Tue3Nov
General Election — Polls open 8:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
Why it matters: This is the vote itself. Mailed ballots must be received by 7:00 p.m. — not just postmarked. Bring yours to the polls and feed it into the tabulator to be sure it counts.
Town business, in plain English.
What’s being decided, what it costs, and when to show up.
Tuesday, Nov 3 is the Vermont General Election. Polls are at Riverside Middle School gym, 8:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. Already have a mailed ballot? You can hand it to the Town Clerk today (Mon–Fri 8:00–4:30, 96 Main St), drop it in a Town Hall mail slot after hours, or bring it to the polls tomorrow and put it in the tabulator yourself. All ballots must be in by 7:00 p.m. Tuesday. The deadline to request a ballot you never received is today at 4:30 p.m. — call the Clerk at 802-885-2104. Town Clerk’s Office is closed on Election Day. You can register at the polls and vote the same day. Details ↓
On springfieldvt.gov, this month’s story is scattered across a calendar, a budget-committee page, a tax-rate PDF and a voter notice. Here it is in one place: vote tomorrow, taxes due Nov 15, and the next town budget being built in three public workshops this month.
Everything the town calendar and Budget Advisory Committee page list for this month — with the abbreviations spelled out and the “why it matters” the calendar leaves off. Regular Selectboard meetings are the 2nd & 4th Mondays at 6:00 p.m., 3rd floor of Town Hall, on Zoom and SAPA-TV.
Two honest flags from the town site itself: (1) The homepage calendar lists the Nov 9 & 23 workshops as 5:30–6:30 p.m. slots, while the Budget Advisory Committee page says the regular meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. with the workshop after — this page follows the BAC page, but check the posted agenda before you go. (2) The Planning Commission’s standing rule is the 1st Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. (that would be Nov 4), at a location set by its agenda — it does not appear on the town calendar this month, so confirm the agenda if you plan to attend.
Sources: Town homepage Meeting Calendar; Budget Advisory Committee page (“2027–2028 Budget Calendar, as of 10/23/26”); Notice to Voters — all at springfieldvt.gov, read Nov 2, 2026.
No illustrative numbers anymore. These are the live trackers, built from the town’s own budget calendar and official vote returns.
Built in public workshops this fall, heard in January, voted at Town Meeting. For scale: voters approved a $16,801,225 town budget for the current year (see results card →).
The school district is not part of the town site — it’s at ssdvt.org (Superintendent Peter Burrows, 301 South St). Last cycle shows why to pay attention early:
*The total rose despite local cuts because $575,000 in federal funds was added. The town/school pages we read did not post the May 5 tally, so this page does not claim that result either way.
Annual Town Meeting, by Australian ballot at Riverside. 1,357 of 6,562 registered voters took part; 373 voted absentee. In plain terms:
That roads vote is why you saw the paving listed in the Roads section below — it was a separate ballot article, not spare change.
Sources: Budget Advisory Committee budget calendar; Official Return of Votes, Mar 3, 2026; Springfield School District FY27 budget pages — via springfieldvt.gov / ssdvt.org, read Nov 2, 2026.
The town posts its rate as a one-page PDF table. Here’s the same FY2026–27 homestead rate — $3.8482 for every $100 of assessed value — taken apart so you can see who actually gets your money. Next installment due Sunday, Nov 15 (installments: Aug 15 · Nov 15 · Feb 15 · May 15).
Homestead rate breakdown, official sheet dated July 2, 2026. Non-homestead total is $3.8966 — only the school line differs ($1.7140).
Now with the real homestead rate — no scenario, no “illustrative” asterisk. Assumes the homestead rate applies to the full assessed value; your actual bill can differ (homestead declaration, adjustments).
About $2,405 per quarterly installment — town $4,882 · school $4,164 · other lines $575.
Check it yourself: assessed value ÷ 100 × 3.8482. Official source: the town’s “26-27 Property Tax Rates” sheet, linked in Documents below.
Rebuilt from town notices and Selectboard minutes, not invented reports. The headline: Wall Street construction, a Clinton Street water project to button up before winter, and a paving season the town reports as essentially complete — paid for by that $1.1M roads article voters passed in March.
Town notice (Sep 25): closed from Wed, Sep 30 for “about 30 days,” local traffic only, subject to change. That window ran to about Oct 30 — and as of Nov 2 the town has posted no reopening or extension notice, so treat the closure as unconfirmed either way. Earlier (May): one-way, Reed St → Summer St. Questions: Public Works Highway Dept, 802-886-2208.
Construction slowed by ledge, per September Selectboard minutes. Plan stated by the town: get the area secured and paved before winter.
Per Selectboard minutes: Mineral St, St. Patrick St, Eureka Rd (shoulder/driveway work done; one rural stretch of Eureka converted pavement → gravel so the budget covers more high-traffic roads), Seavers Brook Rd, chip seal on Route 143, Park St sidewalks, Grove St culvert project.
The whole system was flushed Oct 5–16, 7 a.m.–6 p.m. weekdays. Temporary discolouration was expected and, per the notice, does not affect safety. Listed here because the notice still sits near the top of the town homepage with no “all clear” after it.
Public Works is the department up at Budget Workshop #2, Mon Nov 23 (regular meeting 6 p.m., Town Hall 3rd floor + Zoom). That’s the public session where next year’s paving and winter-roads money is set.
The official route is Public Works — Highway Dept (Supt. Ben Moffit). A phone call is what actually gets a pothole, washout or blocked culvert into the town’s work queue — have the street and nearest landmark ready.
Call Public Works — 802-886-2208This guide’s roads tracker is rebuilt from town notices each week and sends nothing to the town — for a real fix, use the number above.
Also from the town notices: The Town Clock’s chime is switched off pending maintenance (Public Works found the mechanism needs work — notice dated Jun 24). And there is no winter parking ban and no leaf-pickup programme posted anywhere on the town site — if either exists, the town isn’t publishing it there, which is worth knowing before the snow flies.
Sources: “Wall Street Closure” & “Traffic Advisory – Wall Street” notices; Selectboard minutes (Sept 2026); “Water Main Flushing Notice” — springfieldvt.gov, read Nov 2, 2026.
The six things residents actually open the town site for — hours, prices and phone numbers pulled onto one screen. All from town pages, checked Nov 2, 2026.
96 Main St
Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. (closed holidays — and on Election Day, Nov 3)
Clerk Barbara A. Courchesne · 802-885-2104 · townclerk@springfieldvt.gov
Town Manager Scott Pickup · townmanager@springfieldvt.gov
Dog licences: due by April 1 every year — $16 spayed/neutered, $18 intact, rabies proof required. Late: $18 / $24.
135 Fairground Rd
Mon 12:30–4:30 · Wed 8:30–4:30 · Sat 8:00–4:00 · 802-885-5827 · Director Eugene Lamoureaux
Trash is by weight: 1 punch = 5 lbs. Recycling and food-scrap drop-off are free. Second Chance Shop: Mon 12:30–3, Wed & Sat 9–3.
⚠ Price check: the town site lists two different punch-card/sticker prices in two places ($9 card / $40+$15 stickers on one page; $8.50 / $30 on the dated fee sheet). Call the station before you go — this page won’t pick one and pretend.
Accounts: Shanine Warren, 96 Main St
802-885-2104 ext. 231 · Mon–Fri 8:00–4:30
Water Supt. Roy Farrar · Wastewater Supt. Nate Fraser (plant: 325 Clinton St, 802-885-2854)
Honest gap: the town site does not post a current water/sewer rate schedule on the pages residents land on — the budget for both was heard publicly on June 22, 2026.
Emergency: 911
Police (Chief Jeff Burnham): 201 Clinton St · 802-885-2113 — also the 24-hour non-emergency dispatch line · Admin open 8–4
Fire & Ambulance (Chief Paul Stagner): 77 Hartness Ave · 802-885-4546 · Ambulance billing 802-885-4547
Springfield Town Library, 43 Main St · 802-885-3108 · Director Christine Edwins
Hours (library’s own site): Mon–Thu 9–7 · Fri 9–5 · Sat 10–1
Schools are a separate district: ssdvt.org · Supt. Peter Burrows · 301 South St · Elm Hill, Union Street, Riverside Middle, Springfield High
Selectboard — meets 2nd & 4th Mondays, 6 p.m., Town Hall 3rd floor + Zoom + SAPA-TV. To get on an agenda, contact the Chair or Town Manager before the Wednesday prior.
The real town documents behind this page — each with a plain-English summary first and the official original one click away. Search filters these cards.
Decoded: Ballots were mailed to all active voters. Return by hand to the Clerk (8–4:30), via the Town Hall mail slots, or at the polls (Riverside Middle School, 8–7) — but it must arrive by 7 p.m. Nov 3. Request deadline for a missing ballot: today, Nov 2, 4:30 p.m. Same-day registration at the polls. Official notice ↗
Decoded: One page that decides your bill. Homestead total $3.8482 / $100 — town $1.9526, school $1.6656, special appropriations $0.2147, voted contracts $0.0085, county $0.0068. Non-homestead $3.8966. Due Aug 15, Nov 15, Feb 15, May 15. Official sheet ↗
Decoded: The whole budget season on one list: workshops Nov 9 (Police & Fire), Nov 23 (DPW), Nov 30 (all departments), Dec 7 & 21, advisory report Jan 5, public hearing Jan 12, warning signed Jan 26. If you read one schedule this winter, it’s this one. BAC page ↗
Decoded: The certified scorecard. Town budget $16,801,225 passed 831–514 · roads $1.1M passed 1,053–293 · sidewalks $100K passed 948–378 · school budget $41,458,651 failed 599–741. Turnout: 1,357 of 6,562 voters. Official return ↗
Decoded: Voters rejected $41,458,651 in March ($15,189/pupil). The board cut $367,139 in local spending, added $575,000 federal funds, and a revised $41,666,512 ($15,008/pupil) went to a May 5 revote. Budget questions: district CFO Rick Pembroke, 802-885-5120. ssdvt.org ↗
Decoded: 135 Fairground Rd · Mon 12:30–4:30, Wed 8:30–4:30, Sat 8–4 · trash by weight (1 punch = 5 lbs), bulky items and tires priced per item, C&D $0.20/lb. ⚠ The town publishes two conflicting punch/sticker prices — call 802-885-5827 to confirm before a big load. Station page ↗
Decoded: The town’s yearbook: audited finances, department reports, and the record the March votes were based on. Pick it up at the Town Clerk’s Office or the Town Library, or read it on the town site (“Town Annual Reports & Audits”). Reports page ↗
Nothing above required special access — it was all on the official site. The difference is purely how much work the reader has to do.
| Town site — springfieldvt.gov | Local Facebook groups | This page — springfieldvt.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Election Day basics | In a PDF voter notice + a ballot-return news item | Scattered across posts & comments | Top banner + card: where, when, deadline, phone |
| Your tax rate | A one-page PDF table, no explanation | Guesswork & grievance | Broken into dollars + a calculator at the real rate |
| Budget season | Split between the calendar & a committee page — which disagree on times, and one meeting is missing from the calendar | Reaction after the fact | One dated timeline, conflicts flagged openly |
| Site disagrees with itself | Silently (two transfer-station prices; two deadline times) | Rumour fills the gap | Flagged on the page, with “call to confirm” |
| Corrections | New PDF, no flag | Post scrolls away | Dated, visible, on the page |
How this guide stays trustworthy once residents start submitting road reports and questions: narrow rules, applied to everyone, with the receipts published.
This is the printable version of the week — the same real dates, sized for a fridge door or the library board.
The Sunday email digest isn’t running yet — for now, this page is the digest. No account needed to read — ever.