Elmore Store Project
Background
The town of Elmore has a rich history of community, very much alive today in an age where many small towns are trying to re-create that feeling where it has been lost. Elmore is a town where neighbors help neighbors, and people show up for town meeting day each year to practice democracy and make decisions as a community. Our kids begin their education in the state’s last operating one-room schoolhouse, where families form lifelong bonds. Visitors come from all over, not only because it is beautiful (Elmore is known as “the beauty spot of Vermont”), but also because of how strongly that sense of community can be felt here. This is why we founded the Elmore Community Trust.
The goal of the Elmore Community Trust is to care for places that make Elmore special, and to bring in the type of businesses, organizations, and residents that contribute positively to our vibrant rural community.
The Elmore Store is the first project for the Elmore Community Trust. The store is the heart of the community - it is the post office, a gathering place, local news hub, and a place to eat and pick up groceries. Most importantly, it is the central location that gives our small town its identity, and where you are sure to run into a neighbor. The Elmore Store is critical in maintaining Elmore’s sense of connection and togetherness, and truly deserves your support.
The Elmore Store, situated on Lake Elmore, at the base of Elmore Mountain, has been in continuous operation since the early 1800s. After running the store for 36 years, Warren and Kathy Miller decided to pass the torch to a new owner and operator.
Because the store represents the true heart of the rural community, residents of Elmore decided to form a Community Trust - a 501(c)(3) non-profit. The Trust has purchased the store, and is working to renovate and preserve this historic town property, while renting it to the business operator.
The Elmore Community Trust is working in partnership with the Preservation Trust of Vermont (PTV), and our model for the Elmore Store Project comes from PTV’s founder and Executive Director, Paul Bruhn (1947-2019). Paul led PTV for nearly 40 years and it is said by many that no person has done more to preserve the essential character of Vermont’s cities, towns, villages and landscapes. Paul empowered and motivated Vermont citizens to take action to save and protect the built environment, town and village centers, gathering places, institutions and landscapes that make Vermont unique. This model has been tested and proven by Preservation Trust’s work in other communities around Vermont, and keeps these general stores from closing down or being converted into less community-oriented uses. The model allows the store operator to invest their money and time into creating a successful business and relieves them from the financial strain associated with maintaining an old building. Over time, rent paid to the Trust can be used for physical upgrades or invested in other community-based projects. Paul has inspired us, and we hope you will join us in this work to help make Elmore a strong community for years to come.
2024 Progress
Since the start of 2024, the Elmore Community Trust has been busy making significant upgrades to the store building. A combination of grant funds, tax credits and donations were used to make improvements to electrical, septic and roof.
Community Work Day: On a beautiful day on the 25th of May more than a dozen volunteers, including nearly the entire ECT Board of Trustees worked all day to spruce up the store, cleaning basement clutter, washing windows, pressure washing and painting. The team filled a ten cubic yard dumpster with items from the basement. Deck tabletops were sanded and given a fresh coat of polyurethane. Jason Clark from the Elmore Store donated pizzas to keep the crew well fueled.
New Septic System, Deck and Stage: When the new septic system was installed, (an accomplishment that we are still proud of,) it included an above ground section measuring 10’x50’. The lot size and proximity to Lake Elmore meant that the only place this could be placed was in the back lawn directly between the existing deck and shoreline. In consultation with the septic engineer it was determined that decking could be applied to the top of the new element. By adding a set of stairs and railing, that otherwise unusable space can now be enjoyed by folks attending the Elmore Jams Concert Series, the upcoming Labor Day festivities or the like.
The decking is white cedar harvested from within 100 miles and milled at P & R lumber in Wolcott. A moveable stage was built and placed in the corner of the lawn to free up more deck space for customers and provide them with a world class mountain and lake view in addition to better viewing and listening experience. Thanks to the carpenters who helped with this project (Justin Earladnt, Arthur Stephenson, Kee Gillen and Caleb Suddaby).
Electric Improvements: High Ground Electric did significant work to the building’s electrical system including doubling the system capacity from 200 amps to 400 amps which will in turn open the door to improved kitchen equipment and other building needs. The service from the grid was moved from overhead to under Route 12 and they also tied in a [donated!] backup generator. Necessary upgrades to bring wiring into compliance with electrical code were also made. These improvements were made possible by grant funds and tax credits and will add to the long-term viability of the building’s business and safety.
Roofing Maintenance: In July, Three Mountain Roofing in Jeffersonville replaced two sections of the building’s roof including a section of membrane on a particularly leak-prone section over the kitchen. These improvements are critical to preserving this historic building and allowing it to remain a vital part of Elmore’s community.
USPS Package Storage: In October, we built shelving in the mail room to house the USPS packages for our PO Boxes.
2023 Progress
In May of 2023 we welcomed Jason Clark as the new operator and look forward to what changes he has in store for the coming year. We bid farewell to Fire Tower Pizza while joyfully reveling in another summer of great (albeit wet) live music, a successful Gravel Grinder and a fabulous Labor Day celebration.
2023 also saw the long awaited replacement of the Store’s elderly septic system which will allow for a public restroom and expanded seating in the future. Although the new system necessitated some changes to the lawn space, we see this as an opportunity to find a unique and creative way to adapt. Additional changes include the new furnace that we had installed at the end of 2023 which simplifies the building’s heating system while keeping our options open for future alternatives for heating and cooling. As well as a generator that will protect valuable merchandise and keep the lights on during the event of a power outage. All the leg work has been done for the upgraded electrical service to the building but will require directional boring under route 12, which will commence in the spring of 2024 as soon as the weather allows.
Step One - Complete!
Establish the Elmore Community Trust as a nonprofit vehicle to purchase and upgrade the historic Elmore Store building.
Step Two - Complete!
New store proprietors pay rent and invest their money and energy into creating a successful business without the overhead associated with buying and maintaining a historic building.
Step Three - In Progress
Long term, rent generated is invested into property maintenance and in other like-minded community projects.