Private Brattleboro Selectboard Communictions During Public Meetings

by cgrotke | Op/Ed

Some members of the Brattleboro Selectboard appear to be having private communications during public meetings.

On a few recent occasions, some Selectboard members have looked at their phones, read some form of communication to them, and have made comments about it. Just the other night, Daniel Quipp said that Tim Wessel had texted him.  Until that point, no one knew that Wessel was a participant. He had been presented to the room as absent.

Brattleboro Selectboard Special Meeting Nov 12, 2019 – Agenda and Notes

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, November 12, 2019, in the Selectboard Meeting Room at the Municipal Center.  It is anticipated that the Board will enter into executive session at 5:30pm to discusspending or probable civil litigation or a prosecution to which the public body is or may be a party  The Board will reconvene at 6:15pm for the business meeting.  ASL interpreters will be available for deaf and hard-of-hearing community members.

Brattleboro, Dummerston, Guilford, and Putney Citizens Invited to Information Sessions About the Proposed Amendments to the WSESD Articles of Agreement

by Not Signed In | Education

The Windham Southeast School District (“WSESD”) school board will hold information sessions on November 13th and November 14th to answer questions about the ballot for the proposed amendments to the Articles of Agreement. Election Day is Tuesday, November 19th, 2019. Early voting has already begun.

The Wednesday, November 13th information session will be held at Dummerston School at 6 p.m. Dummerston School is located at 52 School House Road, just off Route 5, in East Dummerston.

Preparing for Widowhood Topic of Program

by hwachtel | Education

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. – With the average life expectancy of women longer than that of men, the Brattleboro branch of the American Association of University Women is offering a discussion session on Preparing for Widowhood Friday, Dec. 6 at noon.

The free session will be held in the community room at The Brattleboro Savings and Loan Association at 221 Main Street and includes lunch.

Participating and offering guidance are Jean Giddings, attorney at law; Toni Ciampaglione, financial advisor at Park Place Financial Planners; and Theresa Masiello, vice-president and senior retail officer at BS& L.

Can We Get Behind Hemp Yet?

by Matt | Economics

Close your eyes and imagine a wealthy Vermont. A Vermont with many high-paying jobs, exports, environmentally friendly manufacturing. Now open your eyes and look at the opportunity that is staring us in the face, hemp.

What are the barriers preventing the return to hemp products in the US and more specifically VT? Can we possibly overcome these barriers? The answer is yes.

Too Big To Fail?

by RDavis | Health

Three years ago Vermont started an experiment to try to improve the quality of health care and to lower costs. A for-profit entity called One Care was created and, from the start, the organization’s complexity and lack of transparency has been an issue.

Those problems surfaced in a recent public hearing before the Green Mountain Care Board, the entity that has regulatory control over One Care. One Care is proposing a budget of $1.43 billion. Those funds come from insurers such as Medicare and Medicaid and private insurers and are then funneled directly to hospitals and providers.

Brattleboro Taxes & Utilities Due

by Not Signed In | Town News

The second installment of the 2019 Real Estate and Personal Property Taxes will be due on November 15th, 2019 by 5:00 PM.  Payments made after November 15th, 2019 will have an additional 1% interest added to the unpaid balance.

The utility billing is also due on November 15th, 2019 by 5:00 PM. Payments made after November 15th, 2019 will have an additional 1% interest, as well as an 8% penalty added to the unpaid balance.

Marlboro College Merging With Emerson College

by cgrotke | Education

VT Digger is reporting that Marlboro College will be giving its campus and endowment to Emerson College of Boston.

“Under a tentative agreement, Marlboro leaders say the school’s roughly $30 million endowment and $10 million in land and buildings will endow Emerson’s Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies program, which will be renamed the Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies at Emerson College. “

Camino Pilgrimage Path Across Spain is Topic of Library Presentation

by Not Signed In | Travel

The experience of walking Spain’s thousand-year-old pilgrimage trail will be the focus of a talk and slideshow at Brattleboro’s Books Memorial Library on November 12, 2019, at 7:00 pm. The library is at 224 Main Street in Brattleboro, VT.

The slideshow and discussion will be led by Betsy Bates, Cicely Carroll, and Bob Lawson of Dummerston and Putney.

Selectboard Meeting Notes – Agenda Placed On Next Agenda

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard nov 5 2019

The Brattleboro Selectboard started their meeting a bit late and ended it quite early, with a rare move of taking nearly everything major off of the agenda and moving it to next week. The reason? Two absent board members.

Almost the entire agenda will be added to next week’s agenda, making next week’s special meeting a whopper.

Songs For Our Times: Concert this Sunday!

by Ruthie | Music

This coming Sunday, 3:00 pm, at 118 Elliot!

Directed by Lisa McCormick, the Southern Vermont Ukulele Ensemble (30+ members!) presents a concert of songs promoting Care of the Planet, Community-building, Welcome, Justice, and Peace.

Audience sing-alongs will be encouraged. All are welcome. Venue is accessible.

Brattleboro Veterans’ Day Closures

by Not Signed In | Town News

 In observance of Veterans’ Day, all Brattleboro Town Offices will be closed on Monday, November 11, 2019, with the exception of emergency services. 

Parking is free at all metered spaces and in the pay-and-display lots on Sunday and Monday, November 10 and 11. All other violations will be enforced. 

State Leadership for Clean Energy Development Has Become Increasingly Important Since 2015

by Not Signed In | Sci-Tech

Montpelier, VT (November 5, 2019) — Returning Champions: State Clean Energy Leadership Since 2015, a new report from the Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA), highlights the essential role that states are playing to develop and implement effective policies and programs. The report describes the range of strategies and initiatives that states are using to grow clean energy markets, and it provides readers with a concise overview of clean energy trends at the state level.

The report’s four thematic chapters emphasize the most important issues that the states have been focusing on over the past few years:

$2.6 Million Initiative Calls for Proposals to Support New Markets for Wood Products

by Not Signed In | Business

CONCORD, NH — The Future Forest Economy Initiative is looking for new ideas, products and markets to increase demand for wood across the northern New England and New York. The deadline for concepts to considered in the first round of funding in 2020 is Dec. 2, 2019. 

The initiative — a cooperative effort of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), U.S. Endowment for Forestry & Communities, and the Northern Forest Center — grew out of a congressional mandate to support the development of markets for wood products. Over the next three years, the Initiative cooperators will invest $2.6 million in sub-grants to expand innovation, create market demand and create conditions that will allow businesses and communities to benefit from these innovations. 

Putney Bridge Deck Replacement Public Meeting

by Not Signed In | Putney

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) will hold a public information meeting on Thursday, November 14, 2019 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Putney Fire Station, 21 Carl Snyder Drive, Putney. The purpose is to discuss a project that will replace the deck of the US Route 5 bridge in Putney Center at the intersection of Kimball Hill Road. Construction will start in Spring 2020.

The existing structure is a single span cast-in-place deck on rolled beams constructed in 1954. The bridge is owned and maintained by the State of Vermont. VTrans bridge inspectors have observed areas of heavy saturation, cracking, and evidence of significant concrete deterioration. VTrans engineers determined that the most cost effective and viable approach to address deterioration of the aging bridge deck is to replace it.

BCTV Schedules Week of 11/4/19

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV Channel 8 schedule for the week of 11/4/19

Monday, November 4, 2019

5:00 am Poets Speak – Conversations with VT Poet Laureate Chard deNiord – GennaRose Nethercott
5:45 am Built to Last – Built to Last
6:00 am Bear Pond Books Events – “Bombers Moon” with Archer Mayor
7:12 am BCTV Highlights – Community Media Day 2019
7:15 am Juno Orchestra – Juno Orchestra 9/8/19