---
title: "Stamford Select Board — May 26, 2026 (Part 2 of 2)"
date: 2026-05-26
session: special
part: 2 of 2
speaker_labels: 1 cluster(s) named from the roll call and that meeting's chair in the minutes, 1 named from roster attendance, 1 of 3 clusters unnamed
voice_ids: {"SPEAKER_02":3,"SPEAKER_04":1,"SPEAKER_05":15}
duration_min: 9
audio: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KACYtetca8Hya1s9O9wXxQHqR_CYp2HN/view?usp=sharing
audio_source: town drive
minutes: https://townofstamfordvermont.org/mediaItems/Sbd%20Minutes%205-26-26.pdf
minutes_pending: false
present: [Nancy L. Bushika, Kurt Gamari, Jedidiah Gramlin, Michael G. Denault, John Dunn]
absent: []
transcribed: 2026-09-04 (faster-whisper large-v3, CUDA; names corrected per data/name_fixes.json)
diarization: pyannote/speaker-diarization-3.1 (automated; cluster labels may over-split a single voice; unattributed paragraphs have no reliable speaker)
---

# Stamford Select Board — May 26, 2026 (Part 2 of 2)

**Session:** Special · **Duration:** 9 min · [Audio](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KACYtetca8Hya1s9O9wXxQHqR_CYp2HN/view?usp=sharing) · [Minutes](https://townofstamfordvermont.org/mediaItems/Sbd%20Minutes%205-26-26.pdf)

**Present:** Nancy L. Bushika, Kurt Gamari, Jedidiah Gramlin, Michael G. Denault, John Dunn

---
See? You never know. You pick the chairs up, and people want to come in and sit.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Yep. Okay. Well, we've interviewed three candidates, and we've probably made our decision in our mind, but we want to discuss them here at the open session. What do you want to do?

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Well, I think that...

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Just make a motion?

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** I think that it was a good... I'm impressed the way we did this. It's kind of a first time for us to do this type of format. I'm proud of the town and the people for having this many candidates and saying, you know, I said this before, a lot of towns are begging. You go right down to Clashburg, you got three slot men, and they can't fill the positions half the time. So it's very impressive. Yeah. Proud to be in this town. And all three candidates care about the town, that's for sure.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** That's, yes.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** So it's always a tough decision. Because, you know, you're sitting there saying, we all got to live in this town. We all know each other. So, I mean, I really commend all three of them. That's my little speech.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** I agree.

**Speaker 1:** I know all three.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Can work with all three. I did that on the fly, you know. I didn't even write that down. Got it out of his hand. Got it out of his hand.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** So, what's your opinion, Jeff?

**Speaker 2:** I think we've done a good job for what we... What we've been forced to do. And I think it's a good start for us to have. Because when we're not here, the next people can actually take it and still know the road straight. Still kind of like, I don't know, they didn't do it this way.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** That's the way it's always been done.

**Speaker 2:** Oh, yeah. I think it's definitely time for us to get out of the... That's the way it's always been done. Yeah. Make it that way. Yeah.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Cool. John? You're good with our interviews? Yeah.

**Speaker 3:** I missed the last meeting.

**Speaker 4:** Oh, it's true. So, I'm almost like really trying to get on it. It's true. Okay. But I think it's a good thing to interview.

**Speaker 5:** Can he even make a decision because...

**Speaker 4:** Should be interviewing these positions. They're important positions.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Should he even make a vote because he wasn't here for the other two interviews and they were done with executive senate?

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** I personally think that everybody on the board always has a vote. If he wants to... If John wants to recuse himself because of that, that's up to him. Yeah. It's up to him.

**Speaker 6:** I don't think we have to force him to do that.

**Speaker 4:** Like I said, it's an important position of the planning board. There's a lot of things going on, new things coming down the pipeline that the board needs to adjust and prepare for. Really need to interview for these positions and make sure you put somebody in there that knows how and the correct way to handle those.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** So, I wasn't even aware that the state literally mandates that you do these town plans. What was that? Every five years? Yeah. Every eight years. So, the better you do it this time, the easier it might be for the next time. The more half-assed we do it this time or the time before and the time before, the harder it becomes for you to get in. And then the state steps in and says, oh, you really should do this. You know what I mean? It's like having a business plan. Right. It makes it easier.

**Speaker 2:** I mean, we're trying to voice it, and I know it can be pretty clever if you just let the CRC just write it. Right. Right. We're trying to have it. We're trying to have a voice. Right.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Because we're a unique town, a real unique town.

**Speaker 7:** And you can't afford to not do things right because you don't do things right, and guess what? You get something in your town that you didn't want because you didn't really realize what you were doing, and you left something out, and oh, no. Yeah. So, there's no, you know, you really have to try to do things right.

And you don't like, you know,

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** once you get something, you can't, it's like having a tenant and you can try to get them up.

**Speaker 8:** Oh, no.

**Speaker 7:** Yeah, once something happens, it's done.

**Speaker 9:** Encouraging people to partake in the process now because once it's written and voted in, then it's, that's usually when everyone reads it, like, it's all fine, and I'll read it,

**Speaker 10:** and then I've got 10 more answers.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Yeah, and then you go, oh, no, what did I do?

**Speaker 11:** Read it now, and read it now, and come down and.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Yeah, while we are on record here, I hope people read your letter that you sent it out, survey. Yeah, it should be coming in the mail. And get some answers. Yeah.

**Speaker 7:** And it will be an announcement about the walking tour, too, so please put that in the minutes again.

**Speaker 8:** Yeah, so people that watch this might not be on Facebook, but I doubt it, but it might not be.

**Speaker 9:** Even more important than the walking tour might be the meeting afterwards. Yeah.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Walking tour is noontime, and the meeting is 1.30 and 1.30.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** This is on June.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** This Saturday.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Oh, this Saturday. Why don't you put up a little, why don't you put up a sign at the dump because you'll still have,

**Speaker 7:** people will still have time, in fact, we'll be out at the dump. We'll be out at the dump next time. Yes. I know.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Okay. I need to make a motion to appoint someone to the planning commission to fill Stephanie Shelburne's four-year term, which will be up in 2029. 29? Yep. I'm going to make the motion. Oh, oh, oh, what, what, what?

**Speaker 7:** I just took her for a position that's up in 2029. Yep. You're committed for four years. Don't make us go through this again. Okay. Thank you. Thank you.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Thank you. Thank you.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

**Speaker 9:** Thank you. Thank you. I'll take the motion to appoint Pam Thornton.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** I'll second it.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Okay. Any objections? Uh, do we want to roll, or just all in favor? Aye.

**Speaker 12:** Aye.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Aye. You're it, Pam.

**Speaker 9:** Congratulations.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Yep. And also, again, I want the other two candidates, I hope we send something to them. Thank you very much. Thank you. I'll continue to go to the meetings. You can be a voice on the other side. Pam Thornton. Pam's done that many a time over here. Sometimes that's, yeah, more powerful, yeah. And if there is a, because we have had a turnover on the plaintiff board. If there is someone that leaves again in the near future, I think the board should look at the two candidates that we already have, and if it goes maybe six months or something, they might ask again. But we already have everything fresh. We've already interviewed them. We can decide then. Yes. So.

**Speaker 13:** You know what I'm saying?

**Speaker 7:** I'm gonna have to disagree.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Okay.

I mean, I'm gonna have to disagree. As a member of the planning commission. Well, I mean, not even as a member

**Speaker 7:** of the planning commission. No, no, yeah.

Because the reality is,

**Speaker 7:** there could be someone else already in town that would be preferable. There could be someone else that moves into town.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** I don't know. Do you think we should advertise it now?

**Speaker 7:** No, I think if you have this process, and this is what you're gonna do, and you're gonna interview people, then every time there's an opening, you should put it out, and you should interview people. That's what's in our guidelines.

**Speaker 9:** Okay. Yeah, I know. I was just thinking more of a short turnover, like if someone quit next week, it'd be awful ridiculous to go through this whole process. And would you have to?

**Speaker 13:** Yeah, except for where you're gonna draw the line.

**Speaker 7:** Well, is it next week?

**Speaker 14:** Is it three weeks?

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Well, can we do this then? Can we compromise? If we were to advertise it, and in that time period that we always advertise, I don't know what it is, two weeks or something, no one else but those two candidates show up, do we have to go through the interview system again, since we've already done it? If it's within a month's time,

**Speaker 15:** I don't think we should have to do that again.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** I don't think we should need to. It's fresh in our minds. We already interviewed. Don't put them through it again.

**Speaker 9:** Right.

**Speaker 11:** Sometime soon, but you never know.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** So, I mean, I guess we could crush that bridge when we get there, but then again, we might have to put it in a policy to say this. I'm just saying is, we just spent quite a bit of time waiting for this position to be filled. If someone leaves next week,

**Speaker 9:** we already got two candidates in the line. And it'll take another month to go through the whole process again, plus we're getting paid to do this.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Well, it costs money to have a special meeting. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So. I mean, it's up, you could think about it for the next select board meeting. We can decide then. Yeah, I don't think so. I mean, I think that'd be kind of a good thing. I understand what you're saying, too. I mean, it makes sense that there's a good candidate that moves down tomorrow. Or even if it's in town. Yeah, anybody, yeah.

**Speaker 7:** They couldn't do it, but now they can.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Decided, yeah.

**Speaker 14:** I don't know.

**Michael G. Denault (inferred):** Yeah, yeah. But we'll. We'll see. Yeah. It depends on how long it is from here to there. Yeah.

**Speaker 9:** Maybe a while.

**Nancy L. Bushika (Chair):** Okay, thank you. Are we all set? All gone? Any other questions?

**Speaker 10:** Nothing else.

**Speaker 9:** Offense mode. Mode target. All in favor. All in favor. All in favor.