WVTK Local & State News June 17, 2010

The Vermont Attorney General's Office is warning you about a rental scam on Craig's List. Officials say the scammer posts a rental ad on the website for a property someone else owns, and then breaks in to show it to interested renters. The scammer then takes off with the renter's deposit. It's an old scam but officials are now just seeing it in our area.

A police chase in Hinesburg led them to about 70 marijuana plants. This past weekend, police were alerted to a suspicious driver. When they spotted the vehicle, the driver led them on a chase that ended at a home on Major Street. The driver fled inside and when the officer followed, he found the pot plants in a bedroom. Charges are expected to be filed soon.

Governor David Paterson has issued an ultimatum to the Legislature saying that they should pass a negotiated budget by June 28th or he will take care of it himself. He says he will add all the cuts that need to be made to emergency spending bills. He also said that he would not sign on any budget that includes deficit spending or borrowing.

Plans for a new Armed Forces Reserve Center are moving forward in Rutland Town. Pending Act 250 approval, the four-lot subdivision at the corner of Route 7 and Post Road will be the future site of a 70,000-square-foot facility used by Army Reserve units and Army National Guard units.

For many local businesses, the Killington Stage Race’s decade-long hiatus was worth the wait. According to an estimate of the event’s economic impact the three-day road bike race drew 560 racers and their guests for a total of 1,398 visitors, who spent a total of $528,527 on food, beverages, hotel stays and other activities.

The search continues today for a man that held-up Simon's Deli and Grocery on Williston Road. South Burlington Police say the man, armed with a handgun, walked into the store around 9 last night demanding money. He then took off on foot. If you have any information, please call the South Burlington Police Department.

Residents in West Rutland who are not registered to vote can register in time to be eligible to vote in this year’s primary and general elections. 

A justice of the peace and notary public will be on hand to register voters on Saturday, June 19, and again from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 26, at the West Rutland Food Shelf. The registration event is for anyone in the Rutland area, not only for West Rutland.

New figures from the Vermont Housing Finance Agency show the median price of a home in the state fell 5% last year to $190,000. It's the first substantial decline on record, but the agency says many would-be first time homebuyers still can't afford a home.

The Vermont Energy Investment Corporation has won a 3-year; $21 million contract to set up energy efficiency programs for municipal utilities in six states. The goal is to save 70,000 megawatt-hours of electricity during the 3-year term of the deal with Ohio-based American Municipal Power.

Vermont's Congressional delegation continues to push for sanctions against BP and the oil industry in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Rep. Peter Welch took oil executives to task Tuesday during a hearing on Capitol Hill. Welch wants to end billions of dollars in tax breaks and other government incentives to the oil industry and focus that money on the clean up and developing renewable energy. The oil industry says the government incentives are critical to maintaining thousands of jobs.

A team of students dedicated to preventing bad decision-making among its peers will be recognized June 29 for being the best organization of its kind in the nation. 

Stafford Technical Center’s SADD chapter, or Students Against Destructive Decisions, is one of more than 9,000 registered student groups in the nation. For the past year, students have generated awareness of issues that force teens to make daily decisions that can drastically alter their lives – from drunk driving to abuse in relationships.

Members of the Carillon Garden Club of Ticonderoga spent a day of gardening at the Inter-Lakes Health nursing home recently. Some of the residents helped garden club member’s plant window boxes that will be enjoyed on the terraces this summer. Other areas around town will also be enhanced by the planting of colorful annuals. Two of the club objectives are to promote interest in gardening and to protect civic beauty. The Carillon Garden Club meets regularly from March through December and has 45 members.

A Canadian bicycle tour this summer will be an economic boast for Ticonderoga. A Montreal based bicycle tour organization will bring as many as 2,000 cyclists to Ti for two days in August. The bicycle tour is scheduled to take riders from Montreal to Lake George, where they'll spend a night. On Aug. 8 cyclists will come to Ticonderoga and stay overnight. They will spend Aug. 9 touring local attractions and stay a second night before leaving Aug. 10 for Plattsburgh.

Investigators think it may have been a cigarette that started a fire which took the life of a Ray Brook Man last week. According to authorities, 61-year-old Craig Amrhein was unable to escape the fire. The medical examiner ruled that Amrhein died from smoke inhalation. Investigators believe he may have failed to put out a cigarette, which sparking the blaze.

A new housing development in South Burlington has received approval from the Development Review Board. The project that includes constructing two buildings at the former Olympiad Fitness Center. One would have 39 residential units. The other would be a mix of residential and medical offices. The project still needs local and state permits before construction can begin.

A Williston father will spend the next 22 to 25 years in prison. 51-year-old Robert Kolibas was convicted back in March of drugging and inappropriately touching a 13-year-old friend of his daughter's during a sleepover. Kolibas was in court yesterday for his sentencing. He has 30 days to file an appeal.

A Bolton woman is facing a number of charges for scamming over $14,000 from Vermont Medicaid. Authorities say 34-year-old Marja Lawrence, who was a caregiver for a disabled woman, submitted a number of claims for services she didn't provide.

One of Vermont's favorite rock groups seems to have hit a high note with the music industry. Waitsfield-based Grace Potter & the Nocturnals celebrated the release of their new self-titled CD last week. Yesterday that album debuted at number 20 on the Billboard Top 200 chart and at number 3 on the rock album chart.