and her journey as a writer which includes her work from writing poems to writing a children's book. To read more about Adelle's journey follow this link. 

Congrats Adelle! NRPC thanks you for all your hard work these past months and looks forward to your future success! 

Northwest Regional Planning Commission
Address: 75 Fairfield Street, St. Albans, VT 05478
Phone: 802.524.5958      Fax: 802.527.2948     Website: www.nrpcvt.com