Speed limits vary between 30 mph and 50 mph and are posted. Speed limits are enforced so don't get upset if you get a citation, you have been warned.

Parking in available spots along Route 35 is for two hours only. Parking tickets are a possibility. Again, you have been warned.

Common Rd, the road that is directly by the church and the elementary school, is one way. Enter off of Route 35 and exit on to Route 30.

Law enforcement is provided by the Vermont State Police.

Emergency Medical Service is provided by Rescue Inc with assist from Townshend Fire Department’s and/or the Newbrook Fire Department’s  first response squad.

The TOWNSHEND POST OFFICE HOURS are as follows:
Access to your Post Office Box is from 7:45 AM until 5:00 PM Monday through Friday. Saturday, 8:00 AM until Noon.
The service counter, for buying stamps, mailing packages, etc., is open from 8:30 AM until Noon and 1:30 PM until 4:45 PM, Monday through Friday. Saturday hours are 9:00 AM until Noon. The Post Office is closed on Federal holidays.

The TOWNSHEND LIBRARY HOURS are as follows:
Monday, 1:00 to 5:00 PM, Tuesday, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, Wednesday, 1:00 to 7:00 PM, Friday, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, Saturday, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

Please DO NOT call Town Offices for information pertaining to the Townshend Dam and Recreation Area. This facility is maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers and is not connected to the Town of Townshend except through its presence here. Contact information is on the dam web page. Keep the Town Clerk happy, don't ask questions about Townshend Dam.

A host of documents are available through the Town Clerk’s Office in the Town Hall. The TOWN CLERK’S HOURS are 9 AM to 4 PM, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. It is open till 6 PM the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month (Select Board meeting nights.) If you are unable to make it during regular business hours you may make an appoitment with the Town Clerk. The office is closed on a variety of holidays. This is also where you may pay your property taxes in person, register your dogs, apply for a marriage license, register to vote, request an absentee ballot, etc. Please see the Town Clerk’s page for more details.

You may now search Townshend land records dating back 40 years through a 3rd party, on-line provider, Record Hub. “Complimentary” is no charge and has limited access. You will have to register with them to use the site. Click here to go to their site. Again, this is a third party provider to which this site has no connection nor is this site responsible for any information they publish.

Townshend property maps/value/ownership information is also available, on-line, through a 3rd party provider, Mango. Click here to go to that site. Once you are on the page, you will need to enlarge the map which will reveal the property numbers. Click on the property number and a pop up box with basic property information will appear on the left of the page. Some properties are visibly labeled with the owner's name but all property information is accessible by clicking on the property number. Although Mango is used by the Listers to keep an updated list of properties in Townshend, it is a third party provider to which this site has no connection nor is this site responsible for any information they publish.

Information on renting the Town Hall for use for any kind of event is located here. Information on using the Town Common for any kind of event is located here. The form that needs to be filed is the same for either rental and is located here.

Don’t trust that your GPS always has it right, especially during the winter, as you could end up in deep, uh, snow. Cell service is spotty, at best, and can make that GPS fail a real big issue.

As of the beginning of 2017, Vermont is now a same day voter registration state. That is in theory. To avoid issues on election day, any election day, it is strongly recommended that you register in advance (this is not an official statement, just a note from one who has had to deal with crappy VT IT for many years).  A sample registration form is here. You may also register to vote online. This is the link.

Townshend has just slightly over 1000 registered voters. When you register to vote in Vermont, you need not declare a party affiliation. When you vote in a Presidential Primary you will have to declare which party's ballot you wish to fill in. That does not mean you are declaring a party affiliation, only that you intend to vote for a candidate from that party's selection. Aside from that one instance, you will have a “private” choice of which party’s ballot to cast in any primaries.

Dogs must be registered annually by April 1 of any given year. A valid vaccination certificate is required.

PROPERTY TAX INFORMATION
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Property Taxes for 2024/2025, due dates are as follows:
August 23, 2024   November 22, 2024   February 21, 2025   May 23, 2025

Monthly interest on delinquent taxes will be charged at the rate of one-half percent (1/2%) or fraction thereof. Interest of one percent (1%) or fraction thereof plus penalties (a flat 8%) will commence when the records are turned over to the Delinquent Tax Collector on May 30, 2025.

Property tax rates and information for 2024/2025

School Tax Rate: (set by The State): Homestead $2.0225 (up $0.1562)   Non-Residential $1.6955 (up  $0.1794)  The current CLA is 82.04% (down 9.71%, a significant change from FY 24 and a big factor in the higher educational tax bill for FY 25).

Municipal Tax Rate: Residential (includes “local agreement” of $0.0016), $0.7464 (up  $0.1368). Non-Residential (does not include “local agreement” ), $0.7448 (up $0.1368).

Combined Tax Rates: (School plus Town): Homestead, $2.7689 (up $0.293)  Non-Residential, $2.4403 (up $0.3146). For a historical perspective, since the last full reappraisal, comparison charts for taxes from FY 14 through the current year are available here.

Grand list figures for 2024/2025 (always subject to change and often do)
Total Municipal: $1,947,569.00       Total Education: $1,947,151.93     (Homestead: $752,733.00  Non Homestead: $1,194,418.93)

The tax bill you received is the only one you will receive for the entire fiscal year. Be sure to keep a copy for income tax purposes. Additional copies will cost $1 each. Mail tax payments to PO Box 223, Townshend, VT 05353 Put your parcel ID# on the check and be sure to include the payment stub(s) for the appropriate time period(s) with the check. Send a copy of the tax bill to your mortgage company if your taxes are escrowed. Postmarks are accepted. For a receipt, unless you pay in person, please enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope. If you are paying in person, please bring the tax bill with you. Notify the Town of Townshend immediately if you change your address. Campers: If you sell or move, please notify the Town of Townshend immediately.

 

THE TOWNSHEND COMPACTOR (TRANSFER STATION) AND RECYCLING HOURS ARE: 2:00 PM UNTIL 6:00 PM ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY 9:00 AM UNTIL 5:00 PM ON SATURDAYS DO NOT BRING TRASH OR RECYCLING TO THE LOCATION OUTSIDE OF THESE POSTED HOURS

FAST FACTS ABOUT TOWNSHEND, VERMONT

For All Emergencies dial 911
To contact the VT State Police for non-emergency situations call 802-722-4600

For road related issues, downed trees, wash outs, and other problems that may arise, contact the Highway Foreman at 802-365-4260. If it is an emergency and you get no answer at the Town Garage, call the Town Clerk at 802-365-7300, ext 1. If after hours, call the VT State Police.

Parking along Route 30, in front of the Town Hall, is for conducting Town related business only. Please respect that.

Many people do a search for “Townshend Dump”. We don’t have a dump any longer but this wording is being inserted so people can find the appropriate information a bit faster. Townshend’s “dump” has been shut down for many years and is now a solar field.

A PERMIT IS REQUIRED, EVEN FOR RECYCLING. The mirror hang tags (the permits) are available, free of charge. These may be obtained from the Town Clerk. They must be visible when you use the facility. No commercial use is permitted, even for recycling. Non-Townshend residents are not permitted to use the recycle bins or the compactor.

The Townshend compactor (transfer station) is located at the Town Garage on RT 35. Only Townshend specific bags are accepted for disposal. You may purchase bags at the Town Clerk’s Office, Riverbend Market, and Harmonyville Store for $3.50 each. Repeating, these are the ONLY bags which will be permitted. If your trash is not in one of these bags, you will take it home.  Note that this will be an ever evolving situation and is subject to change at least annually.

The recycling bins are also located at the Town Garage and are accessible only during posted compactor hours. Recyclable items are not allowed in household garbage (State Law). These bins are for recycling household items like paper, cardboard, plastic, metal cans, and glass. When doing so, the compactor attendant may inspect your items to be sure that you are recycling clean items that meet the criteria. This is to keep the Town’s costs down. If the recycled items are inappropriate or dirty, the cost to the Town for removal increases dramatically.  Again, this is subject to change as well.

Compostable items, food scraps and other organic items, are not allowed in household garbage (State Law). More information on that is located here. Bags for compostable items are available, free of charge, from the compactor attendant.

Note that there is video surveillance of the property and those who dump trash illegally will be prosecuted.

Townshend does not handle heavy debris of any kind. If it will not fit in one of the specific trash bags or is not an acceptable item in the recycle bins, disposal will require hiring a private contractor or taking the debris into Brattleboro yourself to Windham Solid Waste (requires a permit) or the Casella Brattleboro Transfer Station .

Burning of leaves and brush or untreated wood requires a permit unless there is snow on the ground. Permits are available from the Town Clerk. If you have questions about snow cover, contact the Town Clerk. Burning without a permit, when required, will result in fines. Burning anything other than brush, leaves, or untreated wood will result in fines. Burn bans are occasionally instituted depending on conditions. If a fire gets out of control, you are responsible for containment costs regardless of whether you have a permit or not.

There is no “zoning” in Townshend. However, there are a host of permits required for a variety of building related situations so it is wise to check on those prior to beginning any construction.  Commercial projects or commercial construction on land that is over 1 acre requires an Act 250 permit from the State of VT.

Other items of interest to Townshend individuals but with broader reach:

Senior Solutions provides a host of services to those over 60, their caregivers, and their families in Windham and Windsor counties. For more information about all their programs and initiatives, click here. 

There is a lot of confusion over documentation that is now required to get a full VT driver's license. But, since this is confounding to so many people these days, the information required by DMV is here.  The nearest DMV location is in Dummerston but it is only open limited days and hours. Currently appointments must be made for all services. To schedule an appointment, you may use the online process.

An additional piece of information that is not specific to Townshend that needs to be shared comes at the request of the Vermont Veteran's Home. Many in the area do not know that a residential facility for Veterans exists in Vermont nor are they aware of the programs and care available to service men and women and their spouses. There is a great deal of information available on their website. You will find that here.

Photo courtesy Steven Meyer