Joe Lynch, formerly of Brattleboro and now from Massachusetts, had a tense interaction with the parking kiosk in the Harmony Lot on Dec. 4.
Featured Story

Brattleboro drivers hit with big parking changes and costs

Town does away with the parking meters and ushers in payment by kiosk, text message, and smartphone app

BRATTLEBORO-On Nov. 21, the town transitioned to a new parking system, replacing 147 meters with nine new centralized kiosks and updating existing parking lot kiosks so that all parking is paid for with coins or credit/debit cards, via text message or smartphone app.

The changes have sparked frustration among residents and visitors, with complaints surfacing both online and in local stores.

Read More
News

Debate sparks over merging Rockingham's three fire depts.

BELLOWS FALLS-Meetings over the past several weeks to discuss the idea of merging the Bellows Falls Fire Department (BFFD), the Rockingham Volunteer Fire Department (RVFD), and the Saxtons River Volunteer Fire Department (SRVFD) have been both informative, and at times, confrontational. Merging the three independent fire departments into a more cohesive single unit has been discussed and debated in Rockingham for decades, with no less controversy. Voters will decide this latest proposal at the next Annual Town Meeting, which in...

Read More

'A few stumbles'

BRATTLEBORO-Assistant Town Manager Patrick Moreland admits there have been a few glitches as the system comes online. "We have had a few stumbles with rolling out the new system," he told The Commons on Dec. 2. Among the glitches: "A card reader in the Harmony Lot failed and needed an immediate replacement. That has been resolved. We believed that receipt paper would be included with new machines. On this, we were mistaken. Receipt paper has now been installed." One of...

Read More

Subscribe to the newsletter for weekly updates

A new bridge to the Granite State opens to traffic

BRATTLEBORO-When the first train steamed into town in 1849, a regional newspaper reported how "exhilaration of the moment burst forth" as residents celebrated the arrival of an easy route to seemingly everywhere in the world. Everywhere except neighboring New Hampshire, that is. The new rails ran beside the Connecticut River and a wooden covered bridge that carried horse-drawn buggies across to the Granite State, local historians recount. Transportation morphed into a steel span, and automobiles with the start of the...

Read More

Beyond carrots and parsnips

BRATTLEBORO-According to the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets, there are approximately 60 summer farmers markets and 15 winter markets in the state. Of those 15, a key player is the continuously running, November-through-March Brattleboro Winter Farmers Market (BWFM) which is in its 19th season. Support structure under the state's farmers markets is Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT), which assists markets around the state with promotion and consulting, and the Vermont Farmers Market Association, which promotes the...

Read More

EMS problems, EMS solutions

NEWFANE-As a rural emergency medical services (EMS) nonprofit, Rescue Inc. faces formidable challenges on any number of levels. Case in point: 650 pages of new requirements recently received from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). "These 650 pages of new regulations will affect every aspect of what we do at Rescue Inc.," said Drew Hazelton, chief of operations, as he calmly explains that a plan is already in place. "Meet Corey Miner," said Hazelton. "Her new position at...

Read More

Windham school board looks at building’s use and future

WINDHAM-The Windham School District Board addressed a variety of concerns over the merger that resulted in the closing of Windham Elementary School and also responded to letters from residents who called on Board Chair Abby Pelton and Vice Chair Daniel Roth to resign. At issue has been confusion around public use of the now-shuttered elementary school, once one of the smallest in the state, since voters approved the measure at a May 18 School District Special Meeting. Windham resident Russ...

Read More

WWHT defends proposed Chalet expansion

BRATTLEBORO-A nonprofit that created housing rapidly and under duress during the pandemic is looking to further develop the 17-acre property with 60 apartments and 10 homes. Preliminary details of the plans come amid criticism of the Windham & Windsor Housing Trust (WWHT) management track record by members of the Selectboard and an admission by WWHT Executive Director Elizabeth Bridgewater that drug use and safety issues at the nonprofit's multiple properties need to be addressed. At the Nov. 19 board meeting,

Read More

Bracing for impact

BRATTLEBORO-Bullying is a distinctive pattern of repeatedly and deliberately harming and humiliating others, specifically those who are smaller, weaker, younger, or in any way more vulnerable than the bully. It's the power imbalance that marks it as bullying, according to Psychology Today. With that in mind, it is interesting to wonder why a political party would seek to demonize a tiny 0.9% of the population - those people who identify as transgender - in order to seek power. Or to...

Read More