VLCT Journal

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Published on the third Thursday of every month, VLCT Journal is a digital news magazine that contains links to important news, featured articles, upcoming events, sponsored content, and trivia. Below you'll see all of the featured articles along with links to past issues where you can find the resources, news, events, and more that were part of each specific Journal. Alternatively, you can visit our news, events, or resources webpages to see the most recent updates.

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2023 VLCT Journal Issues

2022 VLCT Journal Issues

Articles

Spotlight on Town Fair Trainings

Town Fair 2022 is packed with a plethora of top-notch training sessions, many of which our members specifically requested. Organized into four main categories – governance, operations, infrastructure, and partnerships – this year’s presentations are particularly timely as they target challenges local officials face each day and offer solutions for towns of all sizes.

Town Fair Sponsors

Thank you to all of our Town Fair Sponsors. These organizations are an integral part of Town Fair, helping to support VLCT and allowing us to create a high quality event while keeping registration costs low for attendees. Visit them online or in-person at Town Fair.

Why should I attend?

State and Local Government Collaborative Purchasing: Cellular & Wireless Services

Lyon and Tigers and Bears, Oh My: Introducing Event and Partnership Coordinator Shaina Lyon

August Vermontscapes

VLCT’s Town Fair has been around almost as long as VLCT: The latter began life in 1967; the former in 1971 at the Barre Auditorium.

Municipality Triviality July 2022

It was a surprise to me bordering on incredulity that no one knew that Georgia native Gardner Quincy Colton (anagram: old croqueting cranny) was the Vermont gent whose mid-nineteenth century lectures on chemistry and natural philosophy included early demonstrations of the use of nitrous oxide – or laughing gas – that pioneered its use in dentistry.

Away in a Manager

The relationship of municipal manager Bill Shepeluk with VLCT goes back even longer than his thirty-four years in Waterbury.

Supreme Court Holds that Boston Violated First Amendment

In May the United States Supreme Court ruled that the city of Boston violated the First Amendment of the United States Constitution when it had allowed various other private groups’ flags to fly at City Hall but refused to fly a Christian group’s flag, in the case of

Supreme Court: Austin Sign Ordinance Does Not Violate the First Amendment

Introduction by Kail Romanoff, VLCT Staff Attorney I

Making it Work for You: Strategic Planning in Small Communities

Strategic plans can be valuable tools that guide managers and their governing bodies in making complex decisions and navigating challenging periods. And yet, financial constraints, limited staff capacity, and lack of buy-in from elected officials are just a few examples of the numerous challenges to strategic planning faced by managers of small local governments.

Placemaking Projects that Inspire Change and Improve Communities for People of All Ages

Placemaking is about strengthening the connection between people and the places they share by re-inventing and re-engaging with public spaces so they are once again the central focus of public life. The most successful placemaking projects put people at the forefront of creating change in their community.

A Library of Things: Non-Traditional Items to Borrow

It has been many years since libraries were only a place to borrow books. These days, many libraries across the state supplement their thousands of loanable books with “libraries of things” – that is, non-traditional materials, whose makeup grows and is modified in response to the needs of the community.

Vermontscapes July 2022

With tomatoes ripening tantalizingly on the vine and the corn already knee-high as of the fourth of August July, it’s time we paid attention to the crafts and arts that farmers markets across Vermont feature.

Raising Homes: It Takes a Village to Grow Housing

As he travels Vermont, Tyler Maas sees a possible remedy to the housing crisis hiding in plain sight. It is the accessory dwelling unit, or ADU — the rather unwieldy name for a converted shed, home or garage apartment that can multiply the residential capacity of a single lot.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) is a hot topic in the news lately, especially with the recent, limited-time changes that the U.S.

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