One of Vermont’s northernmost cities, St. Albans borders Lake Champlain and is just over a 30-minute drive from both Burlington, Vt., and the Canadian border. Home to almost 7,000 people, St. Albans residents have close access to city life in a vibrant, walkable downtown.
Taylor Park hosts live music in summer, and the two blocks surrounding it offer easy access to local restaurants and shopping. Hard’ack Recreation Area offers 200 acres of recreation within St. Albans City, just about a mile from downtown, including disc golf, hiking, and biking in the summer, swimming at a public pool year-round, and in winter, the recreation area makes St. Albans one of the only Vermont cities with its own locally operated ski hill. Sledding, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing at Hard’ack are draws for the whole family.
Hikers and birders can explore Missisquoi Valley Wildlife Refuge, and cyclists and walkers can enjoy the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail, a 26-mile path from St. Albans to Richford. When Lamoille Valley Rail Trail is complete, it will connect nearby Swanton to Danville, spanning 93 miles of recreational pathways. Kill Kare State Park, located on a peninsula in St. Albans Bay is a refreshing summer destination for the local community—offering a ferry from the park to Burton Island. Within a 30-minute drive heading north or south you can reach the Champlain Islands – a biking, swimming, paddling, and scenic-drive-worthy destination.
Small towns thrive when the community commits to a high quality of life, and St. Albans has set itself apart in the past decade with an ambitious progression of revitalization and redevelopment projects, including the transformation of downtown spaces into housing and revitalizing the city’s downtown to make it an attractive destination for tourists and residents. Sixty new apartments have just been completed downtown and there are plans for 70 more and beyond, said Chip Sawyer, director of planning and development for the city, with single-family homes being refurbished and built. Those considering relocating to St. Albans can keep up with housing by making connections with area real estate agents and checking with the St. Albans Messenger, the area’s local newspaper.
With all this investment in St. Albans, find the opportunity to put life before work with job opportunities in sectors like education, healthcare, agriculture, manufacturing, and shipping, with employers like pharmaceuticals manufacturing firm Mylan Technologies, Ben & Jerry’s, which has a manufacturing plant in St. Albans, freight and distribution firm A.N. Deringer, and award-winning hospital Northwestern Medical Center offering career opportunities in the region. Area schools include St. Albans City School and Bellows Free Academy, and St. Albans is about a 30-minute drive from both Champlain College and the University of Vermont. Both federal and state government offices, including U.S. Customs and Immigration Services, offer regional employment.
Located within agriculture-forward Franklin County, St. Albans’ history honors that heritage, from celebrating Vermont’s famed maple syrup industry at Vermont Maple Festival in springtime to Franklin County Field Days in the fall, bringing a tight-knit community together to celebrate the harvest season. Live music by the bay in the summer and the weekly farmers market are some ways to enjoy the local flavor of the city.
St. Albans’ history as a railroad hub continues today, positioning the city as the northern terminus of Amtrak’s Vermonter route. Green Mountain Transit offers both a commuter bus and a downtown shuttle to serve the St. Albans region, and both Interstate 89 and VT Route 7 pass through the city, connecting it to Burlington and the rest of the state. A ferry from nearby Grand Isle connects Vermont to Plattsburgh, N.Y., and international airports in both Montreal, an hour and a half away, and Burlington give St. Albans residents easy access to travel for work or vacation.
Strong, welcoming communities keep new Vermont residents in the Green Mountains. Here’s how three recently relocated families are growing roots in their new home state.
KEVIN CHU
What brought you to Vermont?
The American Dream. My parents brought me to Vermont, or at least the idea of me. They immigrated from an agricultural community in Southeast China in 1986 seeking economic opportunity and the hope for a better life for their children. I often think about how difficult of a decision is must have been to leave their home to relocate to a foreign country with very little money, not knowing English, and only one social connection. My aunt had married an American and they lived here in Vermont – that’s how my family ended up settling in this great state. Five years after my parents relocated, they brought me into this world, and I’ve called Vermont home ever since.
What keeps you here?
The Vermont Dream. My family came to Vermont for the American Dream but found something even better. Yes, we found economic opportunity and worked hard to achieve upward social mobility. We also found a community built on ethical values, a natural environment that is unmatched, and a strong education system. It is a wonderful place to grow a family and I am very proud to call Vermont my home. These conditions don’t “keep” me in Vermont… they make me choose to stay here!
ALEXANDER FIGUEROA
What brought you to Vermont?
My wife was born and raised in Wallingford, Vermont. Our journey together began back in Upstate New York where we met and attended Utica College. Fast forward to 2017, it was time for us to start a family. Without a question, with great employment opportunities, it made sense to make the move to Bennington. Not only were we able to build roots, but we were also able to develop long lasting friendships. Here we are four years later with our beautiful two-year-old baby girl Liliana, a wonderful home and amazing careers.
What keeps you here?
Community. We have been able to develop some terrific relationships not just within Bennington, but throughout the region and the entire State of Vermont. Additionally, Vermont is just an overwhelmingly beautiful state with access to all four seasons that provide an extra flavor that many other states could not provide.
CRISTINA PEREZ AYALA CANO
What brought you to Vermont?
Vermont has been attractive to me for a while due to a myriad of reasons, but most importantly having a tight-knit community, location, environment and history. In conjunction with all these factors, what brought my husband David and I to Vermont was my job at Bennington College.
What keeps you here?
We’ve profoundly enjoyed getting to know all that The Shires and Vermont have to offer. We are delighted to be able to see the changes in seasons and we’re excited about being surrounded by so much history. Our community has been deeply welcoming. We’re plugged into as many activities as possible and have become very fond of Bennington Performing Arts Center. We assist as many productions as we are able, including the Park Mccullough events, and we still have many things that we continue to explore. I also love my job, and I’m still very excited about being a part of the Bennington College community. We remain and will continue to remain because from the moment we arrived we felt that we came home.
When employees learn new skills, everyone benefits. That’s why Vermont employers are creating unique opportunities for employees to receive training or brush up on critical skills while on the job. VHV, formerly Vermont Heating and Ventilating Company, developed a nationally accredited four-year construction apprenticeship program and recently certified its first cohort of graduates in sheet metal, pipefitting and HVAC service. VHV worked with the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) to develop the program and train staff to become certified instructors. The company utilized a Vermont Training Program (VTP) grant to offset costs associated with establishing the program, including wages for employees to engage in on-the-job training and support for staff to become certified instructors. Job seekers interested in entering or advancing in the trades are benefiting from the trailblazing programs offered by employers such as VHV.
John Fisher and his wife had taken a quick trip to Vermont to purchase an Airstream camper. They lived and traveled in the camper full time for a year before settling in San Francisco where his wife works. Despite the opportunity, Fisher remembers “we had a little spot in our heart back in Vermont.” Originally from western Massachusetts, he had loved living in – and exploring – rural areas before the couple became residents of a big city for the first time.
When San Francisco started to lock down early in the pandemic, the Fishers’ perspective about the quality of life they were seeking quickly shifted and their daydreams about living in Vermont became more tangible. “We loved hiking and being outdoors, I wanted to be closer to my parents as they get older, and I wanted to reconnect to the rich history in the region,” he recalled. “When we asked ourselves ‘Where can we afford to live?’ Vermont felt like the right choice.”
His wife’s job became fully remote, and they suddenly had the flexibility and security to “find the perfect mix” of affordability, career opportunities for Fisher, and proximity to family and recreation opportunities, which they discovered in southwestern Vermont’s Bennington.
As an early childhood and elementary school educator, Fisher secured a teaching position in the local school system. To navigate the transition, he worked closely with his new supervisor who also supported his application for the Worker Relocation Grant Program.
The grant helped the couple pay their first heating bills this winter. “After draining our savings to move across the country, we are grateful for this program,” he said, “We weren’t eligible for the first round of incentives for remote workers back before my wife started working from home, but we kept checking back until the Worker Relocation incentive was announced. It made moving to Vermont a more affordable choice.”
“We’ve had a good start in Vermont, a good foundation of career, place to live, and community,” Fisher reflected.
Coming from a notably walkable city, Fisher is pleasantly surprised he can live in town and still walk places. “It’s the best of both worlds experience for me; I walk to local restaurants and businesses, the rec center is accessible and has a full-sized pool, and the Appalachian and Long trails are right in my backyard. I look forward to spending a lot of time hiking on them this summer.”
Until then, he’s quickly building ties in the community and connecting to local history. “I met someone while shopping at the farmers market who connected me with the local community theater. I joined a production right away called ‘Voices from the Grave’ which brings to life community members who have passed away. I got to know people quickly and got a crash course in Vermont history.
After years of vacationing in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, John Serlis and his family made the recreation haven their permanent home.
“Settling into the area was a dream of ours for a long time,” he said. Serlis recalls enjoying the open spaces, rolling farms and hospitable people on trips from his childhood home in Montreal, Canada.
As an adult, he sought to escape the congestion of Massachusetts’ north shore and, in the peak of summer, the family of four traded in city life for cool mountain air. “Moving was a great choice for me and my family because of all the outdoor activities we can enjoy here. We fish the nearby lakes, mountain bike, and enjoy our powersports toys right on our property,” he said, but the journey wasn’t without its challenges.
While establishing his residence in Vermont and securing a new sales position at a local farm equipment dealer, Serlis applied for the Worker Relocation Grant Program to assist with some of the costs and make the family’s move a little easier. He said, “the program definitely helped us with the expense so we could make it work.”
Serlis’s family is enjoying their peaceful new environment and making connections in their community. Not only is he even closer to family members still across the border in Montreal, but he also feels “blessed with the great people we’ve met over the years who are helping us move forward up here in the NEK.”
Serlis plans to give back to the community, too. “As an outdoor family with a powersports background, we’re hoping to set up a training facility for off-road bikes for the younger kids in the region.”
But for now, “it’s wintertime up here and we’re indoors staying warm.”
