Change in Appraisal of Real Estate notices were mailed out by the Lister's Office on July 12. A complete list of all new property values is available for review in the Lister's and Town Clerk's offices.
Grievance hearings are scheduled to begin on Monday, Aug. 5.
Anyone wishing to grieve must request a hearing in writing. The grievance must include the property identification number(s) and contact information for scheduling an appointment prior to Aug. 5. They may be hand-delivered to the Town Offices or mailed to Listers, P.O. Box 223, Townshend, VT 05353.
...RE: “Raising chickens as spiritual practice” [Essay, July 3]: Meg Mott writes: “It takes so much dying to raise one of these fine birds, it only feels natural to eat them with passion and within limits.” I really, truly do not understand this perspective. I grew up in a...
A 17-acre pond created by a beaver dam turned into a raging wall of water that did substantial damage to Hill Road early on the morning of July 11. Vermont State Police in Brattleboro got a call around 12:30 a.m. about the beaver dam breach. When troopers responded to...
Births • In Brattleboro (Memorial Hospital), June 26, 2013, a daughter, Rosalina Fae DeAngelis, to Amity (Aldridge) and Jacob (Shepard) DeAngelis of Brattleboro; granddaughter to Jeremy and Susan Aldridge and Elizabeth DeAngelis. • In Brattleboro (Memorial Hospital), June 26, 2013, a daughter, Savannah Rose Dow, to Cassandra Betit and Christopher Dow; granddaughter to John Betit, Victoria Chase, Dawn Dow, and Miles Dow. • In Keene, N.H. (Cheshire Medical Center), May 13, 2013, a son, Zebulon Noi Doku, to Kelsey Burns...
Brenda Lynn Siegel, artistic executive director and founder of the Southern Vermont Dance Festival (SVDF), had long wanted to organize a dance festival for her hometown, but it was only after a series of recent disasters in Brattleboro that she actually resolved to make her dream a reality. From Thursday, July 18, through Sunday, July 21, in downtown Brattleboro, the first-ever SVDF presents a celebration of dance open to professionals, novices, families, and anyone who wants to move to the...
Where's Waldo? In Bellows Falls, of course. The famously crowd-friendly children's book character in the striped shirt and black-rimmed specs is visiting 25 different local businesses throughout the community in July. Those who spot him can win prizes such as stickers and book coupons. Waldo figures will be cleverly concealed in local business establishments. Anyone wishing to participate can pick up a “Find Waldo Local in Bellows Falls” passport at Village Square Booksellers at 32 The Square, with the names...
Michael Martin had given me the ultimatum. His smile and his obviously gleeful body language completely devastated me. My life went into a total nosedive. It was like a doctor telling you you had inoperable cancer and six months to live. I kept saying “It's not possible.” Then, “What do I do now?” And “It isn't fair.” The rats turn away my years of good work and I'm put by the side of the road like garbage? My mind went...
It would be an immense pleasure if our local waterways were accessible for all of those inclined to enjoy perching on the riverbank, propping our fishing poles in the water and drowning a few worms. Especially for people who can't walk - like me. I'm the chief sled dog for my friend Neil, whom I have already reduced to his knees once or twice by way of a low-hanging garage door and a likewise inclined tree branch. I'd been dying...
The walls of the new Algiers Village Housing apartments were freshly painted and still dotted with blue painter's tape marking areas of last-minute repairs. Visitors walked pristine floors of maple, and peered into closets – as yet bare. After nearly 10 years of work, the Windham & Windsor Housing Trust (WWHT) cut the ribbon on its $4.5 million housing development on July 10. The event also marked the completion of the “Algiers Triangle” master plan, a collaboration among the Friends...
At first he couldn't pull the trigger. And then he could. It was a Tuesday morning, Aug. 9, 2011, when the Brattleboro Food Co-op's beer and wine manager, Richard Gagnon, wearing a green cap, a black t-shirt, a black zip-up sweatshirt, a pair of Levi's 560 jeans, plain white socks, and a pair of black sneakers, walked into an office and shot his boss in the back of the head with a Smith & Wesson .380 semi-automatic handgun. Then he...
Under normal circumstances, we do not annotate our reporting with stories-behind-the-stories or other navel-gazing; we much prefer to offer our readers pieces that need no further explanation. But the shooting that took place almost two years ago at the Brattleboro Food Co-op - when Richard Gagnon, the wine and beer manager, shot and killed his boss, store manager Michael Martin - was no ordinary story for this community, and the journey that Joyce Marcel's extraordinary piece took to get into...
Meg McCarthy, 60, who lives in Marlboro, is a graphic designer for print and web. Small, slender, gentle, and soft-spoken, she drifts through town as if she's lost her mooring. She carries with her an air of unspoken tragedy. What do you do when your beloved husband does something unbelievably violent? Something reprehensible? Something that you never saw coming? Something which has changed your life forever? Do you deny him? Do you continue to love him? Do you support him?
Tropical Storm Irene caused mayhem here in 2011, and the work to rebuild is ongoing. Raising funds to help the village of Wilmington recover and grow stronger following that event, the nonprofit Wilmington Fund VT presents seven-time Grammy Award nominee Joan Osborne on Saturday, July 20, under the tent at The Hermitage Inn. Osborne (www.joanosborne.com) is best known for her 1995 multi-platinum hit “(What if God Was) One of Us.” Over the past two decades, she has been recording and...
Sadly, some topics bear repeated scrutiny. America's penchant for violence is one of them, so once again, I am driven to write about the prevalence of gun violence, rape, and violence in the media - all topics that pundits write about and TV talking heads ponder, while nothing seems to change. Let's revisit some facts. More than 84 people are killed by guns daily in this country; annually, there are more than 31,000 gun-related fatalities. In 2010, we had more...
As a board member of the Brattleboro Retreat, I have had the opportunity to attend medical staff meetings several times a year. What has always impressed me at these meetings is the dedication of the psychiatrists as physicians, their commitment to providing excellent clinical care for their patients, and their willingness to share ideas in the service of improving patient care. Equally impressive is how much they appreciate working in a collegial, professional environment, where not only they, but the...
RE: “Slow down for safety's sake,” [Letters, June 26]: Susan Avery describes a faked “accident.” (To alarm people?) I hope her contrived scenario isn't realized, but there are real events that need exposure. Yes, there are speeders, but that's only half of the reality. Yes, speed kills, but ignorant people can maim or kill themselves and others without speeding. Brattleboro's heavy street traffic eliminates “speeding.” The bigger problem is the way people jump into the streets without looking - many...
'Battle of Gettysburg' featured at Rotary meeting BRATTLEBORO - Rodger Martin, Keene State College journalism professor and author of “The Battlefield Guide” (2009), is the featured speaker at the Brattleboro Rotary Club luncheon on Thursday, July 18, starting at 12:15 p.m. He'll deliver a talk, “The Battle of Gettysburg, 150 Years: Gone But Still With Us,” at the Brattleboro Country Club, 348 Upper Dummerston Rd. Martin is the author of three books of poetry that mine little-known locations and stories...
It was a wild roller coaster ride for the Brattleboro 11-12 Little League All Stars in their best-of-seven District 2 tournament against Bennington. Trailing 2-0 in the series, Brattleboro rallied for two wins to tie it up, only to have Bennington win the next two games to advance to the state tournament, which begins July 20 in Essex Town. Things looked bleak going into Game 3 on July 9. Bennington was primed to continue their winning ways at home. But...
Thank you to more than 170 community members who are contributing their urine to the Rich Earth Institute's research project. We have already collected about 2,000 gallons out of our 3,000-gallon goal for 2013. On behalf of our board of directors, we offer our heartfelt appreciation to this diverse group of early adopters. You have overcome any initial squeamishness and accepted the challenge to treat your urine as a rich fertilizer resource instead of as a waste to be flushed...
Just after Richard Gagnon shot and killed Michael Martin, shocked and stunned workers at the Brattleboro Food Co-op expressed their grief - for their coworkers, for their families, for the invasion of the unthinkable into their workplace. Many stood in groups in the parking lot and cried. Others sang to comfort one another. The next day, hundreds of people - staff, co-op members, people from the community - gathered in the co-op parking lot for a candlelight vigil in tribute...
Residents are concerned about a possible rabies outbreak after a grey fox attacked two people at a Jamaica residence last month. According to Selectboard member Andy Coyne, who is also the town health officer, the attack happened on June 29. After being in contact with state veterinarian Robert Johnson, Coyne said he is aware of “who went to the hospital and who was treated.” Greg Eckhardt, a warden with the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife, said he responded to...
Brown & Roberts, the Main Street hardware and if-you-can't-find-it-here-you-don't-need-it store, will change hands on Sept. 29. Store co-owners and brothers Paul, Robert, and Michael Putnam will sell the family business to Rick Bibens of Springfield. But, said manager Paul Putnam, customers should expect to walk into the same store and find the same people, service and merchandise. Putnam said Bibens plans to employ Brown & Roberts' current staff. The building's iconic wooden floors and inventory of more than 50,000 items...
Few people were neutral about American playwright Lillian Hellman. Hellman, who died in 1984 at the age of 79, led a tempestuous life. She was the longtime companion of mystery writer Dashiell Hammett for three decades until his death in 1961. She was an unapologetic leftist whose political activities in the 1930s and 1940s earned her the wrath of the House Un-American Activities Committee in the 1950s, and who stood up against the anti-Communist witch hunt that came to be...
“There isn't a department head that hasn't taught me something,” said Town Manager Barbara Sondag, sitting in her office on the second floor of the Municipal Center, her desk covered by an organized chaos of paper, Looking back on her nearly 10 years as town manager, Sondag says she knows more than she ever imagined about the cost of one linear foot of sidewalk, fire suppression, and the value of a snowless winter. She leaves Brattleboro to take a position...
Award-winning Vermont director Jay Craven will present his new film, “Northern Borders,” at a first round of Windham County dates as part of the film's summer 100-town tour. Craven, who is featured in July's Orion Magazine for his place-based film work, will introduce the picture and lead a post-film discussion. Upcoming Windham County dates include: • Sunday, July 21 – Next Stage Arts, Putney, talk at 7 p.m.; screening at 7:30. • Monday, July 22 – United Church of Christ,
On Wednesday, July 24, at 7:30 p.m., mother/daughter duo Suzzy Roche and Lucy Wainwright Roche celebrate the release of their first duo recording, “Fairytale and Myth.” Suzzy Roche is a founding member of The Roches, the beloved folk/pop sister trio from New York City, whose career spans more than 30 years. Lucy is a critically acclaimed songwriter on the rise who has toured with such artists as Neko Case and the Indigo Girls. She will release her fourth solo recording,
RE: “Economic group offers community findings” [News, July 10]: We have asked for several corrections to this article about the Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategy (SeVEDS) and the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) project process. The most critical inaccuracy regards funding of CEDS projects: “Shortlisted projects - five to 10 of them - could receive federal or community resources.” This is 100 percent false. As we write on our website: “The CEDS is a regional plan for growth of the...
Joe Famolare was a colorful guy who lived a colorful life. Famolare, who died on July 11 at age 82, started working in his father's shoe manufacturing business when he was 12. Then, as a shoe designer, pattern-maker, and executive himself, he took his talents to a higher level. For Capezio, Inc., for example, he designed the dance shoes for the original Broadway production of “West Side Story.” He also designed ballet shoes for the Bolshoi Ballet and footwear for...
Brooks Memorial Library patrons can grab new e-Audio and e-book titles remotely from the library's Overdrive Advantage and OneClickdigital collections, and enjoy them on personal computers, tablets, and other smart devices. Visit www.brookslibraryvt.org and click on “Borrow and Download.” You'll need your library card number to access the Overdrive Advantage titles you're entitled to. Examples of new titles from Overdrive are “The Art Forger” by Melanie Benjamin, “The Burgess Boys” by Elizabeth Strout, “Clara and Mr. Tiffany” by Susan Vreeland,
“Some Like It Hot,” the 1959 Billy Wilder romantic comedy starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon, is your chance to warm the home of a family in need. The film is being screened Thursday, July 25, at 7 p.m., at the Latchis Theatre, the latest in Latchis Arts' “movies by donation” series. It's a benefit for both the nonprofit Windham County Heat Fund (www.facebook.com/WindhamCountyHeatFund) and Latchis Arts. In the film, musicians Curtis and Lemmon witness a mob hit...
“Brattleboro is always ahead of the curve.” That was the response of an employee of the animal protection division of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) who wrote to me after hearing Mary McCallum's commentary on Vermont Public Radio that addressed dogs being left in parked cars. A notable comment, I thought, given the sheer size, history, and scope of the MSPCA. The radio commentary gave a respectful nod to Brattleboro for installing warning signs...
In May, the Vermont House voted 99-42 in favor of what would have been the nation's first GMO labeling bill. H.112 would require labeling products sold within the state that are produced with or contain genetically modified ingredients. The bill exempts labeling animal products regardless of whether animals were fed or treated with GMOs. The Senate version of the bill, S.89, is expected to be taken up in January when the Legislature returns to the Statehouse, and the Vermont Public...
It was 1968. My high-school boyfriend John and I were hanging out in Harvard Square, talking. We were standing on a street corner saying our goodbyes for the day when a police car pulled up next to us. The officer got out of his car and walked toward us. “We have a report that you're loitering,” the officer said. “Funny,” I thought. “Everyone loiters in Harvard Square. In fact, Harvard Square is all about loitering!” Then, much to my surprise,
Through legal documents, police investigation reports, and interviews, The Commons sheds light on some of the tensions that preceded a 2011 killing in downtown Brattleboro, in an office at presumably the unlikeliest of workplaces - a food co-op. Michael Martin's killer, Richard Gagnon, was portrayed as an employee who snapped senselessly over a bad evaluation. But the real story behind that tragic morning is much more complicated. • Visions, values, and tragedy. A 22-year veteran employee whose identity was his...