Governor Scott Announces Additional Economic Re-Opening Steps

by Not Signed In | State News

Montpelier, Vt. – As modeling indicates continued progress in slowing the spread of COVID-19, Governor Phil Scott today announced a third incremental, evidence-based step forward to put Vermonters back to work.

If able to comply with outlined safety measures, the Governor’s latest order expands on Addendum 10 and Addendum 11 to allow the following operations to operate:

Crews of 10 or fewer employees per location/job to perform outdoor work and construction work in unoccupied job sites. (Effective May 4)
Manufacturing and distribution operations may resume with a maximum of 10 employees in any location if they are low-density and ensure employees are always six feet apart. (Effective May 4)

Brattleboro Selectboard Meeting Agenda and Notes – May 5, 2020

by cgrotke | Town News

It will be a DPW night at the next regular virtual meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard. The Water Treatment Plant Replacement Project’s final engineering  is about to get underway, Signal Hill Pump Station will be replaced, and other utilities projects will be discussed.

The Town Manager will offer COVID-19-related information and updates and provide the board with a preliminary look at the current fiscal year as it begins to wrap up. You can virtually bring up other topics not on the agenda during virtual public participation.

How To Wear A Mask

by RDavis | Health

Over the past few weeks I have been tempted to create a squad of the mask police. I have seen too many people who either don’t seem to understand how a facemask is supposed to work or they think half a job is better than none.

When I see people who do not cover their nose with a mask my blood pressure rises a little, but I have refrained from telling them how to use it correctly. Forty years as a nurse in a variety of settings has given me some credibility in this area, having probably spent hundreds of hours in close proximity to communicable disease while wearing a mask and other protective gear.

This isn’t rocket science. It’s actually pretty simple if you just put a little bit of thought into why you are wearing a mask. Although some masks are more effective than others they all have the same purpose: to stop the spread of disease.

Vermont COVID-19 Cases – May 2020

by cgrotke | Health

We’ll continue our daily dashboard number roundup, with numbers from the Vermont Department of Health and Brattleboro Memorial Hospital with looks at nearby counties in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

You can find the April dashboard reporting here.

Friday Fun – Fifteen Minutes of Family of Four Furry Fox Kittens (video)

by cgrotke | Nature

We had a real treat last week. I was looking out the back door as I often do and noticed a few little heads peeking out from under one of our outbuildings. One, two, three… oh my… four baby foxes!

From last Friday through Wednesday we got to watch them come out for the first time to explore the world. Mom came back at regular intervals to check on them, but she’d leave them for extended periods while she went off hunting.

Town of Brattleboro COVID-19 Response Status – April 29, 2020, 4:30pm 

by Not Signed In | Town News

WHAT IS NEW TODAY 

On Monday, May 4, all Town offices will resume daily on-site office functions, in accordance with the following: 
The exterior entrances to all Town facilities will remain locked at all times. 
Signs will be posted at all exterior entrances clearly indicating that no one may enter the building if they have any symptoms of respiratory illness (fever, cough, and/or shortness of breath). 
There will be only 1 employee in each office at any one time, except when more than one employee is necessary to complete a required task. 
Employees who are not in the office will continue to work from home in the same manner as they have been during the full closure of Town offices since March 27. 
The public is requested to continue to do as much Town business as possible remotely (by email, internet, phone, or mail). Please note that this includes the payment of property taxes and utility bills. Those can be paid by mail or online. By Monday, they will also be able to be paid by dropping an envelope containing your check (no cash) into a locked black drop box that will be attached to the large wooden light pole in the parking lot behind the Municipal Center. 

Video on Demand from the Sandglass Theater Archives

by SandglassTheater | Entertainment

Sandglass Theater has created twenty-five productions since their founding in 1982. Most of these were video recorded for archival purposes, Some of these recordings are better then others, although none is even close to the quality of a good High Density, multi-camera shoot that would be used for broadcast today. Nevertheless, these recordings offer a window into Sandglass’ past for those who want to learn more about their history and how their work has developed over the decades.

“We have decided to make a few of these available for online viewing. They are not meant to equal a live performance; rather they offer insight into where we have been and where we are going.” -Eric Bass

Where There’s a Will…

by Not Signed In | Op/Ed

Homelessness has been stopped in its tracks in Brattleboro. As I write this, there is not a single person that I am aware of that does not currently have shelter. This is an incredible achievement. What’s more incredible is that it was accomplished within the last 30 days. 

As we saw COVID-19 advance toward Vermont, we at Groundworks Collaborative worked closely with our State partners to establish and enact guidance that eventually led to everyone that was without housing, or who was precariously housed, being able to access local motel rooms. It is quite remarkable that a vision Groundworks has held for our community—that everyone has their basic needs met with dignity—has become a reality during this crisis.  This need not be an anomaly.

Groundworks’s staff have answered the call when needed most and I have to share my deep appreciation for their work—especially as they put themselves and their families at risk to come to work each day. Without them, we would not be able to be so effectively meeting our community’s basic needs.

BCTV Schedules – Week of April 27, 2020

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV Channel 8 / 1075 schedule for the week of 4/27/20

Monday, April 27, 2020

4:00 am Hildene – Reading the Natural Landscape – The Rocks
4:52 am The Quarantine Sessions from Next Stage Arts – Ben Cosgrove – Composer, Pianist, Author
5:00 am 50th Earth Day Anniversary Roundtable – Building a Resilient Economy, Community and Earth
6:15 am Doing Life – 184 – Council to Counsel
7:00 am Molly Gray Concert – VT Musicians 4/11/20

Governor Scott Announces Additional Openings of Phased Restart

by Not Signed In | State News

Montpelier, Vt. – Governor Phil Scott today outlined some additional openings as part of the phased restart of Vermont’s economy, introduced last week.

The Governor’s Stay Home, Stay Safe order remains in effect, but with modeling continuing to indicate Vermonters are significantly slowing the spread of the virus, the Administration is taking a cautious, incremental and evidence-based approach to putting Vermonters back to work.

Governor Scott has emphasized the need for continued – and even expanded – vigilance as the state implements its restart strategy, saying: “Restarting the economy requires each of us to take a lot of personal responsibility. Each and every one of us has to do our part to help prevent the spread and protect the vulnerable by adhering to all of the social distancing and public health guidance.”

Brattleboro Tree Warden Wins Hamilton Award

by oakgeorgia | Home & Garden

Brattleboro Tree Warden Dan Adams is the 2020 recipient of the Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Program’s Hamilton Award, which honors a Tree Warden “who has significantly advanced the goals of urban and community forestry through successful forestry practices, effective conservation planning, increased citizen engagement, and active public education.” The award is named for Dr. Larry Hamilton, the former Tree Warden in Charlotte, VT.

A private consulting forester, with over 35 years in the forestry business, Dan was nominated by Brattleboro Director of Public Works Steve Barrett.

Town of Brattleboro COVID-19 Response Status – April 24, 2020, 12:30pm 

by Not Signed In | Town News

• After weeks of intense activity to set up and refine remote operations, the past 10 days or so have been characterized by the steady maintenance of the status quo during the deepest part of the “Stay Home – Stay Safe” restrictions. We are now seeing the very slight re-opening of some activities in society (what Governor Scott has called “re-opening the spigot a quarter turn at a time”) and we are planning for how to slowly, methodically, and safely reopen Town facilities and resume in-person Town services. Daily updates next week and beyond will include detailed information about the steps we will take “a quarter turn at a time” to ramp back up to something resembling normal operations. In the meantime, we thank everyone for your patience and your adherence to the social distancing restrictions that are frustrating for all of us but also are essential to our individual and collective well-being. Stay safe. Stay strong. Stay well. 

The Next Phase

by RDavis | Activism

We are now entering a new phase of pandemic adjustment. The first few months were a novelty and, although many people had a hard time adjusting, it seemed that most people were able to cope while holding out hope for temporary change.

Now that it is clear that we are going to have to change our lives for the long term and that there is no exact time frame for society to re-open, people are losing patience. Early on, people were almost too friendly, trying to be respectful of each other in supermarkets and other places that have been able to remain open. But that friendliness is wearing thin and some people are taking out their frustrations on others.

Then there are the mostly brain-dead yahoos who think their personal liberty is more important than the lives of others as they protest around the country. Thankfully, they are a minority, but they are being supported by Trump. Some governors have decided that reinvigorating commerce is more important than protecting lives. That puts all of us in jeopardy.

Vermont Arts Council and Vermont Humanities COVID-19 Relief

by Not Signed In | Arts

MONTPELIER, VT—Arts and humanities organizations in Vermont facing hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic can now apply for emergency relief funding through a new partnership between the Vermont Arts Council and Vermont Humanities.

The new COVID-19 Cultural Relief Grant Program is seeded with more than $700,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020.

Grant awards are based on organization size:

Annual operating budgets of up to $200,000: $5,000.
Annual operating budgets between $200,000 and $750,000: $7,500
Annual operating budget larger than $750,000: $10,000

“The people in Building 27 are scared!”

by MarkTwain© | History

CHAPTER 17

“The people in Building 27 are scared!”

OK, let’s calm down, let’s relax. Let us put aside fear, as we have nothing to fear, anyway. 

For here is a story from grandpa’s owns memories:

My family lived in Beach Haven Apartments from when I was five until we moved out from there to our own, 3-bedroom, semi-attached, cookie-cutter home located at 46-05 216th Street, Bayside 61 – Queens, NYC, NYS.