Montpelier Action Plan for Local Emergency
Introduction
At community forums following the flooding of 2023 there was praise for the City and community response and also concerns raised about opportunities for improvement. Building from this feedback the Montpelier Commission for Recovery and Resilience has prioritized emergency response as one of its 3 key areas of focus.
In June the Commission engaged a consulting team including former Director of Vermont Emergency Management Erica Bornemann to craft a more robust and inclusive emergency response plan. We’re calling it the Montpelier Action Plan for Local Emergency (MAPLE).
After engaging stakeholders and collaborating with City staff the Commission is nearly ready to release a draft plan and eager to gather input from the community.
Read “Luck Favors the Prepared”
a commentary by Commissioner Marc Gwinn about the MAPLE project
Understanding the Process
While a great deal of work has been invested in MAPLE and it represents a significant step forward from existing plans, it is also important to note that it is a draft with more work remaining to add detail in many areas. Community input is critical as the plan continues to take shape. Invite your friends and neighbors and bring your experiences and knowledge to this important community discussion.
Where did it start & where are we now?
What are the next steps?
Where are we headed?
Where did it start &
where are we now?
How it started - Summer 2023 Inundation Flooding
The City had a short form Local Emergency Management Plan (LEMP)
Annually Vermont municipalities are required to update a Local Emergency Management Plan. Here is a link to Montpelier’s current plan.
Once finalized and approved by City Council, MAPLE will replace this plan.
The Volunteer HUB was created - inventing it as they went
What’s been done since last summer
The City conducted an After Action Report
MCRR along with expert consultants conducted stakeholder engagement to understand the diverse needs of of our community.
List of stakeholders engaged so far:
City leadership and staff
Leaders of the HUB
Washington County Mental Health
Just Basics
Elevate Youth Services
Another Way
Good Samaritan Haven
City businesses
Central Vermont Disaster Animal Response Team
Kellogg Hubbard Library
Montpelier Disaster Response Network
Individual and groups of residents
Gap Analysis - As part of the planning process our consultant prepared and shared a “Gap Analysis and Recommendations Report” Please read it here.
How it’s going - Now
A DRAFT Plan is being created
Detailed first draft plan with greater clarity of roles
Collaborating with the City and partner organizations
Engaging the community to gather insight and opinions
This engagement will kick off with a PUBLIC FORUM on October 10 with a draft plan to be released to the community on October 3.
What are the next steps?
Filling in the blanks
While it may feel unsatisfying to hear, this draft of MAPLE is not the end of the story. This draft serves as the bones of our community plan and leaves much of the detailed work to individual City departments, community partners, as well as individual businesses and residents.
This work will include:
Deeper and more detailed planning with partners, especially around short and long term recovery
Workshops to help residents and businesses develop individual plans
Community and neighborhood level organizing
Where are we heading?
“Final” Adopted Plan
The nature of this work means that it will never be “finished,” but at the end of this initial process, our we will find ourselves in a place where:
Our community has a strong sense of what to expect from each other
Residents and businesses have their individual plans and understand where they fit into community-wide emergency response
Montpelier embodies a culture of preparedness and continuous improvement
We conduct ongoing and constant engagement and refinement
In order for our muscles to be strong and ready in times of crisis, we will need to stay in shape through continual revision and review, regular exercises and drills, and fostering strong bonds with our neighbors.
Why does this plan mostly focus on the City?
While we all have a role to play in emergency preparedness and response, in so many ways our city forms the backbone of these efforts.
Our city government is the venue for us to work together.
There is no doubt that there are big and important roles to play by partners in the community, Montpelier Alive, our Long Term Recovery Group, Kellogg Hubbard Library, Good Samaritan Haven, etc.
The focus begins with the city with the understanding that efforts will expand out from there.
In writing the plan we’ve done some work with stakeholder engagement, but there is another round of engagement necessary to provide further detail to these plans and to figure out how they fit together.
Please join the Montpelier Commission for Recovery and Resilience for a public forum focused on MAPLE. At this meeting the Commission will be rolling out the draft plan, providing an overview on the plan’s areas of focus, collecting input from the community and thinking together about next steps.