Latest News Items

Child Car Seat Safety Clinic at Northshire Day School (5484 Main St. in Manchester) on Saturday September 17 from 10AM to 1PM. Vermont State CPS Techs will be on site to inspect child safety seats, making sure you have the proper seat and instruct seat owners in proper seat installation for thier vehicles. A great opportunity for new moms and dads to be to get all the informtion needed to safely transport their precious new cargo!

The Town of Manchester, VT seeks proposals from qualified vendors for the design and installation of an open wi-fi network in the downtown area. The Town contemplates starting with a centrally located base station, and adding repeaters or network extenders as needed to blanket the heart of the downtown (including the Elm Street "Depot District") with a seamless, open wi-fi signal. This project will also include: preparing a handbook describing the equipment used, installation, maintenance, and troubleshooting information; designing a system that is readily expandable as resources permit; and initial assistance designing and implementing a home page. This project is intended to start as soon as possible, but no later than August 15, 2011 and completed and operational by September 15, 2011.

The Town is currently performing work on Franklin, Dillingham and Williams streets, and on Highland Avenue. Residents or business owners with questions or concerns should contact the resident engineers. For Franklin, Dillingham and Williams streets, Christina Legge at clegge@dufresnegroup.com or (802) 366-0529; for Highland Avenue, Roger Ward at rward@dufresnegroup.com or (802) 324-2030.

The Town restarted the Highland Avenue project on April 11 with the reconstruction of the Town-owned parking lot on the corner of Highland Avenue and Elm Street. Work on Highland Avenue is slated to restart around May 1. No restart date has been set for the Franklin, Dillingham and Williams streets yet.

As of 2PM on Saturday, February 12 Part B of the Town Report is available at Kilburn's Convenience Store (inside on the counter), Discount Beverages (in the foyer) and Mark Skinner Library (at the distribution desk).

Follow the Town of Manchester on Twitter (@Manchester_VT) and Facebook. Get real time updates about your government and events happening around the community. Also, check out the Manchester Police Department Facebook page and Twitter (@manvtcops) for important public safety updates and tips.

To the Editor:

Community volunteerism is alive and well in Manchester!  Thanks to the hard work and generosity of more than thirty Manchester residents, local businesses and the Town's Department of Public Works, the residents of Manchester now have a beautiful, newly-renovated Adams Park at the intersection of Center Hill Road and Main Street. 

There are still a couple of tasks to complete before the Park is ready for next spring. The fence posts will be finished (except painting, which will happen next spring) this coming week and double black powder coated chain will be strung between the posts; the path will be brought up to grade with the new sod and a few evergreens will be planted behind the new electric meter pedestal. Next spring two new all-weather picnic tables will be placed in the Park.

The project started with the design. Alan Benoit of Sustainable Living volunteered a tremendous amount of time designing the Park to be beautiful as well as functional. The Department of Public Works, including Director Jeff Williams, Parks Maintenance Supervisor Steve Casey and Shawn Towsley, Dave Forrest, "Fuzzy" Knight and Blaine Cullen provided the bulk of the effort constructing the Park, leading up to the volunteer day this past Saturday. The newly created DPW has once again proven its worth to the taxpayers. Special thanks to Steve Casey, who oversaw the project with great dedication.

Local businesses located right on the square graciously endured the construction: Southern Vermont Signworks, Wines By George, Nature's Market, Finn and Stone Insurance, Podium, Gringo Jack's, Brewster's Funeral Home, Brewster's Antiques and Flying Cow Sign Shop.

Joe Charbonneau (along with his son and cousin Bruce) from Matrix and Tim Madden from TurfLinks (both Lions Club members) provided a lot of expertise in laying down the sod. Kevin Collins from Home Turf provided two days worth of hard work and fertilizer application for the new turf. 

Manchester Rotary Club and Lions Club provide a lot of volunteers, including: Selectboard member Lisa Souls and her son Kevin, Dave Quesnel (also Parks and Recreation Committee Chair), John Conlon (from BBA Booster Club), Andy Shaw (also on the Parks and Recreation Committee), Norm Champine, Jon French (from Brewster's Funeral Home) and his son. 

Bob Johnston (Parks and Recreation Committee), Ray Ferrarin, Paul Bogossian from Seasons Restaurant and his son, Kim and Drika Kimball, John Watanabe, Frank Sutton, Scott Welsh (from the Aspen Motel), Doug Marsh, Kelt Alstrup, Jim Hand, Paula Quesnel, Nicole Henry (manager of the Manchester Farmers' Market), and Bill Drunsic, a long-time contributor to recreation in Manchester who also provided use of his tractor and York rake, all worked hard to build the Park. We apologize if we missed anyone who volunteered.

Berta Maginness, and her husband Scoop, as well as Beth Meachem from the Chamber of Commerce not only volunteered but organized the Manchester business community, which provided a tremendous amount of effort and labor in the finishing of the Park. Steve Burzon from Garden Arts and Manchester Fence Company donated a large maple tree on the Main Street side of the Park.

Jim Doherty, Jeremiah Kilburn and Marc Johnston from the Manchester Fire Department provided a massive dose of water to the Park after the installation of sod. Special thanks to our food sponsors, who donated food and beverages for all of our volunteers: The Works (sandwiches and bagels), The Spiral Press (snacks), Christo's Pizza and Maplefield's (coffee and hot chocolate). Without their generosity our volunteers would not have had the fortification to finish the job!

Ed Thompson from Dorr Septic and Dave Sheldon from the Town's Water Department provided a quick turnaround in installing water at the Park. Lastly, thank you to the Selectboard for having faith in the project, and to Lee Krohn for convincing us all that we should continue to invest in the downtown core and our collective quality of life, and for helping to build the stage in the center of the Park. 

For anyone that missed this opportunity and is interested in a one day work event, we are already planning future work parties including painting the Lions Barn at the Dana L. Thompson Memorial Park this coming spring. 

Even though the sod needs some time to root, we are going to put the new Park to use right away. Working with the Chamber of Commerce, this coming Holiday Season, we will be installing a lighted Holiday Tree in the middle of the Park. Thank you to everyone that helped out in the effort. This sort of community involvement is the reason we all live here in Manchester.

John O'Keefe, Town Manager

David Quesnel, Parks and Recreation Committee Chair

Due to the weather forcast of rain and snow and concern for the safety of our participants, the Manchester Parks and Recreation has canceled  the The Skate Jam scheduled for Saturday October 30, until further notice. 

The Town of Manchester announced today that Liz Ambuhl of Wells, Vermont has been named Parks and Recreation Director. Liz will be responsible for overseeing recreation programming and operation of the Town’s three parks.

Liz is looking forward to her new role. “It is important for communities to have a good Parks and Recreation area,” and emphasized “play is essential for all ages. I look forward to working closely with the Department’s staff and the Parks and Recreation Committee.”

Liz will begin her employment with the Town of Manchester on Tuesday, October 12. She brings with her over twenty years of experience in the field of parks and recreation. She attained her master’s degree in education and undergraduate degree in sociology from the University of Vermont. Liz was previously the co-director at Camp Catherine Capers, a residential summer equestrian camp for girls in Pawlet, Vermont and the Parks and Recreation Director for the Town of Killington, Vermont.

“Liz brings to Manchester a great deal of experience and enthusiasm. The Parks and Recreation Committee and I are looking forward to working closely with Liz,” said David Quesnel, chair of the Parks and Recreation Committee.

The Town of Manchester received over seventy-five applications for the position. The interview process included first round interviews with eight town residents, including: two Selectboard members, one Village Trustee, two members of the Parks and Recreation Committee, a student from Burr and Burton Academy, the president of the Friends of Triton Swim Team and a parent of young children. Second round interviews included Town Manager John O’Keefe, Town Planning Director Lee Krohn and Human Resources Administrator Cynamon Marshall.

Town Manager John O’Keefe said, “Liz best fit the four core traits that the Town was looking for – communication, organizational, finance and leadership skills. We’re really happy to have her onboard!”

Liz will be introduced at the October 12 Selectboard meeting. She can be contacted via telephone at (802) 362-1439 or emailed at l.ambuhl@manchester-vt.gov. Nate Walrath will continue to serve as Director of Programming for the Parks and Recreation Department.

Between 9:00 and 10:00 A.M. on Saturaday, September 11 traffic will be limited at the Dana L. Thompson Memorial Park to one-way only between the Recreation Center, Northshire Bookstore, Mark Skinner Library and Manchester West Road for the protection of our Maple Leaf guests. Detours will be posted. Please plan accordingly and follow the directions of the police and traffic marshals. Parking for participants in the race will be at the Dana L. Thompson Park up until 8:30 A.M. After that point, traffic into the park will be restricted. Latecomers will be directed to alternate, off-site areas. Local runners are urged to consider parking on nearby streets or at MEMS. Thank you for your cooperation!