BRATTLEBORO-Voters will convene in the first open Town Meeting since 1960 on Saturday, April 11, starting at 8:30 a.m. in the gymnasium at Brattleboro Union High School, 131 Fairground Rd., to consider a $27 million FY27 budget.
The open Town Meeting format means that every registered voter who attends has a vote. That’s different from Representative Town Meeting (RTM), where about 140 elected representatives voted on behalf of their district’s constituents.
The change came after voters on March 3 discontinued RTM.
An informational session for the public will be held Wednesday, April 8, starting at 7 p.m. in Brattleboro Area Middle School’s multipurpose room.
Human services town funding still a question
Voters will see a proposed allocation of $1 in Article 8, regarding supporting social service programs and facilities in town.
A divisive change from the past, this article can also be amended on town meeting floor. The board will appoint a Human Services Committee to allocate whatever sum voters agree upon at the meeting.
Discussion of the warning at the Selectboard’s March 10 meeting had a somewhat wobbly start because a new proposal for the warning was distributed shortly before the meeting, causing confusion and discomfort among board members who had prepared using the original document. But the discussion went on.
On the warning, voters will see language updated to reflect that the Human Services Committee, previously an RTM committee, no longer exists. The new language proposes a Human Services Committee, appointed by the Selectboard, to allocate money.
At a Feb. 25 meeting, members of the former Human Services Committee spoke in defense of human services funding, after the Selectboard voted to eliminate such spending from the recommended FY27 budget.
Members detailed their exhaustive vetting process of applicants, involving the review of nearly 1,500 pages of documentation to recommend over $480,000 in support for 36 local organizations.
Representatives from various nonprofits, including Interaction, Groundworks, and the Women’s Freedom Center, testified that the town money is essential to maintain operational infrastructure and leverage state and federal grants.
They argued that early intervention and preventative care for issues such as food insecurity, homelessness, and addiction are far more cost-effective for taxpayers than is long-term fallout of unmet needs.
Community members and committee members emphasized the services represent a vital social safety net rather than optional charities.
That discussion concluded with a call to restore funding at the upcoming meeting, framing the investment as fundamental to the town’s economic and social stability.
Finance Committee to morph
The RTM Finance Committee has also ceased to exist. State statute allows establishing a five-member Advisory Budget Committee to be voted on at the Town Meeting.
Pending passage of relevant articles, the board will appoint a five-member Advisory Budget Committee at its Tuesday, April 21 meeting.
If voters approve an advisory budget committee to be appointed by the Selectboard, they will also vote on whether those members will be elected in future.
In discussion, board members proposed a second article: to have the Selectboard appoint the committee for the first year — until Town Meeting Day 2027 — with members elected by Australian ballot thereafter, avoiding a costly and complex special election in August.
During discussion it was also noted that the Finance Committee historically preferred election by Australian ballot rather than appointment by the board.
While public comment suggested making Selectboard appointment of the budget committee permanent, the board preferred the current amendment to honor the committee’s long-term desire for elected status.
Setting the date
Also to be voted is whether to hold future annual Town Meetings on the Sunday preceding the first Tuesday in March.
The rationale for proposing such a change is that Saturday and the Monday preceding the first Tuesday in March — the state’s Town Meeting Day — are difficult, due to venue availability and staff workload for elections.
Thus, Sunday was proposed as a viable, though more costly, alternative.
Library trustees
Voters will nominate from the floor three Brooks Memorial Library trustees to serve three years and one to fill a one-year unexpired term. They will also be asked to ratify a temporary appointment to fulfill the remainder of an unexpired term.
The names for consideration for the three-year terms of 2026-2029 are Margaret Atkinson, Jennifer Rowe, and Stephenie Swindle.
The name for the 1-year term of 2026-2027 is Felicity Ratté.
The name for ratification to complete an unexpired term ending in 2028 is Robert Ferrante.
Other business
Other articles to be voted upon include:
• Spending $131,698.86 through special assessments on property within the Mountain Home Park Special Benefit Assessment Tax District to pay debt service on capital improvements to water and sewer lines serving the Mountain Home and Deepwood Mobile Home Parks.
• Spending $80,000 through special assessments on properties within the Downtown Improvement District for capital and operating costs of projects of the town’s designated downtown organization.
• Exempting the municipal tax portion of real estate taxes for Brattleboro American Legion Post 5’s Little League field on South Main Street for five years.
• Exempting the municipal tax portion of real estate taxes for The Family Garden Inc. for five years.
• Exempting the municipal tax portion of real estate taxes for New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA) for five years.
• Electing two representatives to the Capital Grant Review Board for one year.
This News item by Virginia Ray was written for The Commons.