Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont internship program, for Charlotte News
CHARLOTTE — Charlotte residents voted in favor of implementing an Australian ballot for future budget issues at their annual Town Meeting Day — reversing the decision made last year that rejected two articles proposing a switch to Australian ballot.
While residents approved Article 6 to adopt an Australian ballot for all future budget articles, they rejected Article 7, which would have extended the switch to all public questions on Saturday, Feb. 28.
A vote on the articles was too close to determine by voice vote, so, in keeping with statutes, after a request of seven residents, the decision transitioned to a paper vote. Article 6 won the vote 106 to 67 and Article 7 lost 68 to 75 votes.
The debate was over accessibility versus tradition, with some residents arguing that an Australian ballot would allow for more participation, while others pointed to the earlier amendments as support for in-person discussion. A hybrid option was also raised as a possible compromise.
Maura Wygmans, a Charlotte architect, said voting by Australian ballot would allow for a greater number of Charlotters, who are not able to attend a town meeting because of work, children or other time conflicts, to participate in the town’s democratic decision making.
“We’re trying to be as inclusive as possible. And so, the more people who are able to vote, the better. An Australian ballot allows that to happen,” Wygmans said.
“Less than 10 percent of the voting population is present today in the room,” Wygmans said. “To me this seems unfair and does not represent what I think is democracy.”
Other folks argued the importance of voting in person on Town Meeting Day.
Tai Dinnan, who has attended Charlotte’s Town Meeting Day since she was young, said she wants to preserve the town meeting but find ways to make it more accessible.
“Town meetings contribute to a more robust community health and resilience.” she said. “I think we need opportunities for participatory democracy, local connection, community health and resilience, now more than ever.”
Attendees discussed the hybrid option where a budget approved via voice voting would need to be affirmed with an Australian ballot vote 45 days later. This option was used in Charlotte for a few years and several attendees supported a return to this hybrid form on Saturday. If Charlotte decides to revive this model, it would require a charter that needs approval by the state legislature.
Article 3 asked voters to approve the selectboard’s total proposed expenditures. The original amount proposed by the select board was $3,485,414 of which an anticipated sum of $1,753,386 would be raised by taxes and an anticipated sum of $1,732,028 would be raised by non-tax revenues.
Kevin Farley, who lives on Greenbush Road, said that when he first moved to Charlotte, Greenbush wasn’t used nearly as much and now it’s used more as a freeway. And there’s lots more families.
He detailed the many times he and others have tried to get more stringent traffic controlling measures instituted to reduce speeding there, and he doesn’t feel like there has been an adequate response from the town for those requests, so this year he decided to address the issue from the floor of town meeting
Farley spoke for amending Article 3, proposing adding $20,000 to the town budget for four speed humps along with warning signs on Greenbush Road.
A proposal was made by Jim Donovan to amend Farley’s amendment by using alternative traffic-calming measures instead of speed humps, but it was voted against. The original amendment, increasing the budget for the speed humps, was passed by a standing vote, when it wasn’t clear whether the voiced yeas or nays had it.
Ashley Berliner, mother of two, proposed an amendment to increase the budget by $1,500 to improve lighting and traffic control on Halloween for safety reasons. This amendment was voted on by voice and passed unanimously.
With these two amendments, Article 3 was passed through a voice vote, with a new amended budget of $3,506,914.
Article 4, which exempts the Charlotte Grange from property taxes, passed.
Article 5 proposed a $1,306,346 budget for the Charlotte Volunteer Fire Rescue Squad budget. This budget asked for an increase of $286,100 from last year, a 28 percent increase. John Snow, the chair of the fire and rescue service, said much of the increase is due to the need to fund new trained personnel.
“Our volunteer firefighter numbers are down almost 40 percent.” Snow said. “This is the world we live in, as sad as many of us find it. The days of the local volunteer fire department are disappearing, just like the Model T.”
Some residents discussed the fire department working to regionalize, which would combine fire and emergency services with those of neighboring towns, a suggestion that seems to made any time rescue service budgets are discussed in Charlotte and in neighboring towns.
State Representative Chea Waters Evans explained that there is a county and regionalization committee being reinstated this summer and a huge part of that work is focusing on regionalization for emergency services.
“It is in the works, but it is the state government, so it could take 700 years, or it could take two. Who knows?” she said. “But we’re working on it.”
The budget was passed by a voiced majority vote.