Deerfield Select Board Clears Eminent Domain Step for Stillwater Bridge Replacement

Select Board · Meeting of March 18, 2026

WHATELY — Deerfield Select Board unanimously authorizes eminent domain takings for Stillwater Bridge and approves new police hire. The board voted 3-0 at its March 18 meeting to acquire easements from private landowners for the Upper Road bridge replacement, awarding $900 total in damages to affected owners, with a follow-on vote on Great River Hydro easements scheduled for April 1. Chair Trevor D.

McDaniel, Blake Gilmore, and Tim Hilchey also approved the appointment of 22-year-old Ethan Russell as a full-time police officer at $27.90 per hour beginning June 1, backfilling a vacancy left by the departure of Officer Tim Bolin to the state police. The board rescinded a February 12 hiring-freeze memo, citing a health insurance increase that came in at 12.5 percent rather than the projected 16 to 20 percent. Two Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness grant letters of support were signed for culvert work at Pleasant Street and Captain Lathrop Drive, identified in the town's MVP plan as the highest-priority infrastructure needs.

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Source: the Select Board meeting of March 18, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.