Torre told select board members that the e-Vermont application requires
no more than four letters of support; Moretown School Board chair Kaj
Samsom wrote what Torre said was an "emphatic letter" in addition to
letters from one local Moretown business owner and one from the Moretown
library committee.
According to the application, the primary goals of the Moretown Project
Connects Broadband Steering Committee is to build community with
enhanced community dialogue using Front Porch Forum, foster small
business innovation and success using Front Porch Forum, promote civic
engagement with public communication upgrade to municipal and school
websites, widen community dialogue by expanding public access to online
resources at Moretown Memorial Library, provide training to a variety of
internet users, resurrect "Moretown Matters" community newsletter in
digital form, and improve sharing of town and school library resources
via automation.
The e-Vermont grant funding provides towns with consultants to address
potential technological upgrades; websites can be document-based so town
employees are able to update content while the site would be controlled
and backed up by a third party.
Torre said, "We can talk about what the options are and what kind of
product would serve the town best. The nice thing is you present your
vision for your town and they provide the way to get there."
If Moretown is awarded the grant, Torre said the town would get a better
website, Front Porch Forum, and "I'm hoping the library could get
laptops, because you have to have access to use these new tools; the
school digital wish project would bring technology to the classroom,"
she said.
In addition, Torre said the school had expressed interest in updating
their website and potentially tying into the town's new site.
Moretown Planning Commission chair Don LaRocca asked if the town would be responsible for incurring any expenses.
Torre said, "The only thing the town would be looking at is an ongoing third party charge for the website."
The e-Vermont Community Broadband Project is supported by a $2.5 million
stimulus grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce with additional
support from Vermont philanthropists, corporations and organizational
partners (a full list can be found at www.e4vt.org).
If Moretown is selected, the Vermont Council on Rural Development will
guide steering committee members through understanding e-Vermont goals
and local needs, then help the town identify priority projects for the
year of service provided by e-Vermont.
Torre said the application was "pretty easy to put together," and that
the application process is "really fast"; she expects to hear about the
status of the grant in December and, if selected, start working with the
coordinated agencies in January.
Vermont and Minnesota were the only two states to receive the federal funding.
Select board member David Van Deusen made a motion to support the
e-Vermont grant application and also serve as the overall project lead.
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