Bennington, Vermont
Up to 9 weeks of work, flexible timing between June and August
Personal vehicle recommended (carpooling could be arranged)
To Apply: Please send a cover letter and resume to Bill Colvin ([email protected]) by Thursday, February 29 (end of day)
The Bennington County Regional Commission (BCRC) works with and on behalf of seventeen municipalities to build strong, resilient, and sustainable communities, to foster economic prosperity, and to promote a high quality of life for residents of southwestern Vermont. The BCRC works cooperatively with local governments across a wide range of focus areas, including community and economic development, emergency management, energy planning, land use planning, natural resource planning, mapping, solid waste management, and transportation planning.
Reflective of the varied projects that all BCRC staff members are working on at any moment, a Planning Intern would have the opportunity to contribute to a range of projects at the BCRC. The following is a list of some of the projects that an intern would be able to work on. BCRC would work with an intern to prioritize projects that align with their interests.
- Pownal Center Village Improvements – Implementing an engagement plan to gather input from members of the Pownal community on physical improvements to enhance the area surrounding the new Town Office in Pownal Center Village with a primary emphasis on Center Street Park. Responsibilities may include: preparing materials for in-person engagement, promoting community engagement opportunities across digital and in-person platforms, conducting community engagement at a variety of town events (may include tables at retail and community spaces, public meetings, surveys), and beginning an initial review of feedback gathered and summarizing outreach findings.
- Bennington County Solid Waste Alliance Arts Community Partnership – Working to develop relationships with the Bennington area arts community to assist in the development of a program area related to the reuse of paint collected at BCSWA’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility. Responsibilities may include: cataloging and identifying the reusability of collected paint products, estimating the value of collected paint as determined by the Vermont Patientcare program, determining demand for reuse by the local arts community, and developing potential distribution methods to supply the paint to arts focused groups in the Bennington area.
- Municipal Energy Resilience Program (MERP) Implementation Grant Application Assistance – Supporting towns and villages as they apply for state funding to weatherize, improve efficiency, and reduce fossil fuel-dependence in municipal buildings. Responsibilities may include: tracking town participation and application completeness, communicating with town staff and state administrators to ensure a smooth application process.
- Shaftsbury Commercial Sites Inventory and Assessment – Conducting an inventory to describe commercial activity, vehicular traffic, and productivity in South Shaftsbury, and outlining development potential for properties identified within the town’s commercial center. Responsibilities may include: GIS-based and in-person analysis of commercial activity, employer interviews, developing an in-depth qualitative survey, and precedent project research.
- Bike and Pedestrian Planning – Initializing public outreach about a bike and pedestrian plan in Bennington. Responsibilities may include: coordinating public meetings to begin gathering public input on bike and pedestrian infrastructure needs in Bennington, reaching out to businesses about expanding bike parking network throughout the area.
- Bennington Town Plan Update (Phase 2) – Following a robust community engagement initiative in Bennington in the winter of 2023-2024, the summer will be a time for deeper data collection on existing conditions in Bennington, and further processing community input to develop a detailed outline for the new town plan. Responsibilities may include: gathering data on Bennington’s demographics, economic environment, and other existing conditions and trends; and contributing content to a revised town plan outline.
- Other projects that align with the student’s interests, as discussed with supervisors.
An intern would be given a workspace at the BCRC offices to work 35-40 hours/week. Some remote work would be permitted.
Some work hours would be expected to occur during evenings and weekends, outside of regular business hours. During weeks with events outside of regular work hours we would work with the intern to create a flexible schedule that does not exceed the weekly limit.
Funding and housing are available through Williams College. Hiring is contingent on the approval of funding through The Center for Environmental Studies, or other applicable funding source.