Stowe is an internationally recognized tourist destination with over 770,000 visitors per year. It also has 4,800 residents who call it home. The Stowe Recreation Commission recognized that the changing demands of residents and visitors alike have presented the Town with new recreation challenges. These dynamics warranted a new vision, careful planning, accurate analysis, and efficient implementation actions. The Recreation Commission acknowledged in their request for proposals that the time is ripe for a “serious contemporary study” because there are far more “recreation activities and capital investments for the Commission to ponder than can possibly move forward in a challenging fiscal climate.” This recreation Master Plan helped the Commission determine which recreation investments and activities would serve the greatest public good. Crane Associates determined the supply of and demand for recreation programs, land and facilities by residents, second homeowners and visitors. Statistically accurate public surveys, focus groups, one-on-one interviews, and targeted market analyses all contributed to determining recreation demand. Current supply of facilities, programs, infrastructure and lands were inventoried, catalogued, mapped and inspected to determine their longevity. The difference between the supply and demand for a variety of recreation activities was then documented in a Needs Analysis. The plan concludes with a chapter on how to meet those needs through an implementation program over the next ten years.
