MARCH 2021
NEYT is happy to announce that the Windham Regional Commission has agreed to provide loan and grant funding to allow us to remove the cinder block portion of 48 Elm Street and replace it with more useable space. We are required to have a public comment period, and welcome your participation and comments. This page provides additional information, plan details, and contacts. We look forward to continuing to improve our campus and thank the Windham Regional Commission and the US EPA for their assistance with this project.

STATEMENT BY NAOMI SHAFER, ENVIRONMENTAL CLEAN-UP ADMINISTRATOR:
Shortly after moving in to its new building, NEYT learned that the campus was a Brownfields Site. While the main building contained no contamination, the adjacent properties and green space was contaminated from past use. In 2007, NEYT started working with the United States Environmental Protection Agency and Windham Regional Commission to remediate the properties.

In 2015, NEYT completed the first phase of its environmental cleanup. This included removing lead paint from the exterior of the former Tri State Auto Building, replacing the parking lot, building the addition to scene shop, and removing contaminated soil from the lawn.

In 2018, NEYT broke ground on The Glendon Mayo Amphitheatre. The outdoor classroom and performance space is on the site of the former Rockwell & Sherwin Carriage Company. Often referred to as “The Livery Building,” the former carriage shop was contaminated from industrial use in the twentieth century.

NEYT’s remediation efforts were made possible by support from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Vermont Department of Conservation, Windham Regional Commission, and Town of Brattleboro. NEYT received additional funding from the Vermont Arts Council, Jane’s Trust, Clowes Foundation, and private donors.

The former Tri-State Auto building is the only part of NEYT’s campus that has not been remediated. The building was used as a paint factory and machine shop, and the inside is painted with contaminated paint. The building is locked and boarded to prevent anyone from having accidental contact with these materials.