Vermont Arts Council tells Senate transportation committee public art can boost safety, tourism and transit use

BURLINGTON — The Vermont Arts Council told the Senate Committee on Transportation on Feb. 7 that public art projects tied to transportation infrastructure can boost local economies, improve perceptions of safety and encourage transit ridership.

"The Arts Council is the state arts agency … our mission is to cultivate and advance the arts and creativity throughout Vermont," said Susan Evans Lepore, executive director of the Vermont Arts Council, during a presentation to the committee. She said the council awarded just over $3.2 million in FY 2024 and supports artists and cultural organizations across the state.

The council described a series of programs and projects — funded through a mix of federal, state and private dollars — that place artwork in and around transit facilities, sidewalks, bridges, retaining walls and bus shelters. Michelle Bailey, senior program manager and public-art coordinator at the council, described "creative placemaking" projects in Danville, Waterbury, Brattleboro, Bethel, Montpelier, Stowe, North Bennington and other towns, and outlined the council’s Animating Infrastructure grant program, which it launched in 2015.

Why it matters: Council presenters framed public art tied to transportation as a tool for economic development and civic pride. The presentation said the arts and culture sector contributed roughly $1.2 billion to Vermont’s economy in 2022 (about 3% of state GDP), and cited a national study showing visitors typically spend additional money in local economies when attending arts events.

Key examples and partnerships

- Vergennes bus-stop project: Julie Bevel, a Vergennes downtown representative, described a floral-themed metal installation at a Tri-Valley Transit bus stop in Vergennes developed through the Animating Infrastructure grant. The project involved local artist Kat Claire (listed in the presentation) and welding students from the Northland Job Corps campus. Bevel said community members and about 80 people attended a June dedication and that the installation helped energize a commercial corridor.

- Job Corps partnership: Presenters described hands-on fabrication work at Northland Job Corps, where welding and culinary students participated in projects and helped prepare materials for public dedications. Presenters said Job Corps is a federally funded program that serves people age roughly 16–24 and that the Northland campus contributed skills and materials to local projects.

- Other projects: Michelle Bailey highlighted previous VTrans collaborations, including the 1999 Danville Transportation Enhancement Project (traffic-calming and sculptural elements), a kinetic sculpture at the Brattleboro Transportation Center, a fish mural in Bethel, temporary and permanent lighting installations in Montpelier and Stowe, sidewalk poetry in Middlebury, and a pilot program to vinyl-wrap regional transit buses with artwork in partnership with Catamount Arts and regional transit providers.

Funding and process

Evans Lepore said the council receives about 45% of its funding from the National Endowment for the Arts and that federal funding requires a dollar-for-dollar state match from general funds. She described the council as the state arts agency and said it operates as an independent nonprofit (a quasi-state agency under state statute), which allows it to mix public and private funding to expand grantmaking.

Bailey said the council worked with the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) to create guidance for projects on state transportation facilities to ensure safety and required permissions. She said the Animating Infrastructure program has supported public art in 29 Vermont communities since it began.

Committee reaction and next steps

Committee members praised the projects as a way to make transit and public space more welcoming and said smaller, more replicable designs could help expand the work to more communities. The committee took no formal action; presenters answered questions and the committee moved on to other business.

The presentation materials, including photos and a public-art map maintained by the Vermont Arts Council, were provided to committee members as part of the record.