Rutland County leaders roll up their sleeves

Vermont Business Magazine, Jun 01, 2005 by Barna, Ed

It isn't a case of Rutland County declining. There has been no exodus of manufacturers, downtown business districts have survived big box competition, developers have been buying major properties and planning major developments, the Vermont State Fair turned a profit, the ski season came out well, the housing market is booming.

But there's a touch of malaise, among those who look at the larger picture and the long-term strategy. Economic growth lags that of many other areas of Vermont. Population growth hasn't been robust Essex overtaking Rutland City as the state's second-largest community was a signal event - and the population mix seems to be shifting toward retirees and away from younger workers. And that housing market, where nationally one real estate purchase in four is now said to be for investment purposes, is starting to put home ownership out of the reach of a large segment of the labor force.

So as usual, county leaders have rolled up their sleeves, doing what they could and planning for what could be next. If Montana is Big Sky Country, perhaps Rutland County is Big Picture Country, because there always seem to be guiding visions. There isn't much discussion about the new paradigm that markets and jobs will keep changing, because of technology and global competition if nothing else, because that new reality has been so completely accepted.

By the Numbers

Employment and unemployment statistics can be misleading, because a chronically weak labor market can cause some people to stop actively searching for a job or to leave the area entirely. But with that caution, going by the employment numbers, Rutland County appears to be in reasonably good shape.

Comparing March of 2004 with March of 2005, the total number in the workforce rose from 36,750 to 36,900. Employment went up from 35,000 to 35,450, unemployment went down a htde, and the resulting unemployment rate went from 4.7 percent (the same as Vermont average) to 3.9 percent (a little less than the state's 4 percent).

At both 4.7 percent and 3.9 percent, Rutland County had the state's fourth lowest unemployment rate. The three that were lower, always in the same order, were Chittenden County (3.8 percent, 3.1 percent); Windsor County (3.8 percent, 3.2 percent) and Windham County (4.3 percent, 3.6 percent). However, the total labor force declined in all those counties, March to March, while it rose in Rutland County.

Looking at recent statistics for the Vermont economy as a whole which has strong links with Rutland County's overall picture - April state taxes came in 23 percent higher than a January forecast. Personal income and the sales tax figures were both up strongly, though Administration Secretary Charles Smith cautioned any spending-minded Democrats in the Legislature that a stock market drop could change the picture, and continued high oil prices would throttle back the economy's performance.

New Box on the Block

Some of Rutland County's specific commercial development projects would seem to reinforce the sense that since the millennial recession, the economy has thawed well past the ambivalent mud season phase. Big chains tend to do their own market research before deciding to come into an area, and a number of them have given Rutland's prospects a thumbs-up.

This aspect of the picture has been most evident in malls and shopping centers, and on other parcels that surround the Rutland City commercial core, where newcomers have found enough elbow room for larger buildings that need larger parking. There are exceptions: Walgreen's, one of the nation's most aggressive discount pharmacy and personal products chains, has inserted itself close to the crossing of Route 7 and Route 4, in pre-railroad days the foundation of Rutland's growth, removing houses and constructing an entirely new store and parking lot to do so.

Eastward along Route 4, the once-moribund Rutland Mall now has a Big Lots outlet - the nation's largest closeout and overrun discount chain - and more recently added a Bare Bones furniture store. Juster Associates, the Yonkersbased owners, have room in their permit for more, as signs at the entrance advertise.

Going southward, the Green Mountain Shopping Plaza had stayed active thanks to Staples, Radio Shack, JoAnn Fabrics & Crafts, a Coconuts music store, two financial services branches, two restaurants, and Weight Watchers. But the loss of both Ames and a P&C supermarket had yanked the anchors - and opened possibilities.

Now Chase Green Mountain Ltd of Hartford, Connecticut has applied for an Act 250 permit to expand the GM Plaza by a third. Assuming they can add 57,700 square feet of retail space to their present 166,000, they anticipate putting 24,000 square feet next to the former P&C space to host Bed, Bath & Beyond; the P&C location is already being renovated for Dick's Sporting Goods. They would remove the former Ames building to replace it with a structure 11,000 square feet larger for a Super Stop & Shop Vermont's first for that Northeast regional grocery chain. A new 24,000-square-foot building near the entrance is planned for Michael's, an arts and crafts chain, and Radio Shack and Weight Watchers would each get more room.