| Economic Vision Plan Survey
CLICK HERE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ECONOMIC VISION PLAN SURVEY!
As part of its Economic Vision and Plan, the Town of Essex is asking residents of the Town and Village to participate in a brief survey about their "economic experience" - their experience, perceptions, and hopes for living and working in and around Essex Town and Essex Junction. The survey, which will be completely anonymous and takes about 5 to 10 minutes to complete, is intended to provide the Planning Commission, Select Board and Economic Development Committee with important feedback and direction for developing a new vision and plan for the Town.
The survey is a follow-up to the vision plan workshop held last November at Essex High School. The workshop, attended by over 75 residents and others with businesses in Essex and Essex Junction, provided an initial overview of the economic future that participants saw for Essex. The meeting also highlighted some of the very difficult issues and choices that the Town faces in developing zoning, budgets, grant projects, and policies around economic development.
For any questions regarding the project and survey, residents are encouraged to call Assistant Town Manager Trevor Lashua at 878-1341 or e-mail tlashua@essex.org.
About the Study
The study will focus on the nature and needs of new economic “clusters,” or groups of industries and businesses that can take advantage of the location, available land, and workforce in Essex. These clusters have the potential to diversify and strengthen the Town’s economic base, but are not well documented or understood. For example, tourism and hospitality businesses recently have become a larger and more important economic presence or “cluster” in Town, but no specific steps are in place to market Essex as a destination or link its assets to regional ski area and vacation marketing. Discussions of economic development often revolve around creating “green jobs” in renewable energy and technology, but the Town’s zoning districts and transportation plans have not been evaluated for whether the best conditions exist to support new energy and environmental firms.
While Essex has long prospered economically, in part because of IBM’s significant presence, less attention has been paid to the economic potential and needs of new and emerging industries that could offer substantial opportunities in the future. For the community to invest in its most promising and strategic economic opportunities, a new vision and understanding of the economy in Essex – beyond “IBM and the Circ” - is critical. At the same time, whenever goals for growth and economic development are laid out, concerns inevitably arise over the growth impacts, open land conservation concerns, and the best balance for quality of life.
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About the Study