Staff report
There will be no in-person Town Meeting in Woodstock this year.
The Woodstock Select Board voted Jan. 8 to make Town Meeting by Australian ballot only this year under Act 1. The temporary act gives towns the option to do away with in-person town meetings and make all decisions by Australian ballot for the next year only.
While some residents didn’t want to give up the tradition, saying it helped inform people prior to voters, others thought it was an outdated way to vote.
“I think it’s a lovely old tradition. It [represents] a fraction of the voting population in the town and village,” resident Ryan Logan said.
Few attended the last year’s in-person Town Meeting, largely due to a snowstorm.
“We don’t need the New York Times to come up here and write about how quaint the system is,” resident Mac Weinstein said. “It’s not efficient.”
Resident Jeff Kahn said the in-person Town Meeting allows for better and more informed voting since discussions can take place.
Town Meeting voting will be held in March.
