Brownsville general store reborn

A Windsor County general store has a new lease on life that some say can be a model for other ailing general stores across the region.

Governor Phil Scott toured the new Brownsville Butcher & Pantry Friday. After the former general store closed in early 2017, a group of residents came together, purchased the store, and helped finance needed upgrades.

Current owners of the business pitched their plan -- which includes a full butcher fridge -- and they have now been in operation for about a year.

Co-owner Lauren Stevens says they couldn't have down it without the community's support. "It is what we do it for. Each of these people we know on a first name basis. They come in regularly to get their coffee or to get a couple groceries or to grab lunch with their families. We know all these people and their families on a very intimate level and that is what we did this for -- That sense of place, that community" she said.

Over the last several years the town has made a series of upgrades to the water and sewer system that was damaged during Tropical Storm Irene. The store owners are currently leasing the space but a deal is in the works to buy the building after five years.