The Chesterfield Arch Bridge Beautification and Preservation Society recently placed planters with flowers, a picnic bench, and a banner on the Justice Harlan Fiske Stone Pedestrian Bridge on Route 9 between West Chesterfield and Brattleboro.
In 2010, the state of New Hampshire named the bridge for the late Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, who was born in Chesterfield in 1872. He served as Chief Justice from July 3, 1941 until his death on April 22, 1946.
When the two-lane arch bridge was built in 1937 to replace a suspension bridge destroyed in the Flood of 1936, it won an award that year from the American Institute of Steel Construction as the “Most Beautiful Steel Bridge” in its class. The plaque commemorating the honor still stands.
The 1937 bridge was decommissioned in 2003 after the construction of the adjacent, similarly-designed U.S. Navy Seabees Bridge.
Brattleboro Historical Society opens new downtown History Center BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Historical Society has opened its new downtown History Center. The new center on the first floor of the Masonic building at 196 Main St. (with a separate south-side entrance and rear-door wheelchair ramp) features the first of...
They say that money talks, baloney walks. (Well “they” don't actually say “baloney,” but this is a family newspaper.) Vermont Yankee has a track record of being a good neighbor: it pays its bills on time, supports the community, and provides jobs. Vermont Yankee's handling of its property tax...
Gun Sense Vermont is sponsoring a family-friendly vigil on the Common on Saturday, June 15, from 7 to 8 p.m., to mark the six-month anniversary of the Newtown massacre. The theme of this vigil is “We Have Not Forgotten.” A bell will be tolled once for each Newtown child killed, and for the roughly 80 children who have been killed with guns in the United States since that tragic event. Songs of hope will be sung, and there will be...
I'm pleased that legislators have agreed to decriminalize possession of marijuana, but the conversation shouldn't end here. Marijuana is a much safer substance than alcohol or hard drugs, and that's one reason legislators should move swiftly to begin regulating - and taxing - this market similarly to the way we regulate alcohol. As Attorney General William Sorrell explained at public hearings on the decriminalization bill, it would be better if users had a legal way to obtain marijuana rather than...
The Brattleboro Colonels have reached the Division I softball semifinals for a fourth straight season. And, for the fourth straight season, the Colonels have done so behind the arm of pitcher Kayla Wood, who didn't give up a hit in Brattleboro's first two playoff games last week. Wood, a senior, has been flirting with a perfect game all season. On June 4 at Sawyer Field, everything came together for Wood and the Colonels as they rolled to a 15-0 win...
Vermont Symphony Orchestra's Summer Festival Tour brings picnicking, music, and fireworks to Grafton on Wednesday, July 3. Broadway star Sara Jean Ford joins the VSO for hits from the Great American Songbook. Vocal numbers by Richard Rodgers, Cole Porter, and George Gershwin share the spotlight with irresistible Benny Goodman Big Band tunes. Orchestral favorites from the world of opera add drama, fantasy, and exoticism to the songful theme. As always, the concert closes with Tchaikovsky's spectacular “1812 Overture,” marches, and...
What can parents do to prevent kids from doing drugs? I don't think there could have been much more my folks could have done. Growing up, I was a very active kid. I played sports passionately. I was even more passionate about skateboarding and snowboarding. I had two loving parents who brought me to my sporting events and cheered me on and even coached my teams, took me on snowboarding trips and even let me bring friends. I had the...
Births • In Lebanon, N.H., (Dartmouth- Hitchcock Medical Center), May 28, 2013, a son, Julian Atwood Lillis, to Emily Bragonier and Timothy Lillis of Bellows Falls. College news • The following local students were among the 548 students awarded a degree at St. Lawrence University's Commencement ceremony, held May 19 in Canton, N.Y.: Landen T. Elliott-Knaggs of Brattleboro graduated cum laude and was awarded a degree in history and Emma L. Gaskill of Brattleboro graduated cum laude and was awarded...
The Board of Directors and staff of the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont acknowledge the generosity of the many individuals and businesses that supported our 26th Annual Walk for Life, helping us to raise an amazing $30,000. Close to 100 individuals and eight different teams participated enthusiastically in this year's walk. Seven local businesses were our indispensable sponsors, and many other businesses generously provided prizes, food, and assistance. Special thanks to Brendan Taaffe and his colleagues for the lovely music.
Recently, as I was standing at my window on Western Avenue, a white SUV-like vehicle was stopped by the police. I saw three town police officers side by side and a sheriff's vehicle behind them. All the police had gotten out of their cars. They positioned themselves and had guns drawn. The officer in the town police car on the far left heading toward the Interstate had a weapon that looked like a submachine gun. He was standing by the...
It is de rigueur for planners in the modern age to plan for growth. Rarely do such planners explain what they mean by “growth.” Is it growth in size, numbers, quality, diversity? Is it something else or some combination? I submit that the intent of planning today must be to achieve sustainability, while directing and managing decline to maintain viability along the way. I use the word “decline” here to refer to the rate and amount of consumption. There is...
NEYT Alumni Association presents “Blood Wedding” by Federico García Lorca, translated by Jessica Callahan Gelter and directed by Eric Bass, with original compositions and score by Lynn Mahoney Rowan. “Blood Wedding” is a story of violence and vendetta in a rural Spanish town. The death-bound love triangle at the center of the play fuels passions to a fever pitch and propels the story to its unstoppable tragic conclusion. This production of “Blood Wedding,” staged as a folk-opera with music by...
On Friday, June 21, at 8 p.m., Simba will celebrate the longest day of the year with the annual Summer Solstice dance party at the Evening Star Grange in Dummerstson Center. All ages are welcome for this evening of drumming, dancing, music, and fun for the whole community. Admission is $10, with a family maximum of $25. Simba has been together 24 years, playing weddings, parties, summer concerts and special events, but the Solstice party is a highlight for the...
The Brattleboro Energy Committee and Brattleboro Time Trade (BTT) have teamed up. Volunteers who register with BTT can now earn credit for assisting the energy committee with the Vermont Home Energy Challenge. “We are very happy to provide a grant to the Vermont Home Energy Challenge,” said BTT coordinator Abby Mnookin. “We can think of no better use of our resources than to support a project where people are helping their neighbors to make their homes more energy efficient, save...
New York City has The Moth, a non-profit group dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling, which, since its launch in 1997 has presented thousands of stories, told live and without notes, to standing-room-only crowds worldwide. In that spirit, local storytellers will share their life experiences for seven minutes each when Main Street Arts presents “A Night of True Stories” on Saturday, June 22, at 7 p.m. Organizers say friends and neighbors will entertain with tales of pathos, mirth,
Readers of Timothy Scott's defense of knotweed [Viewpoint, May 29] might be interested in a Wikipedia entry that says that the plant is “listed by the World Conservation Union as one of the world's 100 most invasive species” and is “now considered one of the worst invasive exotics in parts of the eastern United States.” I agree with Mr. Scott that Nature does not make mistakes. Its marvelous operations are conducted according to the so-called laws of nature, the workings...
The West Brattleboro Association is raising $6,000 to erect a pair of “Welcome to West Brattleboro” signs, one at either end of the village. Organizers say these will add to the village's sense of pride and make the village even more inviting and attractive to visitors and locals. To date, the WBA has raised $1,400 toward its goal, or nearly a half of what one sign costs. The WBA says the signs will be colorful and well-constructed, and at least...
Two Sandglass visiting artists are reinterpreting a tragic historic event in a startling new way. On June 15 and 16, at 5 p.m., writer Patrick Keppel and composer Bradley Kemp will present “Triangle,” their play in tabletop and shadow puppets, dramatic text, and live musicians, at Sandglass Theater. This multimedia work explores the legacy of the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in which 146 garment workers died. It was one of the deadliest industrial disasters in the history of New...
Track work being done by CSX Transportation between Palmer and Springfield, Mass., will mean several days of service disruptions for Amtrak's Vermonter later this month. On June 16-18, and 23-24, the northbound Vermonter will operate from Washington, D.C., to Springfield, Mass., where the train will be substituted by a bus to Brattleboro. At Brattleboro, passengers may board the Vermonter to continue travel northward to St. Albans and intermediate stations. The southbound Vermonter will travel from St. Albans to Brattleboro. Passengers...
After a year of digging into archives, exploring cemeteries and cellar holes, and immersing himself in the details of 19th century rural life through a year-long residency with Vermont Performance Lab, Ain Gordon returns to Southern Vermont with his newest theater work. VPL presents “Not What Happened” on June 14 and 15 at 8 p.m., New England Youth Theater, 100 Flat St., Brattleboro. This new theater work by Gordon, a three-time Obie Award-winning theater artist, features images created by rural...
Motorists traveling on Interstate 91 between Exit 3 in Brattleboro and Exit 6 in Rockingham will have to put up with delays for the next few months. Paving work began on the highway last week. The Vermont Agency of Transportation (AOT) says northbound and southbound travelers will have to deal with single-lane traffic and daytime delays through early September. Northbound, daytime work will take place on the 23 miles of pavement between exits 3 and 6. Southbound, paving will take...
Two days after representatives from the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Plant and the state of Vermont met in federal court to address a backup generator for the plant, the Public Service Board issued the project a Certificate of Public Good. In response, Vermont Yankee's parent company, Entergy Corp., is dropping the lawsuit. “We are pleased that the Public Service Board has issued the Certificate of Public Good for the new diesel generator,” said Entergy spokesman Jim Sinclair. “As we have maintained...
Brenda Lynn Siegel, executive and artistic director of Southern Vermont Dance Festival, is inviting businesses and community members to join in what she calls “a monumental event” taking place in Brattleboro for the first time. The Southern Vermont Dance Festival (SVDF) is a celebration of dance open to professionals, novices, families and anyone who wants to move to the music and contribute to a sense of place. Slated for July 18-21 at venues convenient to downtown, the event aims both...
On behalf of the South Londonderry Free Library, we thank all participants and volunteers for making the second annual Street Fair such a huge success and for being so flexible with the date change. Everyone worked hard preparing and running the event making it a winner for the Library. Many thanks to all the vendors and to our volunteers who spent the day parking cars and selling hot dogs, white elephant items, baked goods, plants, and books. A special thanks...
I am a local preschool teacher and love running around and being outside with my kids every day. I am an avid gardener at my home, and I am interested in local foods and nutrition. I have also attempted to unify my preschool and gardening interests by becoming part of the Farm to School movement. Given my profession and my interests, I hear an awful lot about childhood obesity and, quite frankly, I am tired of it. Childhood obesity is...
“A natural progression.” That's what Josh Hearne, owner of the upstart Main Street music venue Barnaby's Music Hall, calls his decision to open his own spot in Brattleboro after years of promoting acts all over Southern Vermont. And Barnaby's seems to fit naturally into a certain downtown aesthetic here, a kind of free-spirit free-enterprise found in spaces like Equilibrium on Elm Street and numerous Main Street galleries. Business and professionalism seem to be Hearne's focus in particular. Hearne is a...
Kudos to Allison Teague for her comprehensive and clear-eyed reporting on the Rockingham Public Library's on-going saga [“Library gets temporary home; librarian called on carpet,” Town & Village, May 29]. It is a complex issue, with many sincere and valid concerns on both sides. Ms. Teague made it accessible and understandable to the neutral observer, as well as to those who find themselves in one faction or another. My home is in Westminster, but the RFPL means a great deal...
Visit our slide show of photos from the 2013 Strolling of the Heifers parade, which took place June 8.
As I was growing up, my relationship with my father was always strained. As a child of divorce, I felt as though I had to side with my mother, because I was always closer to her. But divorce wasn't the only reason my father and I weren't close. I think he could always sense that I was different. We had next to nothing in common. He liked sports, and I liked to shop. He wanted me to golf, and I...
RE: “A legacy of music” [Letters, June 5]: Thank you, Jim Kurty, from the Burdo family. I'm thankful for the start you gave all four boys. Words fail me when I consider your involvement with decades of beginning musicians at three schools! And thank you, Andy Davis, for speaking for us all.
I was glad to see coverage in The Commons of the Core Arts Project, specifically the atlas based on the Brattleboro arts community [“Atlas Shrugged,” News, May 22]. However, I must take exception to the sentiment attributed to me...that the atlas “over-emphasized the visual arts at the expense of writing.” I have always believed in the cross-fertilization of the arts. Write Action has collaborated with visual artists as well as dancers and jazz musicians over the years. In fact, I...
Members of the public are aware of the recent decision of the Rockingham Free Public Library Board of Trustees to close the Library building until current renovations are complete. There are no valid reasons why the building should not have remained opened. The decision by the trustees was made despite a unanimous resolution passed by the Selectboard that the library should remain open, and with complete disregard for the views of the public, including many library users as well as...
At their respective May 28 and June 4 meetings, both the Trustees and the Selectboard read a statement into the record prepared by the Village and Town Attorney Ray Massucco. It had come to their attention that emails had been sent to local elected and former officials, “critical of other local residents … doing so using the name of Bellows Falls Village Clerk Kerry Bennett. “This is an attempt to discredit Mrs. Bennett and to make it appear that Mrs.
RE: “Defending the most versatile crop on Earth†[Viewpoint, June 5]: It is interesting that hemp is defined differently from marijuana. Sadly, genetically, they are the same species. In fact, there is only one species within the cannabis family and it is cannabis sativa. You can plant varieties with low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active ingredient of marijuana, but it is difficult to guarantee that future generations will also be low in THC. I suspect that the Canadian...
RE: “The artisan-cheese revolution” [Food & Drink, June 5]: There is little in life that can't be helped by cheese.
Commonwealth Dairy celebrated the completion of its $12 million expansion project at its Brattleboro plant last Friday. The company chiefly produces yogurt products, and is well known for its strained Greek yogurt. The business opened in March 2011 and has far exceeded its early hiring estimates. According to Gov. Peter Shumlin, who attended the celebration, Commonwealth started out expecting to add 40 jobs over five years. Instead, the young company just announced in a press release that it expects to...
Frances Moore Lappé awoke happy one morning on the edge of an epiphany. If only she could find her bright-red Dutch oven. Lappé, an author, co-founder of the nonprofit Small Planet Institute, and a former Brattleboro resident, told her audience at the Latchis Theatre during a morning session of the Slow Living Summit that she searched her kitchen high and low for the Dutch oven so she could prepare her favorite root vegetable dish for guests arriving later. Despite its...
The Police-Fire Facilities Upgrade Committee voted unanimously to award an architecture and engineering contract to Northeast Collaborative Architects (NCA) for the town's estimated $14.1 million rehabilitation of its police and fire stations. NCA beat out 11 other candidates to have filed RFPs, and proposed some fees lower than what the town had budgeted for. Project Manager Steve Horton proposed negotiating with the firm to find other ways of lowering costs. The vote came after the Selectboard approved the committee's recommendation...
The Brattleboro Selectboard has granted the bar Arkham a permit allowing its patrons to imbibe alcohol in a cordoned outdoor area - with conditions. In a 3-1 vote at their June 4 meeting, the Selectboard agreed to the application after stipulating that the outdoor fenced-in area shall operate only when bar staff are present, and that the board would review the permit after 90 days. The owners of Arkham, which is located at 16 Harmony Place, appeared before the board...
Ken Schneck is stepping down from the Selectboard effective June 19. Are you interested in finishing his term? The board last week voted to open the candidate search to fill the newly vacant three-year seat. Candidates should deliver a letter of interest to Town Manager Barbara Sondag's office by June 13 at 5 p.m. Letters received later will not be considered. Candidate interviews begin June 20 at 5 p.m., and it is anticipated the board will appoint the new member...
Town Assessor Russell Rice submitted figures to the Selectboard that showed the Grand List has increased slightly since 2005. “It is frequently stated that our Grand List is 'stagnant' or 'shrinking,'” Rice wrote in a memo to the board. “While the first may be true, the second is not.” “It is certainly true that a rate of growth in the neighborhood of 1 percent is not encouraging,” he continued. “But there has been some improvement this year after five years...
Three days before crowds lined Main Street in downtown Brattleboro to celebrate local farmers and view heifers resplendent in Mardi Gras beads, a smaller contingent crowded into the Latchis Theatre to delve into ways to create a societal shift to Slow Living. “What can we learn in the slow lane that we can't learn in the fast lane?” said Orly Munzing, founder and executive director of Strolling of the Heifers and the Slow Living Summit, in her opening statements June...
Free, nutritious meals will be available to youth 18 and younger at 20 sites throughout Windham County this summer through the USDA Summer Food Service Program. Meals will be served from mid-June through August at sites in Brattleboro, Bellows Falls, Grafton, Putney, Townshend, Westminster, and Wilmington, with many sites serving both breakfast and lunch. Many participating summer camps will serve free lunches to their enrolled participants. All four school supervisory unions in Windham County sponsor the program, as does Our...
Voters will get another opportunity to weigh in on the village budget at a special Village Meeting set for Monday, June 24, at 7 p.m., at the BF Opera House. The Village Trustees set the date late last month in an effort to get a budget in place before the start of the 2014 fiscal year on July 1. Village Meeting voters on May 20 rejected a proposed budget of $1,945,357. Of that amount, $1,139,057 was earmarked for the Bellows...
The Rockingham Free Public Library Board of Trustees met again on Monday night, this time approving a lease signing for 41 The Square, at Merchants Bank, as a temporary home for the library during construction. The Trustees also approved $2,000 for moving expenses there and back, significantly lowering the estimated amount Library Director Celina Houlne had brought before the board just the week before, an amount she estimated at $7,000. Houlne had to cancel the move planned for June 7...