RTM

Selectboard Meeting Notes – Brattleboro Ambulance Rides To Be $1400

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard feb 20 2024

The Brattleboro Selectboard set EMS rates and policies, settling on a $1400 cost for a ride in their new ambulance service. Your insurance will pay for most of it, and if you get a bill you can ignore it completely or enter into a payment plan or pay it all at once. It is compassionate, they agreed.

The Town will embark on a search for a new waste management partner, someone who will listen and be responsive, and perhaps take long walks or watch movies together.

Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda and Notes – February 20, 2024

by cgrotke | Town News

The big item for the Brattleboro Selectboard at their next regular meeting will be setting the billing and collection policies for the Town’s new EMS service. The board is setting the rates to be charged and what to do if someone doesn’t pay, among other things.

Also, the Water Treatment Plant’s engineering costs are over-budget and will cost an additional $303k.  ARPA funds will be used to cover staff salaries, bids will be accepted for trash collection in town, motions will be assigned for reading at Representative Town Meeting, and you can bring up other items not on the agenda, perhaps, during public participation.

Brattleboro’s Charter Revision Commission to Meet, Discuss Forms of Town Meeting

by Not Signed In | Town News

Brattleboro, VT – Brattleboro’s Charter Revision Commission will meet on Thursday, February 15, at 6:15pm in the Selectboard Meeting Room in the Municipal Center, 230 Main Street.

The meeting agenda includes a discussion of Representative Town Meeting and the open town meeting form of government. The commission will also review the Powers of the People, including those outlined in Article III of the Town Charter.

All commission meetings are open to the public.

Brattleboro Selectboard Special Meeting Agenda and Notes – February 1, 2024

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will meet for a Special Meeting on Thursday, February 1, 2024 at 6:15pm in the Selectboard Meeting Room at the Brattleboro Municipal Center (230 Main Street, Room 212). At the conclusion of the meeting the Board will meet and is expected to immediately enter into executive session to discuss contracts, possible litigation, and evaluation of a public employee. No action will be taken in executive session. The public may also participate in the meeting over Zoom. The attached agenda contains information on how to access the meeting remotely, including the required “passcode.”  ASL interpreters or closed captioning will be available for deaf and hard-of-hearing community members.

Brattleboro Petitions for March Elections Now Available – List of Vacancies, 2024 Election Schedule

by Not Signed In | Politics

Petitions for Brattleboro Town Officers, Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) Board Members, and Town Meeting Members are now available at the Town Clerk’s office.  Town elections will be Tuesday, March 5 at the American Legion, located at 32 Linden St., Brattleboro, VT 05301.

Annual Representative Town Meeting will begin on Saturday, March 23, 2024 at 8:30 a.m. in the BUHS Gymnasium.

Petitions for Town Officers and WSESD Board Members must contain at least 30 valid signatures of registered Brattleboro voters and be filed in the clerk’s office no later than Monday, January 29 at 5 p.m. to have their name placed on the ballot.

Brattleboro Committee Meeting Agendas

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro Human Services Committee will meet on Monday, December 4th, 2023 at 4:00pm and on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 at 4:00pm. Both meetings will take place in the Hanna Cosman Meeting Room at the Municipal Center (230 Main Street).

The Brattleboro RTM Finance Committee will meet on Thursday, December 7, 2023 at 6:00pm in the Hanna Cosman Meeting Room.

Brattleboro EMS, RTM and ARPA

by fidel | Politics

At its 2023 meeting, RTM approved a motion calling on “the Selectboard to develop and implement a dedicated community engagement process for allocating [ARPA} funds before any further funds are spent.” Before that meeting and since, and during Selectboard meetings, members of the public have asked—really, begged—the board not to obligate ARPA funds until there was a systematic effort to ascertain public preferences for the spending of those monies, and we were given assurances that such a public process would occur before drawing on ARPA funds. The Selectboard’s vote last night to draw on 51% of the ARPA balance, without promised public deliberation, can only be seen as evidence of its bad faith.

Brattleboro Committee Meeting Warnings

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro RTM Finance Committee will meet on Monday, May 1, 2023 at 6:00pm in the Quiet Reading Room at the Brooks Memorial Library (224 Main Street).

The Brattleboro Tree Advisory Board will meet on Thursday, May 4, 2023 at 4:15pm in the Hanna Cosman Room at the Municipal Center (230 Main Street).

Selectboard Meeting Notes – Board Chair Suggests Further Limiting Public Comment

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard april 4 23

New Brattleboro Selectboard members Peter Case and Franz Reichsman attended their first regular meeting since swearing-in. They were treated to discussions of rules and goals, the Windham Regional Commission, Representative Town Meeting, hazard mitigation, and more.

Town Manager John Potter suggested the board have a retreat to discuss short-term and longer-term goals and budgets, to which the board readily agreed.

Chair Ian Goodnow had an unusally rough night. He was 40 minutes past his usual 8 pm break time as he explained to the board his new goals for keeping the meeting on schedule. This included his new desire to limit public comments to just two minutes per person, per agenda item. 

District Caucuses and RTM Information Session Cancelled

by Not Signed In | Politics

Due to the winter storm, which has caused power outages affecting tonight’s Representative Town Meeting District Caucuses and Information Session, this March 15, 2023 meeting has been cancelled. It is expected to be rescheduled to Wednesday, March 22, 2023 and be combined with the other Information Session previously planned for that evening. District Caucuses would begin at 5:30 PM on March 22, 2023, and the expanded Information Session to cover both the FY24 budget and the bond articles would begin at 6:00 PM at the Academy School Gym. Childcare will be available. Town Meeting Members and members of the public are invited to attend and ask questions. Everyone’s patience and understanding are requested as Town staff work to finalize these alternate plans.

Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda and Notes – March 21, 2023

by cgrotke | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will set aside over $2 million of the $2.7 million in ARPA funding for EMS related projects and potential start-up costs, leaving a much smaller amount for the public to discuss how to spend. This comes after promises of community outreach and public input to best determine the ways to spend the funds. Related, the monthly EMS update has been relegated to the Consent Agenda. 

The board will also discuss how to spend the $300k in community safety funds.  You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation.

Selectboard Meeting Notes – Daims RVs Are Rentals and Must Be Up To Code

by cgrotke | Town News
brattleboro selectboard

A special hearing by the Brattleboro Selectboard to consider health violations cited at 16 Washington Street had much discussion by all concerned – except one key individual: the property owner. Kurt Daims didn’t attend his hearing, and the board did not look kindly on such an action.  He did issue a statement via BCS delivered to the board, but it wasn’t enough.

The new train station project was again described in detail, ARPA funds were discussed, the tree ordinance was adopted, and more.

Brattleboro Selectboard Special Meeting Agenda

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, January 31, 2023 at 6:15pm in the Selectboard Meeting Room at the Brattleboro Municipal Center at 230 Main Street. At the conclusion of the meeting, the Selectboard is expected to enter immediately into executive session to discuss contracts and labor relations agreements with employees. The public may also participate in the meeting over Zoom. The attached agenda contains information on how to access the meeting remotely, including the required “passcode.”  ASL interpreters will be available for deaf and hard-of-hearing community members.

Selectboard Meeting Notes – Public Restrooms Desired, But Where To Put Them?

by cgrotke | Town News
selectboard jan 19 2023

Public restrooms were a major topic of discussion for the board at the regular Tuesday meeting. Nothing, of course, was decided. The board also allowed the Assessors ask Representative Town Meeting Representatives to agree to a town-wide re-appraisal of taxable properties.

There were financial and EMS updates, and a discussion of further revising meeting agenda formats to reflect anticipated times of agenda items. (Good luck with that… says this reporter.)