Historic Preservation Nonprofit Warns Against Vt.’s NewVistas

A wealthy Utah engineer’s plans to establish a populous sustainable community in rural Vermont has drawn national opposition from historical preservationists, who warn that the proposal puts four “charming village centers” in the White River Valley at risk.
NewVistas Foundation, a nonprofit founded by David Hall, has purchased roughly 1,500 acres of land in Royalton, Sharon, Strafford, and Tunbridge to create what he says will be an eco-friendly community that would cluster 20,000 people into a 1.2-square-mile grid surrounded by farmland and wilderness.
On Tuesday, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a private nonprofit, joined a growing chorus of NewVistas opponents when it included the four towns as being on “watch status,” a special designation that accompanies its annual list of the “11 Most Endangered Historic Places.”