Alliance for Vermont Communities disbands

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - An organization spanning four communities in Vermont is disbanding, saying its work is done.

The Alliance for Vermont Communities was formed in response to the New Vistas proposal.

A Utah businessman wanted to build a 20,000-person utopian community near the towns of Royalton, Sharon, Strafford, and Tunbridge.

But after community pushback, the developer said in 2018 he would no longer pursue the project.

The Alliance says their work continued after that, as they bought a piece of land and turned it over to two of the towns to become the Ashley Community Forest.

Michael Sacca of the Alliance says, “We also discovered during that time that we were really a community development organization, and we really wanted to see communities in dialogue with each other.” He adds, “So we worked hard and created places for communities to work together, and it’s really paid off.”

In addition to the land that they raised money to buy, the Alliance also donated thousands of dollars to each of the communities to boost conservation, farming, and economic growth.

Cat Viglienzoni spoke with Michael Sacca to learn more.

Images courtesy: Alliance for Vermont Communities.

Copyright 2023 WCAX. All rights reserved.