Pawlet Planning Commission Meeting, Monday, August 24, 7:30 PM: The Planning Commission usually meets on the fourth Monday of each month at 7:30 PM; meetings are currently being held online. The agenda for the August 24 meeting, which explains how to participate virtually, is available here: PPC Agenda Aug 24 2020.

Pawlet Select Board Meeting, Tuesday, August 25, 7 PM: The meetings are currently being held online. The agenda, which includes information on how to participate in the online meeting, is available here: Agenda 8.25.2020.. The Pawlet Select Board meets every other Tuesday at 7:00 PM. Meetings are held according to the rules of procedure established by the Vermont League of Cities and Towns.

Town Clerk’s Office Closed August 20 – August 31, 2020: We will be back in the office on Tuesday, September 1.

Pawlet Public Library Monthly Board Meeting, Tuesday, September 1, 6 PM: Due to COVID-19, the Board Meetings will be held virtually. The meetings are open to the public. Please call the Library (325-3123) for information about how to join the meeting.

First installment of Property Taxes Due September 10, 2020: Taxpayers only receive one bill for both payments due September 10 and February 10, 2021. Payments must be made on or before the due dates to avoid 1.5% monthly interest charges and, in the case of the second installment, an additional 8% penalty. Due to health and safety guidelines requiring social distancing we ask that you please consider mailing in your tax payment and be sure to allow enough time. Dropping your payment in the outside mailbox at the Pawlet Post Office the day taxes are due no longer means we will get it that day. Postmarks are allowed, but if the taxes are not received within five days of the due date, a late fee will be assessed. If you would like your bill stamped as paid, please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope. If you are unable to mail in your payment and wish to pay in person, please call ahead to be sure that I am here and that there isn’t a crowd in the building at the same time. As with all public spaces in Vermont masks are required in the Town Hall. The door will be locked, but there is a buzzer that you will ring to notify me that you are here. My office hours are Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 AM – 4 PM. Note: Our offices will be closed on Labor Day, Monday September 7. On Thursday September 10 I will be coming to the Town Hall in the afternoon to check the drop box and will stay to catch any stragglers from 2 – 4 PM. Thank you and please stay safe and healthy, Julie Mach, Town Treasurer.

The Town of Pawlet Highway Department requests that citizens do not come to the town garage to contact them. Please call them by phone and leave a message: 802-325-3467.

Free Face Masks Available: Vermont Emergency Management is distributing face masks free of charge to towns at the level of 25% of the population. The masks are cloth and can be washed. Pawlet Emergency Management has acquired Pawlet’s allotment, and we are ready to distribute to those who need masks. If you need a mask, send an email to RobertM850@aol.com and we will find a way to get them to you. Stay safe, Bob Morlino, Pawlet Emergency Management Director and Pawlet Health Officer.

A Helping Hand in Pawlet: Free meals are available for those struggling to make ends meet. Wednesday’s meal is prepared by Mach’s Market; meals on Friday and Sunday are prepared by The Barn Restaurant. To reserve a meal, call the Pawlet Community Church at 802-325-3022 from 10 AM to 12 PM the day before (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) for pick up from 5 to 6 PM the next day. Menus are posted each week on Front Porch Forum and on facebook/McChesneyRealEstate, Inc. Those who can are asked to make a tax-deductible donation to support this valuable outreach to our neighbors. Send checks payable to Pawlet Community Church Food Pantry, c/o Timothy Bryant, 337 Milaura Lane, Pawlet, Vermont 05761.

Naga Bakehouse Weekly Pizza in the Meadow, Wednesday, August 26: Reserve a table or get your pizza to go. Click on our order form to pre-order your pizza, and you’ll be directed to sign up for a pick-up time in 15-minute intervals. If you’d like to reserve a table, please sign up for a slot on the form. We’ll have three seatings; 5:00, 5:45 and 6:30. Orders will remain open until Tuesday, August 25 at noon, but if you miss the deadline, give us a jingle at (802) 235-1282. (If you can’t afford a pie just let us know, we’ll provide one, no questions asked. Just choose the “free of charge, please” payment option when you order.) Pizza in the Meadow at Naga Bakehouse will continue for the entire month of September. Questions? Send us a note at nagabakehouse@gmail.com. Thank you, Julie and Doug Sperling

Bottle/Can Return Fundraiser, Pawlet Community Church: Return your refundable bottles and cans while helping us raise funds for our church! Conveniently located in the church parking lot at 38 Rt. 133 in Pawlet, our little red Returnable Shed sits next to the clothing drop box. No water bottles, please. Note that the clothing box is currently closed due to COVID-19. Please do not leave any bags of clothing as there is no pick up. There is another clothing drop in the Price Chopper parking lot in Granville. As our church has been closed since March, we are unable to hold our monthly Pork Suppers which have been our main source of funding. Additionally, we are not able to collect Sunday Offerings. We continue with our Mission Work of addressing food insecurity with our food pantry and Helping Hands meals, which we offer to those in need three times per week. We thank you for your support, please spread the word!

United States 2020 Census: A complete count is vital to securing dollars for our state, our county, and our town. So far, Pawlet has just over a 52 percent response rate. Please do your part. It takes 10 minutes, no hard questions, completely confidential. The deadline for the self-reporting portion of the census has been moved up to September 30, 2020. The coronavirus pandemic makes self-reporting the safer, smarter way to make sure you count. Fill out the census survey at my2020census.gov/; make a call to 844-330-2020; or return the questionnaire you got in the mail. you can follow the census response rate across Vermont, by county and by town, at 2020.mapvt.com/. Presently Vermont has one of the lowest response rates which means when federal dollars are being allocated Vermont will not receive its fair share for the next 10 years!

Pawlet Emergency Management Covid-19 Updates: For regular updates  please watch and like the Pawlet Emergency Management Facebook page. We are focusing on local and State information. For ongoing Executive Order Measures issued by Governor Phil Scott in response to COVID-19, see Executive Orders. See also the Covid-19 Rutland County Resource Guide, prepared by the Rutland County State’s Attorney’s Office. For national or global information we refer you to the CDC website or the Vermont Department of Health website. To sign up for daily updates on the coronavirus situation in Washington County, NY, click here. We hope you are all well and safe.

Information resource offered by Pawlet Library: Community Connector Sara Young has compiled a information resource that includes updates from the Vermont Department of Health and Town of Pawlet Emergency Management. It also lists local services in the Pawlet area, and State regulations and resources. For more information see Pawlet Area Covid 19 Information and Resources.

Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event Postponed: Due to Covid-19, the Rutland County Solid Waste Alliance Communities (SWAC), the towns of Benson, Chittenden, Fair Haven, Middletown Springs, Pawlet, Rutland Town, Shrewsbury, Sudbury, Tinmouth, and West Haven, have rescheduled the Saturday, May 16 household hazardous waste collection event.  The collection event had been scheduled for May 16. The newly scheduled date for this event is Saturday, October 3 from 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM at the Rutland Town Transfer Station. Please check the Solid Waste Alliance Communities website at www.rutlandcountyswac.org for updates and additional information. We apologize for the inconvenience.

SVCOA Offers Shopping Service for Older Vermonters: Southwestern Vermont Council on Aging has started a new grocery and supply shopping service to support older Vermonters in Bennington and Rutland counties during the COVID-19 issue. The shopping service, which is supported by vetted SVCOA volunteers, is available to anyone age 60 or over, as well as eligible younger disabled individuals. If you or someone you know is interested in accessing the shopping service, or if you’re interested in volunteering, please call SVCOA at 802-786-5990 and ask to speak with Ellen Green. For more information about SVCOA, visit www.svcoa.org.

Update from Community Health Centers of the Rutland Region: Don’t hesitate to call us at 888-989-8707 for appointments and for any questions you have regarding your health. Check our website for more details, hours and locations https://www.chcrr.org/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CommunityHealthVT/

Rutland Area Visiting Nurse monthly community health clinics are cancelled until further notice. For more information visit http://vermontvisitingnurses.org/events/categories/rutland-area/ .

Join Front Porch Forum to know what is happening: Check it out at http://FrontPorchForum.com/. It’s free, and it’s local.
The Pawlet eNews is published a few times per month. Please forward any information for the eNews to Elizabeth Gibson, egib@vermontel.net. Thank you.