Exeter Awarded $98,500 for Village-Based Growth

State of Rhode Island gives its second highest grant to Borderlands community

For Immediate Release
January 28, 2010

Exeter, RI—The “Vision for Exeter” just got clearer. The State of Rhode Island has awarded this small town of 6,000 residents $98,500—its second highest grant—to plan for “village-based” growth. Exeter is one of two towns engaged in the Borderlands Village Innovation Pilot, an outgrowth of the larger Borderlands Project launched in 2003 as a cooperative venture between The Nature Conservancy, the Orton Family Foundation and the 20 towns along the Rhode Island-Connecticut line.

Exeter_hands_400x280.jpgResidents of Exeter use the Chip Game
in the fall of 2009 to determine potential
locations for future growth.

Exeter is in the second year of developing its community “Vision”: to retain rural character while supporting development opportunities. The Town is currently working to gain consensus about how best to achieve that vision. So far, many agree that compact development paired with land conservation could be the best approach.
 

“This grant is a terrific opportunity for Exeter,” said Robert Johnson, Vice-President of the Exeter Town Council. “This will allow us to finally understand what challenges and opportunities the Town faces in directing growth into compact places.” Johnson cited the region’s many villages as examples of how Exeter might want to grow.

The grant was made by the State of Rhode Island Division of Planning and is funded by the US Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. The Borderlands Project has received prior funding from other organizations, including The Rhode Island Foundation.

Exeter will use the funds to commission a study looking at a number of questions that determine whether compact development is possible, such as economic feasibility, water availability and impacts on sensitive watersheds, wetlands, traffic and community character. Citizens identified several potential new village sites during “Vision for Exeter” workshops in 2008 and in previous Comprehensive Plans. Additional public workshops will be held in 2010 to create conceptual plans and illustrations of the Town’s growth.

“The grant to Exeter is an excellent example of the economic benefits of Heart & Soul Community Planning,” said William Roper, the Orton Family Foundation’s President. “The Town’s early commitment to—and continued promise of—deep citizen involvement helped land a major grant, which will invariably foster more economic activity in years to come. It’s very exciting.”

The State grant is a big step for this small community. The outcome could serve as living proof that “a town with no center” can, with maximum engagement and innovative planning, become a town with a lively, productive village hub.

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For More Information:
John Barstow, Director of Communications
Orton Family Foundation
PO Box 111 (152 Maple St., Suite 101)
Middlebury, VT 05753
802.388.6336
communications@orton.org
www.orton.org