Global Foundries in Essex Junction in October 2022. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger This story by Jason Starr was first published in the Williston Observer on May 14, 2026. It’s 442 acres and comes with its own bridge over the Winooski River.  The Williston side of the GlobalFoun dries campus is one-of-a-kind, and the company is planning to put it up for sale.  “We’ve come to the decision that we’d like to find another owner for that campus,” GlobalFoundries Director of Facilities Dan Forcier told the Williston Planning Commission last week. “The property is no longer serving a direct need for us.” Forcier came to the planning commission with a request: expand the allowable uses in the town’s “Industrial Zoning District East” that governs the parcel to include warehousing and distribution. That, the company believes, will increase its value on the market and facilitate a sale. GlobalFoundries acquired the parcel from IBM in 2015, when it took over the entire IBM microchip manufacturing facility that straddles the Winooski River. The majority of the campus is in Essex Junction.  The red marker indicates the location of GlobalFoundries’ vacant Williston campus near the Winooski River. During its heyday in the 1990s, IBM stationed about 3,000 workers on the Williston side, Forcier said. Three 1980s-era office buildings totaling about 430,000 square feet are now nearly completely empty — the last remaining tenant plans to vacate in June. “COVID really had an impact on the tenants that we did have,” Forcier said. “They are doing more work from home, and other tenants moved to more modern locations. It’s still on the market as available office space, and I don’t think we’ve had an offer on it since COVID.” Forcier has consulted with a commercial real estate broker and learned that, while demand for office space is at a historic low in Chittenden County, there is demand for warehouses and distribution centers.  The 442-acre GlobalFoundries campus in Williston has a solar array, office buildings and access to a bridge over the Winooski River. Photo courtesy of Williston Planning Department “They are fairly confident that some sort of storage is going to be the future for the Williston campus,” he said.  Members of the planning commission are less than enthusiastic about the prospect of a warehouse and distribution center. “We know an Amazon warehouse wants to come to this area, and I don’t think Williston wants that,” said planning commission member Jill Pardini.  Pardini was referring to an application last year to build an Amazon warehouse and distribution center in the Saxon Hill Industrial Park in Essex. Protesters from around Vermont demonstrated against that proposal, which the Essex Development Review Board denied in July. Pardini said any buyer of the GlobalFoundries property should be the one to make zoning change requests. “I don’t think we should change the rules in advance of something we don’t know is coming,” Pardini said. Changing uses in a zoning district typically requires approval from the Development Review Board, but could be done administratively by town staff in some cases, Williston Senior Planner Emily Heymann said. The town’s Industrial Zoning District East was tailor made to suit IBM, which was already in operation when the town created its zoning map. The only other entity in the zone is the Chittenden Solid Waste District. “The intent (of the zoning district) is allowing uses that don’t generate a lot of traffic,” said Heymann. And while a distribution center would certainly raise traffic concerns on Mountain View and Redmond roads, town planners are interested in a grander vision for the parcel. Last year, the planning commission finalized a Comprehensive Town Plan to guide land use decisions through the year 2050. Nowhere does it call for increased commercial warehouses. But it does envision more housing diversity and transportation facilities. With that in mind, town planners want to explore the possibility of housing on the parcel, as well as public use of the bridge. Currently GlobalFoundries restricts bridge access to employees and contractors only. “Access to another crossing of the Winooski River would be very useful,” said planning commission member Meghan Cope. “Having it open to general traffic, including bikes and pedestrians, is something the town should have an interest in.” Williston Planning Director Matt Boulanger suggested bringing in regional planners and working with the City of Essex Junction and GlobalFoundries executives on a master plan — potentially using the town’s “specific plan” process to create site-specific zoning on the parcel in exchange for a public benefit (i.e., public use of the bridge). “The town has big goals for housing,” said Boulanger. “This is a potential solution for some of that — a piece of land this large that is situated where it is. It’s not going to be easy or quick, but I would encourage everyone to think long term …” Forcier countered that GlobalFoundries executives are not adept at, or interested in, land use planning.  “Our intention is to add distribution and warehousing, then market it and see who comes to the table,” he said.  A portion of the GlobalFoundries parcel is zoned as agricultural/rural. The company has installed a solar array there, and Forcier said it will continue to build out a solar energy production plan for as long as the parcel remains in the company’s hands. Read the story on VTDigger here: GlobalFoundries seeks buyer for Williston campus. ...read more read less