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Brattleboro Selectboard – Agenda and Notes, June 16, 2020

by cgrotke | Town News

Brattleboro utility rates will be going up at the next virtual meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard. New water and sewer rates, the parking and general fund budgets, and salary increases will be approved.

The Town Manager will give a COVID-19 update, Brattleboro will consider joining a communications district, the Municipal Center renovations will inch forward, and more. You can bring up other items not on the agenda, of course, during public participations. 

Brattleboro Traffic Safety Committee Virtual Meeting Agenda

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro Traffic Safety Committee will meet on Tuesday, June 18, 2020 at 8:00am via GoToMeeting.  In keeping with Governor Scott’s “Stay Home – Stay Safe” order, this meeting will be held with no physical location using GoToMeeting.  A copy of the agenda is attached and it contains information about how to access the meeting remotely.  

Jan Anderson

Executive Secretary

Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office

Searching for Woodstock 1969

by melevav | History

(The following story was written last year to share with many that were remembering the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock. Niflaah and I went to the 30th anniversary held at the Griffiths Air Force base in Rome, NY. The 30th ended in a riot as prices were very high, numbers of portable toilets were unsufficient, hot shade and no shade on an airforce base. Today the search continues as we all want to escape the crumbling societies of today 2020.)

Library Books Are Quarantined at Brooks Memorial Library!

by Brooks Memorial Library | Books

Dear Library Community,

If anyone has been wondering why items are still showing up on their account after returning them to the Big Blue Book Drop, here is why

Don’t worry, we no longer charge any fines. they may accrue, but we delete them as soon as the item comes back to us!

Step 1: items are returned in the Big Blue Book Drop in the Municipal Parking Lot.

Re: George Floyd

by tomaidh | Op/Ed

Recently, the Chief of Police wrote a letter to the people of Brattleboro, referencing the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.

He mentioned that the police have a professional duty to protect and serve everyone in the community with dignity and respect. He also related that “We have made de-escalation tactics a priority in use of force trainings. Once the resistance stops or the situation is under control, the tactics need to evolve with the situation.”

Sounds good,

It was not always that way here in Brattleboro.

Brattleboro COVID-19 Update 6/11/20 – What’s New

by Not Signed In | Town News

TODAY’S NEW INFORMATION + IMPORTANT REMINDER 

• Police Chief Michael Fitzgerald will hold a community forum on The Common on Wednesday, June 17, at 5:30pm, to discuss policing in Brattleboro and beyond. If this forum can’t be held on June 17 because of rain, then it will be held the next evening on Thursday, June 18, at 5:30. 

• Brooks Memorial Library is providing limited delivery service of materials to Brattleboro residents who are unable to come to the library, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, noon-1pm.

Next Steps

by RDavis | Activism

American protestors have forced the world to examine racism and the issues that contribute to it. It is a monumental milestone in American history but these protests, fueled by the death of George Floyd, will hopefully be the opening round of the battle for systemic social reform that has been needed in this country for too many decades.

The length and breadth of the protests show that there are significant numbers of Americans who are willing to use their voices to promote short and long-term change. The big question hanging over all of this is whether or not politicians and policymakers will listen thoughtfully and work to implement meaningful systemic change.

Baby Robins – From Egg to Fledgling

by cgrotke | Nature

In addition to the baby foxes this spring, we were treated to a robin’s nest outside of our dining room window. An enterprising pair of robins built a really great nest in the rhododendron bush, and three blue eggs were sat upon by mom.

I got a bit of video every day, from egg to feathered baby robins leaving the nest.

100+ Vehicle Caravan Pickets For Job Security & New Deal in Burlington – Solidarity With Black Lives Matter

by David Van Deusen | Politics

June, 2020, Burlington, Vermont – On Tuesday June 9 in Burlington, 45 Vermont Labor Unions and allied organizations answered the call issued by AFSCME Local 1343 to picket for job security and a New Deal economic recovery. In a powerful display of progressive Labor unity AFSCME City workers, led by Local President Damion Gilbert and Vice President Jesse Greeno, insisted that the Mayor guarantee that workers and public services come first during these hard times. 1343 further urged the City Council to support a charter change to allow for a wealth tax on the richest residents to better fund public services, and that if cuts need to be made that they come from Police Department equipment & brass and by way of cutting high paid political appointee positions.

United Way of Windham County Ceases All 2020 VITA Services

by Ruben Garza | Town News

The United Way of Windham County ceases all 2020 Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) services. In spite of the newly relaxed restrictions on businesses and social distancing and the new tax filing deadline of July 15, 2020, United Way of Windham County will not be able to reengage its VITA programming. For alternative methods of preparing your 2019 income taxes you can visit these online services: https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free and https://www.myfreetaxes.com/.

Brattleboro COVID-19 Update – June 10, 2020

by Not Signed In | Town News

 TODAY’S NEW INFORMATION + IMPORTANT REMINDER 

• Reminder: A second State-organized food distribution will be held in Brattleboro tomorrow, June 11, from 10am to 2pm. This time, you must pre-register to be able to receive food. (This helps the organizers better plan for both the amount of food to distribute and the safety and efficiency of the distribution process.) Appointments are clustered every 15 minutes. As with last time, no personally identifying or financial questions will be asked. Please use this link to register: https://humanresources.vermont.gov/food-help. 

• On June 15, the softball fields at Living Memorial Park and West River Park will reopen for team practices. Use is limited to one team at a time and a maximum of 25 people. No games or scrimmages. A list of other limitations on this use has been distributed by the Recreation and Parks Department to the organizers of local softball leagues. 

Avoiding Amazon

by cgrotke | Home & Garden

With an uptick in online ordering, I’ve had to work a bit harder to avoid using Amazon. Jeff Bezos doesn’t need any of my money, and just about everyone else does, so I make the effort.

Search engines conspire against this quest. Search for almost anything and the top results, plural, are Amazon. It’s annoying.

When I use it at all, I use Amazon as a free product research tool. I’ll look at product specs, manuals, reviews, Q&As… and then go somewhere else to buy it.

Cris Ericson Is On The 2020 Progressive Party Primary Election Ballot. Please Watch Her Home Kitchen Video!

by CrisEricson2016 | Politics

Cris Ericson, previously an independent and U.S. Marijuana Party candidate, is now a 2020 Progressive Party candidate for the Vermont primary election August 11, 2020. Absentee ballts are being sent out as early as the last week of this month, June 2020. Candidates have to use new ways to communicate with Vermont voters!

Cris Ericson is also happy to announce that she sees Emily Peyton as a Republican this time, and Boots Wardinski on the 2020 primary election ballot running against Cris Ericson for Governor of Vermont on the Progressive Party 2020 primary election ballot. Good candidates are not defeated because they lose in the past, they just run again! We are like sports teams that lose and lose and never give up and then surprise, surprise, we will win, hopefully in 2020!

BCTV Schedules – Week of June 8, 2020

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV Channel 8 / 1075 schedule for the week of 6/8/20

Monday, June 8, 2020

4:08 am Black River Connections – Bug Hunting
4:20 am The Rhema Word – Explosions of Truth
5:10 am Doing Life – 190 – Pentecost Expectation of Power
6:00 am All Things LGBTQ – News & Interview with Debbie Ingram

Brattleboro Area Food Deliveries For Those That Need Help

by LisaL | Food

Amazing! The Brattleboro VFW and Brattleboro Elks have taken in more than $6000 for our food drive and delivery program since we started. We are still taking names for those that need a little help during these trying times. If you need groceries, please call 802-257-0438 and leave your contact information so our Quartermaster Lisa Lofting can get back to you.

This includes the Brattleboro, Guilford, Putney, Vernon and Dummerston areas.

Brattleboro VFW is Opening!

by LisaL | Health

Good news!! The Brattleboro VFW at 40 Black Mountain Road is scheduled to open Monday, June 15th. Our new hours will be Mon-Fri from 11am-7pm. Sat & Sun from 1pm-7pm. Yes, we will be serving lunches Mon-Fri from 11:30 am – 1:30 pm, with doors opening at 11 am. There will be slight price increases at this time, with prices subject to change. Our lunch specials will now be $7. Lunches will be served on our hall side due to social distancing restrictions. Entrance will be through the glass doors, and the public is welcome to lunches. Hand made burgers, fries, chicken wings, chicken fingers, etc. are still available. Watch our Facebook page for changes and updates (Vfw Post 1034, Carl Dessaint, Brattleboro, Vt)

Brattleboro’s Police Budget

by cgrotke | Police & Fire

There is a current call across the nation to defund the police and to use that money for other things such as human services or education:

“Community groups advocating for defunding have put forward differing strategies, some merely opposing police budget increases, others advocating mass reductions, and some fighting for full defunding as a step toward abolishing police forces. Some initiatives are tied to the fight to close prisons. All are pushing for a reinvestment of those dollars in services.”

What does Brattleboro’s police budget look like?

VT Governor Scott – Limited Seating at Restaurants Allowed and New Travel Rules

by Not Signed In | State News

Montpelier, Vt. – As state data and expanded testing and tracing capacity continue to support reopening, Governor Phil Scott today announced the resumption of limited indoor seating at restaurants and bars and a data-driven approach to allow travel to and from designated areas without a 14-day quarantine requirement.

“One of the many things that Vermont is so well known for is our great local food and craft brews, so I know how important this sector is to our economy,” said Governor Scott. “I know we still have a very long way to go to help our restaurants get back on their feet but we’ve got to start somewhere and we’ll be able to build on this progress if our numbers continue to move in the right direction.”