RESOURCES

GBIC offers direct contact and support to aid employers in developing and understanding the importance and value of relationships with the following list of key business assistance resources.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Regional Project Prioritization List
The Regional Project Prioritization (RPP) List expresses the highest priority projects for each region that will support job growth and economic development. The top ten projects on the Chittenden County RPP List will be included in a consolidated statewide list submitted to the Vermont Agency of Commerce, who will share it with other state and federal funders who may consider the list when making funding decisions.

Projects may be from for-profit, non-profit, or municipal entities and can be any project that positively impacts the local economy. Nominations will be ranked locally based on their readiness, ability to create jobs, and overall community and economic impact.

Click here to learn more about RPP and to submit an application. All applications should be emailed to: [email protected] and [email protected]. Applications are due by October 31, 2023 for consideration on the 2024 list. Organizations can begin applying now.

A committee composed from both GBIC and the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission will review and score the applicants’ proposed projects in November 2023. The top ten scoring projects will be submitted to the Agency of Commerce & Community Development. However, the list will also contain other projects that did not quite make the top ten list.

Questions: Contact Sam Andersen at 802-585-6901 or Alex Demoly at 518-526-1427.

Partnerships
To meet the different needs of Vermont’s diverse economy, GBIC partners with a number of organizations and agents of Economic Development and works with businesses to find their best fit in resources and support.

  • Vermont Department of Economic Development: Vermont’s Government department dedicated to growing businesses in our state.
  • Vermont Small Business Development Center: VtSBDC provides low-cost training programs and no-cost mentoring to help strengthen existing businesses and grow start-ups.
  • Vermont Manufacturing Extension Center: With a home office located on the Vermont Technical College campus in Randolph Center, Vermont, VMEC operates throughout the state assisting small and medium sized manufacturers with increasing productivity, reducing costs and providing assistance with utilizing and incorporating new technologies and services.
  • Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development: The Agency of Commerce works to enhance the Vermont business climate, marketing Vermont to tourists and others, and strengthening Vermont communities in a wide variety of ways.
  • Vermont Information Technology Center: Helps small businesses implement and effectively apply Information Technologies in their operations while also supporting the statewide education infrastructure necessary to see future IT development.
  • Vermont Global Trade Partnership: For those businesses looking to enter or expand sales into foreign markets, the Global Trade Partnership can be a powerful tool for facilitating opportunities and providing expertise in realizing international trade partnerships.

INFRASTRUCTURE

From the smallest to the largest, every business needs quality and reliable infrastructure. The Greater Burlington region plays host to a number of telecommunication providers, physical utility and energy providers, as well as an international airport just ten minutes from downtown Burlington. With the lowest cost energy in New England and with one of the cleanest energy portfolios in the country, growing your business in Vermont is a way of saving green.

As part of our State’s commitment towards delivering 21st Century infrastructure, an effort has been undertaken to ensure that there is statewide broadband coverage.  To see how this plan is taking shape, check out the Vermont Telecommunications Authority website.

Utilities

Telecoms

Transportation

ECONOMIC PLAN/CEDS

The Chittenden County Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) document is a community-based undertaking coordinated by GBIC in an effort to inventory economic development activities taking place within the county. Composed of individually reported projects and research submitted by Citizen Work Groups, the Chittenden County CEDS document is a yearly update to better understand the ways in which our county is growing and where it may be headed.

In 2010 GBIC partnered with the Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) to successfully secure a Housing and Urban Development Sustainable Communities grant. The grant included funding for a new Regional Plan, Metropolitan Transportation Plan, and a new CEDS for Chittenden County.

The new plan can be found in its entirety here.

STATE & LIFESTYLE INFORMATION

Colleges, Universities, & Educational Funding

Part of what makes Vermont such a dynamic location is the value given to higher education.  Boasting more colleges per capita than anywhere else in the United States and a pedigree that includes two campuses started in the 1700s, the Vermont college experience is diverse enough to satisfy any and all interests – in a uniquely Vermont way.

Resources for Educational Funding

Area Colleges & Universities