HARDWICK – A last-minute meeting of area select boards Monday evening drew a crowd as they took the advice of March town meeting attendees to prioritize economic development efforts in area towns.
artist’s rendering
The idea, spearheaded by Hardwick’s Town Manager and Select Board Chair, was inspired by the massive construction project that has taken over Hardwick’s downtown. They said, “in for a penny, in for a pound,” seeing it as the perfect opportunity to address unsafe traffic issues at the South Main Street intersection with Wolcott Street.
Hardwick’s Police Chief said he had no interest in seeing the intersection return to having one blinking light when construction is complete.
Thus it’s the perfect opportunity to replace the intersection with the long-discussed roundabout, said the town manager. “Preliminary plans call for condemning the ruins of the former Flood Zone and Hardwick Boxing Club property, and the home between it and the intersection.”
“With those properties available, a two-story parking garage will be constructed over the Lamoille River with the roundabout above it. An entrance to the garage will connect to the town lot at the Daniel’s Block,” he said. “It should put an end to Hardwick’s perennial parking problem.
The real inspiration came with the next phase of the project, which involves the real estate over the roundabout, where plans are now being drawn up for a 14-story luxury hotel to replace the Inn by the River, lost to 2023 summer flooding, said Hardwick’s Select Board Chair.
Attracting visitors to the hotel will be the goal of Hardwick’s plan to drop its municipal designation in favor of a Disney-style incorporated theme-park, which the town’s Community Development Coordinator is expected to submit the application for April 1, she said.
The Buffalo Mountain Mega-Slide will be the first attraction to open on April 1 (see sidebar).
Other attractions being considered include a bungee launch, which is expected to be especially useful to cross from one end of Wolcott Street to the other during regular flooding. It will save a lot of money if we don’t have to figure out how to keep that area from flooding in the future, said the select board chair.
Neighboring towns were receptive to the project, with Woodbury working to capitalize on its reputation as the “Land of Lakes and Ponds.” Plans are now in development to connect a seven-mile ring of waterbodies, creating a lazy river ride.
In Walden, officials are working with VTrans to install a tollbooth on Vt. Rte. 15 and create a Wall Drug-style tourist emporium with a 1,000-seat restaurant to attract drivers entering and leaving Hardwick via the closest interstate highway in St. Johnsbury.
In Craftsbury, the Blackbird Bistro and Farmhouse has applied for a permit to expand, with the addition of 350 luxury guest rooms.
Headwaters Community Trust board members were enthusiastic that the Hardwick theme park will generate plenty of visitors to occupy empty dorm rooms on the Sterling College campus after the departure of students this spring.
Hardwick officials are now working with neighboring towns to develop a traffic plan that will accommodate the construction which will not allow any traffic through from August 2026 through April 2028, if all goes well.
