Robert Oeser sent a notice to the Town of Brattleboro on Friday. The Town has 10 calendar days to respond publicly..
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“To: The Brattleboro Selectboard
Ian Goodnow, Chair
Daniel Quipp, Vice-Chair
Jessica Gelter, Clerk
When I asked him about his goals back on Jan 20, Town Manager Yoshi Manale spoke of creating more open spaces downtown, being open and transparent, and being flexible while solving problems. No mention of wanting to alter EMS services. Yet the impression one might get from official communications is that a new town manager came to town, took aim at EMS, and is walking away.
But that’s not the full story. First off, the Brattleboro Selectboard told him to take on Rescue.
Both the current and former Chair of the Brattleboro Selectboard have confirmed that Town Manager Manale was not acting solo when it came to Rescue Inc actions and decisions.
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.
The Brattleboro Selectboard held a special meeting to accept the resignation of Town Manager Yoshi Manale and to ratify his severance agreement.
Manale wasn’t in attendance. The board let Chair Ian Goodnow do the talking, which was tightly constrained to pre-approved boundaries by legal counsel.
The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, May 31 , 2022, at 6:15pm in the Selectboard Meeting Room at the Brattleboro Municipal Center at 230 Main Street. Directly after the conclusion of the meeting, the Board is expected to meet in executive session to discuss contracts, labor relations with employees and the appointment or employment or evaluation of a public officer or employee. Everyone will be required to maintain social distance. The public is encouraged to participate in the meeting over Zoom. The attached agenda contains information on how to access the meeting remotely, including the required “passcode.” Closed Captions will be available.
Dear Ms. Hege,
After some initial staff level discussion on the issue of mutual aid between the Town of Brattleboro and Rescue Inc., Chief Hazelton made clear his preference for direct Board to Board communication. We are happy to honor his request. It is our view that a mutual aid agreement between our two organizations is in our shared best interest. I hope that you agree.
It surprised many that Town Manager Yoshi Manale resigned after just a few months. But it isn’t that surprising.
Brattleboro is unusual. For a small town, there is a tremendous amount of media. Two newspapers, three radio stations, citizen journalists, and others pay close attention to what goes on in town government. Add in social media, discussions in offices, and conversations on the street and you end up with a rather active core population that follow the details of town government.
There are big cities with less coverage of their municipal governments and fewer news outlets. And big city news is often dominated by crimes, fires, and other distractions, making municipal news a smaller piece of the overall newscast or front page headlines.
The Brattleboro Selectboard will award a contract to a web developer for the redesign of the Town website at their next regular meeting. They’ll also approve of a contract for an EMS feasibility study.
You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation.
Members of the public scolded the Brattleboro Selectboard again for poor communication regarding their recent EMS decision. After, the board discussed removing some mentions of transparency and openness from their goals while patting themselves on the back for already having an open and transparent process.
They discussed other goals, then heard presentations about some exciting, possibly large housing projects going through the planning process. They also discussed improving the parklet program.
The Brattleboro Selectboard voted to enter into a one year contract with Golden Cross Ambulance, effectively ending five decades of Rescue, Inc. collaboration with the town. There was much public discussion, mostly against the way this was handled, but it was approved 5-0.
The board also went back on their previous decision about the ski jump sculpture, now allowing it to be downtown year round but unlit most of the year, sort of like the Valentines hearts that hang year round downtown.
When you think of the River Garden, you probably think “there’s not enough liquor there.” Well, the Brattleboro Selectboard will take care of that at their next regular meeting.
A new ambulance contract will be signed to officially end the Rescue, Inc. era. The board will also reconsider their decision from their last meeting about whether the downtown metal ski jump sculpture should stay or go in off seasons. And they’ll handle a few financial and administrative matters.
You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation.
The Brattleboro Selectboard, under new management of Chair Ian Goodnow, had their first regular meeting of April and their first long discussion. It was about goals and what they want to do in the coming year. They also had their first meeting in the Municipal Center in quite a long time, sitting closely without masks and wondering where members of the public might be.
The board approved of a catering license, loaned some more money for new housing, allowed short term rental in the parking garage, and more.
A rather routine agenda awaits the “new” Brattleboro Selectboard at their first regular meeting of April 2022. A liquor license, lease agreements, board goals and assignments, and loans. The board will also discuss raising the fee for recycling.
You can bring up other items not on this agenda during public participation.
A little Brattleboro Selectboard update for you… the new Chair is Ian Goodnow, the new Vice-Chair is Daniel Quipp, and the Clerk is Jessica Gelter.
That’s all.
The Brattleboro Selectboard will meet on Monday, March 21, 2022 at 9:00am in the Selectboard Meeting Room and on Zoom for an organizational meeting. The public is encouraged to participate in the meeting over Zoom. The attached agenda contains information on how to access the meeting remotely, including the required “passcode.” ASL interpreters will be available for deaf and hard-of-hearing community members.
The Brattleboro Selectboard heard details of the Windham Regional Commission’s past year work as well as an overview of Brattleboro’s new Housing Action Plan, which tells us that Brattleboro is in a housing crisis. 500 units or more are needed immediately just to catch up with current needs. More if Brattleboro want to grow.
Peter Elwell and Steve Barrett were both commended for their years of municipal public service, the Brewer’s Fest got their annual permit, and liquor on town property rules are being tweaked.
Correction to 03-15-22 Selectboard agenda: The agenda for the 03-15-22 Selectboard meeting states that the Organizational Meeting will take place on Monday, March 21, 2022 at 6:15pm at the Central Fire Station. The time of the meeting has been changed from 6:15pm to 9:00am. It will no longer take place at the Central Fire Station but will instead take place in the Selectboard Meeting Room at the Municipal Center.
The long-anticipated housing plan will be presented to the Brattleboro Selectboard at their next regular meeting. This comes after Steve Barrett and Peter Elwell receive special ceremonial recognition from the board and the State of Vermont.
They’ll also hear a discuss work at the Windham Regional Commission, appoint some committee members, approve the brewer’s festival permits for an alcoholic beverage celebration, and start the process of prohibiting alcoholic beverages on Town property. You can discuss how we aren’t conflicted, or bring up other items not on the agenda, during public participation.
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.
The Brattleboro Selectboard lifted town rules requiring masks. People and businesses are free to once again do as they please with caution. The mask rules can come back if things get bad again.
The board also passed a new rule requiring downtown property owners to clear their sidewalks of snow within 24 hours of a snowstorm or face fines and costs. It may be a while before this is tested, though, as winter is wrapping up for the season.
