Brattleboro Committee Vacancies
The Town of Brattleboro is looking for citizens to serve on the following committees and boards:
ADA Committee
Arts Committee
Conservation Commission
Design Review Board (Alternate)
News and information sections, from near to far
The Town of Brattleboro is looking for citizens to serve on the following committees and boards:
ADA Committee
Arts Committee
Conservation Commission
Design Review Board (Alternate)
Brattleboro, VT — The southbound lane of Canal Street will be closed from South Main Street to Elm Street on Tuesday, November 12, 2024, from 09:30 to 12:30. The closure will facilitate ongoing debris removal following the recent fire at 45 Canal Street. Demolition crews will be on-site throughout the day to safely clear the affected area which could create traffic delays in the area.
Southbound traffic on Canal Street will be detoured via Flat & Elm Streets or South Main & Washington Streets. The northbound lane will remain open, but drivers should anticipate periodic delays to accommodate trucks and equipment entering and exiting the site.
On Friday, November 8, Station Two was dispatched at 14:34 hours to the area of 357 Melchen Road for a reported power line down. Engine 1 arrived in the area to report a power line down in the woods with a brush fire. Crews reported 1-2 acres burning and requested to upgrade to a first alarm. The fire spread quickly due to high winds, and the incident was upgraded to three alarms.
The response involved all Brattleboro Fire units and staff, as well as personnel, brush trucks, all-terrain vehicles, and tankers from neighboring departments, including from Guilford, Dummerston, Putney, Westminster, Halifax, Newbrook, Townshend, Wilmington, Keene, Spofford, Walpole, Chesterfield, Westmoreland, North Walpole, Swanzey, and Greenfield. Chesterfield, Walpole, Westminster, and Cheshire EMS provided coverage for the Brattleboro stations.
Brattleboro, VT — The southbound lane of Canal Street will be closed from South Main Street to Elm Street on Monday, November 11, 2024, due to ongoing debris removal following the recent fire at 45 Canal Street. Demolition crews will be on-site throughout most of the day to safely clear the affected area.
Southbound traffic on Canal Street will be detoured via Flat & Elm Streets or South Main & Washington Streets. The northbound lane will remain open, but drivers should anticipate periodic delays to accommodate trucks and equipment entering and exiting the site.
As the budget process gets going, Town staff will ask the Brattleboro Selectboard to approve a $700,000 police substation at a special meeting on November 12. The board will also be asked to put the Esteyville Gazebo project out to bid, and will tinker with the Parking Ordinance.
You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation.
• Approve minutes from previous meetings
• Review of grant applications.
• Revise the Town Charter Commission Suggestion for Inclusion of the Human Services Review Committee.
Brattleboro, VT —Canal Street will be closed from South Main Street to Elm Street on Friday, November 8, 2024, due to ongoing emergency services operations and debris removal following the recent fire at 45 Canal Street. Demolition crews will be on-site throughout most of the day to safely clear the affected area.
Southbound traffic on Canal Street will be detoured via Flat & Elm Streets or South Main & Washington Streets. The northbound lane will be detoured down Elm St and onto Flat St, but drivers should anticipate periodic delays to accommodate trucks and equipment entering and exiting the site.
Reports of explosion and big fire on Canal Street. Internet out for many. Firefighters on scene.
In observance of Veterans’ Day, all Brattleboro Town Offices will be closed on Monday, November 11, 2024, with the exception of emergency services.
Parking is free at all metered spaces and in the pay-and-display lots on Monday, November 11. All other violations will be enforced.
Brooks Memorial Library will be closed on Monday, November 11, 2024.
The second installment of the 2024 Brattleboro Real Estate and Personal Property Taxes will be due by 5 p.m. on November 15, 2024. Payments made after November 15, 2024 will have an additional 1% interest added to the unpaid balance.
The Town of Brattleboro utility bills are also due by 5 p.m. on November 15, 2024. Payments made after November 15, 2024 will have an additional 1% interest, as well as an 8% penalty added to the unpaid balance.
The Brattleboro Selectboard discussed the “base budget” – a budget with no changes to services from current levels – at Tuesday’s Election Night meeting. As is, they said, it would be a 22% increase. Board members agreed it was a difficult budget, but none had any big ideas for getting the increase to a more manageable level.
Citizens attending had ideas – eliminate raises, cut Municipal Center hours to 32 hours a week for most employees, cut positions, and throw it all out and build up from what is truly necessary were suggested. Personnel costs, they noted, were the big numbers.
In a flashback to the era of Barb Sondag we heard the Town Manager ask the board to simply tell him what services they’d like to cut from the people of Brattleboro…
The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, November 5, 2024 at 5:50pm in the Selectboard Meeting Room.
We hear a lot of stories about people who were cheated out of their life savings or were scammed by so-called home improvement companies that collected money and never did the work. They all seem to have a sad ending. Well, I want to tell you a story with a happy ending.
My wife and I agreed to have our house painted and we found a person who had advertised himself on social media. He came to our house and he seemed very charming. From the start, my wife didn’t trust him. She kept saying she had a bad feeling about this guy, partly because he did not have any of the credentials of a businessman.
The Town of Brattleboro is announcing the retirement of Fire Chief Leonard Howard III, whose dedication to the Brattleboro Fire Department and the community it serves extends back to the 1980s. Chief Howard’s retirement becomes effective on Dec. 31, 2024.
“I’m proud to be in the fire service. It’s been the best job in the world,” said Chief Howard. “I’ve enjoyed helping people, and seeing my staff progress and be successful. I think they’re in a good place, and they have a good future ahead of them.”
Chief Howard joined the Brattleboro Fire Department in 1987 as a member of its call staff, a role in which he served for a decade. When he joined, Howard was among about 30 volunteers who helped support career firefighters during major events. Starting in 1988, days after graduating high school, Howard took a job at the Brattleboro Public Works’ Utilities Division.
Here are some excerpts from the Town Manager’s memo to the Brattleboro Selectboard regarding their enormous FY’26 budget. I’ve left out some of the tables mentioned to make it easier for me to format. Go view the full document to see them.
At the start, they anticipate a 14% increase in property taxes, but this does not yet include any solid waste disposal costs, which staff say may add another 5-8%.
Get yourself a drink so you can spit it out in amazement as you read the details.
While the rest of the world is concerned with election day and results, the Brattleboro Selectboard will be presenting the an overview of the draft budget for the FY26. They will also continue with their approval of liquor and entertainment licenses for a new business in the former River Garden public space. You can bring up other items not on the agenda, during public participation.
The Brattleboro Human Services Committee will meet in the Hanna Cosman Meeting Room (230 Main Street) and over Zoom on Monday, November 4, 2024 at 6:00pm.
The Charter Revision Commission will meet in the Selectboard Meeting Room (230 Main Street) and over Zoom on Thursday, November 7, 2024 at 6:15pm.
The Tree Advisory Committee will meet in the Hanna Cosman Meeting Room (230 Main Street) on Thursday, November 7, 2024 at 4:15pm.
The RTM Finance Committee will meet in the Hanna Cosman Meeting Room (230 Main Street) on Thursday, November 7, 2024 at 5:45pm.
The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Wednesday, October 30, 2024 at 6:00pm at the New England Youth Theater Meeting Room (100 Flat Street).
The public is invited to attend the second annual Community Safety Fair & Forum. This event will be held on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the New England Youth Theatre, located at 100 Flat Street, Brattleboro, VT 05301. This event is free and open to the public.
During this event, local organizations will share information and resources with the public, while providing an opportunity for continued dialogue and solution sharing. The evening will include an open house with tabling, a panel discussion, Selectboard office hours, and healing.
The Brattleboro Human Services Committee will meet on Tuesday, October 29, 2024 in the Selectboard Meeting Room.
The Brattleboro Board of Listers will meet on Monday, October 28, 2024 at 1:00pm in the Hanna Cosman Meeting Room.