Three floors, one door,
everybody welcome.

It isn't finished. That's the invitation. What happens in this building will be decided by the people who show up while it's still being built.

Where

The middle of Barton Village, Northeast Kingdom

What it was

The former Howard / TD Bank — brick, arched windows, good bones

Who

A project of Curioso Corp, a Vermont non-profit

Where it stands

In progress — building out, floor by floor

First floor

Cafe & market

Good coffee and a small, curated market — pantry things, snacks, produce from area farms, and shelf space for local makers to sell candles, soap, bread and whatever else they make well.

Second floor

Co-working & incubation

Desks to work from, but mostly a place to say hello, talk something through and trade ideas with whoever is at the next table — plus incubation for anyone building something new in the Northeast Kingdom.

Third floor

The old ballroom

A wide wooden floor under arched windows. Ecstatic dance and 5Rhythms, yoga, sound journeys, live music, film nights, gatherings, meetings that need a real room.

The third-floor ballroom with wood floors and arched windows

The room upstairs

A floor to put weight on, and permission to move.

The ballroom has been quiet a long time. It needs a floor, a sound system and a crowd, in roughly that order. We're looking for the people who host: dance facilitators, DJs, yoga and somatic teachers, sound journey practitioners, film programmers, choirs, anyone with a Tuesday night idea.

If you've ever wished this village had a place for that — you're who this page is for.

01

Ecstatic dance & somatic movement

Facilitate a dance, DJ one, hold a 5Rhythms or yoga class, run a sound journey — or simply come dance barefoot on a Sunday morning with people you'll then see at the store.

02

Art & making

Teach a workshop, hang a show, throw an art party, screen your film, bring the kids' craft table. If you make something with your hands, there is wall space and floor space for it.

03

Entrepreneurial efforts

Starting something in the Northeast Kingdom? Take a desk, join an incubation cohort, sell your first hundred units on our shelves, or find the co-founder sitting one table over.

04

Community involvement

Help with demo, paint, wiring and the unglamorous parts. Sit on a planning circle. Bring your organization's meeting here. Tell us what the village actually needs — we'd rather hear it early.

05

The pursuit of curiosity

Reading groups, talks, repair nights, stargazing, an argument held well. Curiosity is the cheapest resource available and the most underused. Bring a question, we'll bring the room.

Something not on this list?

Good. That's usually how the best parts of a place start. Say it out loud and we'll figure out which floor it belongs on.

Tell us the idea →

Bring what you've got

A building this size needs almost every skill there is.

Paid work, volunteer shifts and everything between. If you see yourself anywhere in this list — or think of something missing — that's a reason to write.

Nearby · CanadUS

And 140 acres, thirty minutes up the road.

A former dairy farm in the Northeast Kingdom — fields, woods, wetlands, streams and a river, with a connecting parcel in Canada — becoming a small homestead community of all ages, part-time or full-time. Gardens, a sauna, an outdoor kitchen, beekeeping, a lot of fermenting. Much of the cafe's food is meant to come from there.

See the land project ↗

What is Neighbors?

A community space taking shape in the former Howard / TD Bank building at 424 Main St in Barton Village, Vermont — cafe and local market downstairs, co-working and incubation on the second floor, and a ballroom on the third.

Is Neighbors open yet?

Not yet — it's being built out floor by floor. Which is the point of this page: what the building becomes is being decided now, by the people who show up while it's still under construction.

Is there ecstatic dance in the Northeast Kingdom?

There will be. The third-floor ballroom is being readied for ecstatic dance, 5Rhythms, yoga, somatic practice and sound journeys — and we're actively looking for facilitators, DJs and teachers to host them.

Can I use the ballroom for an event?

That's what it's for — classes, live music, film nights, gatherings, and meetings that need a real room. Write to us and we'll talk about timing while the build-out finishes.

How do I get involved?

Host a dance or a class, teach a workshop, sell in the market, take a desk, join an incubation cohort, swing a hammer during build-out, volunteer at events, or start a reading group. A single sentence by email is enough.

Who is behind it?

Neighbors is a project of Curioso Corp, the Vermont non-profit founded by Michael Kunitzky and built around curiosity, critical thinking and community action. It also stewards CanadUS, the 140-acre farm nearby.

Ecstatic dance / 5Rhythms DJing or live music Yoga & somatic practice Sound journeys Teaching an art workshop Showing work / a film Selling at the market A desk on the second floor Incubation / starting something Helping build it out Volunteering & events Reading groups & talks Just being curious out loud

Write us a note Nothing selected — that's fine too.