Selectboard Meeting Notes: We Don’t Like the Cost of the Bridge We Ordered

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard april 2 2024

The Brattleboro Selectboard took issue with new costs of a bridge project requested by an earlier board, and sent VTrans back to their offices without an approval for their design of the Western Ave bridge replacement near Melrose. VTrans is invited back when the project won’t cost the Town quite so much. No one mentioned the increases that will inevitably occur between now and 2028 when the bridge is scheduled to be completed.

The board also took up some start-up and general housekeeping issues. New Chair Daniel Quipp pledged earlier meeting end times and more public participation in the coming year.

Brattleboro Excavation and Trench Permits Required

by Not Signed In | Town News

Beginning this construction season anyone performing excavation work in the Town of Brattleboro right-of-way or on systems involving Town infrastructure must have an Excavation and Trench Permit. The permit will allow Public Works to have greater communication with homeowners and contractors about Town infrastructure and important steps for a safe workplace prior to beginning excavation. It will also ensure that at the end of the project that the ground surface covers (pavement, concrete, plantings) are left in proper condition.

Simon Renault on “Here We Are”

by Wendy O'Connell | Living

Take a look!  Simon talks about the good will that comes from life on the land, hard cider & sweet, the bounty of 150+ varieties of apples in one orchard, AND the dry stone walling center, farm market, cafe, crepe nights – all at Scott Farm, a stone’s throw from Naulahka on Kipling Rd.

Brattleboro Winter Weather Advisory Beginning April 2

by Not Signed In | Nature

The National Weather Service is forecasting a prolonged storm beginning Tuesday, April 2, and continuing into Thursday. The storm will initially bring rain before transitioning to snow Tuesday night through Wednesday, where it will potentially turn back to sleet and rain.

The shift to snow will occur first in higher elevations followed by the valleys. The Weather Service is predicting heavy snowfall in higher elevations and moderate amounts in the valleys. The accumulation of wet, heavy snow could lead to downed trees and power lines, which may cause power outages.

Brattleboro Selects BFD For Trash Collection

by cgrotke | Rumors

The Town of Brattleboro received four bids for the new trash collection and recycling service. At Tuesday’s meeting, the Selectboard chose the Brattleboro Fire Department to do the job.

“It’s been our experience in the last few months that having the fire department do everything in-house is more cost-effective for taxpayers,” said the Assistant Town Manager.

March Precipitation Report

by local | Education

March precipitation total is 7.88″.  NOAA normal is 3.62″ so we are 218% above average for the month. Yearly precip stands at 15.99″ compared to NOAA average of 10.12″ or 158% of normal.   Normal is a NOAA term which is a 30 year average for the years 1990- 2020.  The average or normal changes every 10 years.  I think of the terms as interchangeable.  NOAA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or the National Weather Service.  

Snowfall at my location this winter season is 35.1″.  There are no official averages for this area but my average for the past 30 years is about 64″ so we are low even though the moisture is high.

Brattleboro Selectboard Meeting Agenda and Notes – April 2, 2024

by cgrotke | Town News

A relatively easy first official Brattleboro Selectboard meeting for new Chair Daniel Quipp is scheduled for Tuesday. The Consent Agenda is ample, there are some board rules and assignments to take care of, and there will be some discussion of the recent Representative Town Meeting.

The big discussion could be that the board might use property taxes to pay for matching costs associated with replacing the Rt 9 bridge at Melrose Place.  The Town’s share has risen from half a million to $1.6 million since 2021.

You can once again, one assumes, bring up any other item not on the agenda during public participation.

Session Americana plus Sam Robbins at Next Stage

by hahrenholz | Music

Next Stage Arts and Twilight Music present roots and folk/rock quintet Session Americana with Eleanor Buckland, plus singer/songwriter Sam Robbins at Next Stage on Saturday, April 20 at 7:30 pm. 

Session Americana is a rock band in a tea cup, or possibly a folk band in a whiskey bottle. The Boston-based band/collective of musician’s musicians craft a musical experience unlike any other. On stage is a collapsible bar table wired with microphones, a vintage suitcase recast as a kick drum, an old Estey field organ, a pre-war parlor guitar, a mandocello and all of its smaller siblings, a harmonica case fire damaged when Jack’s bar went up in flames and graffitied by Depeche Mode roadies, and an assortment of other instruments that get passed around as the quintet trades off lead vocals and shares songwriting credits in this freewheeling modern hootenanny. The anything-could-happen feel of a Session Americana show depends on craft that’s not accidental or easily won; they bring a kind of ease and genuineness to this timeless music, sometimes presenting the latest batch of original songs, sometimes reaching back into depths of the American “song bag.” Eleanor Buckland has been one-third of  the Boston-based folk/rock trio Lula Wiles since 2014.

Can’t Impeach-Prosecute Joe Biden For Illegally Continuing to Supply Bombs Dropped on Homes in Gaza

by jay janson | Activism, Op/Ed

Biden has been guilty of breaking a U.S. law against providing U.S. weapons to a nation using them against a civilian population as Israel has been doing openly for five months.

“When the President of the United States becomes aware of the possibility of violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), the law mandates specific actions:

Prompt Notification to Congress: The President is required to promptly notify Congress about the potential violations.”

Construction Update Brattleboro-Hinsdale Bridge – March 28, 2024

by Not Signed In | Hinsdale

The contractor’s crews have been accessing the Vermont Abutment off of Vermont Route 142 and will continue to access this location next week. No traffic impacts are anticipated, but motorists are advised to watch for vehicles, including concrete trucks, entering and exiting the construction site.

Delivery of steel girders to Pier 1 is scheduled for Tuesday through Thursday, April 9th, 10th, and 11th, and Monday, April 15th.

Viado Promoted to Co-Director of Youth Services’ Restorative Justice Programs

by Nanci Leitch | Living

Brattleboro, VT–Cassandra “Kaci” Viado plays a key role in Youth Services’ mission to build resilience and be a catalyst for change as the new Co-Director of the agency’s Restorative Justice Programs.

Promoted from her position as the Restorative Panel and Pre-Charge Programs Coordinator for the last 18 months, Viado is well-versed in working with volunteers, participants, harmed parties, and facilitating restorative justice panels. In that capacity, Viado attended one-on-one meetings for over 100 cases annually, collaborated with local law enforcement, Probation and Parole, and the States Attorney’s Office.

In her new role, Viado manages five restorative justice-based programs for youth and adults in Windham County: Pretrial Services, Court Diversion, Driving with License Suspended, a diversion-based program for substance use and/or mental health needs called Tamarack and the Youth Substance Awareness Safety Program, which emphasizes healthy choices over punishment.

aBrattleboro

by AnneODyne | Home & Garden

Writing from outside and away from the area now, not quite self-imposed exile but with the place in the rear view mirror.  What comes to mind; ghost roads, places only inhabited in memory, a distilled distance.  A somewhat heavy thing to have a home and then not live in it. Circumstances, fate, who knows what controls our comings and goings?

Clearly space and time are connected as being far away throws spectral light on long years of residence. People, snippets of conversation, smell of certain hallways, the bank of various turns, particular potholes… funny what’s recalled of its own accord.