A long hoped-for development on St. Johnsbury’s Main Street took a critical step forward

A long hoped-for development on St. Johnsbury’s Main Street took a critical step forward this week. The Vermont Housing Finance Authority announced Monday that RuralEdge had been awarded federal housing tax credits to support the construction of the Packard Court project in the Main Street lot that had been left vacant since the devastating fire that destroyed several buildings in 2009.  The Packard Court project has been in the works since 2015, when RuralEdge bought the fire-stricken lots and an adjoining apartment house that was subsequently torn down to make way for development. RuralEdge originally proposed a dormitory, banquet hall and restaurant, which would have been leased to St. Johnsbury Academy. Those plans, though, fell through when financing proved challenging.