Taxes due in Brattleboro
BRATTLEBORO - The third installment of the 2019 Real Estate and Personal Property Taxes is due Feb. 18. Payments made after Feb. 18 will have an additional 1 percent interest added to the unpaid balance.
The utility billing is also due Feb. 18. Payments made after Feb. 18 will have an additional 1 percent interest, as well as an 8 percent penalty, added to the unpaid balance.
Payments may be mailed to the Town of Brattleboro, 230 Main St., Suite 111, Brattleboro, VT 05301. An official postmark of Feb. 18 will be considered an on-time payment. Be sure to include the quarterly payment stub to ensure your payment is applied properly.
Electronic bank checks must be received in the office by the due date to be considered on-time. Check with your bank for payment schedule. Payments slipped in the mail slot after hours on the due date will not be considered on time.
Payments may be made via a credit card or debit card at www.brattleboro.org. Click on “Bill Pay” at the bottom of the home page. There is a fee for this service. The town can't accept credit card payments at the office or by telephone.
To make a payment in person, visit the Treasurer's Office in Room 111 of the Municipal Building, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Pedestrian, cyclist safety in West Brattleboro is addressed at meeting
WEST BRATTLEBORO - A public meeting and information session on pedestrian and cyclist safety will be held at Academy School on Thursday, Feb. 13, from 5 to 6 p.m.
Getting around West Brattleboro by foot or bicycle can be a challenge, particularly in the winter. Western Avenue (Route 9) is wide, with heavy traffic. The side roads are narrow, with few sidewalks. Snow often forces everyone into the travel lanes. These realities affect kids getting to school, adults headed for shopping or errands, and commuters heading to work.
Questions to be asked include: What are the best practices to be safe and to be respectful of others using our roadways? What can the town do to better meet the needs of pedestrians? What goals should we be working toward for a healthy community?
Brattleboro Coalition for Active Transportation, in cooperation with the West Brattleboro Association, will be presenting skills and perspectives for safety and an opportunity to share concerns and dreams.
Planning documents will be available for discussion, refreshments will be served, and safety lights for pedestrians and cyclists will be available free for those who need them. For information, contact Doug Cox at 802-257-1024 or [email protected].
VTC hosts auditions for Shakespeare in the Park
BRATTLEBORO - The Vermont Theatre Company announces open auditions for Richard III, their 2020 Shakespeare in the Park Production. Auditions will be held at the Hooker-Dunham Theater in Brattleboro on Sunday, Feb. 16, from 1 to 3 p.m., and Tuesday, Feb. 18, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Richard III will be directed by Adrienne Major and produced by Justin Fetterman and Harral Hamilton. Performances will be held on the Rotary Stage at Living Memorial Park in Brattleboro on June 25, 26, 27, and 28.
Actors are required to prepare a short Shakespearean monologue and will be asked to perform cold readings from Richard III. Auditioners should be prepared to be cast in multiple roles and open to the potential for cross-gender casting.
A young, energetic lead is sought for the role of Richard. Stage combat will be required for some roles; actors will indicate their interest/willingness on their audition forms. Contact the director to schedule an alternate audition or with any questions at [email protected].
Healthy school vacation activities in Newfane
NEWFANE - RiseVT Windham County awarded an amplify grant to the Moore Free Library to provide Story Time Yoga during the week of school vacation, Feb. 17 to 21.
Families and caregivers are invited to bring children of any age (and children over 10 can come on their own) from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. The class will be taught by Courtney Perkins of Newfane Village Yoga and will feature a different story each day that will incorporate gentle yoga moves people of all ages can try.
After the story time, there will be a community lunch provided at the Newfane Congregational Church. The yoga story time and the lunch are free and open to all families in the community. Moore Free Library is located at 23 West St., and the Congregational Church is on the Newfane Common. Contact the library at 802-365-7948 for more information.
Demystifying cat body language and behavior at Putney Library
PUTNEY - Cats are often described as mysterious or aloof; in reality, they are constantly communicating how they feel with their body language. On Wednesday, Feb. 19, at 6:30 p.m. at the Putney Public Library, Jessalyn Pennington, feline specialist at Windham County Humane Society, will present a slide show and talk that will help cat lovers better understand their friends.
The basics of cat body language, along with some commonly misunderstood cat behaviors, will be covered. While questions are encouraged, this class isn't designed to identify or correct individual cat behavior issues.
The Putney Public Library is located at 55 Main St. This event is free and open to the public.
Tracking workshop in Dummerston
DUMMERSTON - Lynn Levine will present a workshop on tracking Saturday, Feb. 22 (bad weather day is Sunday, Feb. 23), from 1 to 4 p.m., in Dummerston on a 200-acre deer yard. Participants will learn to think like the animals they are tracking and connect with the forested landscape. Levine will also give tips on identifying trees in the winter.
Participants should dress very warmly for the outdoors and bring snowshoes. Inside Levine's house, participants will be able to learn more from her collection of fur and scat.
For decades, Levine has been an environmental educator, tracker, and a consulting forester. She has written six books about the forest and has taken thousands of people into the woods. All workshop participants will be provided with their own copy of Levine's book, Mammal Tracks and Scat: Life-Size Pocket Guide.
The workshop is limited to 15 participants. Pre-registration with payment is required. Visit www.vermontwoodlands.org and click on “events” for more information.
RFPL to host poetry open mic
BELLOWS FALLS - The Rockingham Free Public Library, 65 Westminster St., is hosting a Poetry Open Mic on Monday, Feb. 24, at 7 p.m. Read original poetry or a favorite poem by another poet. All ages are welcome to participate or to be a part of the audience to support these brave souls.
Readers should come prepared to read up to five poems. To begin, each person will read one poem. Depending on the number of participants, a second, third, fourth and even fifth round of reading will follow.
This event is free and open to the public. The Library is wheelchair accessible. For more information, call 802-463-4270, email [email protected] or go to rockinghamlibrary.org.
Grants available from the Spark Connecting Community program
Funding is available from the Spark Connecting Community grants program at the Vermont Community Foundation. One of a number of competitive grant rounds at the Foundation, this program awards grants of up to $3,000 aimed at reducing the opportunity gap by creating stronger social connections.
This is the first of three rounds of Spark Connecting Community in 2020 and this round has a deadline of 5 p.m. on March 30. Applicants can expect to be notified of decisions during the week of May 11. To learn more, visit vermontcf.org/spark or call 802-388-3355.
Pre-K sign-ups begin in Windham Southeast
BRATTLEBORO - The Windham Southeast School District offers pre-kindergarten education at Guilford, Putney, Dummerston, and Oak Grove Schools for children who are four years old by Sept. 1, 2020.
Pre-K follows the school calendar and is for a full school day. Enrollment will be decided by March 16, 2020. Call the school to request a registration packet: Guilford residents call 802-254-2271; Putney residents call 802-387-5521; Dummerston residents call 802-254-2733; and Brattleboro residents call 802-254-3740.
Registration packets are due back to the school by March 13. Space in these programs is limited; if there are more children than spots available, a lottery will be used to fill the classes.
Brattleboro Food Co-op begins shopper survey
BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Food Co-op has begun its 2020 bi-annual Shopper Survey. All community members are able to participate in this anonymous survey. It is available to be taken once per person.
The survey consists of four sections: Shopping Patterns, Satisfaction, Personal Characteristics, and Communication. The survey takes between 10 and 15 minutes and participants will receive a coupon for $5 off a $25 shopping trip.
Participants can share feedback until Feb. 29. The survey can be found on the Brattleboro Food Co-op website, on Facebook, or in the store at Shareholder Services.
For more information, visit the Brattleboro Food Co-op website at www.brattleborofoodcoop.coop.