No. 12 February 2005
SELECTBOARD NOTES
TOWN MEETING
Town Meeting will be held on
Saturday, February 26, 2005 starting at 9:00 am at Anderson Hall,
Elections for town and school officers will be held on Tuesday, March 1, 2005 at Town Hall from 8:00 am – 7:00 pm.
TOWN CLERK NOTES
FEBRUARY 21 -
FEBRUARY 22 - VOTER REGISTRATION DEADLINE - by noon. Must be registered to vote at Town Meeting and by Australian ballot the following Tuesday.
FEBRUARY 28 - SPECIAL OFFICE HOURS -
Clerk's office open 8:30 am - 5:00 pm, deadline to request absentee
ballots.
THETFORD TELEPHONE DIRECTORY
A handy directory of Thetford resident and local business phone numbers is for sale at Merchant's Bank, Isabell's, The Village Store and Baker's Store. The proceeds will benefit the THETFORD TRUST, a community service organization.
steering
committee continues to plan ways to enhance the Thetford Center Common as a
central common for all residents. Grants and volunteer efforts are being sought
for a path, benches and plantings.
THETFORD HILL COMMON
Transportation
Enhancement Grant has been received to design plans for a pedestrian walkway and
other pedestrian safety features.
ICY DRIVEWAY HELP
Residents are welcome to visit the Highway Department sand pile to pick up a bucket or two for personal use. This offer does not extend to pick-up truck loads and those who plan to sand their entire driveways.
Thanks for your cooperation.
POLICE COMMUNITY FORUM
To be
held February 16th and 17th from 7 pm-9 pm at the
ATTN: PROPERTY OWNERS
Due
to the high acceleration of real estate prices in the Town of
Thetford Board of Listers
THETFORD LIBRARY EVENTS
When was the last time you paid a visit to the library? Why not stop in?
Latham
Library hours are:
Mondays 2:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Tues.-Thurs. 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Fridays 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturdays
10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Peabody Library Hours are:
Tuesdays 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Wednesdays 2:00 pm - 8:30 pm
While at the library why not fill out a survey, which is available at the librarian's desk. This survey will help us, the trustees, find out what you would like to see more of in the library.
SPECIAL
EVENTS AT THE
P.J. Story Time
Join
Simon Brooks, the children's librarian, for a special PJ Story Time. Bundle up
the kids and bring them over for some wonderful bedtime stories. 7pm at the
February 8, March 8, March 22
Winter Melodies - Mandolin and Flute Performance
Join local musicians Rick Barrows and Rachel Clark for some fun music.
Wednesday, February 2, after school at 3:30pm.
The Minstrel & The Bard
Hear ye! Join us as Rick Barrows accompanies Simon Brooks for some great story adventures.
Wednesday March 9, after school at 3:30pm.
WEEKLY STORY
TIMES
**Join Simon Brooks every Wednesday for our After School Program 3:30pm-5pm featuring snacks, stories, crafts and other surprises. (students can take bus 2 from TES).
LATHAM LIBRARY, THETFORD HILL (785-4361)
**Join Simon Brooks after school every Thursday for a special story time experience.
**Friday morning preschool story time. A long time Latham Library tradition. Stories and songs begin at 10:30am.
ATTENTION SENIORS
White River
Join us for weekday programs with lunch at noon. (Over 60-suggested donation $3.00).
The Bugbee Bulletin, available monthly on line at www.bugbeecenter.org or by mail. We welcome volunteers and programs of interest to seniors.
Visit our craft store, book sales and quilt classes.
Judy Adams, Program Director
(802) 295-9068
VERMONTERS
AND THE WAR IN
At the upcoming Town Meeting, voters in Thetford and at
least 43 other
The RESOLUTION CONCERNING THE
VERMONT NATIONAL GUARD AND THE WAR IN IRAQ is part of a statewide initiative
seeking to rebalance state and federal jurisdiction over the Vermont National
Guard and urges
with the nuclear freeze, Vermonters have a history of debating global issues at
Town Meeting when they are seen as linking local communities to the world at
large. This resolution follows in that tradition and can be summarized as
follows:
. The war in
authorizing
factual claims. Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction and
has never been shown to have any connection to the attacks on 9/11.
. The cost of deploying Vermont National Guard units in
substantial as reckoned in deaths, injuries, and personal trauma, not to
mention the dislocation and financial hardship inflicted on families,
businesses, and communities.
. We call on the Legislature to investigate and discuss
in the governance of its National Guard, as the
authorizes it to do, and to set up a commission to study how Guard
deployments affect readiness here in
. We call on the Congressional Delegation to work to restore a proper
balance between the powers of the States and the powers of the federal
government with regard to state National Guard units.
. We call on the President and the Congress to take steps to withdraw
American troops from
humanitarian law.
The resolution can be read at the Town Clerk's office and on the web at
<http://www.iraqresolution.org>.
Handouts will be available at Town
Meeting. Background information on the origins of this statewide
initiative and on the legal questions involved can be found on the
website as well.
Upper Valley Peace & Justice Group
TA NEWS
The theme for this celebration is "Periods of History".
Alumni, past faculty, parents and Trustees are welcome to attend. Please call
TA at 802-785-4805 to let the school know if you plan to attend.
ONE CHURCH COMMUNITY
In July of 2004 the
We use both our church buildings, alternating the location
of Sunday morning worship (9:30) on a monthly basis. January we were at Timothy
Frost, February at
333-4429. The church also has an email address; north.thetford.church@valley.net
Gail Dimick
Pastor, Timothy Frost/
THETFORD STREET LIGHTING UPDATE
The Thetford Energy Committee and Selectboard have completed the first phase of
our town street lighting project. Working with Sustainable Energy
Resource
Group, the Thetford Hill Village Improvement Society (THVIS) and community
members, we have identified ten Town streetlights and six owned by the THVIS
that were deemed unnecessary and will be eliminated.
Street lighting is one of Thetford 's largest energy expenditures.
Last year
we spent over $5,800 for our 36 streetlights. The lights that have been
removed
will save the town over $1,600 per year. An additional six to ten
lights are
being considered for removal in the future.
We are now working with Efficiency Vermont to conduct a life-cycle-cost
analysis
on alternative outdoor lighting options, including fixtures and timer controls
that are much more efficient than Thetford's current mercury vapor lights with
drop-down lenses. We are comparing high-pressure sodium, metal halide and
THETFORD STREET LIGHTING UPDATE (continued)
induction lamps, all of which
use 40%-60% less electricity than the Town's
current mercury vapor lamps, to see which will be most cost effective.
Full cut-off "cobra"
head fixtures with flat lenses (similar to those on the
Town's high-pressure sodium and metal halide test lights) improve lamp
efficiency and reduce unwanted glare and light spillage by directing the light
at the roadway, where it is needed, and not out to the sides or upward.
Timers
would allow the lights to be turned off during the middle of the night, cutting
the remaining electric use in half.
We are also discussing with Central Vermont Public Service and the Vermont
Department of Public Service (VDPS) the possibility of allowing Thetford to buy
its own street lights and place them on CVPS poles, rather than lease them from
CVPS as the Town currently does. Thus far, CVPS has refused to allow
this.
Almost all
though certain communities have been allowed to install their own poles, wires
and lighting at great expense.
Town ownership of lights would likely expand its street lighting options and
further reduce costs. It would bring with it the added responsibilities of
paying for maintenance and electric use, both of which are currently included
in
the utility lease fee. However, it appears that if electric usage is
reduced
through more efficient lamps, fixtures and timers, owning the lights may end up
a better deal for towns.
To give a sense of leasing vs. ownership costs, the Town of Plainfield, VT pays
about $7,000 per year for 56 streetlights under its current lease arrangement.
Efficiency Vermont to purchase its own lights and place them on GMP poles. Once
it purchases its new lights,
responsible for any necessary replacement of lights or parts and may contract
with GMP or another vendor for maintenance. Despite these new responsibilities,
Plainfield estimates that after it has paid off the costs of purchasing its new
lights (2-3 years), it will cut its annual lighting bill to less than $4,000
per
year. This agreement between
In addition to saving money on streetlights, there are side benefits of reduced
energy use and less night-time light pollution from extraneous and poorly
directed street lighting. On the flip side, issues of driver and
pedestrian
safety must be considered when deciding on removing or altering street
lighting.
Some businesses and homeowners have supported more street lighting for security
purposes. However, area lights around buildings controlled by motion
detectors
may be more effective for this concern as they are activated by movement and
THETFORD STREET LIGHTING UPDATE (continued)
more likely to deter would-be
intruders and alert others to their presence. In
addition, motion activated area lights use less electricity, are cheaper to
operated and cause less night-time light pollution.
For more information on the town
street lighting project or other Energy
Committee related issues, contact committee chair,
Bob Walker at 802-785-4126 or bobwalker@valley.net.
THETFORD SCHOOL BOARD UPDATE
The
school board has been hard at work developing next year's budget. The school
report will be mailed to households on the voter checklist during the second
week of February. Copies will also be available at the town hall, the
elementary school, and Latham library. We will also have copies available at
town meeting on February 26. Please feel free to contact any board member, with
questions about the budget or other school matters. We are...
Charlie Buttrey 785-4005
David Celone 785-2035
Darrin Clement 785-2668
Denise Froehlich 785-2097
Marty Jacobs 785-2606
OESU SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH UPDATE
The Superintendent Search Committee has selected 4 finalists to visit schools on February 9th and 10th. There will be open Q&A forums for teachers and for community members with the candidates in the afternoons. Please watch for details and contact Darrin Clement, Committee Chair (dclement@maponics.com or 785-2668) with any questions.
THETFORD
TOWN NEWSLETTER
Paper
copies are available the beginning of each month at Thetford libraries, stores,
bank, town hall, and electronically at
http://lists.valley.net/lists/info/thetford or www.thet.net/.
Please help us make this a viable publication by submitting community information and events.
SUBMISSION INFORMATION
The deadline for submissions is the 20th of each month. Send news including contact name and telephone number to Cathee Clement at 785-2668 or turtlepond@netzero.net.
Please list Thetford Town Newsletter in the subject line.