Community Safety

Learn more about the B.R.A.T. Unit and One Brattleboro.

The Selectboard is taking a comprehensive look at public safety in Brattleboro as part of its priorities for 2024-26. This project may incorporate a range of measures, including the installation of additional safety cameras, increased data sharing from the Brattleboro Police Department, and coordination with the State’s Public Safety Enhancement Team. 

The topic of community safety has been discussed during numerous Selectboard meetings (see the project timeline below), and those discussions have including some of the following intitatives:

• State legislation reform
• Safety zones ordinance
• Community expectations messaging
• Public Safety Enhancement Team, “Team of Teams” Collaborative development
• Brattleboro Police Department’s data project
• Second Annual Community Safety Fair and Forum
• HCRS Police Liaison collaboration
• Possible Turning Point/Project Care collaboration
• Reviewing Human Services funding opportunities
• Reviewing Community Safety Review recommendations
• Situation Table Training from the Department of Public Safety
• Brooks Memorial Library resource mapping project

Get Involved

Reach out with an idea or suggestion by sending an email to [email protected].

Selectboard meetings are held on the first and third Tuesday of the month. Meetings are held in the Selectboard Room at the Municipal Center (230 Main Street) and on Zoom. You can view Selectboard agendas and meeting materials on the Selectboard page, by following our blog, or by viewing the calendar.

Selectboard agendas are typically published to this website on the Friday prior to a meeting. If you wish to have Selectboard agendas emailed to you directly, contact the Town Manager's office at [email protected] to join the email list.

Project Timeline

Below are relevant memos, along with links to meeting minutes and videos of Selectboard meetings, in which community safety was discussed.

Background

Beginning in 2022, community members began attending Selectboard meetings in numbers to discuss public safety issues in town, but especially downtown. Throughout that year, the conversation focused on safety issues downtown, the increasing homeless population, and an uptick in petty theft in town including “smash and grab” break-ins. There was also extensive discussion around standing up public porta-potties as well as cleaning up the Transportation Center to make it more inviting for people and to keep safety issues at bay. Another issue that was floated (and later executed in 2023) was the prospect of getting better cameras into the Transportation Center and downtown. There was talk of creating a substation at the Transportation Center and Town staff began planning this option.

In early 2023, Town residents continued attending Selectboard meetings to discuss concerns regarding public safety in Town, especially downtown. The idea of standing up public restrooms (newly built as well as porta-potties) was heavily discussed. The Selectboard ultimately chose not to create public restrooms at that time. In May of 2023, the Selectboard began discussing hiring private, unarmed security for the Transportation Center and other municipal buildings to help police with their workload. In June of 2023, the Town contracted with Securitas to provide unarmed private security to the Transportation Center and other municipal buildings. Several updates were provided to the Selectboard on the use of these security guards throughout the year and into 2024. The guards had a positive effect when they were there. An issue with this approach was that the company could not always send the number of guards needed due to their inability to hire and retain staff.

Because the security company could not always send the required number of guards due to staffing issues and because of ongoing complaints from residents, business owners, and visitors, the Selectboard asked Police Chief Norma Hardy and Assistant Police Chief Jeremy Evans to formulate a data-driven Downtown Safety Action Plan. At the March 5, 2024 Selectboard meeting, a community safety update was provided and the Governor’s Public Safety Enhancement Team was introduced to the Town. Jim Baker, a consultant with the Governor’s office, would head that team. The Town has worked closely with Jim Baker and the Public Safety Enhancement Team since.

At this meeting Assistant Chief Evans presented the HEAT Data Program centered around enhanced data sharing and the use of the Police Department’s relevant, actionable data. Police Chief Norma Hardy also introduced and further discussed the proposed Downtown Safety Action Plan, which consisted of the creation of the B.R.A.T. Unit, new cameras downtown and the hiring of additional officers. Chief Hardy’s plan was further discussed at the August 20, 2025 Selectboard meeting. After some amendments to the original motion, the Selectboard voted 5-0 to approve the Downtown Safety Action Plan. The amendments included developing cost estimates for aspects of the team and adding three additional cameras in the downtown area by the end of the year using the remaining community safety funds.

An Acceptable Community Conduct Ordinance - Chapter 13 was introduced at the September 6 meeting and further discussed on September 20. The ordinance was approved at that meeting but was later defeated through a Special RTM on December 12, 2024.

At the September 20, 2024 meeting, the Selectboard voted to fund the Downtown Safety Action Plan with an estimated cost of $675,669 for the emergent unbudgeted expenditures in FY25 and with an estimated $803,459 added to the base budget for FY26 to be brought to Representative Town Meeting. The Selectboard discussed the timing necessary to see benefits from the plan. Because of the long lead time to hire and train Police Department staff and the strong desire to see changes downtown by summer 2025, the Selectboard determined that the Town was in an emergency and in need of immediate action.