5/14/2026 - St. Albans City, Vt. –  VEDA helps the Fitzgeralds open Mill River Brewing BBQ & Smokehouse.

###

St. Albans City, Vt. – At Mill River Brewing BBQ & Smokehouse in St. Albans, it’s a family affair.

“So, it was kind of my husband’s idea of let's start a business, let's look into this and see what it's gonna entail,” says Joyce Fitzgerald (pictured), Mill River Brewing BBQ & Smokehouse Co-owner. “His dream kind of came true and now we're going into our ninth year.”

With some help from VEDA, Joyce, her husband David Fitzgerald, and her brother-in-law Chuck Fitzgerald launched this brewery and restaurant in 2017.

First, the trio consulted the Vermont SBA and came up with a business plan. Then they approached a bank about financing but were rejected before they could even present a proposal. At that point, they reached out to VEDA.

VEDA’s mission is to help Vermont’s economy grow by supporting businesses, agriculture, and nonprofits. The Fitzgeralds worked with Director of Commercial Lending Eun-Young Denny.

“We worked with her from day one and I definitely would say you guys are probably the most understanding and easy and flexible institution to work with.”

VEDA funding helped transform this former four-bay car wash into a brewery, bar, and sit-down restaurant. The location is ideal – just one mile from downtown St. Albans and two miles from St. Albans Bay.

Now Joyce says they are considering an expansion.

“Hopefully, in the next year or two, we'd love to turn our outside area into year-round seating. So, we may reach back out and see what the possibilities are for that just because you guys were awesome to work with.”

###