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Charlotte, Vermont

Charlotte, Vermont. A Manifestation of Athenian Democracy?. Charlotte in a Nut Shell. Chartered in 1762 Settled by the French 15-20 minutes south of Burlington Between Green mountains and Lake Champlain Historically agricultural: Sugar,Dairy, Orchards. Today’s Demographics.

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Charlotte, Vermont

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  1. Charlotte, Vermont A Manifestation of Athenian Democracy?

  2. Charlotte in a Nut Shell • Chartered in 1762 • Settled by the French • 15-20 minutes south of Burlington • Between Green mountains and Lake Champlain • Historically agricultural: Sugar,Dairy, Orchards

  3. Today’s Demographics • Population 3,569 • .2% Black, .6% Asian, .7% Latino • Median Age of 39.2 • 96.6% High school graduate or higher • 55.9% Bachelor’s degree or higher • Median household income in 1999 (dollars) 62,313 • Median family income in 1999 (dollars) 71,090 • Individuals below poverty level 5%

  4. The Players • Town Clerk • 5 Select Board remembers • Volunteer Committees • The Demos

  5. Its Easy in Charlotte! • Why can Charlotte get away with such a simple system? • Small homogenous population • No police force • No Fire Department • Almost no business • Tourism is small

  6. The Way Things Work • Select Board meets twice a month • Meetings are open to the public • Volunteer committees: advisors to the board • Have their own meetings once or twice a month • Select Board can make a lot of decisions!

  7. Citizen Involvement • Volunteer committees: Planning, Zoning, Recreation, Conservation, Thorp Barn and Burns Property. • Any who wants to can take part • Democratic?

  8. TURN OUT TOWN OF CHARLOTTE SELECTBOARD MEETING OCTOBER 4, 2006 Approved 10/23/06 MEMBERS PRESENT: Eleanor Russell, Chairperson; Jenny Cole, Ed Stone, Charles Russell, Frank Thornton. ADMINISTRATION: Dean Bloch, Selectboard Assistant. OTHERS: Robin Reid, Karen Frost, John Owen, Rachel Gill (Charlotte Citizen), Edd Merritt, John Hammer (both Charlotte News), guests of Honduras and others.

  9. TURN OUT TOWN OF CHARLOTTE SELECTBOARD MEETINGS August 7, 2006 APPROVED on 8/28/06 MEMBERS PRESENT: Eleanor Russell, Chairperson; Jenny Cole, Frank Thornton ADMINISTRATION: Dean Bloch, Select board Assistant OTHERS: Mary Mead

  10. Town Meeting! • Held once a year gym • Select board sets the agenda • Main purpose is to vote on the budget • Citizens represent themselves • Turn out • 6.3% attended in 2005 • 30.5 % voted used Australian ballet in 2005

  11. Town Meeting! • Petition signed by 5% of the population • Select board members are elected on open floor • Many decisions only those present get a vote • Only Citizens can participate.

  12. The Burns Property • The System Works • 3 1/2 years of planning by a volunteer citizen committee • 2 votes: the second binding • “demokratia” at work

  13. Athens vs. Charlotte • Size • Complexity • Differences in power distribution

  14. Athens Boule Ekkklesia Magistrates “A group of officials who called meetings, prepared business… but did not themselves possess the power of decision.”1 Charlotte Select Board Town Meeting Volunteer Committees ATHENS VS. CHARLOTTE Functioning Units 1Hansen, Mogens. The Athenian Democracy pp. 228

  15. As Good as it Gets • Small size makes it possible • Town meeting gives people power • Select board’s decisions are limited to more trivial • Opportunity to for citizen involvement • REAL DEMOCRACY!

  16. Works Cited • Bryan, Frank M. Real Democracy: The New England Town Meeting and How it Works. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2004. • “Charlotte SelectBoard.” Town of Charlotte, Vermont. 17 Oct. 2006. Town of Charlotte. 7 Nov. 2006 <http://www.charlottevt.org/>. • Hansen, Mogens H. The Athenian Demcocracy in the Age of Demothenes. Cambridge: Blackwell, 1991. • Mead, Mary A. Phone Interview. 7 November 2006. • “State Fact Sheets: Vermont.” Economic Research Services. 31 August 2006. United States Department of Agriculture. 4 December 2006 <http://www.ers.usda.gov/StateFacts/VT.htm>.

  17. Works Cited • Stone, Ed. Phone Interview. 8 December 2006. • U.S. Census Bureau; Census 2000, Summary File 1; generated by Mike Silverstein; using  American FactFinder; <http://factfinder.census.gov>; (7 October 2006). • “Who’s Who in Local Government.” Vermont Secretary of State. February 2002. State of Vermont. 5 December 2006 <http://www.sec.state.vt.us/municipal/pubs/who'swho.html>. • “2006 Primary Election Voter Turnout and Registration Totals.”2006 Election Information. 1 December 2006. State of Vermont. 8 December 2006 <http://vermont-elections.org/elections1/2006_election_info.html>.

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