Cavendish Update 1/31/25: Candidates/Warnings/News/Events
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CAVENDISH CONNECTS LINKS: CAVENDISH VT FACEBOOK PAGE cavendishconnects.bsky.social or www.cavendishconnects.com
1/31/25
1. Change of venue for History of Chocolate Program
2. Cavendish Slate of Candidates
3. Warnings for Town Meeting, GMUSD and R
4. Cavendish Related News
5. Events Calendar
1. CHANGE OF VENUE FOR HISTORY OF CHOCOLATE PROGRAM: The home of SuperRoasted Coffee, formerly Crows Bakery, at 73 Depot Street Proctorsville, will be the site of the Cavendish Historical Society’s History of Chocolate talk on February 15, at 10 am. Sharing her knowledge, Cavendish chocolatier, Maren Muter, owner of That Chocolate will be providing the talk and taste workshop. Free and open to the public, thanks to a grant from the Cavendish Community Foundation, this program is for those 12 and up. For more information, please e-mail margocaulfield@icloud.com or call 802-226-7807.
2. CAVENDISH SLATE OF CANDIDATES: Cavendish has no uncontested races for this year’s Town Meeting/Election. While Shannon Devereux and Dave Norton are once again running for their current one year positions on the Select Board, George Timko will not be running again. However, former Select Board member Sandra Russo seeks the three year position. Other candidates include: Mike Ripley, moderator for one year and Theresa McNamara for Grand Juror for one year. No petitions were filed for the following positions: Auditor (3 positions); Cavendish Library Board of Trustees (1 position); Green Mountain Unified School District Board ( 1 position for a three year term, currently held by Steve Perini); Town agent (1 year position) and Trustee of Public Funds (1 5 year position).
3. WARNINGS FOR TOWN, GMUSD AND RVTC
Cavendish Town Meeting: The Warning for Town Meeting is available by clicking here. Town Meeting, which is an informational meeting, takes places on Saturday, March 1 at Cavendish Town Elementary School in Proctorsville at 2 pm. Voting on all articles is by Australian Ballot on Tuesday, March 4, from 10-7 at the Proctorsville Fire Station.
Articles 1-3 are similar to previous years-election of town officers (article 1); collection of taxes (article 2) and voting of the FY 2025-2026 Town Budget of $2,450,400.57 (article3). Additional articles are as follows:
Article 4:Fix the yearly salary of the Selectboard at $700 per member and $900 for the Chair.
Article 5: Appropriate the sum of $2,500.. to Okemo Valley Technical Rescue to support their operations.
Article 6: Appropriate the sum of $500 to Windsor County Youth Services to support their operations.
GMUSD: The Green Mountain Unified School District (GMUSD) Annual School District Meeting will be held on Feb. 27th at 6 pm at Green Mountain Union High School. The Warning is available by clicking here
The Warning for the GMUSD voting, which will be done by Australian Ballot on March 4 (Tuesday) from 10-7 at the Proctorsville Fire Station, is available by clicking here. Article 1: Approval of the School Board to expend $18,627,678.00, with an estimated per pupil cost of $14,603.21, which is 18.14% higher than per pupil education spending for the current year. Article 2 requests approval of the transfer of $357,395 in surplus funds from the 2023-2024 school year to the Facilities Reserve Fund. Article 3 is the election of school directors. Note that Cavendish does not have a candidate for the vacant 3 year position.
River Valley Technical Center: The warning for the annual and informational meeting, taking place on Feb. 13 (Thursday) at the RVTC Café Rum. B106 at the Howard Dean Education Center, Springfield at 7 pm is available by clicking here. To be voted by Australian on March 4 (Tuesday) 10-7 at the Proctorsville Fire Station is the budget of $3,480,129.
4. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
• Depot Street Bridge Planters Vandalized: On January 27, Cavendish Streetscapes posted the following, Our beautiful seasonal planters on the Proctorsville bridge were torn off and thrown into the frozen river and smashed to pieces. The Cavendish Streetscapes volunteers work diligently to beautify the community with winter, spring, summer and fall decorations and raise the money to do so. We are sorely disappointed about this incident and ask the community to help us to keep an eye out for vandalizers. Note that the planters did not come down due to wind as they were firmly affixed to the bridge. If you would like to help with the replacement of the planters, checks can be sent to Cavendish Streetscapes PO Box 605 Cavendish 05142
• News Analysis: What’s the future for the commission on the Future of Public Education? Chester Telegraph
• Judge temporarily halts Trump’s federal funding freeze as Vermont officials scramble to respond:Vermont has joined a multi-state lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s administration seeking to stop it from freezing some federal financial assistance to states. A federal judge temporarily blocked the president’s order in response to a separate lawsuit on Tuesday, delaying implementation until at least Feb. 3. The state receives federal funding for everything from Vermonters’ food and rental assistance to clean water initiatives to school lunch programs. VT Digger
• Joint Statement from Attorney General Clark and the Human Rights Office: The VT Attorney General’s Office and the VT Human Rights Commission issued a joint statement affirming their commitment and enforcement to enforcement of laws protecting Vermonters against discrimination on the basis of gender identity. Click here to read the full statement.
5.EVENTS
FEBRUARY 5 (WEDNESDAY): Cavendish Historical Society’s talk/workshop on Cavendish abolitionist Peter Tumbo and the role beads played in the African slave trade. Participants will have an opportunity to make a beaded bracelet following the talk. 6-7:30 pm at the Cavendish Library in Proctorsville. FMI: margocaulfield@icloud.com or 802-226-7807 In the event of snow, check the Cavendish VT Facebook page www.facebook.com/cavendishvt for cancellations and rescheduling.
FEBRUARY 14 (FRIDAY): HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY
FEBRUARY 15 (SATURDAY): Cavendish Historical Society’s program on the History of Chocolate with Cavendish chocolatier Maren Mutter. Program will be held at the home of SuperRoasted Coffee, 73 Depot Street, Proctorsville (formerly Crows Bakery). This talk is for those 12 and up. FMI: margocaulfield@icloud.com or 802-226-7807
FEBRUARY 17 (MONDAY): President’s Day. Legal holiday Town Office and Schools Closed
MARCH 1 (SATURDAY): 2 PM Town Meeting Day at the Cavendish Town Elementary Multi Purpose Room. This is an informational meeting only with all articles voted on by Australian Ballot on March 4.
MARCH 4 (TUESDAY): Voting Day. Polls are open from 10-4 at the Proctorsville Fire Hall.