Current Projects
What We're Building Together
Our first major project begins with two historic buildings at the heart of Wolcott: the Schoolhouse and the Depot. Together, they represent the larger work of Wolcott Community Trust: preserving important places, creating useful community spaces, and building the capacity for future projects.
Preserving the Past
Wolcott Schoolhouse Restoration
Restoring the historic Schoolhouse so it can continue serving Wolcott as a home for learning, local history, and public connection.
Building the Future
Depot Reuse and Community Gathering Space
Reimagining the Depot as a café and gathering place near the rail trail, supporting local connection and small-scale economic vitality.
Strengthening Community
A First Step Toward Broader Community Renewal
Building the relationships, volunteer base, public involvement, and organizational strength needed to support future projects across Wolcott.
Restoration
The Old Schoolhouse
A Larger Home for the Library and Local History
Built in the 1850s, the Old Schoolhouse on School Street served generations of Wolcott students and remains one of the town’s important historic buildings.
The Wolcott Community Trust is restoring and reimagining the Old Schoolhouse as the expanded home of the Wolcott Public Library and a public home for the Wolcott Historical Society.
The library will gain more room for books, children’s programming, story hour, public meetings, technology access, workshops, and community events close to home. The Wolcott Historical Society will gain a public home for its collection, with historical artifacts thoughtfully displayed throughout the library and space for local history, exhibits, talks, photo displays, and the stories behind Wolcott’s artifacts.
The restored building will include full accessibility, larger public areas, a small kitchen, and the return of the school bell to its original location. These improvements will allow the Old Schoolhouse to support classes, workshops, skill sharing, youth programs, senior activities, book clubs, art displays, local author talks, history programs, and community meetings.
With the library and Historical Society inside its walls, the Old Schoolhouse will once again serve Wolcott as a place for learning, history, and gathering.
Renovation
The Depot Building
A Café and Gathering Place Beside the LVRT
The Depot building on School Street was Wolcott’s railroad station, connecting the town to travel, mail, commerce, visitors, and the wider region.
When the library moves into the restored Old Schoolhouse, the Depot building will become a local café and gathering place for Wolcott residents and LVRT users.
Residents have asked many times for a place to sit down, meet neighbors, share conversation, and spend time together in town. A café in the Depot building will help answer that request while supporting coffee, simple food, baked goods, seasonal offerings such as creemees, local music, informal gatherings, and small community events.
Its next use as a café and gathering place carries that same spirit of arrival, exchange, and connection forward in a new way.
The Grounds
Connecting the Buildings, Grounds, and Village Center
The Old Schoolhouse and Depot building are connected by surrounding grounds in the Wolcott School Street Historic District. These outdoor areas will shape how people arrive, move through the site, gather, and connect with the village center.
As the site is planned, the grounds will help connect the library, local history space, café, gardens, outdoor seating, community events, expanded parking areas, and the LVRT.
Parking and Access
Expanded parking areas, safer vehicle and pedestrian access, accessibility, and easier movement between the Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, and outdoor spaces.
Gardens and Seating
Existing gardens, outdoor seating, picnic areas, and places where residents and visitors can pause, meet, and spend time.
Events and Gathering
Outdoor space for music, talks, small markets, food events, children’s activities, informal community gatherings, and seasonal use connected to the café and surrounding site.
School Street and Village Center
A stronger connection between the Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, outdoor spaces, School Street, and the activity already growing around Wolcott’s village center.
Planning and Support
Planning With Partners
The Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, and grounds are being planned together with support from architects, engineers, and community partners.
The Wolcott Community Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and this work is supported in part through the Village Trust Initiative, a statewide program that helps small Vermont towns strengthen local community trust organizations and move forward with village revitalization projects. Wolcott was selected as one of the first seven communities to participate.
Through this process, the Wolcott Community Trust has received guidance and support from the Preservation Trust of Vermont, the Vermont Council on Rural Development, and the Vermont Community Foundation.
The planning work includes building conditions, accessibility, structural needs, public use, outdoor connections, expanded parking areas, and the order of work needed to move the project forward.
Shaped by Wolcott Residents
The Wolcott Community Trust has hosted events and listening sessions to hear what residents want for the Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, and surrounding grounds.
Residents have asked for more space for classes, children’s programs, senior activities, local history, art, music, food, meetings, outdoor gathering, and everyday connection.
This input is guiding the planning process and helping shape a site that reflects Wolcott’s history, current needs, and future possibilities. As the work moves forward, residents, volunteers, donors, and friends of Wolcott will have meaningful ways to share time, ideas, resources, and support as the project moves ahead.
Community Input
Shaped by Wolcott Residents
The Wolcott Community Trust has hosted events and listening sessions to hear what residents want for the Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, and surrounding grounds.
Residents have asked for more space for classes, children’s programs, senior activities, local history, art, music, food, meetings, outdoor gathering, and everyday connection.
This input is guiding the planning process and helping shape a site that reflects Wolcott’s history, current needs, and future possibilities. As the work moves forward, residents, volunteers, donors, and friends of Wolcott will have meaningful ways to share time, ideas, resources, and support as the project moves ahead.
Parking and Access
Expanded parking areas, safer vehicle and pedestrian access, accessibility, and easier movement between the Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, and outdoor spaces.
Gardens and Seating
Existing gardens, outdoor seating, picnic areas, and places where residents and visitors can pause, meet, and spend time.
Events and Gathering
Outdoor space for music, talks, small markets, food events, children’s activities, informal community gatherings, and seasonal use connected to the café and surrounding site.
School Street and Village Center
A stronger connection between the Old Schoolhouse, Depot building, outdoor spaces, School Street, and the activity already growing around Wolcott’s village center.