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MONTPELIER, VT— The Vermont Arts Council announces $433,165 in grants to fund public art projects and improve cultural facilities across Vermont.
The grants comprise two programs, Animating Infrastructure and Cultural Facilities.
“Public art brings vitality to our communities, and investing in cultural infrastructure strengthens both our shared spaces and our shared future. These projects highlight how art enriches public life while honoring and sustaining the depth of our cultural heritage. We are proud to support them and the many cultural, social, and economic benefits they create,” said Vermont Arts Council Executive Director Susan Evans McClure.
Animating Infrastructure Grants
The Animating Infrastructure grant program will support 10 public art projects, totaling $93,500 in funding, including the fabrication and installation of a permanent, hand carved interactive mural for the Brattleboro Words Trail at the new Amtrak station. The exhibit will provide a wayfinding center for a newly imagined Connecticut River destination for the town.
"The Words Trail sprang from the community and continues to engage new people in its growth. It is a remarkable achievement," wrote Brattleboro Museum & Art Center Curator Emerita Mara Williams in the proposal.
Other projects involve a community mural featuring untold stories from the African Diaspora on an exterior wall at the Richard Kemp Center in Burlington, sculptures for the towns of Johnson and Topsham, and a mosaic stairway connecting the Granite City apartments in Barre to the community.
The grant program supports projects in which public art is integrated into existing or proposed infrastructure improvement projects. As communities envision new buildings, roads, bridges, and other public spaces, they are encouraged to think beyond the ordinary and consider projects that have the potential for artistic enhancement, creating unique places where people want to live, work, visit, and play.
Grants of up to $15,000 were available for implementation projects and up to $5,000 for design projects. At least 80% of grant funds must be used to support the artists’ involvement in the design, fabrication, or installation of the artwork. The remaining amount can be used to support the other aspects of the project, such as project management and community engagement activities.
The Council received 29 project pitches with public art ideas for communities across Vermont. After initial review of the submissions by an external panel of reviewers, 13 finalists were invited to develop full proposals for funding consideration, and 10 ultimately received funding. The complete list of recipients is below.
Established in 2014, the Animating Infrastructure grant program has supported 59 projects in 34 towns and 12 counties in Vermont.
Applications for FY27 funding will open in early 2026.
For more information about the Animating Infrastructure Program, visit https://www.vermontartscouncil.org/grants/organizations/animating-infrastructure
Cultural Facilities Grants
A total of 16 arts and community organizations are the recipients of $339,665 in funding through the Council’s Cultural Facilities grant program, which supports capital improvements to town halls, theaters, library buildings, museums, community centers, and other public spaces where Vermonters gather for arts and cultural activities.
Among the projects funded this year are energy efficiency upgrades, such as heat pumps, as well as LED lighting, improved sound equipment, fire safety system upgrades, and accessible lifts. The complete list of recipients is below.
Grantee Canaan Naturally Connected serves an isolated population in the far northeastern corner of Vermont with a variety of public engagement activities including a murder mystery dinner, a casino night, chili contest, and other entertainment programs. It is currently renovating a former church to serve as a more permanent community meeting space for its programming. The grant will support upgrading the electrical system and fire safety system.
“This grant will enable the space to be opened to the residents of Canaan and area communities as a place to gather for various events, activities, and inclusive socialization. We are very excited to see the fruits of these upgrades,” said Terrie Herr, Canaan Naturally Connected board member.
This year the grant program received a record of 40 applications requesting $807,900 in funding, with 16 organizations ultimately receiving the grants.
Funded by the State of Vermont Capital Appropriations Budget, the Cultural Facilities Grant program is one of the State’s Building Communities Grant Programs established by the Vermont Legislature to help communities preserve important historic buildings and enhance community facilities. The Council partners with the Vermont Historical Society and the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation to administer the program. A panel of experts in historic preservation, architecture, and other building and accessibility expertise determines award recipients.
Since the Arts Council took over administration of the program 24 years ago, grants totaling nearly $5 million have enabled over 393 arts and and cultural institutions across Vermont to make essential improvements to their buildings. In addition, the funding also supports local Vermont contractors, such as electricians, plumbers, and construction crews, who are typically hired to complete the projects. Since 2014, when the Council began collecting data, more than three-quarters of contractors hired have been in Vermont, for a total of more than $6 million in contracts.
Applications for FY27 funding will open in early 2026.
For more information about the Cultural Facilities program, visit https://www.vermontartscouncil.org/grants/find-a-grant/organizations/cultural-facilities/
FY26 Cultural Facilities Grant Recipients:
Bread and Puppet Theater, Glover, $24,650 to support the update of electrical infrastructure in the theater, museum, and artist spaces
Canaan Naturally Connected, Inc., Canaan, $30,000 to support electrical system and fire safety system upgrades in the Community Center
East Putney Community Club, Putney, $4,413 to support storm window installation
Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall, Northfield, $25,602 to support the installation of fresh air ventilation and purification systems
Friends of the Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, $13,030 to support equipment and acoustic panel installation in the Fletcher Room
Goethe Community Trust, Inc., Burlington, $30,000 to support the installation of an accessible lift
Montgomery Center for the Arts, $18,051 to support the installation of an accessible bathroom
Monument Arts & Cultural Center, Bennington, $21,362 to support the installation of a main pump for an aging sprinkler system
Norwich Community Collaborative Inc., $30,000 to support the installation of heat pumps
Shelburne Museum, Inc., $19,457 to support the purchase and installation of energy efficient picture lights
Sheldon Historical Society, $9,000 to support the installation of a heat exchanger for climate stabilization
Southern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester, $30,000 to support an upgrade to lighting, add floor speakers, and assisted listening devices
St. Johnsbury Academy, $30,000 to support the purchase a new lift for South Church Hall
Town of Brookline, $12,100 to support insulation of walls, ceiling, and floor of the Brookline Meeting House Vestry
Town of Sudbury, $30,000 to support energy efficiency upgrades
Valley Players, Waitsfield, $12,000 to support replacement of aging theatrical lights with LED lights
FY26 Animating Infrastructure Grant Recipients:
Brattleboro Words Project, Brattleboro, $15,000 to support the fabrication and installation of a permanent, hand carved interactive mural for the Brattleboro Words Trail at the new Amtrak station
Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity, Inc., Burlington, $5,000 to support the design of a mural on the Healthy Roots Collaborative warehouse along the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail in Sheldon celebrating Northwest Vermont’s agricultural roots
City of Essex Junction, $5,000 to support the design of a mural for the existing southeast-facing wall of the city’s fire department
City of Rutland, $5,000 to support the design of murals on pillars on the first level of the Rutland Transit Center
Downstreet Housing and Community Development, Barre, $15,000 to support the fabrication and installation of a mosaic centered on a stairway that connects the Granite City apartments to the community
Richard Kemp Center, Burlington, $15,000 to support the fabrication and installation of a community mural featuring untold stories from the African Diaspora on an exterior wall at the center
Rutland Northeast Supervisory Union, Brandon, $15,000 to support the fabrication and installation of a school and community-based mural at Neshobe Elementary School
SEABA Exhibitions Inc., Burlington, $5,000 to support the design of murals on two walls at the South End Arts District by the entrance to the alleyway onto Pine Street
Town of Johnson, $8,500 to support the fabrication and installation of four site-specific metal sculptures on the main street
Town of Topsham, East Topsham, $5,000 to design a sculpture for a planned accessible sculpture garden/seating area in the space in front of the West Topsham Community Hall
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