Photo: Hardwick Yellow Barn rendering. courtesy image.
vermont biz The Northern Border Regional Commission announced that 13 communities in Vermont will receive a total of $10.8 million from the NBRC’s Catalyst Program.
This includes $500,000 for the redevelopment of Hardwick’s iconic ‘Yellow Barn’.
Evernorth Rural Ventures and the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation previously completed the allocation of $11.4 million in New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) to Yellow Barn.
Photo: 1960 photo of Hardwick’s Yellow Barn.
Photo: Current Yellowburn. Courtesy photo.
NMTC funding will support the construction of a new 25,137-square-foot food business facilitation building and the adaptive reuse of a vacant 4,762-square-foot historic yellow dairy as a retail store . Collectively, these projects are known as the Yellow Barn Business Accelerator.
The project is an innovative public-private partnership and the culmination of a six-year effort led by the Town of Hardwick, the Northeast Kingdom Development Corporation, and the Northeast Vermont Development Association.
Governor Phil Scott, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, Peter Welch, and U.S. Rep. Becca Balint welcomed NBRC’s investment.
“These funds will make a huge difference in communities across Vermont, including supporting clean water initiatives and investing in our agricultural economy, infrastructure and environment,” Scott said. “We would like to thank Senator Welch, Senator Sanders, and Representative Balint for their close collaboration and partnership with the NBRC and their work at the federal level in support of these efforts.”
“During this difficult time, it is essential that federal funds be made available to strengthen Vermont communities, support local economies, and rebuild essential infrastructure,” Sanders said. Ta. “From building and expanding child care centers to investing in agriculture and improving water infrastructure, these funds will improve the lives of Vermonters in real, effective and much-needed ways.”
“Support from the Northern Borders Commission has helped build vibrant economies and healthy communities across our region for many years, and this year’s award is no exception.” Mr. Welch said. “Thanks to the bipartisan Infrastructure Act, Vermont communities will receive historic investments from NBRC to revitalize local infrastructure, expand child care services, and support local agriculture. This is exciting news for communities across the state, and we are grateful to NBRC and the Biden Administration for moving forward with these groundbreaking investments.”
Balint added: “Funding through the Northern Borders Commission has helped revitalize some historically marginalized communities. “These investments will support infrastructure development while expanding child care and education programs. and agriculture. We are grateful for this state-federal partnership that has brought historic funding to Vermonters.”
Among the winners are the City of Killington ($2.5 million) and the City of Wilmington.
($1 million) and North Hero ($1 million) will receive funding to make improvements to stormwater infrastructure, municipal water systems and more.
Neck of the Woods, an early education and childcare organization in Waitsfield, will receive $425,000 to add new classrooms and expand services to help Vermont families. (See page 43 for complete list)
The Northern Border Community Commission was created by Congress in 2008 to alleviate hardship in the most economically disadvantaged communities in Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, and New York.
This year’s funding for Vermont is almost the same as last year’s investment, thanks to an increase in total funding for the next 10 years supported by then-U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, Sanders and Welch in the last Congress. It has doubled. .
In August, the NBRC announced new awards totaling $43.6 million as part of its first Catalyst Program Competition, including nearly $20 million from the bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
The 66 Catalyst awards were awarded to communities in the commission’s member states of Maine, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont, and included a wide range of economic development initiatives for projects that modernized and expanded water and wastewater systems. Masu. Revitalize transportation infrastructure. Establish workforce development programs and facilities.foster outdoor recreation
infrastructure and economy. Build new childcare and medical facilities.
These projects represent a total of $208.5 million in public and private investment across the four-state NBRC region. With additional funding provided by the bipartisan Infrastructure Act, the Committee expanded the scale of investments in infrastructure projects and funded the largest award in the Committee’s history.
These projects will be rolled out over the next three years. A complete list of this year’s awardees can be found on the NBRC website (nbrc.gov).
The 2023 Catalyst Program grant round was highly competitive, with 187 applications received and over $151 million in funding requests.Catalyst programs are designed to stimulate economic growth and stimulate partnerships that improve rural economic vitality across the four-state NBRC region.
The selected set of projects advances NBRC’s investment priorities to reach underserved communities and build resilient regions. Thirty-five of the commission’s awards will go to communities with fewer than 5,000 residents, and 30 will go to communities and organizations receiving his first-time NBRC funding awards.
“NBRC is unique in its ability to respond flexibly to the wide range of needs of the region’s rural communities,” said NBRC Federal Co-Chair Chris Saunders. “That quality is common to the commission’s awards (announced). These awards include core components of the infrastructure for building successful economies, and their scope extends to , roads, and fiber optic lines, to child care programs, outdoor recreation infrastructure, working waterfronts, and everything in between.
He added, “The committee’s ability to incorporate that flexibility into grantmaking is a result of President Biden and Congress working together to pass bipartisan infrastructure legislation and historic legislation.” This is directly attributable to this once-in-a-generation support.” It’s the annual funding that Congress included in last year’s spending bill. ”
The Biden administration has so far provided $280 billion in funding for 37,000 infrastructure projects across the United States.
Since President Biden took office, companies have announced more than $500 billion in investments in the United States, and the administration has helped more than 20 million households save money on their internet costs.
Funding for this program and all NBRC programs is available through the support of the NBRC’s all four state congressional delegations.
Subject to the availability of funding in 2024, NBRC plans to award the Catalyst Award again in 2024. Please visit the NBRC website for announcements regarding current and future funding opportunities.
NBRC Catalyst Program Award in Vermont
town of killington
project: Infrastructure improvements required for the development of the Six Peaks Killington Village project, including a municipal water system and a redesigned street system.
Project location: rutland county
Grant amount: $2.25 million
Total project amount: $23.6 million
Neck of the Woods Vermont
project: The second floor of the Childcare and Early Childhood Education Center building was renovated to expand childcare services. Add new classrooms, restrooms, elevators and other barrier-free facilities. and associated energy efficiency upgrades.
Project location: washington county
Grant amount: $425,000
Total project amount: $850,000
Agricultural Economics Center
project: Renovation and interior of the 12,500 square foot Hardwick Yellow Barn Business Accelerator building to expand agricultural and small business support services.
Project location: caledonia county
Grant amount: $500,000
Total project amount: $1.7 million
town of wilmington
project: The Route 9 Infrastructure Expansion will construct water and wastewater infrastructure along VT Route 9 East/100 South and revitalize 22,000 square feet of unused space.
Project location: windham county
Grant amount: $ 1,000,000
Total project amount: $2.47 million
green mountain economic
Development Co., Ltd.
project: Redeveloping a vacant building on the site of the Vermont Tech Enterprise Enterprise Center in Randolph as a child care center and work-based learning center. This project is a collaboration between GMEDC and the Orange County Parent and Child Center.
Project location: orange county
Grant amount: $750,000
Total project amount: $3.55 million
City of Northern Heroes
project: Water main replacement and water storage tank construction along U.S. Route 2 will improve water service reliability.
Project location: grand isle county
Grant amount: $ 1,000,000
Total project amount: $4.04 million
johnson town
project: Creation of a new light/industrial/commercial park in the Town of Johnson. Infrastructure improvements include paved access roads, basic wastewater collection lines, basic water distribution lines, rainwater collection lines, treatment ponds, and electrical and communication lines.
Project location: Lamoille County
Grant amount: $862,000
Total project amount: $1.72 million
Manga Research Center
project: The “Telegraph Building” in White River Junction will be renovated to house production labs, learning centers, original art archives, studio space, classrooms for traveling and online instruction, a public gallery, and a bookstore.
Project location: windsor county
Grant amount: $971,000
Total project amount: $2.09 million
Friends of the Vergennes Opera House
project: Update City Hall/Vergennes Opera House to meet federal accessibility standards. Upgrades include a new elevator tower, a new entrance walkway from the street, motorized life, and ADA restrooms.
Project location: addison county
Grant amount: $300,000
Total project amount: $1.64 million
Mishquoi’s Makquam Bay
project: Redevelopment and renovation of the Abenaki Tribal Headquarters to expand space and organizational capacity to provide health, nutrition, and recreation programs.
Project location: franklin county
Grant amount: $500,000
Total project amount: $2.18 million
brighton city
project: Upgrade to a wastewater treatment facility with non-compliant treatment capacity.
Project location: essex county
Grant amount: $ 1,000,000
Total project amount: $4.87 million
town of greensboro
project: Construct a new town-owned wastewater collection, transfer, treatment and soil treatment facility to replace a failing on-site septic system and protect public health and the environment;
Housing and business development.
Project location: orléans county
Grant amount: $ 1,000,000
Total project amount: $9.05 million
University of Stirling
project: Development and launch of a new curriculum component, “Experiential Engagement,” focused on the areas of agriculture, ecology, education, recreation, and food systems.
Project location: Caledonia, Lamoille, Orleans counties
Grant amount: $275,000
Total project amount: $589,000
Overview of Vermont Catalyst Program Applicants:
Number of applicants: 31
Total amount of funds requested: $30.42 million
Total number of awards: 13
Total amount of funding awarded: $10.83 million
Established in 2008, the Northern Border Regional Commission is a federal-state partnership whose mission is to alleviate economic hardship and promote private sector job creation in Maine, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont. is.