[TacticalThinking]

So what can you guys tell me about Rutland as a whole from the people, community, shopping, growth, taxes. single life, etc

It's the second most populated town in vt is that right?

Pics would be awesome too thanks!!

[Sherylcatmom]

Years ago Rutland was the 2nd most populated city in Vermont. One of Burlington's bedroom communities has surpassed it.

Rutland is large and diverse (this is Vermont diverse we're talking about) enough for most people to find most of what they want. What do you want in a town? If you tell me more about your interests, I might be able to help.

I wouldn't generalize about Rutland because there are all kinds of people, organizations, attitudes, behaviors, etc. here. I'm not conversant in tax discussions.

Downtown & the area are currently experiencing a resurgence in local/regional economy and local foods, which you can read much more about in this excellent interview (http://carolynbaker.net/site/content/view/288/ - broken link) with the wonderful man responsible for our Winter Farmers Market. That said, big box sprawl has begun and is likely to continue at Rutland's outskirts, mostly to South of town on Route 7 (which is Main Street as it runs through Rutland).

Images from the web that resonate with my visions of Rutland:

Smack in the middle of Downtown Rutland, corner of Wales St. (to the left) and Center St. (heading West):


Twice weekly Summer Farmers Market. Takes place just a block west of the previous photo:


One of Downtown Rutland's semi-regular warm-weather outdoor events:


Just West of Downtown:


Those are some of its more attractive representations, and they are just as accurate as the less attractive, far less photographed images.
file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Sheryl/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-2.jpg (broken link)

[TacticalThinking]

wow thanks for the great feedback it looks and sounds great like a taste of real VT yet with people and shopping available to you.. Rutland def is interesting to me.. would love to hear others weigh in

love the pics! would like to see more

[1luvvt]

we own a house in bomoseen which is 15 or so miles west of rutland off rt4. we have been visiting for several years now and do most of our shopping in rutland. it has the dimond mall (k-mart,sears, jc penny) it has dick's, bed/bath/beyond, across from it. west of town is home depot,big lots. in town(center of town) has walmart and a movie theater. there is a bowling ally and lots of small and larger resturants. some home town good ones and some of the trendy big names as well. we have three kids so my only reason for going to rutland is mostly the shopping(house items) and the movies. it does have bars but i have never been in them. I hope this helps a little. sherly really knows much more and can help better if you give her specifics. it does have many events in the town sqare, we just haven't been to any yet.

[AmyBergquist]

I grew up in Rutland and my folks still live there. Development in the area has really exploded recently. They have seen a noticeable addition of big box stores, as 1luvvt mentioned.

My parents have indicated that housing has stagnated somewhat recently, so you might be able to find a "good" buy. However, I still feel housing in VT is expensive when compared to the earning potential. My husband and I considered moving back a year ago, but realized it is actually cheaper for us to remain in CT at this point.

Property taxes seem to be something of an issue as well. My parents mentioned that their water bill has also been sky rocketing lately. Can anyone on the board explain why? I'm not well versed enough in this, but I know they've been complaining about it.

I really enjoyed growing up in Rutland. There was enough to do so as not to get into trouble, and it was a safe place. You're close to the mountains for skiing and lakes for ice fishing/kayaking, but there is also some industry and shopping. We'll probably move back later in life. Right now it's just not the right move for us, but we do love visiting! Best of luck.

[KNOTTE]

Hi. I grew up in Castleton - about 15 miles west, but went to high school in Rutland, then moved to CT and back to Rutland about 7 years ago. Rutland has it's pluses and minuses like most every place. Some of the pluses: Rutland has a very neat history as a railroad town, it's very close to many outdoor activities, and has quite of few of family oriented community events on a regular basis. The minuses:Rutland's housing prices are very high and the property taxes are out of this world. We pay $3500 per year on our 1600 sq ft home on .25 acres. This does not include any kind of garbage removal as many cities have. There was some mismanagement in City Hall for several years including some very bad accounting practices in the previous administration (they should have been brought up on criminal charges in my opinion). So 1.5 years ago they basically doubled our property taxes in order to correct all the years of bad practices in the past. So now in addition to our property taxes on the rise, our water and sewer taxes have also gone up considerably in the last year and a half. This is due to some repairs that needed to be done in the waste water plant and apparently they will be going up considerably again because our VERY old underground pipes are breaking down and need to be replaced to the tune of several million dollars. In addition to our financial woes, Rutland has developed over the 15 years a drug problem, Heroine in particular and all the problems that come with it.

I can't give you specifics on the single scene as I haven't been single in Rutland.

The nice thing about Rutland is that it's not backwoods so people are more willing to accept "outsiders" than some areas and it's also not Burlington, which I don't think is part of Vermont anymore.

[Hedgerow70]

I believe that Knotte spelled out the main minuses of the town. Yes, our money has been terribly mis-managed, resulting in higher fees. We also have some of the typical city sprawl, though less than some cities. The drug problem isn't immediately obvious, but it's there.

On the plus side, it's a rather picturesque small city, where people know and greet one another. Despite the Walmart that moved downtown some years ago, we still have an active downtown, including several excellent restaurants and unique shops.

The beautifully restored, historic Paramount Theater on Center Street hosts a variety of performances throughout the year. The Pyramid Wellness Center on West Street has become a comfortable meeting place for locals and travelers, offering a mind-boggling list of classes, activities, movies,wellness-therapies, workshops, food, beverages, and products. They have the only salt-cave in the northeast, modeled on the restorative caves in Poland - a must-visit! You can even have a massage in it!

We also boast an art gallery on Main Street, housed in a lovely period home, with rotating exhibits. Art in the Park is held in the summer and again in the fall. Other festivals are held downtown as well. The Farmers' Market is now held all-year!

[TacticalThinking]

wow sounds kinda negative.. funny thing is you'd probably get that or worse anywhere else in this country :/

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by TacticalThinking

wow sounds kinda negative.. funny thing is you'd probably get that or worse anywhere else in this country :/

It's true. I grew up in North Miami, FL, which was much smaller in those days, but still a huge city compared to Rutland, for sure. My dad was on the local zoning board for years. The mayor was a neighbor; I went to school with his kids & city councilors' kids, too. The politicos were always at it in meetings, powwowing at each others' homes over coffee, convening at local restaurants. Every few months or years, someone would be reprimanded (and/or arrested) for some misdeeds, from minor lapses to major embezzlement. (Not my dad, who I believe is good people.) Administrations came and went. The politics there were so layered and complex that it's a wonder anything ever got done.

At least in Rutland, stuff seems to surface . . . eventually. Then we can clean it up. Things seem to happen on a more manageable scale than in much more populous places. Let's hope the Rutland leadership is headed in a better direction than the last bunch. Geez, as in Florida, the mayor is my neighbor here, too. Nice family.

On the rare occasions when I visit SFla, I can't wait to get back to Vermont. I just feel better here.

[LoneStar76]

My wife and I are looking to move from Crystal Lake, IL. She's from here, I'm not. I'm from Austin, TX. I can't stand it up here, for the complete lack of natural beauty and outdoor activities. What she is looking for is a kid friendly, small town with a sort of suburbia feel, like she has here in the far northwest suburbs of Chicago. She's also looking for a place that she can enjoy all 4 seasons, especially fall. Snow isn't a problem for us/her, just as long as there aren't negative temperatures for 2-3 months out of the year. I personally love all weather, from both extremes and in between. She loves enjoying the beauty of nature, from indoors. I love being out in it. I'm looking for a mountainous (or at least foothills) area that has lots of hiking and fishing available that you don't have to spend a quarter tank of gas just to get there and back.
Also, we are not high paid professionals. What's the job market like there? What businesses thrive there, or in the region?
One last thing, I notice versus the national average, the cost of living is cheap there. What reasons would y'all contribute most to the lower cost of living? Thanks.