A Town Meeting Potluck: Seven Issues We Watched

Seven Days analyzed more than 200 Town Meeting Day warnings to report on seven noteworthy ballot items in our February 21 issue. So how did those items fare on Town Meeting Day?
In Winooski, residents voted 1,066 to 253 in favor of a $4.6 million bond to pay the city’s share of replacing the 96-year-old bridge that connects the Onion City with Burlington. The new structure will feature wider shoulders and bike paths. Construction will begin in 2027.

A resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and an end of American arms sales to Israel passed in Newfane with overwhelming support. At least nine other towns, including Richmond and Marshfield, passed similar resolutions.

In Greensboro, residents were abuzz over a resolution declaring the Northeast Kingdom town a “pollinator-friendly community” where townspeople avoid using insecticides that can harm bees. “A number of people showed up at the town meeting just because of the resolution,” Conservation Commission chair Chris Steel said. “It really struck a chord.”

The largest school construction project on this year’s Town Meeting Day failed as voters in Barnard, Bridgewater, Killington, Plymouth, Pomfret, Reading and Woodstock rejected a $99 million bond to finance a new middle and high school for the Mountain Views Supervisory Union. According to unofficial results, 1,570 ballots were cast for the bond and 1,910 against. The building project alone would have led to a tax hike of up to 16 percent in future years.

In Berlin, an appeal to the United States Postal Service to open a post office in town passed unanimously during a traditional floor vote on Saturday. “I’m hopeful this pushes things along,” said Ture Nelson, interim town administrator. “We’ve been down this road before, though, so I’m realistic about our chances.”

Here, ye. Here, ye. In Johnson, the constable will now be prohibited from “exercising any law enforcement authority.” According to selectboard member Duncan Hastings, a bid to strip the constable of policing abilities passed almost unanimously. A few naysayers wanted to stick to the status quo, but “by and large,” Hastings said, “the citizenry was more concerned about a constable going rogue.”

South Burlington elected successors to three retiring city councilors, including council chair Helen Riehle and longtime Councilor Meaghan Emery. Laurie Smith, Mike Scanlan and Elizabeth Fitzgerald won the seats.