Responses to the Town Letter

The Selectboard’s letter on the village project has brought up three good points for us to consider:

 

• Why would the village project be good for Westbury?

• Does the project hurt our neighbors outside of Westbury?

• Under what conditions would the Town partner with Westbury?

 

As we review the Town’s letter we need to keep these three things in mind along with a fourth item:

 

• Why wouldn’t the Town want to help its residents?

 

The last email that we traded with the Selectboard was in April when we answered three questions for them (read it here.)

 

We made it clear that:

 

• Under Vermont law it is people that form a village, not the Co-op or a business or a homeowner’s association.

• The village project is specifically about providing public services for residents of Colchester that the Town cannot provide or does not want to provide.

• Any partnership between the people of Westbury and the Town would be through the village as the Town has already made it clear by ending winter plowing that they do not wish to provide winter services to the Co-op.

 

Our takeaway from the letter is buried at the bottom of page 4 of the letter:

 

The Town of Colchester is not interested in providing services under contract to a village at Westbury or any other village in the Town of Colchester. 

 

This is a pretty monumental statement. The Town has built a position to isolate itself from groups or individuals. In our discussion of forming a village to meet their concerns, they have added – or helping (being compensated to provide a public service) to any public village too.

 

This seems to be contradictive to the Town’s mission statement. Following this post we will begin looking at feedback we have received and questions we have for the Town regarding their letter. Hope all is well. Ralph P.