The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-11-11
Committee Elected to Prepare
Regulations to Submit
to Voters
MEETING HELD In
STEAMER HOUSE
Opinion Was that Rejected Code Was
Too Cumbersome - Selectmen Asked
to Take Necessary Steps for Straight
ening Flat Street.

The concensus of opinion of about -
business men who met in the steamer
house on Elliot street last evening at the
request OF the village commissioners to
discuss building code was that the code
Eoffered for consideration year ago was
too cumbersome and made restrictive pro-
VISIONS that covered an unnecessarily wide
area, and IN consequence worked unneees-
sary hardships upon property owners. The
whole matter OF drawing uD a code which
should have TO do only with the congested
district was finally left to a committee
consisting of Linn d. Taylor. an insurance
man; Fred {. Brown, contractor: James
+. Helyar, an architect: and Solon A
Richmond, chairman of the village eommis-
sloners, to be presented to the voters at
special village meeting.
Tins matter having been disposed OF
Chairman Richmond brought forth a plan
Tor relocating Flat street, which was the
| result OF the work of a committee appoint
ed few years ago FOR the purpose. This
calls for widening and Strengthening that
street with especial relation TO the Main
street end 1t was voted that the select
men should be notified that it was the
| sense OF the meeting that they take such
1 steps as are necessary to provide for carry
| ing out the plans, at least on the south
side OF Flat street from Main street to
the west side of the building occupied by
! the steam laundry
1 This will take in all of the burned-over
| area. 1t was the opinion of those present
that the time TO make this change is be-
fore any new buildings are erected on the
sites of those burned last week 1t was
/ considered the better plan not to recon-
mend any changes as vet on the north side
OF the street or beyond the point designat-
ed on the south side.
Chairman Richmond of the village com
missioners called the meeting To order and
lexplained that the purpose of the commits
sloners was to receive suggestions regard
ing suitable building code. After some
idesultory conversation Mr. HeIyar was
asked to explain the method by which he
drew up the code offered a year ago at a
special village meeting for consideration
land which was rejected
He said he obtained from the national
board of fire underwriters their code and
building codes from Burlington and Lynn,
Mass, and that the one drafted for Brat
ltleboro was taken in part from them
Chairman Richmond then asked If it
were the sense of the meeting that there
: should be two building districts, an inner
land an outer. He gave the boundaries of
what had been proposed as the inner dis
trict, where the provisions regarding
buildings would be more strict This in
eluded the territory. generally speaking.
bounded on the north by Grove street. on
the south by Reed and Estabroek streets
and on the west by line extending south
from School street and on the east by the
river
! Nc. Richmond explained that in the
original code Us drawn up there were reg
tllations concerning traffic in the inner
ldistrlet, but the rejection of the code null
lihed the whole thing
q T. {. Crosby believed that under no cir
q cumstances should the erection of build
: ngs ON the burned area on Flat street
. that are of highly combustihle materials
! be allowed He touched upon the matter
: of shingle roofs saving that it seemed t.
him if man desired to put a shingle root
on a dwelling that was not in a eongested
. section there should lie no objection
\ w II. Perry, village clerk, started tc
r read the code a. offered a wear ago with
4 1.-THE intention of having each paragraph
; discussed Before he had made mucl
n iprogress it was evident that the piaI
d would require a very extended session ant
n that the sentiment sfor strict buldIn.
d rules within a congested area with muei
modified rules for the outlying sections
4 Twas growing
n Most of those present appeared to be
O lieve that the original draft OF the cod
D had been loaded down with unnecessar.
"details of construction of buildings, de-ie
n nations of their characters and provision
: as to what or who should or should no
10 be permitted to be or live within them
+ 1t was believed. apparently, that th
q lcode provided for conditions existing i
much larger municipalities than Brattle
boro, the only modifying condition bein
a provision that some things should =
left to the discretion of the building in
spector.
:; This led Mr. Crosby to move the seleo
= tion of the committee above mentioned
which he named, and the motion wa
4 promptly carried.