Senate race
‘Life is short’
Six candidates vie for Chittenden Southeast
Death cafe helps people embrace living
Page 3
Page 17
Volume 53 Number 41
POSTAL CUSTOMER
ECRWSSEDDM
shelburnenews.com
Wastewater project draws objections
October 10, 2024
Hotel voucher program concludes
Steady pour
Project foes expected at tonight’s meeting PATRICK BILOW STAFF WRITER
Shelburne resident Bob Clarke says he’s sick of spending more money each year. “There’s always something new,” he said. “Another increase in property taxes, the cost of schooling, keeping up with the environmental wishes of the current assembly, you name it.” Now Clarke is concerned about the cost of a new wastewater treatment facility in Shelburne, a proposed bond for which will be included on this year’s ballot for voters to decide. The project, which would consolidate Shelburne’s two treatment facilities into one with a supporting pump station, is estimated at $38 million. “That’s a big, honking bill coming down the pike,” Clarke, who is not the first Shelburne resident to express concern about the project’s price tag, said. “How is a town of 9,000 people going to pay for that?” Wastewater customers have already seen rate increases of 9 percent over the last two years, but town manager Matt Lawless said they won’t see this type of increase again, should the project pass Nov. 5, General Election Day. Customers would see a slight increase in See WASTEWATER on page 15
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #217 CONCORD, NH
PATRICK BILOW STAFF WRITER
PHOTO BY LEE KROHN
This local youngster drips syrup — Vermont maple, of course — onto his flapjacks at last week’s pancake breakfast put on by the Shelburne Fire Department.
At least 31 people enrolled in Vermont’s motel voucher program lost their place to stay in Shelburne last month and it’s unclear where they might have gone. The state-run motel voucher program, which has existed for years in different forms, was intended to help homeless people find shelter at motels throughout the state. The program has expanded significantly since the pandemic as homelessness in Vermont continues to rise. In April, the Legislature voted to change the program by adding an 80-day restriction to a tenant’s stay at a participating motel, citing the program’s cost and saturation. This meant that a wave of people was forced to move out of their rooms throughout September as their 80 days ran out, including at least 23 adults and eight children in Shelburne, according to data from the Vermont Department of Children and Families shared with the town of Shelburne. Shelburne plays a substantial role in the hotel voucher program, particularly in a county with the highest rate of homelessness in the state. That is largely due to the number of motels on Route 7, many of See VOUCHER on page 16
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