The Selectboard recently learned more about its rights and responsibilities regarding the Kirchheimer Drive solar array.
At the June 11 regular Board meeting, Town Administrator Peder Rude explained the results of his research on the Public Utilities Commission's process for issuing Certificates of Public Good.
Rude's work came at the request of the Board. They had questions about what, if anything, they should do about the application for 500-kW solar array located on Will Wohnus's property, leased by Dummerston-based Soveren Solar. The array went online in October 2016.
At the May 14 Selectboard meeting, residents Tammy Sargent and Nick Junjulas - whose properties abut the parcel - notified the Board that Soveren Solar had failed to notify them of changes to the project during the comment period before its construction.
Voters will be asked to weigh in on “a townwide study as to the feasibility of implementing zoning bylaws” at a Special Town Meeting on Thursday, July 19 at 7 p.m. at the Town Hall. A subsequent article asks voters to appropriate unbudgeted funds for such a study, should...
Twilight Music continues its 16th annual Twilight On The Tavern Lawn series of folk rock, world beat, rock, country, pop, Celtic, blues, and bluegrass summer concerts on Sunday, July 1, with The Gaslight Tinkers. The Gaslight Tinkers play a blend of African, Caribbean, funk, reggae, and Latin rhythms, creating...
The town's planning director, Rod Francis, has resigned from his position. His last day is July 6. Francis has accepted a position as director of planning and zoning for the town of Norwich, Vt. Francis was hired in 2008 as Brattleboro's planning director. He previously worked with the Windham Regional Commission and other municipalities in a variety of states. Town Manager Peter B. Elwell made the announcement at the June 19 regular Selectboard meeting. “We are happy for Rod Francis,
Since 1969, Yellow Barn has drawn musicians and audiences to Putney for extraordinary experiences with chamber music. For eight weeks, an international roster of musicians will collaborate and share chamber music repertoire spanning the 18th to the 21st centuries in a series of public performances at the Big Barn. Opening on July 6 and coming to a close on Aug. 4, Yellow Barn's festival concerts include performances of every piece that is explored over the course of five weeks of...
Mitchell-Giddings Fine Arts, 183 Main St., presents DayDreams, an exhibition of steel sculptures by Torin Porter. The show opens Thursday, June 28, at 5 p.m., with an artist reception on Saturday, June 30, from 5-7 p.m. Porter's stylized figures reflect complex facets of humanity, creating modern world archetypes, according to a news release. Porter says of DayDreams, “[These sculptures] exist externally but we experience them internally. When we behold them with our senses, feel their weight and texture and see...
I encourage the residents of Dummerston, Putney, and Westminster to vote for Mike Mrowicki for state representative in the primary on Aug. 14 and in the general election on Nov. 6. I got to know Mike in 2013 and 2014 when I was volunteering for GunSense VT. At the time, Mike was one of the few legislators to be openly in favor of common-sense laws to keep guns out of the wrong hands. Mike stood up to the powerful gun...
It took months for the mainstream media and politicians to use the word “lying” in reference to Trump and his regime's public statements. Now the media is using the words “separation” and “detention.” When will they screw up their courage to use the terms “kidnapping” and “incarceration” to describe U.S. immigration policy?
After nine years at Oak Meadow and three on the board of directors for the Downtown Brattleboro Alliance, Michelle Simpson is leaving the local workforce for points south. In August, Simpson joins her fellow Vermonters who divide their time between the Green Mountains and an urban center. Simpson takes the helm as executive director of the School of Fashion Design on Newbury Street in Boston. Simpson said she looks forward to “stewarding a special place in the heart of a...
Worrying about dying has something in common with worrying about the sun burning out in five billion years: there's no way we can influence either event, so worrying is an an obvious waste of time. Worrying about growing old, on the other hand, seems to support our doing a good job in coping with the unique challenges of end of life. We owe it to ourselves - or so most of us think - to take special pains to conserve...
I endorse Cindy Jerome to represent Putney, Dummerston, and Westminster in the Legislature. Cindy brings a wealth of experience to the position, including serving seven years on the Dummerston Selectboard, with two as chair. She is in her eighth year as town moderator for Dummerston, where she is highly respected for her even hand at the helm, humor, and excellent grasp of the issues. She has also headed up a successful nonprofit organization for 19 years and is known for...
The Selectboard has set a date for a public hearing and possible adoption of the updated Town Plan. It will take place at the Town Offices on July 16 at 5 p.m., right before the regular Selectboard meeting. Bob McCandless of the Planning Commission appeared at the June 4 Selectboard meeting to discuss the Town Plan. He noted the document is “an update, not a complete rewrite.” Administrative Assistant Shannon Meckle explained where Newfane's Town Plan is in the adoption...
After years of waiting, a new commuter rail line linking Springfield, Mass., and New Haven, Conn., began service on June 16, with trains between the two cities running about every 45 minutes. By next year, two of the 17 daily trains traveling on that 62-mile rail corridor will be traveling north to Greenfield, Mass., bringing more travel options to Brattleboro-area residents. Speaking at a news conference at Springfield's newly-renovated Union Station on June 12, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said the...
Earlier this month, Oregon senator Jeff Merkley visited the Texas-Mexico border. It is difficult to minimize the horror of what he witnessed. Outside a dead Super Walmart, he was escorted by the police away from the facility without being able to witness the conditions inside. We know there are thousands of children being held in prison camps such as this facility. These children range in age from babies to teens. If a sitting senator is not permitted to see the...
Three forums scheduled for Windham-4 candidates On July 5 and 10 the Town Democratic Committees of Dummerston and Westminster, respectively, will sponsor forums with the three candidates who will face off in the August 14 Democratic Primary for the two House seats in the Windham-4 district. Incumbent Mike Mrowicki of Putney and newcomers Nader Hashim and Cindy Jerome, both of Dummerston, are running to fill the two slots allowed for Democrats on the November election ballot. The senior House incumbent...
On Thursday, June 28, at 11 a.m., the Putney Public Library, 55 Main St., will kick off the youth Summer Reading Program with a puppet and music show for all ages by Modern Times Theater. Modern Times Theater founders Rose Friedman and Justin Lander create handmade wooden and papier-mâché puppets for a modern Vermont update of the age-old Punch and Judy puppet shows, which follow the troubles and travails of puppetry's favorite loudmouth, Mr. Punch. The program features live music,
College news • The following students recently graduated Castleton University and were recognized during the 231st commencement on May 12: Alex Derosia of Brattleboro, summa cum laude B.A. in multidisciplinary studies; Marcos Gallegos of Saxtons River, B.A. in political science; Nikolas Rancourt of Brattleboro, B.A. in art; Tyler Higley of Vernon, B.S. in sports administration; Nikhon Keopraseuth of Brattleboro, B.S. in health science; Emily Sheehan of Londonderry, B.S. in business administration; and Samuel Siegel of Putney, B.S. in business administration.
“We don't have to be singing the same Kumbaya song,” Emilie Kornheiser said. “We just need to know our destinies are wrapped up together.” A first-time candidate for Windham 2-1, Kornheiser wants to talk to everyone in Windham County, regardless of whether they live in West Brattleboro. In the August primaries, Kornheiser will face incumbent and fellow Democrat Valerie Stuart to represent Brattleboro's District 1. When it comes to building policy or problem solving, Kornheiser said, community members must be...
As the first anniversary approaches of the closing of the materials recovery facility at the Windham Solid Waste Management District, how is the District faring? The nonprofit organization's executive director Bob Spencer said, “we're doing great, financially." The controversial move to close the MRF was decided in a close vote by the District's Board of Supervisors in December 2016. June 30, 2017, was the MRF's last day of regular operation. As a result, Spencer said, the assessments - the amount...
Robert James Lind, 32, of Brattleboro, died June 8 at the scene of a motor vehicle accident in Newfane. His fiancée, Mandy Gamache, a passenger in the vehicle, also of Brattleboro, died July 9 at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Hanover, N.H. as a result of injuries suffered in the crash. Born March 21, 1986 in Leominster, Mass., Lind graduated from Doherty Memorial High School in Worcester, Mass., in 2005. He graduated as a member of the National Honor Society and...
On May 1, 2016, the Brattleboro Reformer found itself under new ownership, as a four-person group from the Berkshires had bought the daily newspaper. The Reformer, along with its sister papers - the Bennington Banner, the Manchester Journal, and The Berkshire Eagle of Pittsfield, Mass. - was purchased from Digital First Media after more than two decades of absentee ownership. At a news conference at the River Garden shortly before the sale was finalized, retired Massachusetts District Court judge Fredric...
Sponsored by the Kopkind Colony, founded 19 years ago in memory of celebrated political journalist Andrew Kopkind, CineSLAM returns to the Latchis Theatre in downtown Brattleboro with a Pride Film Festival of Shorts on Saturday, June 30, at 4:30 p.m. CineSLAM is Vermont's first LGBTQ film festival and this will be its 12th annual presentation in Brattleboro. The festival this year, says Program Director John Scagliotti, will focus on LGBT History. “Next June, the 50th anniversary of Stonewall will attract...
Selectboard passes utility budget BRATTLEBORO - The Selectboard passed the Fiscal Year 2019 utilities fund budget at the June 19 regular Board meeting. The Board discussed the topic at a previous meeting, and requested the town manager staff present the data in a different, more simplified format. Town Manager Peter B. Elwell brought that information, which met Board members' approval. Elwell explained that the fund goes through planned, periodic ups and downs in the revenues and expenses lines, and overall,
Owing to the Independence Day holiday, the issue of The Commons dated Wednesday, July 4 will be published and distributed on Tuesday, July 3. Accordingly, all editorial and advertising content for next week's newspaper should arrive at the newspaper by Thursday, June 28 at 5 p.m. Thank you in advance for helping us make a great newspaper for you on an accelerated schedule.
Main Street Arts has never tried presenting a play like Equus, an emotional and unconventional thriller that follows psychiatrist Martin Dysart as he attempts to treat Alan, a 17-year-old boy who has attacked and blinded six horses. The play, written by Peter Shaffer, is famously known for its gut-wrenching portrayal of human experience and for how, in cohesion with this style, its scenes are often performed nude. While there will be no nudity in the MSA production, the show carries...
A small audience gathered in the library of Wilmington's Old School Community Center on June 19 to share their visions for a thriving Southern Vermont. The Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation and its counterparts in Bennington County held the fifth of five meetings across Bennington and Windham counties last week. The economic development organizations are creating the first multi-county Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS). The plan will link the two counties' local economic visions and efforts into a single Southern Vermont...
Good day to you, denizens of southeastern Vermont. We've been enjoying some early spring-like weather over the past few days, but that is about to come to a crashing halt, to be sure. Wednesday will be the last of the pleasantly-warm days before we enter the transition into our new summer pattern replete with pulses of heat and humidity. Thursday will feature showers and thunderstorms, before we start warming Friday and Saturday. For the period of Sunday through Tuesday we...
I have been a registered nurse at the Brattleboro Retreat for nine years, and I'm here to let the community know what is happening there. In a time of crisis, the hospital's administration has consistently chosen to make life for the direct-patient-care staff more difficult. According to the administration, a staffing crisis at the Retreat has led to a financial crisis. Staff have been leaving, and hiring has been challenging, creating a shortage of nurses, mental-health workers, social workers, and...
“Condescending” is a polite characterization of this Commons commentary advocating revolution nullifying congressional and presidential elections with which the author disagrees and asserts were won by fellow Americans “who have been duped by dog whistles and propaganda.” The Second Amendment right of the people to keep and bear arms is sometimes said to be necessary so that Americans can overthrow a tyrannical government. We had not considered our right to defend our duly-elected government against revolutionaries. The author could also...
James Gelter, the director of Vermont Theater Company's new production of The Tempest, has been thinking lately about how William Shakespeare is a lot like, of all things, The Beatles. “One could claim that the two careers are parallel,” Gelter says. “Both start out working within established forms. The Beatles are churning out familiar pop hits like Love Me Do while Shakespeare is reworking classic Roman dramas and comedies with Comedy of Errors and Titus Andronicus. “Then each moved into...
Residents and regional activists gathered to fill up Pliny Park on June 14 for a vigil organized by Families Belong Together, in support of the more than 11,000 children who have been separated from their families and held in confinement at the Mexican border. The protest organizers described themselves as families touched and outraged by the stories of the events down at the border - “fathers, mothers, people from all walks of life who are outraged...we are coming together to...
The Trump administration's policy of “zero tolerance” toward migrants without proper entry papers at our southern border has resulted in the forcible separation of thousands of migrant children from their parents. This policy was put into effect with no forethought as to how the children would be housed and cared for, or how families would be reunited - if ever. Parents often do not know where their children are being held and cannot contact them, and in many cases are...
Everyone knows we are facing the worst political crisis in U.S. history. The dreadful proclamations of Donald Trump, driven by narcissism; the mean-spirited moves by his cabinet; and the incipient evil represented by his administration have brought us dangerously close to the path and policies of dictators - and the possibility of living with autocracy. I'm not going to sugar-coat that terrible possibility. But I want to suggest to people younger than I, who weren't around to experience other terrible...
High school baseball success doesn't always translate into success in the American Legion Baseball season, but it never hurts. The Brattleboro Colonels made it to the Division I semifinals and finished with a 17-2 record. The core of that team makes up the bulk of this season's lineup for Brattleboro Post 5, and the success from the high school season is carrying over into the Legion season. Last week's games were a good example. On June 19 at Tenney Field,
“Compassion” and “dignity” were the words of the day on June 22 as the Windham & Windsor Housing Trust and Groundworks Collaborative celebrated the opening of Great River Terrace. Located at the site of the former Lamplighter Motel on Putney Road, Great River Terrace will provide 22 apartments, plus a host of supportive services, for its residents. It is the realization of a social service model known as permanent supportive housing, as the Trust and Groundworks teams up with Health...
A glance around Ben Underhill's office at Putnam Insurance on Western Avenue tells you, without a doubt, the two things that he is most passionate about: baseball and young people. Adorning his office walls are countless scenes of baseball games along with numerous plaques acknowledging his service to the town's youth. Several record Ben's many contributions to Youth Services and its programs over more than three decades. He's going to need more space on his wall, according to Youth Services...