General banner

Bennington Banner

Syndicate content

Bennington community planning effort to resume

BENNINGTON -- The next step in the Vermont Council on Rural Development's Community Visit to Bennington is scheduled for this Wednesday.

In a letter to local interested participants, VCRD Executive Director Paul Costello said the upcoming meeting would bring a new team of facilitators to Bennington to interact with community members involved in the process. This week will also mark the formation of task forces dedicated to working toward goals previously selected by residents.

Publication Date: 
05/14/2012

Vermont Senate approves working landscape bill

BENNINGTON -- The Vermont Senate gave final approval Monday to a bill that proponents say will enhance the state’s farming and forest industries.

The Working Lands Enterprise Investment bill, which aims to boost agriculture and small businesses and preserve Vermont’s traditional rural economy, received unanimous support in the Senate on Friday. It received final passage on Monday afternoon on a voice vote; however, the level of funding remains to be decided.

Publication Date: 
04/23/2012

Stuart Hurd column: Communitywide efforts

At the first Select Board meeting in April, the board reorganized electing Joe Krawczyk Jr., chairman, and Sharyn Brush, vice chairwoman.

This meeting featured a presentation by Trevor Mance seeking to create a compost facility, on a small scale, for organic food waste generated at the larger institutions. He was seeking permission from the town to use a site behind the town’s former landfill on Houghton Lane. This year, the Vermont Legislature is considering a bill that will eventually mandate the removal of such waste from the municipal waste stream.

Publication Date: 
04/16/2012

Hey, let's do them all!

It is too bad the community planning initiative Bennington is undertaking with help from the Vermont Council on Rural Development, and the many state officials and experts the process will bring to town, couldn't pursue all of the excellent ideas generated in recent forums. Four were selected Thursday for addressing by smaller citizen groups, including:

Publication Date: 
04/13/2012

Bennington community defines goals

BENNINGTON -- Residents winnowed more than 20 potential action statements down to four Thursday evening with the help of the Vermont Council on Rural Development as part of that group's ongoing Community Visit Program. The group held nine community meetings last month on various topics and culled the ideas and concerns raised by Bennington residents into 22 action items that the Bennington community could focus on and pare down.

Publication Date: 
04/13/2012

Town community visit meetings return this week

BENNINGTON -- A follow up to the Vermont Council on Rural Development’s community visit in March is scheduled for this Thursday, April 12.

Attendees will decide on action items as the VCRD’s community visit program moves forward. The process is a collaborative way for towns to engage residents and set a common goal and direction for the community. Since 1996, the council has conducted more than 20 community visits, usually working in two communities a year. The program visited Pownal in 2006.

Publication Date: 
04/08/2012

Editorial: An example we already know well

BENNINGTON, 4/3/12 ~ If groups soon to be formed with the help of the Vermont Council on Rural Development's community planning process in Bennington need a template for success they should look first to the Greater Bennington Interfaith Community Services.

The local organization is celebrating milestones for two of its major initiatives -- fighting hunger and providing health care for those lacking insurance -- and it can be proud of an older program that provides heat for low-income Vermonters every winter.

Publication Date: 
04/03/2012

Commentary: This is the town's big chance

BENNINGTON ~ I have heard the voice of Bennington, and there is reason for hope. The Vermont Council on Rural Development paid us a visit recently. They held forums to stimulate a discussion on how to improve our community. What was said there was compelling, and inspiring.

Many topics interested me, particularly those on the economy, our image, and the young people of our community. But I didn’t expect to be moved by what was said, even though many of the ideas were not new and even though no one ever tried to implement them before.

Publication Date: 
03/27/2012

Bennington speaks out at community forums

BENNINGTON, NEAL P. GOSWAMI, Staff Writer -- Local officials and residents fanned out in force in nine separate forums Thursday as part of the Vermont Council on Rural Development's community visit program aimed at jump-starting discussion on a variety of topics to boost Bennington. Executive Director Paul Costello announced in January that the program was coming to Bennington. The program looks to provide local municipal leaders and residents with the state and federal resources required to meet the needs of the community.

Publication Date: 
03/16/2012

Rural Development council ready to seek input on local needs

BENNINGTON - The Vermont Council on Rural Development has announced times and locations for its community visit program, which begins here next week. Executive Director Paul Costello announced in January that the council was planning to bring its program to Bennington. It aims to provide local municipal leaders with the state and federal resources they need to help meet the needs of the community. The process encourages involvement by the public and takes about four months; it includes several public meetings and events. Success depends on widespread community involvement, Costello said.

Publication Date: 
03/08/2012