West Brattleboro Association: Non-profit Status Plus Village Revitalization – Thursday, Nov 13

The next monthly meeting of the West Brattleboro Association (WBA) will be held at the New England House
on Thursday, November 13th at 6:00 PM. The meeting will start with a review of the treasury and other ongoing items such as progress on the planned welcome signs for the village and whether to continue to pursue Vermont non-profit status. The group will also discuss how much to spend for the holiday party at the New England House on Thursday, December 11 at 6:00 (held in lieu of the regular December business meeting), and will discuss holiday lights and where they might go in the village.


Brattleboro Veterans’ Day Schedule

In observance of Veterans’ Day, all Brattleboro town offices will be closed on Tuesday, November 11, 2014, with the exception of emergency services.

Parking is free at all metered spaces and in the pay-and-display lots on Tuesday, November 11. All other violations, including extended parking, will be enforced.


Selectboard Meeting Notes: The Gartenstein School of Budget Realities

The Election Day edition of the Selectboard meeting was held in the studios of BCTV, one floor up from the polling stations that had taken over their regular meeting space. The board pressed on in their atypical surroundings, covering budgets, staffing, and development.

The budget discussion began with an optimistic sounding 1 cent increase, but then covered future FY16 financial issues, such as the cost shifting of garbage pickup. the need for new police and fire vehicles in addition to new facilities, and the possibility of cutting back on library or recreational services. By the end, budget reality had set in, and the selectboard was again looking to citizens for advice on hard decisions.

Five buildings in town may get an overhaul, you can have beer or wine with your pizza, and whispers of outsourcing aspects of the DPW rounded out the evening.


Cohen Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies Director to Speak

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. – The work of the Cohen Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies is the topic of a talk by the center’s director, Dr. Henry “Hank” Knight, Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. at the West Village Meeting House.

Located at Keene State College, the center was founded in 1983 by Dr. Charles Hildebrandt and is devoted to the memory and study of the Holocaust and genocide.

The program is co-sponsored by the Brattleboro branch of the American Association of University Women, the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community and All Souls Unitarian/Universalist Church.


Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda and Notes – November 4, 2014

Tuesday night is election night, but the Brattleboro Selectboard will be devoting their evening energy to their regular Tuesday meeting. The meeting will be held in the BCTV studios on the third floor of the Municipal Center (elevator available).

Rather routine business on the agenda, including staffing level reviews of the Police and Public Works departments, some discussion of the FY16 budget, a liquor license for House of Pizza on Canal Street, and a hearing about plans to do some major building rehabilitation at five of the Windham & Windsor Housing Trust properties in town.

You can bring up other items not on the agenda during Public Participation, and add your wisdom to the conversation in general. Watch on BCTV, and read the details here the next day.


Brattleboro Energy Committee Meeting and Agenda

The Brattleboro Energy Committee will meet on Monday, November 3, 2014 at 5:00pm in the Hanna Cosman meeting room at the Municipal Center. Attached is the second revised agenda.

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


Car Crash On Route 30 Under 91 Bridge. No Official Report Released Yet

Cars were diverted from route 30 today, due to an accident that occurred close to the construction project near the 91 overpass. My boy and I saw the black cadillac that was severely damaged,on the back of a tow truck. We asked the tow truck driver what happened to the car, and he replied that the car struck the ledge near the bridge. The top of the car was basically shredded and looked like it may have been travelling at a high rate of speed. Of course, a ledge is an unforgiving and immovable object, so maybe high speed was not a factor.


Brattleboro Arts Committee Meeting Agenda

The Brattleboro Arts Committee will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, October 28, 2014 at 4:00pm in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center.

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


VY Siren Test November 1st

On Saturday, November 1, 2014 the VT Yankee Nuclear Power Plant will be conducting the annual test of the warning sirens in all EPZ towns in Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

The sirens will be activated at 12 noon and will sound for a full three (3) minutes.

Please direct any questions to Mark Gilmore, VT Yankee at 802-258-4168.

-Town Manager’s Office


Peter Elwell – Brattleboro’s New Town Manager

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. And then try one more time.

Such was the unintentional but rewarding path the Brattleboro Selectboard embarked upon almost 16 months ago in a search for a new Town Manager. Along the way, multiple searches were undertaken as selected candidates declined to take the offered position.

The searching has come to an end with a signed contract between the Town of Brattleboro and Peter Elwell, the current Town Manager of Palm Beach, FL being executed Thursday evening by the Selectboard.

Selectboard Chair David Gartenstein said that Elwell has the experience, perspective, vision, and attention to detail that the job requires. Elwell was in town for interviews last Friday and Monday.