New requests in Derry bring voted articles to $91,000

By Bruce Frauman
©2018 Telegraph Publishing LLC

Fiscal requests to be voted on from the floor at Londonderry’s Town Meeting in March are almost $23,000 above the nearly $68,000 approved in 2017, according to a preliminary list compiled by Treasurer Tina Labeau and presented to the Londonderry Select Board on Dec. 18.

At that meeting, then chair Paul Gordon said the board plans to vote on the list and determine how to present the requests at its meeting on Jan. 8. Labeau told The Telegraph that if an organization is left off the list, it still has until Jan. 18 to present a petition with 25 signatures to gain access to the warning, which must be posted by Jan. 25.

The greatest single increase comes from the $12,000 request from the Mountain Valley Medical Clinic to cover residents on Medicare without supplemental health insurance. Last year, the clinic withdrew its $26,000 request for the same item because Springfield Hospital now owns the clinic and is responsible for funding uncompensated care. This year, according to staff, the request is to cover higher than expected medical care for those in financial need.

Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategies, the economic development agency based in Brattleboro, is again asking for $5,307, or $3 per resident. In October 2017, three representatives appeared before the board to summarize the services offered in Londonderry. At Town Meeting in March of 2015 an 2016, town voters turned down the financial request. And in 2017, no request was made.

The Current, an areawide bus service is again asking for $1,000, which was turned down by the voters in 2017.

Also new are Gerda’s Equine Rescue, a 501(c)3 based in Townshend, with a $100 request and Bring Back Bromley Observation Tower with a $5,000 request by the Green Mountain Club.

Also, the American Red Cross has increased its request from $200 in 2017 to $500 this year, and the Windham County Humane Society has zeroed out its request. It received $500 last year.

Here is the complete list thus far.

Requesting Authority	2017 Allotment	2018 Request
Champion Fire Co. No. 5	$20,000	$20,000
Senior Solutions	$850	$850
Flood Brook Athletic Association	$2,500	$2,500
GNAT-TV	$2,000	$2,000
Grace Cottage Foundation	$500	$750
Green Up Day VT	$100	$100
VT Rural Fire Protection	$100	$100
Londonderry Conservation Fund	$1,000	$1,000
Londonderry Town Parade	$1,000	$1,000
Volunteer Rescue Squad	$6,000	$6,000
Mental Health Services	$1,513	$1,513
Neighborhood Connections	$5,000	$5,000
RSVP	$415	$415
SEVCA	$1,700	$1,700
S. Londonderry Library Association	$10,000	$10,000
The Collaborative	$1,000	$1,000
Valley Cares	$2,742	$2,742
Visiting Nurse Alliance	$7,000	$7,000
Windham County Historical	$250	$250
Windham County Youth Services	$315	$315
Woman's Freedom Center	$800	$800
West River Montessori	$2,000	$2,000
American Red Cross	$200	$500
Southeastern Watershed Alliance	$415	$410
Windham County Humane Society	$500	$0
Mountain Valley Medical Clinic	$0	$12,000
Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategies	$0	$5,307
Bring Back Bromley Observation Tower	$0	$5,000
The Current	$0	$1,000
Gerda’s Equine Rescue	$0	$100
TOTAL	$67,900	$91,352