Brattleboro Selectboard candidates. Top row: Oscar Heller, Jill Stahl Tyler, Franz Reichsman, Richard Davis. Bottom row: Christina “Ina” Shay-Onye, Isaac Evans-Frantz, Amanda Ellis-Thurber, and Tim Wessel. Heller and Stahl Tyler are competing for the three-year seat, while the other candidates are seeking the one-year seat.
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Eight vie for three seats on Brattleboro Selectboard

Two incumbents are being challenged by four candidates, one who previously served four terms

BRATTLEBORO-The Annual Town Election takes place for all town voters on Town Meeting Day, Tuesday, March 4, and eight candidates are competing for three seats on the Selectboard.

The following overviews have been compiled with the help of information and responses from candidates gathered from the League of Women Voters. The Commons and the Brattleboro Reformer are both media partners in the nonpartisan organization's civic engagement efforts.

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News

Meeting will discuss proposed state education reform

BRATTLEBORO-The public is invited to a special informational meeting hosted by the Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) and the Windham Southeast Supervisory Union (WSESU) boards of directors to discuss Gov. Phil Scott's proposed education reform plan. The meeting takes place Monday, Feb. 24 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. in the Brattleboro Union High School auditorium. Attendees will be board members, school administrators, district staff members, and community members. The following legislators have been invited to participate: • State Sen. Nader...

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Hoop barn collapses under weight of snow and ice

BRATTLEBORO-Ashlyn and Abraham McClurg of Rebop Farm on Sunset Lake Road are reeling but resilient, trying to recover from the collapse of their barn under a load of ice and snow on Sunday, Feb. 16. "We're exhausted and in shock, but there's no other way but through, and the animals need taken care of so, that's what we'll do," Abraham McClurg said Monday. "The weather certainly isn't making it any easier today and tonight, though." When the four-year-old, 40-ft.-by-100-ft. hoop...

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Storm packs annual ski jump weekend into four hours

BRATTLEBORO-Upon the advent of the airplane at the turn of the 20th century, locals with an eye on the sky didn't need a 1919 front-page headline to see that Evelyn Harris was the "First Woman to Fly Over Brattleboro." But unbeknownst to many, the late pioneer also made history by repeating the feat on skis. Harris had just turned 25 in the winter of 1922 when her brother, Fred, turned a hometown hill into what's now the sole Olympic-size ski...

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Local superheroes

WEST BRATTLEBORO-As I walk into the Brooks Memorial Library director's office, the first thing I notice is a framed silhouette of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. There's the charismatic leader playing a sweet tune and watching all the kids from town dance behind her. Starr LaTronica - who if you haven't noticed has the name of a superhero - is classically self-effacing. She describes her leadership style as "getting out of the way and letting my incredible staff do their...

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Brattleboro candidates’ responses to League of Women Voters survey questions

The League of Women Voters of Vermont invited all the candidates in the Brattleboro March 4, 2025 Election, to speak directly to voters through answering a set of questions. The questions were created with our media partners The Brattleboro Reformer and The Commons to create a fair, impartial, and locally relevant online forum. The League had final say on the questions asked. Here are the full unedited responses we received from the candidates, as published on https://www.vote411.org/. Municipal-Wide Offices Brattleboro...

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Pride versus precedent

ROCKINGHAM-Town and village officials have tabled a request to display a rainbow pride flag on town property near a site of deep significance to the local LGBTQ+ community. Rockingham Selectboard Clerk Elijah Zimmer's motion to the Jan. 28 tri-board meeting - which comprises the Rockingham Selectboard, and the Saxtons River and Bellows Falls Trustees - has stirred discussion, and some controversy, among residents and leaders. At the Feb. 4 Selectboard meeting, Zimmer's motions were discussed in detail then, but they...

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Community ‘prepares for takeoff’ at Harris Hill Ski Jump

BRATTLEBORO-On Feb. 15 and 16, the Harris Hill Ski Jump kicks off its 103rd year, with some 40 world-class athletes to compete in the U.S. Cup event and the Fred Harris Memorial Tournament. For one special weekend each year, a hayfield at the end of Cedar Street transforms into a pop-up Olympic-style village, with thousands of onlookers gathering to witness a remarkable display of courage. But the spectacle that awaits didn't just happen overnight. In fact, you could say it...

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What USAID funding freeze means for Vermont

The Trump administration's decision to freeze nearly all U.S. Agency for International Development programs could threaten Vermont nonprofits and businesses. The decision halts funding for global development efforts, affecting organizations that provide health care, disaster relief and economic support in more than 130 countries. Congress provided $66.1 billion in foreign assistance appropriations in fiscal year 2023. "The USAID provides lifesaving assistance, healthcare, disaster relief and prevents them from coming into conflict. It's both moral but it also serves our national...

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