Monday, April 5, 2010

WVTK Local & State News April 5, 2010

As a spring groundbreaking on the Lake Champlain bridge project nears, union officials are urging lawmakers to endorse a controversial labor agreement they say will save taxpayer money and ensure good working conditions for Vermont workers. Union officials on hand Friday disputed state claims that the requirements are bad for Vermont. They said that not only will the PLA save nearly $3 million in total project costs; it would also be a boon Vermont workers. A spokeswoman for the New York Department Of Transportation said that the PLA controversy would not postpone the project schedule.

Rutland police are asking for the public's help in learning more about a pedestrian accident early Sunday morning. That happened on North Main Street, where a person was found by police lying in the northbound lane of traffic with head, face and leg injuries. While the injuries are described as being "non-fatal" they're still serious, and no information about the victim or his condition is being released just yet. Rutland police are hoping someone saw what happened, and will contact them.

A plane in the sky over Middlebury State Airport on Friday afternoon was cause for concern for federal aviation officials charged with preventing air attacks. At about 1:30 p.m. Friday, two F-15 fighters under the control of the North American Aerospace Defense Command were directed from the Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield, Mass., to the sky over Middlebury, according to a news release from NORAD at the Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado. The jets were responding to a "general aviation aircraft that was transmitting a distress transponder code," according to the release. 
But, according to NORAD, the signal was pressed by mistake and the plane landed at the airport before the jets got there.

The Monkton Conservation Commission has won a $150,000 state grant to install culverts under a stretch of Vergennes Road in Monkton to protect salamanders, reptiles and small mammals crossing between a swampy area and the uplands. The project will be the first wildlife-crossing retrofit of a Vermont highway.

Kids who bully other kids online might be facing some real consequences. School leaders want new laws passed to help them combat cyberbullying. There are 2 bills currently moving through the Vermont Legislature. Rules now only allow schools to act if kids are bullied at school. School officials are hopeful it will pass this session.

License plates in New York are getting a new retro-look. Starting this spring, the state will start issuing the new Empire Gold Plates for vehicles in the state. Officials say they will be distributing the Empire White and Blue Plates till their current stock runs out. Empire Gold plates should be available online, by phone and by mail by the end of May.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is going to study the Burlington school district's farm-to-school program. The program works with more than 20 local farmers to purchase fruit, vegetables, meat, dairy products and bread to create meals at schools to feed student. The USDA Farm to School Team will use Burlington as 1 of 15 examples of how to help connect children to their food.

The man accused of killing two people in Dannemora appeared in court Friday, pleading not guilty to additional murder charges at the hearing. Anthony Pavone is charged with murdering Patricia Howard and Tim Carter and leading police on a 3-state search before being found, held-up in a Binghamton hotel room.

The widow of a prisoner of war received her husband's Purple Heart 50 years after his death. The Clinton County Veteran's Office presented the award to Ethyl Dick at a surprise party in Plattsburgh on Saturday. The local widow says she’d like to see more instances were the Purple Heart is awarded to those who die in POW camps.

The U.S. Border Patrol says it's arrested more than 100 people from Haiti for allegedly illegally entering Vermont from Canada since massive earthquake devastated the Caribbean nation. Lawyers assigned to represent the Haitians say they are coming to the U.S. because they are desperate to be with relatives and loved after losing everything in Haiti.

A Vermont State Trooper is recovering after being knocked down by a man on an all-terrain vehicle. State police say Trooper Paul Feeney was trying to stop Jeffrey Bedell for operating the ATV on a public road in Bethel on Friday. Police say Bedell drove away, knocking Feeney down. Police later caught up with Bedell. He will be arraigned today.

A deal between JetBlue Airways and American Airlines designed to give JetBlue a foothold at Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport could have side effects in Vermont. The plan calls for JetBlue to give up 12 roundtrip positions at JFK. JetBlue currently flies 4 flights a day to and from Burlington to JFK. Federal Officials have not yet been approved the deal.