ORANGE — An old-school town meeting — one during which candidates for town offices were nominated from the floor — was a pretty tame affair in Orange on Tuesday night.
“It went great,” Town Clerk Angela Eastman said. “Nothing happened.”
Make that nothing out of the ordinary, because voters who attended the 6 p.m. session settled a couple of contested races — one for a seat on the select board — and took care of town business in two hours on the dot.
Eastman said the only paper ballots requested involved races for a pair of three-year seats — one on the select board the other on the cemetery commission.
Emily Ruff, who entered the evening as chair of the select board, chose not to run for reelection. Kevin Wilson was nominated to replace her, and so was Michelle Brock. Chad Spencer nominated himself and Wilson won the three-way race, defeating Brock 32-25 with Spencer receiving one vote.
Brock finished runner-up to Shane Lefebvre in a three-way race for the open cemetery commission seat. Lefebvre received 39 votes, Brock got 20 and Samantha Lefebvre, who was also nominated, received 1 vote.
Lister John McNeil was elected to another three-year term. He was the only candidate nominated.
Eastman said both municipal issues were approved without much discussion or a request for a paper ballot.
The $416,448 general fund budget — one that will require raising $174,495 in property taxes — was approved on a voice vote.
So was the $554,791 highway fund budget. That budget will require raising $444,791 in property tax support.
Eastman said voters approved requests to invest $100,000 in paving, $13,000 to maintain local cemeteries, and $1,300 on upkeep of the town recreation field.
They also approved $10,275 in special funding requests, which ranged in size from $300 for the Central Vermont Economic Development Corp. to $2,650 for Central Vermont Home Health and Hospice.
