A LOT more?
Les tunes
Hinesburg develops policy for local option tax revenue use
Charlotte music program features French poets, composers this month
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September 10, 2026
Town clerk to step down after 30 years
Weekly news coverage for Charlotte and Hinesburg
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thecitizenvt.com
Pigskin win
MARI HUGLIN STAFF WRITER
A Charlotte public servant for 32 years, town clerk Mary Mead has announced she will not be running for office again. Currently, Mead holds three positions, including town clerk, treasurer and delinquent tax collector. She made her announcement at the Aug. 24 selectboard meeting. She said she will finish out her term and made the announcement early so she could give people plenty of time to come forward. “Hopefully, there is someone good out there who would like to tackle three open positions,” Mead said. The selectboard thanked Mary for her announcement and time in the government. “I hope you’ve heard from people over the post how grateful they are for your years of service to the town,” selectboard chair Natalie Kanner said in reference to the social media post on Front Porch Forum Mead made about stepping down. Mead declined an interview with The Citizen. Mead began working as the clerk and treasurer Charlotte in 1994. She became the tax collector in 2008. In a separate interview, Kanner said she was not shocked but disappointed to hear Mead would not run again since she is such See MEAD on page 3
PHOTO BY DWIGHT MAZUR
CVU’s Alex Jovell gains some yards on a rush in Saturday’s game against Hardford. See story, page 10.
Event gives advice on living in bear country BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
Hinesburg resident Ray Racine attended a Sept. 2 presentation on living with black bears with a specific bear in mind: the one that’s been wandering around his property
on Shelburne Falls Road. Even if he’s only seen the bear itself once, he notices the tracks all the time, he said. The seats at the Carpenter Carse library in Hinesburg were full of others with similar stories. For the fifth consecutive year, the Depart-
ment of Fish and Wildlife estimated that Vermont is home to well beyond the goal of 3,500 to 5,000 black bears. The department estimates that the state has to 7,500 to 8,900 See BEARS on page 15