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Barre City: buyouts moving forward but FEMA rules limit redevelopment options
Summary
City Manager Nicholas Chimellatastro said roughly 60 buyout applications were received after the 2023 floods, about 27 approvals are in the pipeline and six closings are scheduled; officials warned FEMA-funded buyouts carry permanent restrictions on redevelopment of those parcels.
Nicholas Chimellatastro told the forum that buyouts are a central mitigation tool but come with strict FEMA constraints that affect long-term land use. "There were about 60 buyout applications that came into the city... We have approved about 27 of them," he said, explaining that FEMA rules generally prevent redevelopment of properties purchased with buyout funds.
Chimellatastro said the city pursued clustered buyouts to create "mitigation value" and to avoid buying isolated homes that would remove parcels without improving the city’s overall flood profile. He warned residents that FEMA buyouts typically mean the parcel "can never be redeveloped," so the city has been strategic about which properties to approve. The manager said six buyout closings from the 2023 round were scheduled and that elevation grants and other programs remain part of a multi-year recovery toolkit.
Residents asked what would happen to lots in the long term and whether the city could retain and repurpose bought-out lots; officials responded that federal program rules often limit city options and that several mitigation, elevation and redevelopment tools would need to be layered to preserve community assets while reducing flood risk.
