Williston
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Permit #15 Williston,VT 05495 POSTAL CUSTOMER
APRIL 3, 2025
WILLISTON’S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1985
Williston’s assignment: 4,212 new homes
WWW.WILLISTONOBSERVER.COM
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CCRPC sets housing targets as construction headwinds mount
BY JASON STARR AND HELEN ARGRAVES New state laws ask the Town of Williston to chart a path toward the construction of thousands of new homes in a coordinated effort with other Chittenden County municipalities to improve the housing market. Williston’s share of the county’s housing target range — developed by the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) under direction of the HOME Act of 2023 — is between 1,402 and 4,212 new homes by 2050. As of 2023, Williston had 4,725 housing units. The county’s other cities and towns were given similar targets, based on their infrastructure, historic population growth rates and land available for development. Williston’s target range is the highest among the county’s suburban towns, with only the cities of Burlington, South Burlington and Essex Junction assigned higher targets. “For decades, housing production hasn’t kept up with the needs of our communities, making it difficult for families to put down roots, workers to live near their jobs, and employers to find staff,” the CCRPC wrote in a news release last week announcing the targets. “These targets … take into account the housing Vermont needs — not only to house new residents, but also to accommodate downsizing seniors, replace older homes that can’t be repaired, and help address homelessness.” To comply with the HOME Act and last year’s follow up Act 181, the
town is expected to incorporate the housing targets into its Town Plan, which Williston planners are currently rewriting for adoption later this year. “There is no penalty for failing to achieve the municipal housing targets provided that municipalities can demonstrate (through the regional approval and confirmation of the municipal plan) that they’re making substantial progress toward meeting the targets,” CCRPC documents explain. The CCRPC is accepting public feedback about the housing targets through May 19 at www.ccrpcvt. org/housing in hopes of finalizing the targets by June. Meanwhile, a convergence of economic headwinds — federal interest rates at 4.5 percent, labor shortages and the uncertainty of tariffs affecting supply chain costs — is suppressing the appetite among some home builders to move forward with construction. ‘A DAMPENING EFFECT’
Yves Bradley, a partner at V/T Commercial brokerage, said interest rates have been a key factor in decisions to cancel, defer and scale back new development of housing and commercial properties in the last two years. Higher interest rates mean developers stand less of a chance of covering the costs required to build. “It’s completely feasible that you can borrow more money to build a see CONSTRUCTION page 5
The cast of ‘The Lion King Jr.’ during a recent rehearsal. This Williston Central School Drama Department production will be presented April 10-12. See Community Calendar, page 2, for show times, and more photos on page 3. OBSERVER PHOTO BY AL FREY
Town explores private fundraising for library expansion
The Town of Williston has hired CPG Enterprises of Burlington to test the willingness of local philanthropists to help fund an expansion of the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library and improvements to the Town Green. The Library Trustees have endorsed a two-story concept designed by local architect John Hemmelgarn that would roughly double the library’s square-footage and reorient its main entrance. With an estimated price tag of $13.4 million that would likely require voter-approved debt, the selectboard is exploring the idea of seeking donations for a portion of
the cost. On Tuesday, it gave CPG Enterprises the go-ahead to conduct
“We’re not asking for funding at this point. It’s really more of a hypothetical to put in front of potential donors.” Maeve McBride CPG Enterprises
a “capital campaign feasibility study.” The study will involve having discussions with “high capacity” area philanthropists about their interest in helping to fund the expansion, said Maeve McBride of CPG. “We’re not asking for funding at this point,” she said. “It’s really more of a hypothetical to put in front of potential donors.” She expects to talk with about 25 potential donors with a goal of determining the likelihood of about $3.5 million in support. She plans to report her findings back to the selectboard this summer. — Jason Starr