Poultney 2020: Celebrating A Year of Progress
One year into its revitalization effort, Poultney 2020 organizers are preparing for a community celebration on May 3 that will showcase several projects designed to enrich the cultural, social and recreationalofferings in the town.
“Green Up and Celebrate Poultney 2020” will take place from 2 to 5 p.m. at several venues in downtown Poultney.
According to Matt Mayberry, one of the organizers of Poultney 2020 and faculty member at Green Mountain College, the goal on May 3 is to bring the college-town communities together, have fun, and experience the new cultural and recreational resources that are available in Poultney.
“We really hope the entire community will come out and see what the teams have been able to accomplish in just a year through their hard work. It will also be a nice way for folks to celebrate their clean-up work on GreenUp Day,” said Mayberry.
Scheduled activities include a 4-mile fun-run/walk tour of the Poultney Rail & River Trail; a Riparian Ramble along the Poultney River; a Woodland Wonders scavenger hunt; art displays, poetry readings and dance workshops at Stone Valley Arts; music by Phil Lamy’s Green Brothers Band with Boiled Lettuce; a craft display by the Poultney Area Artists’ Guild and a Shakespeare performance with madrigal singing by Green Mountain College students, all at the new Bentley Community Center. There will also be free food prepared by the students at the LiHigh School’s new culinary program, a slate carving demonstration and slate painting workshop for children, and an information session about a planned community park.
All events are free and open to the public.
Poultney 2020 was conceived late in 2012 when students at Green Mountain College began exploring ideas for bringing the college and town communities together in new ways. This led to a partnership between the college and the Poultney Downtown Revitalization Committee (PDRC) to create a process that would support community-led initiatives that add to the quality of life in town. During the winter of 2013, the effort began to take shape when community focus groups made up of residents, PDRC members, and GMC students and staff, held a series of meetings to identify Poultney’s strengths and brainstorm initiatives in five focus areas: the arts, food, sustainability, place, and good and services.
Poultney 2020 officially kicked off on April 24 last year when nearly 200 people attended a day-long Community Meeting designed to “take revitalization to the next level.” During that day, participants heard from an invited panel of Vermont community leaders, enjoyed a free catered lunch, shared ideas with the focus groups, and then voted on four priority projects: a community arts center, a pocket park for Main St., an outdoor parksandrecreation system, and a locavore restaurant.
During the past year, volunteer groups made up of over 50 local residents, GMC students and staff haveworkedtogether tobring to life several significantnew cultural and recreational resources for the town:
Stone Valley Arts.Stone Valley Arts (SVA), Poultney’s new community arts center, was officially launched as a non-profit organization last fall and is currently applying for 501(c)3 status. The organization’s mission is to enhance and expand the cultural life of the community and the surrounding region. SVA offers “a range of programs, including classes, workshops, presentations, and events in the visual, performing and literary arts for all ages and levels of experience,” according to co-leader Burnham Holmes. SVA is currently located on the third floor of the Journal Press building (Main Street and Depot Street), where it has been hosting a wide variety of activities, including drawing sessions with live models, tango classes, art exhibits, flute carving workshops, martial arts classes, youth dance workshops, and music classes.
Community Park. The goal of this team is to create a public park in downtown Poultney that will serve as a community gathering place for both children and adults, and provide a backdrop for various activities such as outdoor music, art and theater. The group has identified a potential site for the park and has created an early conceptual design, with features that include public art, a gazebo, an historical slate wall, and picnic tables. The group is now focused on raising funds for the purchase and development of the park.
Parks and Recreation System. This team has been focused on creating a connected network of parks and trails that promote a variety of outdoor activities. The near-term goal is to develop the Rail & River Trail into a 4-mile system of pathways where residents and visitors can walk, hike or bike together. Currently the group is developing signage and kiosks for trail sections along the Poultney River, a section of the Delaware and Hudson Rail Trail, and in the woods behind the Stonebridge Inn.
LiHigh Culinary Program. In addition to the Poultney 2020 initiatives, the LiHigh School in Poultney recently launched a new culinary program as part of their therapeutic educational program. The culinary program is housed in the former Station building in Poultney, recently purchased by the school. This month the school is launching a student-run take-out restaurant, led by chef Bill Allen, with an emphasis on local food sourcing. The LiHigh School will be preparing the food for the May 3rd Green-up and Celebrate Poultney 2020 event, with funding provided by Green Mountain College.
The Poultney 2020 Action Teams welcome community members to join them in moving these initiatives forward. For information about Poultney 2020 and the Action Teams, please contact Matt Mayberry at [email protected].
