I ND
RI A UST
L
2A 2
MOUNTA
ST AR VE
OLD TR EE PLACE
WILLISTON RD.
NORTH
INTERSTATE
89
89 HILL
2
2A
RD HILL E
OAK
LD CR
AM E RY
N
UT
ST GEROGE
HILL
RD
O
SOUTH
SICKLEN
BROWNELL
VAN
N RD
H
MA PL E
WALKER
VIEW
STAGE
IN
S HAL L
WILLISTO
M AR
OAK
HILL
RD
ER BU TT
WILLISTON
RD.
HUB
ECRWSS PRSRT STD US Postage
PAID
WILLISTON
E
ESSEX RD
R IV E R CO V
SHUNPIKE LEROY
Williston
Permit #15 Williston,VT 05495 POSTAL CUSTOMER
Pages 3-5
MAY 1, 2025
Town Plan rewrite unveiled WILLISTON’S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1985
BY JASON STARR Observer staff
Town planners on Tuesday unveiled their first complete draft of the 2025-2033 Comprehensive Town Plan, a vision document that guides policy in every sector of the community. From arts to archeology and education to economy; from housing to transportation and recreation to conservation, the Town Plan leaves no stone unturned in leading the community toward
what it calls a “livable, resilient and equitable” Williston. State regulations require municipalities maintain and regularly update a comprehensive plan to underpin town bylaws and guide selectboard decisions. The last Williston Town Plan update happened in 2016. The new draft, while contemplating a 25-year planning horizon, will be up for review again in eight years. According to Williston Senior Planner Emily Heymann, the 2016-2024 plan was essentially
Image courtesy of Williston Planning and Zoning Department
WWW.WILLISTONOBSERVER.COM
“copy and pasted” from the plan that was in place since the mid2000s. The new draft is the first substantive rewrite since at least 2006, she said. “There was really a drive to start from scratch,” Heymann said as planners presented the draft in a meeting at the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library. “So much had changed in the community that it felt like a time to wipe the slate clean.” The rewrite is certainly more lively in tone and graphics than the existing plan. Take the new
Frustration stews at Williston senior community State mobile home park rules ‘causing a lot of grief’ BY CHARLOTTE OLIVER Community News Service Tim Cook’s eyes widened as he threw his hands up in exasperation. Sitting in his living room, the 78-year-old explained how much his community of manufactured homes means to him — and how frustrated he is with the state. Along the curved roads of Williston Woods Homeowners Association, most residents like Cook are seniors who get by on a fixed income. They can’t afford to make home improvements, Cook said. And some renovations, like bathtub railings, are especially important for seniors, he said. Usually someone who lives in a manufactured or mobile home park can apply for state money to help pay for home-improvement projects. But Cook’s community, as a homeowners association,
Williston Woods resident Tim Cook, outside his home in April. PHOTO BY CATHERINE MORRISSEY
isn’t a mobile home park under Vermont law — so the state won’t list it on the registry that opens up those funds. Cook is one of 47 residents in the neighborhood, a designated
affordable housing community for seniors. As a member of the association, he can afford a multi-bedroom house adorned with matte white siding — and, uniquely, ownership of the land it sits on.
Farmhouse Williston is Now Open! Serving Farm-to-Table Dinners Tuesday-Saturday 282 Holland Ln, Williston • farmhousetg.com
introduction, for example: “See that thread hanging from the cuff of your faded jeans?” it begins. “Of course you do; we all have them. Give it a tug. See how easily it breaks?” This prose, written by local author and planning commission member Steven Shepard, goes on to illustrate the concept of a community strengthened by fabric woven together — “a tight-knit community.” “The plan tells our collective see TOWN PLAN page 8
FedEx to close Williston location
That’s why the state says the residents don’t face the same challenges, or need the same support, as people in traditional mobile home parks. Cook and his neighbors disagree. “The issue is that we’re not on the state registry — and it’s causing us a lot of grief,” Cook said. Association leaders have been pressuring the state for years to recognize their community. After talks this spring, Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden Southeast, wrote to the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, which manages the registry. She asked them for an exception and never heard back. “They are the only mobile home community that’s come forward in the state where they own their homes, they own the land underneath them and they own the park collectively,” Ram Hinsdale said. The agency told Community
FedEx will close its facility on Marshall Avenue in Williston next month, the company announced Tuesday. The move is part of ongoing streamlining of North American operations, and will affect 55 Williston employees, FedEx Communications Manager Sarah Rose Watkins said. Those employees were notified of the impending closure last year, she said. Some have been offered other roles with the company, others have been offered severance compensation. “These decisions are never taken lightly and reflect our commitment to supporting affected employees — through job placement assistance, relocation aid, or severance, as applicable,”
see WILLISTON WOODS page 2
see FEDEX page 2
OBSERVER STAFF REPORT