After Flooding And Fire, Brattleboro Recovers

(Host) While many towns in Vermont are struggling with damage from Tropical Storm Irene, few have had to deal with quite so many difficulties this year as downtown Brattleboro. 

A massive fire in April tore through the historic Brooks House, displacing dozens of residents and businesses for an indefinite period of time. 

And that was just the beginning.  VPR's Jane Lindholm went to see how Brattleboro is doing now.

(Lindholm) On a sunny Friday afternoon, a few people stroll through downtown Brattleboro, enjoying the warm fall weather.  But inside the shops, business is slow.

(Worden) "Today? We opened at 9 this morning.  And I had a couple of people from England in before 10.  Beyond that it's been relatively quiet."

(Lindholm) Greg Worden runs Vermont Artisan Designs and Kitchen Synch, on Main Street.  Despite the slow start to the foliage season, he strikes an optimistic tone.

(Worden) "Have we seen everybody on the street yet?  No.  Have we seen people from overseas and Boston and Connecticut?  Sure.  Do we want to see more?  You're doggone right!"

(Goldberg) "We have a town that has really been I think challenged consistently and repeatedly by the most unspeakable events."

(Lindholm) Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jerry Goldberg.

(Goldberg) "We had, of course, the Brooks House fire, which we live with on a daily basis.  We had, unfortunately, two homicides within a matter of, I think, two or three weeks of each other.  And just as we learned how to cope with that, Irene came.  One of our streets, Flat Street, which is low lying, businesses along that street were flooded, basements hugely flooded, and some of them still not open and probably won't be for another month or so."

(Lindholm) Peter Johnson's business, Emerson Furniture, is open, but Johnson himself is still reeling after the normally timid Whetstone Brook tore through his building's basement, leaving about $240,000 worth of damage behind.

(Johnson) "We had about 8 feet 9 inches, through the entire basement.  And it wasn't like a typical flood where you think of water rising and then water receding.  It was more of a: you cut the side of your building off, let a tidal wave come in, and then close it back up."

(Lindholm) Johnson didn't have flood insurance and he's still trying to work with FEMA and the Small Business Administration to see what kind of assistance he can get.  Beyond dealing with the physical damage to the building, Johnson says traffic in the store is down about 30 percent.

(Johnson) "And it doesn't seem to matter what kind of promotion or what sale, you know.  It's almost like a stigma in the area that, ‘Don't come there right now ‘cause it's not open for business.'  I saw my very first tour bus go by this morning and normally by this time of season there would be 6 a day.  I was shocked.  I actually looked out and said, ‘Oh my god, leaf peepers are going by! Somebody still believes in coming!'"

(Lindholm) It's easy to see why Johnson is feeling glum: he doesn't know where the money for repairs is going to come from and sales don't seem to be the solution.  And he doesn't feel like Brattleboro has come together to help businesses like his that were affected by the floods.

But other merchants in downtown Brattleboro are loathe to admit that business is bad or that the town is reeling after several bouts of bad news.  Greg Worden of the Artisan designs shop is one of them.

(Worden) "I would say it's a great opportunity to move ahead."

(Lindholm) In fact, Worden says Brattleboro has come together.

(Worden) "It's been a challenge for a lot of people, no question.  But it's actually shown that the community works hard to support one another.  The people who are in need, whether it's the Boys and Girls Club or the Latchis or Adavasi or anyone who was displaced by the fire.  And there are all kinds of benefits for flood victims and fire victims ongoing. And so that's a real positive aspect of what could be a real downer."

(Lindholm) It seems safe to say it's a mixed bag in Brattleboro at the moment.  As in any community, there's as much variety of opinion as there has been damage, with some business owners reporting robust sales while others see business down about 30 percent.

One thing perhaps most people in Brattleboro can agree with the sentiment expressed by Bob Woodworth at Burroughs Specialized Sports on high street.

(Woodworth) "Well, that we're just hoping that the last plague isn't locusts because we've had enough for a while.  So I think we'll-I know we'll bounce back.  It's going to be a little bit of a tight time for a while but all this will pass and things will get better."

(Lindholm) And a few more tourists heading to town this coming Columbus Day weekend couldn't hurt either. 

For VPR News, I'm Jane Lindholm.