Issue #467
What should Vermont sound like?
A few years ago, I went out to see the zany film The Grand Budapest Hotel. It was just my luck to sit a couple of rows in front of a man who gleefully provided a running commentary on the finer points of the movie to his partner. She snickered away while crumpling candy wrappers.
The mounting tension of the moviegoers was palpable. Some noticeably threw glances, others directed coughs, and yet others heaved sighs. The couple's banter and giggling just kept going.
Well versed
In a new book, Vermont Poet Laureate Chard deNiord talks to American poets about their lives and work
Did you ever wonder what poets think about when they sit down to write their poems? A new book from University of Pittsburgh Press addresses not only this but many other issues concerned with the art of writing poetry. I Would Lie to You if I Could: Interviews with...
Around the Towns
Halifax Historical Society to meet HALIFAX - “Growing up in Halifax in the 1940s and 1950s” will be the topic of discussion at the annual meeting of the Halifax Historical Society on Friday, July 13. Six people who grew up in Halifax during those years (Wayne Courser, Lewis Sumner,
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Milestones
College news • Zephyr Pope-Mcgraw of Brattleboro graduated with a B.A. in public relations in May as part of the Class of 2018 at Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I. • Daniel Richardson of Vernon received a B.S. in finance in May from Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. • Jonathan Elwell of Brattleboro, a student at Carleton College in Northfield, Minn., was recently awarded an Independent Research Fellowship. These fellowships are awarded to enable qualified students to carry out independent...
Windham & Windsor Housing Trust, Westgate Housing join forces
A spirit of solidarity was in the air as Westgate Housing Inc. and the Windham & Windsor Housing Trust recently celebrated their partnership at WHI's annual meeting. Westgate Board President Julie Maloof praised the efforts of both the Westgate board and Housing Trust. “Society often sells us short because we can't afford as much as others,” Maloof said as she spoke to about 100 residents in attendance. “But we deserve respect for who we are, what we are, and how...
Tribute to violinist Robert Mann is featured at Yellow Barn
Yellow Barn continues into the second week of its 49th anniversary season with concerts on Thursday and Friday nights in the Big Barn, followed by an all-day tribute to violinist Robert Mann that includes a film at Next Stage and dinner at the Gleanery, plus a morning masterclass and evening concert at the Big Barn. Audience members are invited to attend any of these events, or group them together for a full celebration. On July 14, Yellow Barn honors Robert...
AOE proposes to force school-district merger
The West River Modified Union School District has proposed reorganizing elementary schools. Under one scenario, 3- and 4-year-olds would go to one school in Jamaica, kindergarteners through second-graders would go to Townshend, third- through fifth-graders would go to Newfane, and sixth through 12th grade would go to Leland & Gray in Townshend. Under a second scenario, Jamaica's school would be closed, but students from all of the towns would be separated into age-aligned school buildings. Under scenarios as described, close-aged...
Going big
Keane Aures, the new owner of Maple Valley Ski Area, appeared at the June 20 Selectboard meeting to share his plans for the long-defunct ski resort. “It will be a small, energy-efficient, sustainable farm,” growing crops for the on-site brewery, distillery, and winery, Aures said. In addition, he plans to restore an old apple orchard on the land, and eventually to reopen the ski trails. Maple Valley, located on Route 30 in West Dummerston, was built in 1963 and for...
Brattleboro tax rate to rise in next year
Property taxes are going up. For Fiscal Year 2019, Brattleboro landowners will pay $1.2746 per $100 of assessed value for their municipal property tax. The Selectboard approved this rate at the July 3 regular meeting. Town Manager Peter B. Elwell noted this is 5.51 cents more than last year's rate. It's also more than the original budget called for. During the FY19 budget talks, Elwell and the Selectboard supported a 3.6-cent increase. Elwell explained the extra 1.91 cents. At March's...
Winter Farmers’ Market plans a move to Flat Street
After 12 years of operations at the River Garden, the Winter Farmers' Market is moving to the Church Building at 80 Flat St. Open on Saturdays from November through March, the market offers local farmers an opportunity for direct-to-customer sales during the winter - a time when most of the state's farmers' markets are closed. Other vendors include local sugarhouses, meat purveyors, bakers, chocolatiers, and craftspeople. The market's café serves locally made prepared foods to diners and shoppers, with a...
Wants to hear more about options
Wonderfully detailed and complete article on the status of recycling and trash disposal but no information on how options affect the environment and climate change. I would love to read more in a future story.
Welch describes bleak conditions for asylum seekers at border
When U.S. Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., makes his periodic “Congress in Your Community” visits to the towns of Windham County, local concerns usually take precedence. But on a steamy afternoon at the Putney General Store on July 5, the talk was dominated by President Trump. Welch, who is seeking his seventh term as Vermont's lone congressman, called the Trump administration “an existential threat” to the nation's democratic form of government. “It's not about what Trump's position is on health care,
Marlboro Music opens with rarities from Copeland, Schumann
Marlboro Music's opening weekend of concerts on Saturday, July 14, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, July 15, at 2:30 p.m., will offer varied programs with piano, strings, woodwinds, and voice with 23 resident artists sharing their discoveries in a handful of the 65 works that have been explored in depth for the first three weeks of this season. It was at Marlboro that the concept was born of a distinguished older artist playing together with, rather than coaching, exceptional young...
Seasonable summer conditions continue, but heat increases early next week
Good day to you, hearty southern Vermonters! After our recent heat wave, we've got more seasonable summer conditions to look forward to as the next seven days arrive into and depart from our lives. While some isolated showers and thunderstorms will be possible this weekend, we should generally experience fair weather for the next week. Unfortunately, we need more rainfall to help mitigate the moderate drought Windham County is experiencing, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Having said all that,
Dollar store a perfect fit for Route 30
I love dollar stores. I do! I do! I do! If you were in my tax bracket, you would, too. The “scenic corridor” with its used car lot to the east, an auction house and used dirt emporium to the north, the welding shop, and the Husqvarna dealer to the west, and grocery store and big-box Mobil oil to the south, make it the perfect place for the dollar store. As noted, the area is already commercial, so zoning probably...
Sculptor Bruce Campbell to lead a workshop at BMAC
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center presents “Fun with Wire,” an afternoon workshop with sculptor Bruce Campbell on Tuesday, July 24, from 1 to 5 p.m. Campbell will guide participants in twisting and joining wire to create whimsical animal sculptures. Registration is $65 per person ($55 for BMAC members); space is limited to 12 participants. To register, visit www.brattleboromuseum.org and click on “Events,” or call the museum at 802-257-0124, ext. 101. In 1976, Campbell saw a retrospective exhibit of the work...
Costa-Walsh, Horowitz win Firecracker 4-Miler
Colin Costa-Walsh, 19, of Putney and Kelly Horowitz, 43, of Landenberg, Pa., were the overall winners at the 41st Bill Powers Memorial Firecracker 4-Miler on July 4 in Brattleboro. Costa-Walsh finished in 24 minutes, 23 seconds - 21 seconds ahead of Nate Antaya, 38, of West Chesterfield, N.H. Ryan Gilligan, 21, of Vernon was third in 25:03. Horowitz placed 12th overall as the first woman to finish in 28:41. Maggie St. John, 15, of Hinsdale, N.H., was second in 30:17,
Brattleboro ban is now in effect for single-use plastic bags
On July 1, Brattleboro became the first town in Vermont to ban single-use plastic bags. After a community vote at Representative Town Meeting, the Selectboard passed the ban against plastic bags 2.25 mil or less last November. “Plastic bags have been banned by municipalities across the country, including the entire states of Hawaii and California and over 50 municipalities just south of us in Massachusetts. We are a progressive state with a population that cares about our environment,” Tim Maciel,
Last straw
Members of the United Nurses and Allied Professionals union lined the sidewalk in front of the Brattleboro Retreat last week as a volley of car horns sounded in support of the union members. The picketers held their informational picket during a week-long heat wave, waving to the passing traffic and carrying signs that portrayed a strained relationship between staff and management at the psychiatric hospital. A change in how the Retreat configures schedules - which affects inpatient nurses, licensed practical...
Yes, it’s a big deal
I am tired of disabled and marginalized people being thrown under the bus in the name of environmentalism. I'm tired of people assuming everyone can drink from a glass without a plastic straw. (I can't always, by the way.) And that paper straws can be an adequate replacement for everyone. And that no one has allergies to compostable, corn-based straws. And that everyone has the facilities and capacity to wash and store reusable containers. And that everyone can walk a...
Brattleboro-West Arts opens new exhibit in Brooks House Atrium
A new exhibit in the Brooks House, 130 Main St., opened July 6, spotlighting the artwork of three Brattleboro-West Arts members. The show, titled “New Passage,” will feature paintings by Kay Curtis, Julia Eva Bacon, and Cai Xi in the Atrium Hallway Gallery. The new works will be on view through the summer. The exhibit is at the invitation of fellow Brattleboro-West Arts members Petria Mitchell and Jim Giddings, who worked with Brooks House management to create a venue in...
Hopefuls for governor make their case
With barely a month of campaigning left before the Aug. 14 primary, three of the four Democratic candidates for governor came to the monthly Brattleboro Citizens Breakfast on July 6 to make their pitches before about 60 people. James Ehlers of Winooski, Christine Hallquist of Hyde Park, and Brenda Siegel of Newfane took turns answering questions that were submitted in advance of the event at the Brattleboro Senior Center. The fourth Democrat in the race, Ethan Sonneborn, an eighth-grader from...
At former landfill, a solar project flickers on
The new 5-megawatt net-metered solar project on the town's former landfill at the Windham Solid Waste Management District's Old Ferry Road facility is slowly going online. The project is slightly behind schedule. According to the project's Certificate of Public Good, the solar array had to get hooked up to the grid by June 30. “It is not on schedule,” said the District's Executive Director Bob Spencer. “They tried to plug it in [to the grid] last week, but some of...