UNION HALL IN NEWFANE, VERMONT
MARCH 3rd, 2026
Before the polls officially opened, Wannetta Powling explained that Bob Litchfield will extend an invitation to join him in the Pledge of Allegiance. Bob then recited the Pledge of Allegiance, with community members joining him. The polls were opened.
The Town Moderator, Kim Friedman, introduced herself, and called the meeting to order. She acknowledged new residents to the area and existing residents new to Town Meeting. She offered them a warm welcome and thanked them for attending the meeting. She thanked the Selectboard, Town Clerk and Town Treasurer for their service and asked them to introduce themselves. She briefly discussed Roberts’ Rules of Order.
The Town Moderator asked those attending the meeting if they were willing to have Sheriff Anderson speak to them, and the meeting agreed.
Sheriff Anderson took questions. Ken Estey, Gloria Cristilli, and Katy Johnson-Aplin had questions.
The Moderator went into detail about Robert’s Rules of Order.
The Moderator read the warning:
The legal voters of the Town of Newfane, Vermont, are hereby notified and warned that pursuant to Title 17 V.S.A. Section 2655, they are to meet at the union Hall, Newfane Vermont, on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. to act upon the articles below.
ARTICLE 1: Acted on by voting by Australian ballot.
The Moderator read Article 2:
ARTICLE 2: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane pay taxes for the ensuing year on a quarterly basis, due on the 15th of August, October, January, and April, late charge for interest being at the rate of .50% per month for the current fiscal year and .75% per month for each month thereafter until paid?
The motion was moved by Richard Marek and seconded by Steve Levine.
Gloria Cristelli made a comment regarding individuals taking advantage of the lower rates the Town offers on penalties than most banks.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 3:
ARTICLE 3: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane authorize the Selectboard to sell or otherwise convey property acquired through tax sale proceedings?
The motion was moved by Carol Hesselbach and seconded by Jodi French.
There was no discussion. The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 4:
ARTICLE 4: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane authorize General Fund expenditures for Town and Highway Operating Expenses of $1,913,785.00, of which $1,497,570.00 shall be raised by taxes and $363,215.00 by non-tax revenues, and $53,000.00 by surplus funds?
The motion was moved by Tom Bedell and seconded by Margret Wimberger.
There was discussion by Jake Urato, Katy Johnson-Aplin, Jesse Anderson, Melissa Brown, Emmet Mahdavi, and Tom Concannon.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 5:
ARTICLE 5: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane authorize Capital Fund Expenditures of
$497,000.00, of which $427,000.00 shall be raised by taxes and $10,000.00 by non-tax revenues, and $60,000.00 by General Funds Surplus?
The motion was moved by Diana Eckland and seconded by Chris Triebert.
There was no discussion, and the Article passed.
The Moderator read Article 6:
ARTICLE 6: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane authorize Debt Service Fund expenditures of $61,144.00, of which $43,044 shall be raised by taxes and $100.00 by non-tax revenues, $18,000.00 by Debt Service Surplus?
The motion was moved by Carol Hesselbach and seconded by Gloria Cristelli.
Gloria Cristelli asked for clarification on the small $100.00 non-tax revenue.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 7:
ARTICLE 7: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane raise by taxation the amount of $25,467.00 for the annual Excavator lease payment for FY 2027?
The motion was moved by William Berner and seconded by Timothy Shafer.
There was discussion by Dan Dewalt.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 8:
ARTICLE 8: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane raise by taxation the amount of $6,750.00 for the Reappraisal Reserve Fund FY 2027?
The motion was moved by Alison Seager and seconded by Margret Wimberger.
There was no discussion. The motion passed.
At 9:55 a.m. the Moderator moved to lay Article 9 on the table and asked the body if they were willing to hear updates from State Representative Emily Long and Senator Nader Hashim. The body agreed.
Questions were asked by Henriette Mantell, Emmet Madhavi, Steve Long, Ken Estey, Ann Landenberger, and Katy Johnson-Aplin spoke.
The visit finished at 10:30 to allow Senator Hashim to keep his scheduled stops.
The Moderator read Article 9:
ARTICLE 9: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane approve the transfer of General Funds surplus, in the amount of $350,000.00, to the Capital Reserve Fund?
The motion was moved by Doris Knechtel and seconded by Tom Bedell.
There was discussion by Ann Landenberger. There was no further discussion.
The motion passed.
The Moderator suggested to the body that it may want to use a Consent Agenda, which would combine Articles 10-39 into one article (see below).
The motion was moved by Jodi French and seconded by Tom Bedell.
The Moderator read the amendment:
Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate $42,435.00 for the purpose of supporting the organizations referenced in Articles 10-39?
The motion was moved by Jodi French and seconded by Tim Shafer.
The motion passed without discussion.
The Moderator read the amended article:
Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate $42,435.00 for the purpose of supporting the organizations referenced in Articles 10-39?
The motion passed.
ARTICLE 10: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $4,500.00 to Grace Cottage Hospital?
ARTICLE 11: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,400.00 to Senior Solutions?
ARTICLE 12: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 to Southeastern VT Transit (formerly The MOOver)?
ARTICLE 13: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 to The Gathering Place?
ARTICLE 14: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1000.00 to The Historical Society of Windham County?
ARTICLE 15: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,500.00 to Groundworks Collaborative?
ARTICLE 16: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $500.00 to The South Newfane Community Association?
ARTICLE 17: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $300.00 to Center for Solace (formerly The Brattleboro Area Hospice)?
ARTICLE 18: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 to The Leland & Grav Education Foundation?
ARTICLE 19: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $.2,000.00 to Health Care & Rehabilitation Services (HCRS)?
ARTICLE 20: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $3,500.00 to The Incorporated Village of Newfane?
ARTICLE 21: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $2,700.00 to The Moore Free Library?
ARTICLE 22: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,500.00 to Neighborhood Connections?
ARTICLE 23: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $250.00 to SeVEDS?
ARTICLE 24: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 to The Restorative Community Practice of VT?
ARTICLE 25: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,600.00 to SEVCA?
ARTICLE 26: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,300.00 to Timson Hill Preschool?
ARTICLE 27: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $2,675.00 to Valley Cares?
ARTICLE 28: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $800.00 to Vermont Adult Learning?
ARTICLE 29: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $100.00 to Vermont Green Up?
ARTICLE 30: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,500.00 to The Williamsville School Preservation Society?
ARTICLE 31: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $900.00 to The Windham County Humane Society?
ARTICLE 32: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 to The Women’s Freedom Center?
ARTICLE 33: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,660.00 to Interaction Inc. (formerly Youth Services)?
ARTICLE 34: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $500.00 to West River Valley Thrives?
ARTICLE 35: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $250.00 to VDart?
ARTICLE 36: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,500.00 to Windham County Safe Place?
ARTICLE 37: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $3,000.00 to Newfane Anew?
ARTICLE 38: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 to NewBrook Elementary PTO?
ARTICLE 39: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane appropriate the sum of $1,500.00 to Newfane Cemetery?
End of Special Appropriations
At 10:48 a.m. the Moderator moved to lay on the table Article 40 and asked if the body was willing to hear updates from Senator Wendy Harrison. The body agreed.
Questions from Breeze Verdant, Ann Landenberger, Ramsey Demeter. Steve Anderson spoke.
The visit finished at 10:15 am.
A recess was taken at 10:15 am, and the Town Moderator resumed the meeting at 10:30 am.
The Moderator read Article 40:
ARTICLE 40: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane exempt from taxation all real property of the NewBrook Volunteer Fire Association Station #1 Building and Land (1.6 acres +/-) for a period of 5 years pursuant to 32 V.S.A. 3840?
The motion was moved by Neil Pelsu and seconded by Toni Powling.
Ron Stiegier asked for clarification on why this was necessary.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 41:
ARTICLE 41: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane exempt from taxation all real property of the NewBrook Volunteer Fire Association Station #2 Building and Land (.25 acres +/-) for a period of 5 years pursuant to 32 V.S.A. 3840?
The motion was moved by Neil Pelsu and seconded by Tessa Anderson.
There was discussion by Gloria Cristellie, Breeze Verdant, Bob Litchfield, Katy Johnson-Aplin, Ken Estey, Jesse Anderson, and Christopher Cleverly.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read Article 42:
ARTICLE 42: Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane approve relocating future Town Meetings to the NewBrook Fire Department and/or NewBrook Elementary School?
Richard Marek called for a Point of Order and made a motion to postpone the article indefinitely. Ann Landenberger seconded the motion.
Questions were asked, and clarification was given by Wannetta Powling.
Margaret Wimberger asked if instead of a postponement the wording of the article could be amended.
The outcome of a voice vote to postpone the Article indefinitely was unclear.
A Division of the House was called for, which resulted in a tie (Yay-41, Nay-41).
The motion to postpone indefinitely failed.
There was further discussion by Michael Granger, Ramsey Demeter, Katy Johnson-Aplin, Bruce Rosow, Ann Landenberger, Bob Litchfield, and Tom (unknown last name).
Jodi French suggested an Ad-Hoc Committee could explore this issue.
Richard Marek moved that an Ad-Hoc Committee be established to determine the time, location, and date of future Town meetings. Ann Landberger seconded the motion.
Jodi French called for a Point of Order.
Jesse Anderson seconded the motion.
The discussion ensued.
The Moderator read the amendment to Article 42:
Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane direct the Selectboard to create an Ad-Hoc Committee to seek public input regarding the location, time, and day of the week for Town Meeting, with the goal of maximum public participation in Town Meeting?
Doris Knechtell called the question. and seconded by Laurie Merrigan.
The motion passed.
The Moderator read ARTICLE 42 as AMENDED:
Shall the voters of the Town of Newfane direct the Selectboard to create an Ad-Hoc Committee to seek public input, regarding the location, time, and day of the week for Town Meeting, with the goal of maximum public participation in Town Meeting?
The motion was moved by Jessie Anderson and seconded by Carol Ross.
The motion passed.
ARTICLE 43:
To transact any other business that may legally come before the Town.
Emmet Madhavi moved that the body approve a resolution to petition the Vermont State Legislature to adopt The Right To Grow Food and restore the regulation of Farming and Farm Business to the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets. The resolution reads as follows:
Therefore be it resolved that the Town of Newfane petitions the Legislature of the State of Vermont to:
Restore the municipal zoning exemption for farming; and ensure statewide consistency in the regulation of farming and agriculture under the authority and expertise of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets;
Codify a Right to Grow Food the explicitly includes livestock;
Protect the right of Vermonters to grow, raise, produce, donate , and sell food they have produced;
Relieve municipalities of unintended regulatory burdens resulting from judicial interpretation.
There was discussion by Ken Estey, Ramsey Demeter, Christopher Cleverly, Erica Walch, and Henriette Mantell on this matter.
The resolution passed on a voice vote.
Dan Dewalt moved to approve the following resolution:
The people of Newfane condemn the terror and killing being perpetuated by ICE operatives and call on the U.S. Congress to defund and dismantle the agency as it exists.
Walter French seconded.
There was non-binding voice vote. A member of the body called for a division of the house. The motion passed 30 to 11.
Ken Estey moved to approve the following resolution:
The voters of Newfane condemn the unprovoked attack and start of an illegal and immoral war against Iran. We call on Congress to invoke the War Powers Act & call on the President to bring our troops home now.
Austin Rice seconded.
There was further discussion by: Joyce Siegrossy, Marion Dowling, Melissa Brown, Cris White, Dan Dewalt, Bruce Rosow, Vincent Shuck, Toni Powling, Katy Johnson-Aplin, Sam Dutton, Susan Ahl, C.B. Hall, and Walter Hagadorn.
Deana Marger called the question, and Allison Stieger seconded.
The motion to end discussion passed.
Ken Estey seconded the motion.
The motion passed on a voice vote.
Marion Dowling expressed her thoughts on a great meeting and commented that everyone was caring and listened without any arguments. It was very respectful.
Gratitude was given to Kim Friedman for moderating a great meeting.Bill Gunther expressed appreciation to the Road Crew for this extraordinary winter and their efforts.
The Town Moderator asked for a motion to adjourn.
C.B. Hall made a motion to adjourn the meeting, and Gloria Cristelli seconded.
Town meeting was adjourned at 1:30 p.m.
Kim Friedman, Town Moderator
Wannetta K. Powling, Town Clerk