Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship, on assignment for the Barre-Montpelier Times Argus
After two years of devastating back-to-back flooding, Middlesex residents discussed how to deal with approximately $7 million of accumulated debt.
The town has spent more than $9 million on flood recovery, most to be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
But the town has received only about $1.26 million from FEMA so far. More has been approved but has not yet been received, and even more has not yet been approved by federal officials.
With the new Trump Administration, town officials feel uncertain about what FEMA will do. This leaves the residents of Middlesex in a difficult position.
At Town Meeting, they discussed whether they need an emergency bond to deal with the town’s flooding debt. In the end, that decision will be made by the town Selectboard.
This is all being exacerbated by the lack of a town reserve fund. In past years, Middlesex had $300,000 to $400,000 in reserve to cover bills and emergencies.
Now, the town has had to turn to other solutions, including Vermont Bond Bank, to get by.
“We are borrowing to pay our bills,” Selectboard Chair Elizabeth Sharf said.
No decisions were made at Town Meeting Day about this issue. Town officials plan to continue to work with FEMA and may consider floating a new bond.
In other business, an amendment to lower the library’s budget failed. The town proposed expenditures of $37,359 to support the Kellogg-Hubbard Library.
Resident Fred McCallah made a motion to amend this and lower the expenditure to $20,000. That amendment failed.
The original proposed expenditure of $37,359 was then passed.
Hannah Brown, a resident of Middlesex, said that the library is an important space for children to go to after school and further their education. Other residents mentioned that it is very important to have these third spaces for anyone to use.
Town residents voted to approve all 15 proposed articles, including the town budget of slightly more than $2 million. The proposed budget is a 9.8% increase over the FY 2025 budget.
Mark Harris, chair of the budget committee, said the original proposed budget was at 16%, and much went into cutting it down.
Middlesex Town Meeting day ended with State Representative Ela Chapin discussing big changes to education that might be coming soon.
Governor Phil Scott is proposing a transformation of the state’s education system. Chapin urged Middlesex residents to educate themselves about the proposal.