Colchester, Vermont


Colchester is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. The population was 17,067 as of the 2010 census. It is the fourth-most populous municipality and second-most populous town in the state of Vermont. Colchester is a suburb of Burlington–Vermont's most populous municipality. The town is directly to Burlington's north on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, to the west of the Green Mountains. The Vermont National Guard is based in the town, and it is also home to Saint Michael's College and the Vermont campuses of the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and Southern New Hampshire University.

Geography

Colchester is located on the shore of Malletts Bay, part of Lake Champlain. The westernmost part of the town touches the New York state border in the middle of the lake. To the northwest, across the eastern arm of the lake, lies the town of South Hero in Grand Isle County. Chittenden County communities bordering Colchester are Milton to the northeast, Westford touching the easternmost point of Colchester, Essex to the southeast, and the cities of South Burlington, Winooski, and Burlington to the south.
According to the United States Census Bureau, Colchester has a total area of, of which is land and, or 38.0%, is water.

History

About 2,000 years ago, during the Early Woodland period, pre-Columbian natives lived in the area. Chartered June 7, 1763, the town was named for the Earl of Colchester.
Winooski Falls separated from the town of Colchester in 1922, causing Colchester to lose a large percentage of its population to the newly founded city of Winooski.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 17,067 people, 6,576 households, and 4,184 families residing in the town. The population density was 470 people per square mile. There were 6,727 housing units at an average density of 182.4 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 94.6% White, 1.5% African American, 0.1% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.25% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. 1.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 6.1% spoke a language other than English at home.
As of the 2000 census, 34.1% of households had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.2% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.9% were non-families. 22.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.6% under the age of 18, 16.2% from 18 to 24, 32.1% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.0 males.
travels from Colchester across Lake Champlain to Grand Isle County; it is a former railroad line.

Economy

One measure of economic activity is retail sales. Colchester was fourth in the state in 2007 with $245.8 million. Major employers in the town include the VNA of Chittenden & Grand Isle Counties, Saint Michael's College, Costco Wholesale Corporation, Green Mountain Power, Shaw's Supermarket, and Champlain Cable Corporation.
In 2015, the town of Colchester made Fortune Magazine's list of "100 Best Places to Live", along with Launch a Business and Money Magazine's list of "50 Best Places to Live". In 2017, Money Magazine listed Colchester In the top 100 places to live in America.

Personal income

In 2014, the median household income for Colchester was $68,440; the per capita income was $30,877. Males had a median income of $38,268 versus $30,880 for females. About 5.4% of families, 8.2% of those under age 18, and 9.7% of those age 65 or over were below the poverty line. In 2011, the median home value was $246,269.

Tourism

There has been an annual "Lake Champlain International Father's Day Fishing Derby" since 1981. In 2009, 6,000 fishermen entered.
The lakeshore areas of Colchester get an influx of vacationers every summer from southern New England and the New York City area. Traffic, especially around the Fourth of July holiday, increases by a substantial margin.
Niquette Bay State Park offers hiking and swimming in Lake Champlain.

Government

Elected officials

In the Vermont state legislature, Colchester residents are represented by Senator Richard Mazza and Representatives Curt Taylor, Seth Chase, Sarita Austin, and Patrick Brennan.

Public safety

In 2008, property crimes increased by 36.9%. Overall, the number of crimes rose 28.9% to 1,486 incidents.

Transportation

passes through the area, with exits 16 and 17 serving Colchester. Exit 16 connects to the concurrency of US Routes 2 and 7, just north of Winooski. Exit 17 connects to US 2, which goes west to the Champlain Islands, and also to US 7, which heads north toward the town of Milton.
Exit 17 in Colchester
In the southeastern part of Colchester, and also along the US Route 7 corridor, bus service is provided by Green Mountain Transit.
Vermont Translines provides scheduled bus service to Albany, New York via Burlington, as well as Hanover, New Hampshire and Lebanon, New Hampshire via a transfer at Rutland.

Notable people

Around 2,200 children attend the five schools in Colchester's school district. The district consists of one high school, Colchester High School; one middle school, Colchester Middle School; and three elementary schools: Malletts Bay School, Porters Point School, and Union Memorial School.
Colchester High School is home to the award-winning Colchester Theatre Company.
The Colchester School District underwent a teacher strike in October 2005. The strike began over pay increases but quickly escalated to include many other aspects of the system. The strike ended on October 23, 2005, with an agreement on pay between teachers and board, and school re-opened on Monday the 24th. Negotiations took place for around five hours on October 18, 2005, but resulted in no settlement, and again on the 23rd, resulting in the conclusion to the strike.

Media

Radio