Asbel/Evans duo
Got the moves
Library hosts free jazz, blues concert
Dance team wins eighth straight title
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the FEBRUARY 29, 2024
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In South Burlington
Cheerleaders win again
Three council seats up for grabs Tuesday COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER
March is already here, believe it or not, which means Town Meeting Day is right around the corner. From competitive council races to a charter change expanding the school board, a $65 million city budget, and a new water tower South Burlington residents will cast deciding votes on several items on the city ballot.
City council election South Burlington’s city council race is wide open, with six candidates vying for three open seats. Planning commissioner Laurie Smith and former 2022 council candidate Linda Bailey will vie for the three-year term vacated by council chair Helen Riehle, while Mike Scanlan, a former U.S. diplomat, will face city conserva-
VOLUME 48, NO. 9
tion member Julian Keenan and Lydia Diamond for council vice chair Meaghan Emery’s two-year seat. Elizabeth Fitzgerald, meanwhile, is running unopposed for a two-year seat vacated by Tyler Barnes in October. Barring a write-in campaign, she will likely take over the remaining year of that term. Whoever wins will join councilors Andrew Chalnick and Tim Barritt on the council of five. The Other Paper interviewed each of the six candidates running for council. Those interviews can be found here bit.ly/49MUEQ0.
City budget Residents will vote on a nearly $65 million budget that comes with a 5.82 percent municipal tax rate increase. See TOWN MEETING DAY on page 17
COURTESY PHOTO
The South Burlington Cheerleading team took first place at the Northern Vermont Athletic Conference as Metro Division Champions for the second year in a row and scored the highest in history of the school’s cheerleading program. The team also competed in four competitions, placing 2nd in the Central Vermont Competition, second in the Vermont Cheerleading Coaches Association Invitational and second in the Division I State Championship. South Burlington also qualified to compete in the New England Cheerleading Competition in March. The team in front, from left, Myasia Stephens, Zachary Marek, Emmy McCaffrey, Nola Cannizzaro and Saroura Britt. Back row, from left, Leah Thrall, Myra Kost, Marie Mwali, Maya Jones, coach Lynn Kynoch, Risa Adams-Paul and Gwen Nightingale.
Business PAC spending draws ire in council race COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER
With less than a week to go before South Burlington’s City Council elections, the entrance
of a political action committee into the fray has stirred criticism and has renewed conversations around campaign finance in the city. Running for city council has
become an increasingly expensive endeavor in South Burlington, with campaign contributions and spending topping out over $15,000 in some cases. This year is no different.
Six candidates are vying for the council’s three open seats. Council Chair Helen Riehle and vice chair Meghan Emery announced that they would be stepping down, while Councilor
Larry Kupferman, who replaced former councilor Tyler Barnes, is not seeking reelection. See COUNCIL RACE on page 19
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