The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-07-27
Five Years Specified in
Each Case i'm Town
Meeting
VOTE UNANIMOUS er
ON ALL MOTIONS
Only Discussion Was as to Date When
Fort Dummer Mills Exemption
Should Begin - Large Increase in
Plants Capacity Planned.

Plants Capacity Planned.
Four Brattleboro concerns were
granted tax exemption for five years at
a special town meeting held in Festival
hall last evening. They are the
Kolstad- Taylor Co., makers of toilet
sets; the Fort Dummer Mills, which is
planning an enlargement of its cotton
mill; the AIillers Falls Co., makers of
automobile jacks; and the Vermont Silk
Co, which is establishing a silk business
in the High street armory building. On
each motion the vote was unanimous.
| Twenty-Five voters were present, in
lcluding Moderator A. F. Schwenk and
Clerk Carl S. Hopkins. The business was
over in IS minutes, and large part Of
I that time was taken up in discussion
of the Fort Dummer Mills exemption.
On motion of C. B. Crowell a fve-year
exemption was voted the Kolstad- Taylor
| Co, under article l, the exemption not
to apply to any land. This concern is
1 erecting a factory on Flat street.
i The wording of article was as fol-
lows: "To see if the town will vote to
exempt for period of five years from
the date of completion and installation
such additions to plant and equipment
as may be constructed and installed by
Fort Dummer Mills, such exemption,
however, not to include lands or the pres
ent plant or equipment of said mills.
i ATTORNEY Harold Z. Whitney, counsel
for the Fort Dummer Mills, stated that
4 10 wears ago the mills were exempted for
no years and that next April they would
be assessed, making substantial addi-
ton to the grand list. The proposed eX-
emption, he said, would not cover any
thing that now exists. The cotton mill
lis a $4,000 spindle mill, and the concern
purposes to increase it's capacity to q
10000 spindle mill, besides erecting
warehouse and office building, these de-
velopments to be begun as soon as pos
isible.. The payroll is now about $1,000
a day. Attorney Whitrey moved that the
proposed developments be exempted as
contemplated by the article.
Selectman Solon A. Richmond said he
favored an exemption and did not wish
to be considered as opposing 1T, but he
thought that as no particular date was
mentioned for the completion of the work
and the beginning of the exemption pc
riod the matter might drag along several
years He thought that to vote an ex-
lemption under those conditions would be-
Establishing bad precedent and he ia
vored an exemption for five years from
date, believing that the town would ex-
tend the period at the end of that time
for period sufficient so that the concern
would get five years exemption from
> the completion of the work.
Attorney Whitney explained that tbs
article was worded as it was because OF
the uncertainty as to when machinery
could be obtained and installed.
Il p j. Hopkins looked at the matter
along the same general lines as did Dir.
; Richmond. Mr.. Crowell suggested letting
the matter lay until the next March
. meeting.
At this point Mr. Richmond moved, as,
an amendment to Mr.. Whitney's motion,
that the words 'for period of five years
from date be substituted for the words
in the article ''for a period of five years
from the date of completion and installs-
: ton" The amendment was voted and
+, then the original motion as amended was
voted.
Under article on motion of FL. +. Jor-
ldan the Millers Falls Co., which recently
bought the business of the National Ma
lchine Co. and enlarged the business, was
l Exempted for five years, and under article
Ia on motion of w. A. Gilbert the Yer
mont Silk Co., Inc, was granted five
year exemption, in, both instances the
l'exemption not to cover any land. The
meeting then adjourned on motion of A..
p. Carpenter.