Selectboard Meeting Notes – Really Big Numbers and Dangerous Animals

by cgrotke | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard reviewed a variety of bond options in anticipation of a special Representative Town Meeting deciding the future of Brattleboro’s police facility. No decision was made, but the total cost of 20, 25, and 30 year bonds (including interest payments and funds already borrowed) was provided for comparison.

The board also held a first reading on changes to ordinances that will impact pets and their owners in town. One which may be of particular interest to readers here (hi Zippy) is that police will be able to rescue dogs from hot cars. Other changes include new rules for “dangerous” animals and more clarity in the rules and appeals process.

Brattleboro Early/Absentee Ballots, Voter Registration and Town Clerk Hours

by Not Signed In | Politics

Early/absentee ballots for the Presidential Primary and Annual Town and Town School District election to be held on March 1, are now available in the Brattleboro town clerk’s office. Anyone wishing to vote prior to March 1, may apply for an early/absentee ballot until 5:00 p.m. on Monday, February 29.

Early/absentee ballots may be voted in person in the clerk’s office, mailed to the voter by the clerk’s office, picked up by the voter or delivered to the voter’s residence by two justices of the peace. All voted ballots must be received by the clerk before the polls close on election day in order to be counted. Early/absentee ballots remain sealed until election day. Absentee ballot envelopes are opened at the polling place and ballots are processed through vote tabulators in the same manner as those voted in person that day. For more information or to request an early/absentee ballot call 251-8157.

Tech Help at Brooks Library

by Brooks Memorial Library | Sci-Tech

Tech Help is available at Brooks Memorial Library! Cal books half-hour appointments on Mondays between 3-5:00 and 5-6:00.

To book time, contact Cal at (802) 254-5290 x104 or cal@brookslibraryvt.org.

Tech Help with Cal is available every Monday when the library is open. Please note that Brooks Memorial Library is CLOSED for Presidents’ Day on Monday 15 February 2016.

Mexican-Americans: Experience & Identity – A Reading-Discussion Series at Brooks Memorial Library

by Brooks Memorial Library | Books

Brooks Memorial Library continues its Vermont Humanities Council program on Latino-Americans with a reading and discussion series ‘Mexican Americans: Experience and Identity.” The series will deal with the experiences of Mexicans living in the United States, from the struggles of migrant farmworkers and day laborers in California to coming of age stories of Chicanos as U.S. citizens. Books are available for checkout at the main circulation desk. Remaining books in the series are: February 17, (Under the Feet of Jesus); March 16, (The Tortilla Curtain); April 20, (Days of Obligation)

Facilitated by Patricia Pedroza Gonzalez Ph.D. who teaches at Keene State College at Keene, NH., Dr. Gonzalez’s international expertise has shaped her research experience and her current teaching involves Chicana/U.S. Latina, and Latin-American Studies, American Studies, Feminisms by Women of Color, and Transnational Education. Her research focus is on politics of knowledge construction and social identities. She is the current Chair of Women’s and Gender Studies Department at Keene State College.

First Wednesday Lecture Series : Allen Koop The History of Health Care in the US

by Brooks Memorial Library | History

Dartmouth professor Allen Koop will discuss the history of America’s troubled, promising, and unique health care system in a talk at Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro on February 3 at 7 pm. His talk, “The History of Health Care in the US,” is part of the Vermont Humanities Council’s First Wednesdays lecture series and is free and open to the public. Koop will discuss how America’s health care system has been shaped not only by developments in medicine but also by social forces, economics, politics, and historical surprises.

Koop graduated from Dartmouth College and then earned his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania. He teaches courses in the History Department at Dartmouth College, primarily on 20th century European history and on the American health care system.

Citizen Media in the Ukraine

by cgrotke | iBrattleboro

iBrattleboro.com remains one of the longest-running citizen-powered news and information sites out there, and we continue to be contacted from people around the country and around the world who are interested in doing similar projects where they live. As I noted a week or so ago, we’ve recently answered questions for someone in a small town in Queensland, Australia, and have been interviewed by hyperlocal activists in the Ukraine.

You might be interested in the Ukrainian project. Yurii Antoshchuk, head of a community media foundation there, got in touch to ask us some questions for publication in Russian and English. We answered their questions, but also asked them about what they were doing there.

Our Senator Went To Iowa and We Got A Tie

by cgrotke | Politics

So, Iowa speaks. Clinton by a hair, and Trump loses to Cruz with Rubio nipping at his heels.

Vermont’s own Bernie Sanders had a good night, coming within less than half a percentage point with Clinton. Basically, a tie. As one commenter somewhere on the Internet pointed out – Sanders was foiled again by the 1%.

Huckabee, O’Malley, and probably a few others soon, will be bowing out of consideration.

On to our neighbors in New Hampshire.

Stroll Presents “Love Local” at the River Garden, Friday Night during Gallery Walk

by MartinLangeveld | Entertainment

Please join us at the River Garden during Gallery Walk on Friday, Feb. 5 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. for “Love Local” — an evening of music, art, and celebration of all things local.

Representatives of a variety of area non-profits will be exhibiting — discover what the organizations do, how to obtain services from them, how to participate in their programs, and how to volunteer.

Local singer-songwriter-pianist Hannah Hoffman will be entertaining with her unique vocal style, “an edgy soulfulness reminiscent of Janis Joplin meets songbird.”

Brattleboro Selectboard 2015 Town Report

by Not Signed In | Town News

Brattleboro’s Selectboard continued its busy schedule in 2015, convening 39 meetings and focusing on a wide range of projects. Following 1½ years with an interim Town Manager at the helm, 2015 marked the beginning of the tenure of Town Manager Peter Elwell, who transitioned effectively into the Town Manager’s role in January 2015 and has been dedicating himself tirelessly to ensure that the work needed to provide services in Brattleboro is being handled in a professional and efficient manner.

Adoption of new land use regulations is a significant landmark in the life of a town, and Selectboard participated in and developed a comprehensive, inclusive, and transparent process that led to adoption of Brattleboro’s new Zoning and Subdivision regulations in November 2015. This project spanned multiple years and relied on countless hours spent by members of the Planning Department and Planning Commission. It was supported by grant and taxpayer funding, drew on significant work with an outside consultant, and was strengthened by broad input from diverse members of the community. Multiple public meetings and hearings provided extensive information to the public about the new Ordinance. Our new Land Use Regulations should provide the foundation for continued and orderly land use and development that serves the public interest and the public good in Brattleboro during the next generation.

A Weird Winter

by cgrotke | Nature

This has been a weird winter. We saw a few snow flakes in October, a bit of snow around the end of December and early January, then almost nothing. Relatives down south are still digging out, though, from their big snow storm.

The temperatures have been relatively mild. As I type it is about 40 degrees out. What little snow was there is turning to water and evaporating.

BCTV Schedules For The Week Of 2/1/2016

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV channel 8 schedule for the week of 2/1/16

Monday, February 1, 2016

12:00 am Expanding Educational Opportunities During Tough Economic Times

1:30 am Bennington Marijuana Forum: A Public Discussion on the Topic of Marijuana 1/18/16

3:00 am Racial Profiling – A Community Response

5:00 am The Root: Mass Incarceration and Vermont: 1/17/15 Forum

6:14 am SAFSTOR: 1/26/16 – Joe Lynch

5:45 Live: 1/29/16

by BrattleboroTV | Media

Get footage from the Townshend Gazebo crash, the latest figures on the VT Yankee Decommissioning Trust Fund, a fraud case spanning from Utah to Brattleboro, and much much more.

Weekend Creativity Series – Star Wars Special Effects

by cgrotke | Creative

This week we take a look at special effects for motion pictures, using the recent Star Wars release as our example.

One of the big lessons of media literacy is that things are not always what they appear. That is, anything can be convincingly faked, and what you think you are looking at may not exist. National Geographic famously moved pyramids to new locations to make a better cover photo, and some news outlets have erased people from images or coverage of events.

So, it is important to know that we are being fooled, and fooled often. Knowing this doesn’t take the fun away when the tricks are used to entertain, but it should help sharpen critical viewing skills.

Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda & Notes – February 2, 2016

by cgrotke | Town News

Police and Fire facilities debt, scheduling of special meetings and informational sessions, an ordinance change for animals and fowl, and committee adjustments will be before the Brattleboro Selectboard at their next regular Tuesday meeting. You can attend in person and participate!

Watch on BCTV and discuss it here after it’s over.

Japanese or Asian Language Groups Around Brattleboro?

by BusyMom | Questions & Answers

Are there any groups in this area who get together to talk in Japanese?  I know there’s a Spanish group, so it occurred to me there might be an Asian group of some sort.  On behalf of a college-age relative who is extremely into Japanese (incuding anime, manga, foods), so I’m looking for possible social outlets.

Youth Services RAMP Program Seeks High School Participants for Career Mentoring

by Not Signed In | Education

As students get into high gear during their second semester, Youth Services Workforce Development staff are busy seeking referrals of youth, ages 13-17, in need of extra support and career mentoring at Brattleboro Union High School and Bellows Falls Union High.

Now in its fifth year, Youth Services’ Ready-to-Achieve Mentoring Program (RAMP) meets once a week after school to connect students with professionals for career-focused mentoring and to encourage them to remain in school. Adult mentors join students on site tours to businesses and colleges, serve on occasion as guest speakers, and help participants work on their personal career plans, according to Susan Lawson-Kelleher, the organization’s Workforce Development Coordinator.