the essex
RepoRteR
Prsrt Std ECRWSS U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 266 Burlington, VT 05401 Postal Patron-Residential
{ Thursday, December 13, 2018 }
Boards continue governance work
Train hop
Subcommittee asks for more time; discussion paused for budget season By COLIN FLANDERS The governance subcommittee will take more time to finalize its report detailing how the town and village could change the structure of their governments, and while some officials feel a slow-and-steady pace offers the best chance for success, others see no time to waste. The trustees and selectboard last week discussed a draft of the subcommittee report and posed hypothetical questions to their recentlyhired attorney, Dan Richardson, who is tasked with guiding the municipalities on their journey toward a governance change. Over the last several months, Richardson has helped the subcommittee vet 10 different scenarios ranging from an entirely new charter and governing board to a full-out divorce, with several options involving some form of district or ward system that would give both village and town-outside-the-village dedicated representatives. Elected officials often emphasize See GOVERNANCE, page 2
The Reporter collected dozens of letters and drawings at the 10th annual Train Hop last Friday at the Brownell Library.
PHOTOS BY COLIN FLANDERS
‘TIS THE SEASON
Rec departments make progress on co-locating By COLIN FLANDERS Essex’s two recreation directors reaffirmed hopes to move their departments into a single office space next year, touting the benefits of co-locating while stressing a goal to preserve their identities. Essex Parks and Recreation director Ally Vile and Essex Jct. Recreation and Parks director Brad Luck told the trustees and selectboard last week they’re aiming for a late summer move if all goes according to plan. In a memo to the boards, they said both staffs could operate out of the offices at Maple Street Park, losing only a conference room in the process, while staff duties would remain the same with several
Hundreds of people turned out for the annual Train Hop event last Friday, and for the third-straight-year, The Reporter was there to gather holiday wish-lists and drawings to send along to the North Pole. See photos from the event on page 14 & 15 and look out for some of the entries in upcoming issues.
See RECREATION, page 8
essexreporter.com
EssEx REpoRtER | THURSDAY, DECEMbER 13, 2018
Vol. 17 No. 50