Editorial

Voters have appointment that’s not worth keeping

Voters in Wilmington will be faced with making a rare decision at Tuesday’s Town Meeting. They are being asked to decide whether or not the town clerk and town treasurer positions should be appointed by the selectboard instead of being elected by the voters (see story on page 1).
We don’t...

A lot riding on auction

As things stand right now, the bankruptcy auction for the Hermitage Club is a month away. For many in the valley, it can’t come soon enough.
It’s been two years since the club shut down operations midway during the ski season, and during the interim 24 months there have been many twists...

Town Meeting season off to a good beginning

Town Meeting season got off to an early start this week. The River Valleys Unified School District, made up of Wardsboro and Dover, held its annual meeting on Tuesday (see story on page A1). The meeting had a little bit of everything that makes Town Meeting special and uniquely Vermont. Voters...

Study response required

“If the Legislature fails to act this year, I believe your towns should hire attorneys and sue or do whatever you can to get relief immediately. I believe this is unconstitutional.”
Rep. Laura Sibilia When Sibilia said the above quote at an information meeting a couple of weeks ago, many...

Still waiting to connect

Last week we had a pair of articles reporting on another attempt to expand high-speed internet services to underserved areas around the region. In a nutshell, representatives of a large number of towns in Windham County and adjacent communities are exploring the idea of joining together to study...

Inspiration for everyone

“That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I’d run to the end of town. And when I got there, I thought maybe I’d just run across Greenbow County. And I figured, since I run this far, maybe I’d just...

Country headed for most divisive campaign ever?

The country is just weeks away from the early 2020 presidential contests, with Iowa caucuses taking place on February 3 and the New Hampshire primary following eight days later. That two-week span will likely pour more rhetorical gasoline on what is already one of the most volatile political...

Study shows it’s time for a change in ed. funding

“It seemed so clear and so obvious that you could not educate students for the same dollars in all districts. If per-pupil spending is the measure of equity, it just doesn’t work. And it’s pretty upsetting, because these are children.”
Rep. Laura Sibilia When Sibilia said those words in...

Voters decide to break up marriage of convenience

Well, that didn’t last long.
It was less than two years ago when the Southern Valley Unified Union School District launched, following the demands of Act 46 and the approval of voters in Readsboro and Halifax to create the union.
On Monday, voters in Halifax unanimously decided to...

Christmas wish: housing that’s affordable for all

Last month we reported on some troubling economic numbers that were presented as part of an affordable housing analysis. The study was prepared by Camoin Associates for the bi-town economic development committee of the towns of Wilmington and Dover. The study found a number of things that could...