Revitalizing Southern Vermont’s Villages Dorset, Vermont August 2013 Dorset Revitalization Planning Dorset VT Dorset is a town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. Dorset is famous for being the location of Cephas Kent's Inn, where four meetings of the Convention that signed the Dorset Accords led to the independent Vermont Republic, and future statehood. Dorset is home to America's oldest marble quarry and is the birthplace of Alcoholics Anonymous co-founder Bill W. East Dorset is the setting of the Bill Wilson House and the Griffith Library. The East Dorset marble quarry was established by Bill W's great grandfather and stayed in the family for 3 generations. Marble from these quarries provided stone for the New York Public Library Main Branch building in New York City The Town of Dorset has an area of 29,463 acres, or 46.04 square miles, made up of many types of land and waterways: flat valley land, swamps, rolling hills, steep mountains, streams and rivers. 14,228 acres contain slopes in excess of 20%, and 2,880 acres have elevations above 2500 feet. The physiography of the Town may be described as two roughly north-south valleys, which contain most of Dorset's development, together with parts of three north-south mountainous areas, which define the valleys. The eastern edge of the Town runs along the western slope of the Green Mountains. The southwestern corner of the Town occupies the northeastern slope of Mother Myrick Mountain, in the Taconic Mountain Range. Thrusting into Dorset from the north is a mountainous area, also part of the Taconic Range, extending south from Dorset Mountain, whose summit, close to the northern town line, is over 3800 feet above sea level. A spine, between 2000' and 2500' high lies between Dorset Mountain and Mount Aeolus (also called Green Peak) about five miles to the south. Land falls southerly from Mount Aeolus to become rolling land extending south to the town line. Between the Green Mountains and the Taconics lies the well defined and rather narrow Vermont Valley, which is Dorset's eastern valley and is known in transportation terms as the "Route 7 corridor." The southern portion of this valley is drained by the Batten Kill, which flows mostly west to the Hudson River. The northern portion of the valley is drained by the Otter Creek, which flows northerly to Lake Champlain. The divide between the two watersheds lies a short distance north of the village of East Dorset. The easterly valley contains the villages of East Dorset, South Village of East Dorset, and the cluster of houses known as North Dorset. The westerly valley extends diagonally from approximately the midpoint of the southern town line to the midpoint of the western town line. This is the "Route 30 corridor." This valley also drains in two directions, with the watershed divide constituting a Class I wetland, known as the Dorset Marsh, southwest of Dorset Village. Towards the southeast, this drains into a branch of the Batten Kill; towards the northwest the flow is into the Mettawee River, which, like the Otter, flows into Lake Champlain. This westerly valley contains the villages of Dorset and South Dorset. Dorset Revitalization Planning A subordinate valley, known as Dorset Hollow, is located east of Dorset Village. This valley contains considerable acreage of rolling land, and also the headwaters of the Mettawee River. The geography of the Town divides it roughly into two development axes, both of which radiateout from the larger urban center of Manchester to the south. Only one public road within the Town links the two valleys - Morse Hill Road - which climbs over the lower southern side of Mount Aeolus. Dorset is largely a residential community, serving both year-round and seasonal residents. Its economic activity includes primary industries such as agriculture, forestry, and mineral extraction; secondary industries such as wood processing; and a range of tertiary services such as real estate sales, financial services, restaurant and tourist accommodation facilities, and so forth. Dorset does not have a large retail component, nor does it have a large industrial or manufacturing component. Dorset is envisioned as a nice, clean, quiet place to live, within commuting distance from the largerurban service areas andemploymentcenters of Manchester, Rutland and Bennington. Dorset Revitalization Planning Introduction The community of Dorset, in collaboration with the Bennington County Regional Commission (BCRC) has worked to develop strategies to revitalize both Dorset and East Dorset Village. BCRC provided technical assistance working in conjunction with Dorset Planning Commission to identify projects and potential funding sources that would help community stakeholders build economic resilience through community dialogue and goal setting. Economic, Demographic and Housing Information Population Trends, 1791-2010 2,500 2,000 1,500 1,000 500 0 The population of Dorset has experienced lows and highs since 1791. The census reported a peak in 1870 with a total population of 2195, and it started decreasing in the following decades until 1970 when the population started to increase again. The current population in Dorset is 2031. *All information from United States Census Dorset Revitalization Planning Growth Indicators, 1980-2010 2500 2000 1500 1000 Total (#) Total 500 0 1980 1990 2000 2010 Population 1648 1918 2036 2031 Housing 986 1209 1246 1450 Employed 0 960 1020 1040 The Growth Indicators show that population has been increasing since 1980, followed by the housing trends that show a steady increase in their numbers. The employment trend has been increasing too reaching a total of 1430 employed in 2010. Population Trends 1980-2010 1980-2010 1980 1990 2000 2010 Change (#) Change (%) Dorset 1648 1918 2036 2031 383 23.2% County 33,345 35,845 36,944 37,125 3,780 11.3% % County 1.8% 1.8% 5.8% 5.8% 11.3% *All information from United States Census 2010 Dorset Revitalization Planning Actual and Projected Population 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 1980 1990 2000 2010 2015 2020 Population Projections: 2000-2020 % Change 2000 2010 2015 2020 % Change 2000-10 2010-2020 Dorset 2036 2031 2098 2167 -0.25% 3.30% *All information from United States Census 2010 Dorset Revitalization Planning Age Groups, 2000 Age Groups, 2010 <5 Yrs 65+ Yrs <5 Yrs 5-19 Yrs 65+ Yrs 3% 23% 4% 20% 20% 5-19 Yrs 17% 20-64 20-64 Yrs Yrs 57% 56% Dorset Households: 1990-2010 Households (#) Change 2000 2010 (#) (%) Total Households 856 898 42 4.9% Family 601 587 -14 -2.3% Married w/Children 182 141 -41 -22.5% Non-family 255 311 56 22.0% Living Alone 212 257 45 21.2% 65+ living alone 98 104 6 6.1% Avg Household Size 2.38 2.26 -0.12 -5.0% Owner 2.1 2.9 0.8 38.1% Renter 3.7 9.9 6.2 167.6% The total number of households in Dorset increased 4.9% in the last 10 years. The biggest change in the last decade was in non-family households reporting a change of 22%. The married households with children declined by -22.5% in 2010. *All information from United States Census 2010 Dorset Revitalization Planning Household Trends 1960-2010 1000 900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 Employment by Occupation 2011 Prod/Trans/moving 49 Conts/Extract/Maint 110 Sales/Office 227 Service 133 Management/ Pofessional 423 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 In Dorset the management and professional occupation is the one reporting more demand with 423 employees. The least popular is the Transportation occupations with just 49. *All information from United States Census 2010 Dorset Revitalization Planning Employment by Industry 2011 Public Administration 4 Other Services 17 Arts/Ent/Rec/Lodg/Food 145 Ed/Health/Soc Services 117 Prof/Mng/Adm 123 Fin/Ins/Real Est 89 Information 8 Transportation/Utilities 24 Retail Trade 138 Wholesale Trade 28 Manufacturing 97 Construction 133 Ag/For/Fish/Mining 19 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 The leading industries in Dorset are the arts, recreation and food industries, followed by the retal trade industries. Average Annual wages: 1990-2012 1990 2000 2012 % Change 22 yrs % Change 12 yrs Dorset $17,130 $26,188 $37,847 120.94% 44.52% Bennington Co. $18,924 $25,532 $37,298 97.09% 46.08% % County 90.52% 102.60% 101.50% *All information from United States Census 2010 Dorset Revitalization Planning Dorset Median Sale Home Price $700,000 $600,000 $500,000 $400,000 $300,000 price $200,000 $100,000 $0 Since 2000 the median price for homes in Dorset has increased, reaching the highest median price in 2007 with $650,000. The lowest price registeredtered was in 2002 with $198,250. *Data from the VT Dept. of Taxes. Dorset Revitalization Planning Dorset Town Travel Time to Work 90 or more minutes 27 60 to 89 minutes 34 45 to 59 minutes 68 40 to 44 minutes 37 35 to 39 minutes 7 30 to 34 minutes 69 25 to 29 minutes 11 20 to 24 minutes 47 15 to 19 minutes 165 10 to 14 minutes 131 5 to 9 minutes 95 Less than 5 minutes 120 0 50 100 150 200 Dorset Town Travel Time to Work 9% less than 10 minutes 5% 8% 28% 10 to 14 minutes 15 to 19 minutes 10% 20 to 24 minutes 6% 16% 25 to 29 minutes 1% 30 to 34 minutes 20% 35 to 44 minutes 45 to 59 minutes 60 or more US Census 2010 In Dorset 70.2 % of the workforce spends traveling less than 30 minutesnutes to work.