BRATTLEBORO — It doesn't take much effort to get a group of Brattleboro merchants together to gripe about the state of downtown.
It takes more effort to turn those gripes into an action plan.
That was the gist of what was billed as a “downtown visioning session” held at The Works on Main Street on May 21.
More than two dozen people crowded around a couple of tables jammed together in a corner of the restaurant, and all freely shared their ideas for what would improve downtown to attract more visitors.
Building a Better Brattleboro (BaBB) Board President Donna Simons, owner of A Candle in the Night, made it clear from the start that her priority was to try get greater merchant participation in BaBB's committees.
After operating her downtown business for more than 40 years, she said she's “been around the block a few times,” and that is was clear to her that “nothing is going to get done downtown unless we do it ourselves.”
As for the gripes and concerns, there were plenty.
Brian Robertshaw of Beadniks said Brattleboro needed to be “more user-friendly” for residents and visitors alike.
Nancy Braus of Everyone's Books lamented the lack of street life in Brattleboro and that there were no opportunities for young people to do anything downtown.
Jan Norris of Delectable Mountain called Brattleboro “vibrant, alive, and an amazing place to do business,” but believes that “overaggressive” parking enforcement makes visitors more concerned about getting tickets than in enjoying the downtown.
Outgoing Latchis Arts Executive Director Gail Nunziata compared the town's fortunes to a pendulum, and said Bratteboro is about to enter an upswing, “but we need to set our sights on where we want to go.”
Brattleboro Savings & Loan President Dan Yates tempered that optimism, however.
“We have four distinct organizations - BaBB, the [Brattleboro Area] Chamber [of Commerce], BDCC [the Brattleboro Development Credit Corp.], and SeVEDS - working on the same issues,” he said. “Unless they all come together with a clear vision they can define, and a plan for carrying it out, everything else is just a Band-Aid.”
And former Selectboard Chairman Dick DeGray pleaded for help from the other merchants and townspeople.
“We need everybody in this together. A handful of people are not going to solve these problems. Gail [Nunziata] hit the nail on the head, we can't keep blaming the town for our troubles,” he said.
DeGray explained he wants to see better communication between the merchants, and for townspeople to take whatever steps are needed to make the town more attractive.
The meeting ended without any real action plan, but the overall sentiment was that the town will need a lot more people willing to step up to deal with the various issues affecting downtown.
Brooks House on track
There was good news at the meeting, however.
Craig Miskovich of Mesabi LLC., the team renovating and rebuilding the historic Brooks House, announced at the meeting that the project is on schedule for an August opening.
He said the centerpiece of the renovations, the two-story, 3,000-square-foot atrium and lobby, will be open by Aug. 1 and invited BaBB to hold its next board meeting there.
Free Wi-Fi and new eateries will be the main features of the atrium, which Miskovich sees as Brattleboro's next public gathering space.
“Three months from now you're going to have more than 200 students coming in and out those doors every day,” he said. “It's going to have a big impact.”
He also said he hopes that the basement bar room of the Brooks House, which started out as the Oak Room and ended up as the Mole's Eye Cafe, will again be open soon.
He added that the scaffolding around the building should be gone by the Strolling of the Heifers parade on June 7.