J. Gregory Gerdel
More than 100 Montpelier residents joined the Montpelier Commission for Recovery and Resilience on Oct. 29 for a presentation of what has been accomplished since the July 2023 flood and the priorities recommended for the future.
The presentation in the College Hall Chapel followed a potluck dinner with music by jazz pianist Ira Friedman. The commission was created after the three public meetings in the fall of 2023, following the flood, with a charge to disband after two years. The Commission’s charge: develop a plan for future flood prevention. The final report — the result of the two years of research, collaboration, and planning — addresses questions and concerns raised at those meetings in 2023.
The priorities envisioned are:
- Collaboration with neighboring communities to restore floodplains and reduce citywide flooding.
- Evolving an adaptive downtown with both historic and new buildings better able to withstand floods, and a river’s edge designed for maximum flood resilience.
- Building a culture of emergency preparedness in the community founded on clear communication, defined roles, and systems that support one another.
Commissioner Aly Richards, emcee for the event, said the volunteer work of commissioners and a paid staff of two have been supported by the Montpelier Foundation, Montpelier Alive, and the city of Montpelier.
A significant accomplishment, she said, has been bringing together 25 of the communities along the Winooski River and its tributaries. The collective purpose of the Winooski Flood Resilience Collaborative is planning regional flood plain restoration. A grant proposal for ongoing funding has been submitted, with the support of the Friends of the Winooski and the Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission.
Two projects expected to be underway within the next two years will substantially contribute to protecting Montpelier’s downtown. The first is the removal of up to 1,600 truckloads of fill at 5 Home Farm Way, the site of the historic Jacob Davis property at the confluence of the Stevens Branch and the Winooski River off Route 2 near Agway. This will restore approximately 12 acres of flood plain.
The second project is removing the deteriorated, but still obstructive, Pioneer Street dam located about a half mile downstream. At the same time, the city of Montpelier is working to obtain funding to remove the Bailey Dam, near Shaw’s supermarket on Main Street.
Commission Executive Director Jon Copans noted that defining the future of the former post office building at 87 State Street is proving to be a challenge. The federal Government Services Administration (GSA) wants to sell the building, Copans said, but one difficulty in doing so is the 70,000-square-foot edifice has asbestos, lead, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) embedded in its structure. Copans said he is hopeful that a developer with both the resources and an understanding of the importance of adapting for flood resilience will take on the project.
The concern, Copans added, is that if the GSA auctions off the building, a new owner with neither sufficient resources nor interest in the need for flood resilience could be a problem. He also said the adjacent area to the building, now a parking lot, could potentially provide as many as 90 housing units, a resource Montpelier clearly needs.
On a positive note about the river, Copans recalled a recent encounter with someone who had just caught a brown trout in the Winooski.
“I’m not sure how he got down there, let alone climbed out,” Copans said. In that vein he said he has been working with the city to create an updated River’s Edge Master Plan to better address both flood resilience and river access.
Montpelier Alive Executive Director Katie Trautz, known for her musical prowess as well as her on-the-ground coordination of recovery efforts immediately after the flood, joined Commissioner Marc Gwinn for a duet that introduced Gwinn’s report about the considerable progress made on the Montpelier Action Plan for Local Emergency (MAPLE).
The immediate objective for MAPLE is to design a flood response hub and provide training to the city staff. In the longer term, similar plans will be prepared for possible wildfires or ice storms. A related effort has been conducted through Montpelier Neighborhood Networks (MNNs), which so far has established 25 self-identified MNNs throughout the city. The approach is to encourage residents to define their neighborhood through local interaction, rather than a top-down definition drawn on a map.
A first successful MNN effort has been to educate residents about the importance of having a “Go Bag” when emergencies arise and how to put one together.
At the close of the meeting, Commissioner Ben Doyle expressed appreciation for contributions to the Montpelier community by the late Nathan Suter, who died unexpectedly in May.
“Nathan was a person who spoke up, did the work, and supported others,” Doyle said. “I thought about a moment of silence, but that seemed inappropriate, because being silent was something Nathan never did.”
To learn more about the Commission, go to montpelierstrong.org/about.
