Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will begin working to identify and promote an explanation for their public position against proposed Charter changing amendments at their next regular Tuesday meeting at the Muncipal Center.

The board will also approve grants and funds for a radio repeater, sidewalk repair, and “highway safety equipment,” learn more about VT Alert from the Fire Department, consider giving out three more licenses for liquor samples for a tasting and sampling event at the River Garden, and more.

Watch it all on BCTV, or better yet, attend in person and participate. You can read all about it here the next day.

The Brattleboro Energy Committee will meet on Monday, February 2, 2015 at 5:00pm in the Hanna Cosman meeting room at the Municipal Center.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

NOTICE is hereby given that the Brattleboro Town and Town School District Auditors’ Reports for fiscal year ending June 30, 2014, are available upon request and may be picked up at the Brattleboro Town Clerk’s office, 230 Main Street, Brattleboro, Vermont.

The Auditors’ Reports will also be available as part of the Town and School District Annual Report which will be available at the Town Clerk’s office no later than February 20, 2015.

Based on vote at Representative Town Meeting, March 20, 2010, the Town will no longer mail the Auditors’ Reports to all voters of the Town.

The estate of Brattleboro resident Ronald James Read, who passed away in June 2014, has notified the Brooks Memorial Library of a bequest. The unrestricted gift will increase the library’s current endowment fund by over $1.2M.

“The staff, Friends of the Library, volunteers and board are delighted at this great news,” noted Jerry Goldberg, President of the Board of Trustees. “Mr. Read’s bequest, by far the largest since that made by George J. Brooks in 1886, is a legacy that is far reaching. It will help to guarantee the future viability and sustainability of Brattleboro’s public library, an institution much respected by Mr. Read. It is, indeed, his gift to the entire Greater Brattleboro community.”

It was a special meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard, so we’ll have a special form of coverage – a quick version:

– No one appears to be running against incumbent Selectboard members, as was also the case last year.

– $7,000 of BMAC repair and maintenance costs were added back in to the budget for FY16.

– The FY16 general municipal budget was approved for presentation to Representative Town Meeting. It comes to a request for $15,721,494, or a 2% increase in property tax.

I was the victim of that accident. I payed attention to my surroundings on both sides, and was in a crosswalk. I was fully sober, as I am now. I have been in recovery and AA for over a month now. I was struck by the car on the outside of my left leg, so I had definitely already gotten through the close lane (with a car, its headlights on, waiting) or else I was hit by a car crossing lanes.

I imagine the police must have identified the driver by now, as there was busy traffic leading down to the triangle and an officer was on site rapidly. My mom and uncle were speaking to an officer not far away when the accident occurred, and he naturally rushed to the scene. I was told by an officer at the hospital that the driver had been a man in his 80s who had simply not seen me.

Traffic has stopped on I-91 Northbound between Exits 2 and 3 as the result of a traffic accident in the work zone. Emergency personnel are responding and traffic will be cleared asap.

Cindy Cook
Principal, Adamant Accord, Inc.

On Monday, February 9th at 5:00 PM all West Brattleboro businesses are invited to discuss business and economic development ideas with Brattleboro and Windham County development organizations.  Representatives will be present from Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation, Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce, Windham Regional Commission and the Town of Brattleboro.

The meeting will take place in the central conference room at the 55 Marlboro Road building and is being organized by the West Brattleboro Association.  (55 Marlboro Rd. is the long building with Central Appliance at its right corner.  Use the central front door and head to the back.)

The Brattleboro Pay-As-You-Throw Advisory Committee/Working Group will meet on Wednesday, January 28, 2015 at 6:00pm in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Thursday, January 29, 2015 at 5:15pm in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

….

The Citizen Police Communications Committee (CPCC) meeting previously scheduled for today has been cancelled due to the anticipated storm.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

Many residents in the Brattleboro area are currently receiving mailings from HomeServe USA Repair Management Corp in regard to water service line responsibility. HomeServe is an independent company that offers residential repair coverage plans and is not affiliated with the local utility that supplies water to residents. This mailing is a solicitation to purchase insurance from HomeServe and is not associated with any utilities furnished by the Town of Brattleboro Water Department.

The following Brattleboro committee and board meetings previously scheduled for Tuesday, January 27 are CANCELLED due to the anticipated storm:

Traffic Safety Committee

Conservation Committee

Board of Civil Authority

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

The Brattleboro Citizen Police Communications Committee (CPCC) will meet on Monday, January 26, 2015 at 5:30pm at the Brooks Memorial Library in the community room.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

The Brattleboro Traffic Safety Committee will meet on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 at 8:30am in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

Brattleboro’s new town manager, Peter Elwell, was front and center for his first official meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard. He was quiet for most of the meeting, but had a few strong words about dipping into the Unassigned Fund Balance for non-emergencies.

The future of the Committee of the Future was called into question by the director of Planning Services, a first public hearing was held on a series of proposed changes to the Town Charter, the skatepark committee has a new location to study for feasibility, and a wide array of budget matters were deferred for action at a special meeting of the Selectboard scheduled for January 29th at 5:15 pm.

Tonight’s Shareholder Forum is POSTPONED until next Sunday, January 25th, from 5-7pm. 

Five different vendors of alcohol will ask for special event permits for a single night of samples, at the next regular Tuesday meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard.

The board will consider a contract and loan to finish off the Black Mountain Gravity Sewer line, consider more items for inclusion on the Representative Town Meeting warning, will hear of revisions to plans for locating the skatepark, and will again offer time for the public to speak to issues of the FY16 budget before it is approved by the board.

Brattleboro’s new Town Manager may also make an appearance, being the first day on the job.

The Brattleboro Pay-As-You-Throw Advisory Committee/Working Group will meet on Wednesday, January 21, 2015 at 5:00pm in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

“Breakfast with Brattleboro’s Chief of Police”

The next “Brattleboro Citizens’ Breakfast” is planned for Friday, January 23, 2015 at the Gibson Aiken Center, downstairs, hosted by Senior Meals. Doors open at 7:30am.

Michael Fitzgerald was appointed Brattleboro’s Chief of  Police in September 2014. Hired as a patrol officer by the former Chief Richard Guthrie, he rose to the rank of Captain in eight years. In the light of current strained relationships between the police and the community in various cities, Chief Fitzgerald  will share with us what the Brattleboro Police Department has done and what it would like to do in the future in the area of community relations.