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At their regular meeting on Tuesday, the Brattleboro Selectboard approved of new plans for the West Brattleboro fire station as well as $7.8 million in financing from a bond bank for completing all three facility projects.

Enterprise budgets and selectboard goals were approved, the board held a discussion of public and private roads, the contract with Rescue Inc. has been renewed, new liquor fees were adopted, and Whetstone Brook is getting a close look to inspire discussions of redevelopment and flood protection.

Recently discussed enterprise fund budgets will be adopted at the next regular meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard. New liquor license fees will also be up for adoption.

Police officers will be sworn-in, Selectboard goals will be discussed, public vs. private roads will be debated, grants and contracts approved, and plans for the West Brattleboro Fire Station will be reviewed on Tuesday at the Municipal Center on Main Street. You can attend in person and participate, even bringing up other items not on the agenda during public participation.

The Brattleboro Selectboard came out of an executive session to hold special meeting about three of the Town’s fund budgets. The FY17 Utility, Parking, and Solid Waste budgets were up for review, along with updated plans for capital improvements within each enterprise fund.

Before the funds fun could get underway, Chair David Gartenstein congratulated and thanked a third grade class at Academy School for their study of West Brattleboro and how well town services meet the needs of the students. He said they wrote letters with their recommendations. Top of their list, he said, was concern about sidewalks and how close traffic is to edges of the road in some places. In addition to the safety concerns, they hoped for more clothing stores and restaurants.

Steve Barrett of the Brattleboro Department of Public Works reports that this morning a tractor trailer truck hit a hydrant on Canal Street. He sent along these photos:

New fees for special event permits were almost adopted, but put off until the next meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard to allow for more public input.

The West Brattleboro Association won themselves a small amount of time to come up with brilliant plans for renovating and re-using the current fire station in West Brattleboro. The clock is ticking, as the Selectboard approved of continuing with plans for its demolition.

Energy audits for municipal buildings have been completed, a new traffic safety plan has been adopted, committees have received new appointments, and the Reformer will remain the newspaper of record for the next year.

At their next regular meeting on Tuesday, the Brattleboro Selectboard will review some suggestions from the West Brattleboro Association regarding the West Brattleboro Fire Station project. The Town Manager recommends rejecting 2 of the 3 proposals.

The board will consider streamlining the special events permit process to allow the Town Clerk to approve some liquor-related events, there will be a presentation regarding energy audits and traffic calming, an update on the local emergency operations plan, committee appointments, board goals and more. You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation, and lend your views to anything on the agenda as well.

Tune in to BCTV for full coverage, and read about it here after.

With the water mains being flushed, I thought it might be fun to get some background information on why we do it and how it gets done. I sent some questions to Director of Public Works Steve Barrett and have the following to share with you.

– What’s the goal of the water main flushing?

The water entering our mains after treatment is of a very high quality, however, over time sediments can build up in the pipes; particularly if the water is slow moving.

If left alone – this could result in customers occasionally receiving discolored water, particularly if there has been a surge in the flow (perhaps because of fire-fighting or a burst water main). Too much sediment can also affect the taste, clarity and color of water. We also operate every hydrant in town to verify they are in good working order. Water valves are also operated & exercised to direct the water flow and ensure they are working properly.