Town requires Excavation and Trench Permit before digging
BRATTLEBORO - Beginning this construction season, anyone performing excavation work in the town of Brattleboro right-of-way or on systems involving town infrastructure must have an Excavation and Trench Permit.
The permit will allow the Public Works Department to have greater communication with homeowners and contractors about town infrastructure and important steps for a safe workplace prior to beginning excavation. It will also ensure that at the end of the project that the ground surface covers (pavement, concrete, plantings) are left in proper condition.
The permit is free of charge and applications can be found at tinyurl.com/bder7bk8, on the Public Works website, at the Brattleboro Planning Office, and at Public Works. For further information, contact Public Works at 802-254-4255.
Coin, postcard, and sports card show on April 13
BRATTLEBORO - [email protected].
Vernon Historians host program about Vern-Mont Farm
VERNON - The Vernon Historians invite the public to a program at the Governor Hunt House Community Center about Vern-Mont Farm, which has been owned and operated by the Dunklee family for five generations.
On Sunday, April 14, at 2:30 p.m., Jeff Dunklee will share stories, photographs, and the history of this dairy farm and celebrate the contributions to the town by his and other farm families. The program will immediately follow a brief business meeting of the Vernon Historians membership at 2 p.m. It is free, all are welcome, and refreshments will be served.
The Governor Hunt House Community Center, at 322 Governor Hunt Road in Vernon, is accessed off Vermont Yankee Drive. Parking is available at the community center and across the street at the Vernon Elementary School.
Mending bee at Putney Library
PUTNEY - The Mending Bee at Putney Public Library, 55 Main St., is back for April. Those with a pile of nice wool socks with holes, favorite jeans that would be perfect if not for a rip in the knee, or sweaters with moth holes, are invited to bring their ailing fabric items to the library on Sunday, April 14, from 1 to 4 p.m., to work on them in the company of others.
Advice and support are always available, but all participants do their own mending. Sewing machines and darning tools are available to use during the Bee. This program is free.
'War Tax' resisters hold information event
BRATTLEBORO - The U.S. military budget for one year exceeds the combined yearly military budgets of the next 11 largest-spending nations. According to Taxes for Peace, New England, "this is paid for by our federal income tax."
To share what can be done about paying (or not paying) for war, this advocacy group will host its annual war tax resistance information table Monday, April 15 (Tax Day), from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. outside the Brattleboro Food Co-op, 2 Main St. For more information, visit bit.ly/760-tax or contact Daniel Sicken at 802-428-3690.
Community shredding event in Newfane
NEWFANE - On Saturday, April 20, from 9 a.m. to noon, people can securely dispose of their old documents and support the Townshend and Newfane libraries.
A SecurShred truck will be parked on Jail Street in Newfane for this on-site shredding event. There is no need to remove staples or paper clips, and items are shredded as participants wait. The Windham Solid Waste Management District will also be there to discuss composting and have a truck to take computer peripherals for recycling.
A $10 per box donation is suggested, with proceeds split between the Moore Free Library and the Townshend Public Library.
Free produce distribution in Putney
PUTNEY - The Vermont Foodbank and the Putney Foodshelf co-sponsor a monthly food drop of free produce and some nonperishables on the fourth Thursday of every month, from 9 to 9:45 a.m., on Alice Holway drive (in front of Putney Meadows, the white building across from the Putney Co-op and the Putney Fire Station).
All are welcome. This is a drive-up service; bags provided. The next monthly food drop is Thursday, April 25, 9 to 9:45 a.m.
Crop Cash benefits at farmers markets will restart in May
RICHMOND - With the summer farmers market season starting soon, the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) is once again helping Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) customers to multiply their benefits with Crop Cash, beginning in May.
What is Crop Cash? For every dollar of 3SquaresVermont/SNAP benefits spent at a participating farmers market, eligible participants can receive a dollar of Crop Cash (up to $10) to spend on fruits, vegetables, herbs, culinary seeds, and plant starts. Anyone who receives 3SquaresVT/SNAP benefits, as well as folks who still have P-EBT benefits, is automatically eligible to get Crop Cash at a farmers market - there is no additional application for this program.
Last year, NOFA-VT piloted an expansion called Crop Cash Plus, which allowed SNAP customers to get extra coupons to spend on any SNAP-eligible food (like bread, eggs, meat, dairy, and grains).
According to NOFA-VT, this program was incredibly popular and well-utilized in 2023, but no funding was provided to continue the program in 2024, and they are currently lobbying state lawmakers for a budget allocation to continue Crop Cash Plus later in 2024 or 2025.
For more information about the Crop Cash program, visit bit.ly/760-cropcash.
This Town and Village item was submitted to The Commons.