Speed Limit Reduction on VT Route 30 Associated with I-91 Bridge Reconstruction

MONTPELIER, Vt.—September 16, 2013–The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) is temporarily reducing the speed limit on VT Route 30 from 50 mph to 40 mph for a one-mile stretch of road that extends approximately one-half mile north and one-half mile south of the location where Interstate 91 crosses over VT Route 30.

The speed limit reduction is associated with the Interstate 91 bridge replacement project, and will go in to effect to ensure the safety of construction personnel and the traveling public. The reduction will be in effect from September 23, 2013 to approximately August 2016.


Building a Better Brattleboro Annual Meeting Warning

Building a Better Brattleboro will hold its annual meeting on Thursday, September 26, 2013 at
5:30 p.m. at the Robert H. Gibson River Garden. The BaBB Board of Directors is seeking public input into the organization’s Fiscal Year 2015 work plan and budget. The public is encouraged to attend.

Kate O’Connor
Building a Better Brattleboro Board of Directors
(802) 490-2073
www.babb@sover.net


Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda and Notes – September 17, 2013

The Brattleboro Selectboard will hear the year end financial report for FY13 at their next Tuesday meeting at the Municipal Center oin Main Street. You are welcome to attend in person or watch on BCTV.

If you do, you’ll hear an update on work at the Waste Water Treatment Plant and pump stations, learn of new fees for mobile food carts, get a departmental report from the Department of Public Works, watch as grants and bids are approved, hear an update on the search for a new Town Manager, and more. You can bring up other issues that aren’t on the agenda during public participation.


Brattleboro Storm Statement 2

A Severe Thunderstorm Watch remains in effect for the Brattleboro area until 7:00pm. Rain is expected to continue throughout the overnight hours. Rainfall is expected to be heavy at times. We ask that you continue to monitor the National Weather Service for the latest weather information.

Damage from this afternoon’s storms has been identified at:

Elm Street, Between Canal and Flat – This section of Elm Street will remain closed until further notice. A significant washout occurred near to the corner of Canal and Elm, which may take several days to complete the repair.

Minor scarring and washouts have occurred on Bridge Street, Maple Street near Canal, and on Canal Street near Maple.


Town of Brattleboro Storm Alert

The Brattleboro area continues to be in line for a series of very strong thunderstorms, and we continue to be under a severe thunderstorm watch from the National Weather Service. Several areas of minor to moderate damage have occurred across town. Elm Street between Flat and Canal is closed, with a significant washout near the intersection of Canal Street. A section of Guilford Street near Frog Hill Road is covered with water due to plugged culverts. A small wash out has occurred near Bridge Street, the area is blocked off with barrels and the road is not closed at this time.

We ask that you pay close attention to the weather and monitor WTSA and the National Weather Service for future statements. Please report any significant damages to Brattleboro Central Dispatch at 257-7946.


No Vengeance No Prosecution of Deadlier CIA 9/11 Attack on Chile 1973

DESCRIPTION:
No calls for vengeance or justice for Chileans murdered on the 9/11 arranged, funded, and facilitated in 1973 by the Nixon-Kissinger, administration to benefit and protect vast US corporate investments in that country. No attempts through courts for compensation for wrongful death, injury and suffering. More than 2 million innocent Muslims lives taken and hailed as payback for 9/11/2001. Prosecutable crime against humanity!

TEXT:


I-91 Brattleboro Bridge Replacement Project Update

We’re going to begin publishing the I-91 Bridge Replacement Project updates here each week. They come from Cindy Cooke, who is acting as Public Relations Officer for the project.

Week of September 15, 2013

I-91 – On Thursday, September 19th and Friday, September 20th , there will short duration lane closures on I-91 Northbound and I-91 Southbound while work zone signs are installed.

Route 30 – No impacts anticipated for the week of September 15.

Upper Dummerston Road – No impacts anticipated for the week of September 15.


VY Numbers – The Known and Unknown

I have heard quite a few numbers thrown around regarding the eventual closing of VY. Will Brattleboro really have 630 homes on the market, and lose an equal number of well-paid residents?

I decided to ask Jeff Lewis of the Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation. He, along with Pat Moutlon Powden, Director of Workplace Development, answered questions about what they currently know and don’t know about the impact on Brattleboro.

They said that the data that BDCC and SeVEDS has thus far is somewhat limited.


Wanted: Feasibility Study Support and Resources

WANTED: Looking for people to call on for support and resources as I complete my graduate capstone which is a feasibility study to determine if a community resource center in Brattleboro should and could be created and if it would be sustainable. The center would provide a shared office space for small social service organizations in order to reduce administrative expenses and to increase communication and collaboration among them. Additionally this center would offer community members access to many services and resources in one location. .


Brattleboro Selectboard Special Meeting – BaBB and Downtown

At the invitation of Building a Better Brattleboro (BaBB), the Brattleboro Selectboard will meet with representatives from BaBB and VT Department of Housing and Community Development on Monday, September 9, 2013 at 9:00am at the Robert H. Gibson River Garden to discuss the Brattleboro Downtown.

The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Friday, September 13, 2013 at 3:00pm in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center. It is anticipated that the Board will enter into executive session at 3:00pm to discuss a personnel matter, and that no business will be conducted.


West Brattleboro Association Monthly Meeting – Planning the Chicken BBQ!

On Thursday, September 12, 6:00-7:30 pm, the West Brattleboro Association (WBA) will hold its monthly meeting at The New England House, 254 Marlboro Road. The Association will review the treasury, traffic
safety including the new bollards on the stretch of Route 9 from Academy School to Greenleaf Street, the ‘Neighborhoods Project’, and any news regarding Glen Park and Mountain Home Park.

In addition, Association members will review the work plan for the remainder of the year starting with Columbus Day weekend Chicken Barbecue to be held near the West Brattleboro common in front of the First
Congregational Church. The group will discuss quantities of chicken and baked beans to be made for the event and ways to publicize it.


Selectboard Meeting Notes: Dark Clouds on Budget Horizon

Conjuring visions of budgets past, the Brattleboro Selectboard discussed pay As You Throw and the 1% local sales tax as possible revenue-raisers for the town. This was in reaction to Tuesday evening’s dire forecasts for the FY15 budget and associated taxes that property owners will likely encounter.

ASL interpreters gave an account of the meeting to the hearing impaired for the first time, both the Planning Services and Library department reports were presented to the board, Strand Avenue will eventually be repaired, and the cost for using a tower on Wantastiquet jumps from $10 to $12,000 per year. And, of course, much more.


Career Expo – Sept. 26 at Quality Inn, Brattleboro: Top Employers Coming Together to Promote Careers in Southeast VT

Working professionals, jobseekers, and students are encouraged to stop by the Quality Inn in Brattleboro, Sept. 26, to learn about the variety of careers that Southeastern Vermont businesses have to offer. Twenty five employers, along with several colleges, technical schools, and employment services agencies, will be staffing informational tables from 2 to 6 p.m. as part of Windham County’s first ever Career Expo.

The Expo will showcase several of the county’s largest employers in health care, hospitality, manufacturing, wholesale trade, food production, and energy, among other industry sectors. A complete list of exhibitors is available at www.vermontcareerexpo.com/exhibitors.


Brattleboro Selectboard Agenda and Notes – September 3, 2013

Two departmental reports are scheduled for the first September meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard. Planning Services’s Rod Francis and Brooks Memorial Library’s Jerry Carbone will update the board and the public about their respective departments and answer the question of what they would do with a 5% increase or decrease in their budgets.

ASL interpreters will begin translating each meeting beginning Tuesaday evening. This will allow even more members of the public to find out about repairs to Williams Street and the Cooke Road Bridge, preliminary budget discussions, the communications tower on Wantastiquet, the Town Manager search, and more.

You can attend in person at the Municipal Center or watch on BCTV via cable or stream, or read about it here the next day. Feel free to bring up other items not on the agenda during Public Participation.