RTM

Brattleboro Petitions and Consent of Candidate Form for March Elections, 2023 Election Schedule, Positions To Be Filled

by Not Signed In | Town News

Petitions for Brattleboro Town Officers, Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) Board Members, and Town Meeting Members are now available at the Town Clerk’s office.  Town elections will be Tuesday, March 7 at the American Legion, located at 32 Linden St., Brattleboro, VT 05301.

Annual Representative Town Meeting will begin on Saturday, March 25, 2023. The location and format will be announced at a later date.

Petitions for Town Officers and WSESD Board Members must contain at least 30 valid signatures of registered Brattleboro voters and be filed in the clerk’s office no later than Monday, January 30 at 5 P.M. to have their name placed on the ballot.

Selectboard Meeting Notes – Brattleboro Acknowledges Executive Session Open Meeting Violations

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard june 7 2022

The Brattleboro Selectboard held one of their longer meetings in some time. The public was active!  Complaints about downtown crime, lack of action on climate change, and open meetings kept the board busy until after 10:30pm.

Of note, the Town acknowledged their violation of open meeting protocols and adopted a new two-part process to make sure it won’t happen again. This wasn’t enough for most people, who wanted a more detailed accounting of the EMS decision making process.

The board changed RTM districts to conform with state updates, adopted Utility and Parking budgets, and poured luke-warm water on a suggestion to bring back the electric trolley.

Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda and Notes – June 7, 2022

by cgrotke | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will emerge from another Executive Session to do something that isn’t done very often – update the boundaries of the voting districts in town, which will change representation at Representative Town meeting. This update is to conform with adjustments recently made by the state.

The board will also take up the Utility Fund, Parking Fund Budget, raises, and the Depot Street parking lot project. You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation.

Your Handy Brattleboro Fire – EMS – Rescue Timeline 2021-2022

by cgrotke | Town News

It is sometimes helpful to look at information in a timeline format. Thanks to everyone who assisted in piecing this together this list of Brattleboro Fire, Rescue, and EMS items from the past year or so.**

Please note any additions or corrections you feel would clarify in the comments if you’d like. This is an in-progress project and will likely be updated. I’ll note any edits to the main timeline list in the comments.

2021

March 22 – Elizabeth McLoughlin becomes Chair of the Selectboard.

Brattleboro Doubles Down on Representative Town Meeting – Representatives to Elect Representatives

by cgrotke | Rumors
district 2 voting

In a close vote Tuesday, Brattleboro Representative Town Meeting representatives have decided to add a new layer to town government in what will surely represent a new era in governing the municipality.

“We felt that Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting is the best form of town meeting in the state of Vermont,” said one member. “If representatives are good for the general public, we thought we should use the system ourselves within Representative Town Meeting.”

Did Brattleboro Representative Town Meeting Make A Mistake Raising Selectboard Stipends?

by cgrotke | Politics

For many years it was assumed that the pool of selectboard candidates could be increased by increasing the compensation for the position. The idea was that maybe people who are single parents or working multiple jobs would run if only there was enough compensation to make it worthwhile. A corollary was that perhaps the board has been dominated by only people well-off enough to have the free time to serve.

Representatives at Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting would have this discussion at each RTM when the compensation article would come up. Eventually the arguments prevailed and the stipends went up. A board member now gets $8000 plus money to pay for child or other care during meetings. The chair gets more.

Brattleboro District 3 Forum

by fidel | Activism

In an effort to promote citizen involvement and help RTM members better represent their constituents, there will be a public forum for District 3 residents at 3 pm on Sunday March 13 in the social hall at Trinity Lutheran Church, 161 Western Avenue. This citizens’ forum is intended to allow people who live in District 3 to express their concerns and to ask questions about Town issues in advance of the RTM meeting on March 19.

I would encourage RTM members from District 3 to attend to hear from their neighbors.

Representative Town Meeting Finance Committee Guide to the Brattleboro Budget

by Not Signed In | Town News

Complying with a vote of Representative Town Meeting in 2021, RTM’s Finance Committee has prepared a “Guide to the Brattleboro Town Budget.” The guide is posted on the Town’s website under the Finance Committee’s page and the RTM Resources section, both of which are accessible from the Representative Town Meeting tab on the left menu bar. Also newly posted is the annual report for RTM’s consideration of the FY23 budget.

Brattleboro Representative Town Meeting Information Session and District Caucuses

by Not Signed In | Town News

Brattleboro Town Selectboard will hold a pre-town meeting information forum on Wednesday, March 9 via Zoom beginning at 7:30pm. Representative Town Meeting articles will be discussed, including the budget.

Beginning at 5:15pm (District 1), 6:00pm (District 2), and 6:45pm (District 3), town meeting members of each district will be available to meet with constituents to offer residents an opportunity to share their views and discuss articles to be voted on at the annual meeting. Also, at those times, each district will be accepting nominations to fill meeting member vacancies for 1 year.

Selectboard Meeting Notes – No Business Likes Snow Business

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard february 15, 2022

The Brattleboro selectboard had strong words for downtown property owners over sidewalk snow removal. It was a good old-fashioned Selectboard -DBA battle for a while there, when the downtown organization tried to pass responsibility for clearing snow to the Town.  No, insisted the board. Building owners have always been required to clear it, and if the downtown organization feels it is a shabby job, perhaps they should pay to use a more professional service. Take that.

They also raced through some public hearings, updates and reports.

Brattleboro Selectboard Meeting – Agenda and Notes February 15, 2022

by cgrotke | Town News

At their next regular meeting the Brattleboro Selectboard will consider changing the rules about downtown snow removal, possibly ending the practice of removing snow for building owners and charging them after for the work.

The board will revisit the mask mandate, take care of some grants, appoint some people, and consider use of ARPA funds to replenish the parking fund. You can, as always, bring up pther items not on the agenda during public participation.

iBrattleboro Representative Town Meeting Moderator Interview – David Gartenstein

by cgrotke | Politics

David Gartenstein is running for Moderator for Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting.

…..

Tell us about yourself and why you’d like to be Moderator of Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting.

I’d like to serve the public good by moderating Town Meeting in a way that is fair to all, with governing procedures followed, all persons having a chance to engage, and decisions made after full debate and consideration of all available information.  

Selectboard Meeting Notes – FY23 Budget Approval & Zoom RTM

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard jan 25 2022

The Brattleboro Selectboard approved an FY23 budget to send to Representative Town Meeting. They also warned that meeting, so representatives will get to vote on the budget and other items. 

There was a bit of discussion about the value of holding Representative Town Meeting once again by Zoom, but the option to do it that way was approved unanimously.

No Challengers For Brattleboro Selectboard

by cgrotke | Politics

Everyone in Brattleboro who planned on running for Selectboard has returned petitions to the Brattleboro Town Clerk’s office. The big surprise this year? No surprises at all. All the names are familiar incumbents.

Daniel Quipp will run for a three year seat. Jessica Gelter and Tim Wessel will run for one year seats.