Lamoille County upbeat on business and the economy

Vermont Business Magazine, Feb 01, 2003 by Edelstein, Art

John Sullivan at Lamoille County Economic Development in Morrisville can look at the deep snows this winter and smile at the prospects in this recreation heavy county. He, like others here, knows that good snow means great skiing at the Stowe Mountain Resort and Smugglers Notch Resort and that means tourist dollars in the till for county merchants. Beyond the falling white gold, Sullivan and other business leaders here have other reasons to be upbeat. Lamoille County's economy is healthy and prospects are good for 2003.

"We are pretty much paralleling what is happening in the state," said Sullivan. He sees some job loss in manufacturing but there are no company closings. Job loss is due to increased efficiency in processes.

The service, hospitality and tourism sectors are growing as Stowe continues to reign as the flagship town in the county.

"Stowe makes the county what it is with its exposure to the world," said Penny Mason-Anderson at the Lamoille County Chamber of Commerce. "People don't know where Vermont is, but they know where Stowe is."

Construction here is strong with second home building primarily at the ski areas. The Stowe Mountain Resort is also seeing a building boom with a $100 million redevelopment in the works.

Sullivan currently spends part of his week overseeing construction of an 11,000 square foot building in North Hyde Park for Lesley- Elizabeth, a company processing spices and dipping oil products that are sold nationwide.

The county's industrial parks are thriving and recently two lots in the Cambridge Business Park were sold to the Culvert Co. and a sheet metal fabrication business. Both will erect a new building. The park is now full.

The Lamoille Industrial Park in Morrisville has a few undeveloped lots. The North Hyde Park Industrial Park is in the planning stage with 10 to 14 lots on 20 acres. It will open in 2006.

Also planned is the redevelopment of the old engine house, a 22,000 square foot cement block structure built originally for the Lamoille Co. Railroad, and a sixacre site for manufacturing, both in the Morrisville Industrial Park.

A major road construction project, the bypass through Morrisville, slated for 2005 will provide an alternate truck route that will allow Route 100 to bypass Morrisville. Currently at the stage of requiring rights of way, the two to three mile road will cost $15 million.

"This is a limited truck access road that will remove heavy truck traffic from the streets of Morrisville," said Sullivan.

The unemployment rate here is four percent, which is near the state average. "We're hanging in there," said Sullivan.

While many jobs are found at the ski areas and are seasonal, Sullivan said this is less so as time goes on. He points to the many skilled jobs in the health profession at Copley Medical Center in Morrisville and education-related positions at Johnson State and Community College of Vermont and the county's three high schools.

High tech jobs can be found at Springer-Miller Systems and Powershift the online provider both in Stowe

There are also jobs at the county's electric companies, Stowe Electric, Hyde Park Electric, Morrisville Electric and Vermont Electric Co-op. Sullivan called them "skilled good paying jobs."

"We obviously have a strong tourism sector and rely upon that and that relies on a working landscape," said Sullivan. In the doldrums is the local wood products industry. Forestry, he said, is under a lot of stress. Belgates Mill in Jeffersonville closed in the fall with a loss of 25 jobs.

"It points out problems such as access to logs and competition from Canada, China and Russia in providing lumber to markets like Japan."

"The forestry industry was strong, but is now under great stress and as a result, a fair numbers of loggers have gone out of business," said Sullivan. Farming occupies perhaps one percent of the county's population and those farms that thrive have diversified. "It's a real challenge to keep them viable," he said.

"Agriculture is about what is attractive about Vermont and the patchwork of open land and forest is what people come to see and enjoy," said Sullivan with a nod to the local tourist industry.

Sullivan pointed to the Boyden Farm in Cambridge with a winery and store that sells local food and wood products as a farm that captures added value.

Another bright star here, he said, is the Vermont Studio Center a non-profit entity in Johnson that provides a supportive environment for artists from around the country who come here to work on their art. The center now occupies part of 40 buildings in the town.

"It's a great importer of dollars into the county and helps maintain historic buildings without changing the facade of the buildings," said Sullivan. "It also provides good jobs for a staff of people.

Lamoille County Profile

The 2000 census recorded just over 23,000 residents or four percent of the state's population. There were 10,593 people employed here or four percent of the state's workforce. Per Capita income was $24,529 or 95 percent of the state average. The annual wage was $21,829 or 75 percent of state average.