In reading the various articles and commentaries regarding the low-income or mixed-income housing proposal in Putney, I am struck by the fact that most of the people who are advocating for it do not live near the proposed site.
They talk about all of the reasons we need more affordable housing in this town - an argument that would be difficult to dispute anywhere in Vermont. But I don't get the feeling that those who are opposed to this particular project are opposed to affordable housing here. It seems obvious that there are real concerns about this particular site.
It appears that many of those who express concerns about the drastic ecological and visual changes are taking real steps to provide viable alternatives to the use of that particular piece of land. Good for them - they're putting their money where their mouths are, so to speak.
Then there are those folks who are concerned with possible crime due to very real and documented outcomes from several similar housing projects in the Brattleboro area and Windham County in general.
The Vermont Advisory Council on Historic Preservation recently awarded the Rockingham Historic Preservation Commission four Certified Local Government Grants (CLG) for 2022 and 2023. “The rich historical resources of Rockingham continue to attract well deserved support from our local community, the State of Vermont, and the National Park Service,”
The Putney Public Library, 55 Main St., is offering a free camp open to all area teens. Join them for the “Constitution + Comics Camp,” in which participants will read and debate excerpts from the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, the Vermont Constitution, U.S. Supreme Court decisions, as...
Project Feed the Thousands organizers have announced that their recently completed campaign, now in its 28th year, has been an overwhelming success, raising more cash than last year and surpassing its meal goal of 300,000. According to Kelli Corbeil, campaign co-chair and owner of 96.7 WTSA and 99.5 The Beast, the annual campaign brought in more than $132,000 in cash contributions, along with enough nonperishable food items to provide more than 320,000 nutritious meals during the coming months. “Once again,
Frog Meadow Farm and the New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA) are co-presenting the Queer Circus Arts Scholarship Fundraiser on Friday, May 6, from 6–9 p.m. at NECCA's trapezium in Brattleboro. “Begin with hors d'oeuvres, libations, special entertainment, a silent auction, and quirky fun, followed by a special showing of the Capstone Circus Project from the graduating class of NECCA's ProTrack, pushing the boundaries of contemporary circus theater,” say organizers, “then stay for a meet and greet with the...
Manitou hosts healing walk for Earth Day WILLIAMSVILLE - The Manitou Project, 300 Sunset Lake Rd., will celebrate Earth Day with its first Healing Walk of the season on Friday, April 22, from 4 to 5:30 p.m., rain or shine. The walk will be led by Mike Mayer and will include poems or other readings to celebrate the Earth, and chances to share about the experience. Healing Walks will be held every second and fourth Friday of each month until...
Obituaries • Herbert Joseph “Bud” Castine, 96, a former resident of Brattleboro. Died April 7, 2022, in the comfort of his home in Hinsdale, N.H., following a period of declining health. He was born in Brattleboro on Feb. 9, 1926, the son of Frederick and Elsie (Rivers) Castine. He was raised and educated in Brattleboro, attending Brattleboro High School. A veteran of World War II, he proudly served in the Marine Corps and was stationed on board the USS Shangri-La,
Utilities Division crews from the Department of Public Works will start spring flushing of the town water mains on Thursday, April 21, at 10 p.m., and continue work through Saturday, May 7. Some daytime flushing will continue throughout the week of May 9 through May 13. Customers are asked to check the flushing schedule closely, as flushing causes water discoloration, low water pressure, and, in some areas, periods of no water. Water-main flushing will occur during both night (10 p.m.
We are witnessing a unique and horrible phenomenon: the total denial of the story of American colonialism and the importance and horrors of the slave trade. The Republican party has made a decision that white children and youth (who seem to be the only children and youth they care at all about) are not to be exposed to any materials that might make them aware that our ancestors were not models of moral perfection, that might make them feel a...
An early lesson has come back to me as I consider the good work happening in southern Vermont to support Afghan refugees, as well as Central Americans and others seeking asylum. Ultimately, I am reminded that, whatever our beliefs about immigration in the U.S., we should remember that we are talking about human beings who want to protect their families, make a better future, and meet their basic needs for food and security - like all of us. When I...
People whose organizations and nonprofits have been dealing with survival during the COVID-19 pandemic are invited to learn from others and how they've faced novel ways to tell their stories and connect to community. This conversation will take place in the form of a Media Mentoring Project panel discussion on Wednesday, April 20, at 7:30 p.m., on Zoom. The moderator will be Joyce Marcel, a long-time, award-winning Vermont journalist and president of the board of the nonprofit Friends of Brooks...
The print version of the story “Brattleboro, Rescue Inc. on course to part ways due to contract dispute,” [News, April 13] incorrectly asserted a financial relationship between the town and the EMS nonprofit for dispatch services. The story has been corrected online at commonsnews.org.
Why residents would be charged legal fees ranging from $800 to $7,000 for information requests - without getting the requested information - has recently been a hot topic for the Selectboard. At the board's March 28 meeting, former Selectboard member Richard Clark started the chat, saying he had made a public records request regarding the Planning Commission in early February, asking for emails from Town Administrator Peder Rude. Clark said two days later he received a letter with “a proposal...
We may be a month into calendar spring, but an April afternoon in Vermont can range from 70 degrees with blue skies and sunshine, to the mid-30s with snow flurries and a cold north wind, to a foot or two of snow and sleet. For the baseball opener between Bellows Falls and Brattleboro at Tenney Field on April 14, we missed the blizzard, but had a combination of the other two extremes. A sunny and warm afternoon gave way to...
Sheryl Steiger Young's animal etchings are featured during the month of May at Gallery in the Woods, 145 Main St., with an opening during Gallery Walk on Friday, May 6, from 5 to 8 p.m. Fine line drawing and attention to minute detail characterize Young's art work. Her etchings take the observer where neither beast, tree, nor landscape is what it appears to be, but rather a precious spirit or place where hidden images, both real and imagined, merge. Young...
The Vermont Jazz Center will present its sixth annual Solo Jazz Piano Festival on Friday, April 22, and Saturday, April 23. The entire festival will be presented in person at VJC and simultaneously livestreamed for those unable to attend the performances and educational activities. With a diverse and talented set of pianists, the festival aims to illustrate the critical role that the piano continues to provide in the development of jazz as an art form for all music lovers, not...
The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) will present an animal mask-making workshop with UNH art instructor and artist Sachiko Akiyama and Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center (BEEC) naturalist Patti Smith on Saturday, April 30, from 2 to 5 p.m. at the River Gallery School in Brattleboro. Smith will talk briefly at the start of the workshop about animals in the local area who are at risk, largely due to climate change. Akiyama will then lead participants in making animal masks,
For 17 years, Poetry Out Loud (POL) has brought poems to life for teenagers, enriching their experience of verse far beyond that of popular music. On the POL website, the acclaimed program calls itself a “national arts education program that encourages the study of great poetry by offering free educational materials and a dynamic recitation competition for high school students across the country ... [helping] students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about literary history and contemporary life.”
By now, Brattleboro residents have heard the town's intent to sign a contract with for-profit Golden Cross ambulance service and discontinue its 56-year annual contract with nonprofit Rescue Inc. Why would the Selectboard make such a decision on its own, and why has this not been a topic of public discussion? Every September, Rescue holds a consortium for the towns, a meeting that also airs on BCTV. During the 2021 meeting, then-Town Manager Peter Elwell assured the Rescue staff, volunteers,
At almost 90 years old, Verne Bristol's heart and his memories are still very much with Rescue Inc., the organization he and 13 other men founded in Brattleboro in 1966. What does Bristol, a former president of the nonprofit and a town resident, think of the town's desire to allow the Brattleboro Fire Department to ultimately take over Rescue Inc.'s responsibilities? “I'm sure our new town manager is a smart man and was hired with good reason,” Bristol says, referencing...
This Thursday, April 21 at 8 p.m. Jeff Mattson & Friends will return to the Stone Church to kick off a Green Mountain mini-tour just as live music is making a robust comeback in southern Vermont and throughout New England. The group, which played at the Stone Church in 2018, explores the repertoire of Jerry Garcia and the Jerry Garcia Band (JGB), plus originals and other covers. “We cover a lot of ground - definitely some Grateful Dead songs, but...
With 10 percent of the town's registered voters having signed a petition asking for a revote, voters will reconsider the March 1 Annual Town Meeting decision to renovate and expand the Guilford Free Library. The project, at an anticipated cost of $1,013,300 will be reconsidered at a Special Town Meeting Tuesday, May 24. Polls will be open at the town office from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The question will be handled via Australian ballot, as was the original. The...
With a unanimous vote of the Selectboard and after a week of often-emotional discussion and debate, the town has ended a 56-year relationship with Rescue Inc. when its contract expires at the end of June. After nearly three hours of discussion and debate, the Selectboard voted 5-0 on April 19 to authorize Town Manager Yoshi Manale to enter into a one-year contract for $75,000 with Golden Cross Ambulance of Claremont, N.H. The plan calls for Golden Cross to assist the...
Students do not want a school resource officer (SRO) at Brattleboro Union High School, a student-led survey team reports, saying that having one caused them to make “a prison analogy.” Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) board members heard the report of students' feelings and recommendations at their April 12 meeting, where emotion ran the gamut. At least 75 people attended the meeting via Zoom, with a dozen or so more in the room in person. WSESD Diversity Coordinator Mikaela Simms,