2016 Weybridge Town Meeting Wrap Up
WEYBRIDGE — Weybridge voters at this year’s town meeting decided two contested selectboard races and voted overwhelmingly to participate in a new, unified Addison Central School District (ACSD) that will include all of the schools in the current Addison Central Supervisory Union.
Weybridge approved the governance merger by a 329 to 39 tally. All seven towns approved the merger (see related story, Page 1A), which calls for a single, 13-member ACSD board to govern all of the Middlebury-area schools under a single budget.
Christopher Eaton had no rivals in his bid for Weybridge’s one seat on the ACSD board.
Resident Megan Sutton, with 227 tallies, was the clear choice in a three-way race for a three-year term on the selectboard. Sutton’s vote count compared to 97 for Robert L. Foster and 27 for T. Charles Jordan.
Alix O’Meara topped T. Charles Jordan, 211 to 107, for a one-year term on the board.
There were no other contested local elections on the Weybridge ballot. Elected unopposed were Daniel James for a two-year spot on the selectboard, Spence Putnam for a one-year term as moderator, and Justin Perdue and Jennifer Richmond for terms of one year and three years, respectively, on the Weybridge Elementary School Board. Joan Jordan and Kathleen Mason were elected to terms on the Weybridge Library Board of Trustees.
Weybridge voters agreed to have their community become a full member of the Lemon Fair Insect Control District. The town has thus far been receiving insect control services as a client of the district. The road to full membership includes a requirement that Weybridge continue to pay $10,000 annually for services “until such time as (Weybridge’s) investment equals Cornwall’s and Bridport’s initial contributions of $40,000,” according to article 9 in the town meeting warning. “By 2019, the annual payment will go down to match the other towns.”
The proposed 2016-2017 highway budget of $413,436 and general fund spending proposal of $119,913 both won approval by voice vote, as did the Weybridge Elementary School budget proposal of $1,177,459 for the 2016-2017 academic year.
Weybridge residents also agreed to requests for:
• Permission to apply $179,294 in surplus funds toward the purchase of a new municipal truck and/or tractor with roadside mower for the town’s highway department.
• $128,000 to purchase a John Deere 6110M roadside mower for the highway department.
• $25,000 to support the local fire department.
• $13,000 to continue Weybridge’s volunteer recycling program.
• A combined total of $21,600 to support various nonprofits and charities benefiting Weybridge and other Addison County communities.