WVTK Local & State News August 31, 2010

Prep work for paving on Route 30 between Middlebury and Whiting has begun. Be ready for some delays in one-way traffic zones. Be aware that the speed limit has been reduced to 40 MPH and fines are doubled for speeding in work zones.

Construction of the East half of the roundabout continues. All parking from Park St. to the Otter Creek Bakery driveway has been removed permanently. Please be aware of traffic pattern changes in the downtown construction zones, pay close attention to traffic controllers and do not use your cell phone while travelling in these areas.

Construction crews have been preparing a temporary span on Route 125 for use during the upcoming replacement of the Lemon Fair Bridge in Cornwall. Work on the new bridge is expected to start within a couple of weeks.

Some big changes are coming to the Courthouse in Middlebury including the ability to file complaints electronically and potentially see court offices consolidated within a single floor of the building. The goal is to make Vermont one of the few states nationwide to have e-filing as the standard throughout its court system. Changes are occurring in courthouses statewide as a result of a state mandate to streamline court services and cut the Vermont judiciary budget.

The Middlebury select-board is considering an interim zoning change that would allow more business development near the east end of the soon-to-be completed Cross Street Bridge. The board is tentatively set to hold a public hearing on Sept. 28 to receive feedback on the plan. That plan calls for some properties to be changed from “office-apartment” to “village-residential-commercial.”

Opponents of a proposed Hannaford on Route 7 in Brandon have a lot of questions. The Development Review Board approved the proposed grocery store last month and a group of residents filed a notice of appeal earlier this month questioning 17 aspects of the decision. The permit issued removed two extra buildings and half the parking spaces from the original plan.

According to the Rutland Housing Authority the first half of Forest Park should be empty of people by Oct. 1. Excavation could start in early November and construction could start Dec. 1. If everything goes according to schedule, work will be complete in December 2011. The project is in Phase One, which will demolish 37 units, replacing them with 33 units. Current residents have been and will continue to be relocated using Section 8 housing vouchers.

Rutland City police have made another arrest connected to a rash of Rutland break-ins. Police arrested Zachary S. Fredette on felony charges of burglarizing a home on Crescent Street and trespassing at an occupied home on Baxter Street.

The Republican candidate for governor unveiled his ten-point economic plan yesterday. Brian Dubie says his plan is all about job growth and trying to ease the burden on small businesses and taxpayers. Dubie says he plans to hold the state budget to a two-percent increase each year, which he says is above the one-percent inflation rate experts are predicting. He says his cap on state spending will save 240-million dollars over the next four years and wants to return that money to Vermonters by lowering the income tax rate from nine-percent to six- or seven-percent.

While the democrats from the gubernatorial primary wait for the re-count results, they are campaigning together. Peter Shumlin, Doug Racine and Deb Markowitz appeared together at Dealer.com yesterday to lay out their own 5 point plan, which is a combination of the 5 plans from the 5 primary candidates.

A nanny charged with inappropriately touching a 10-year-old boy last year has been sentenced to 25-years-to-life in prison. 25-year-old Donald Shepherd pleaded guilty in July to a number of charges as part of plea deal. He was sentenced in court yesterday. Authorities suspected Shepherd may have preyed on children in other states but have found no evidence or other victims.

Teachers in Winooski were hitting the pavement instead of school books yesterday as they staged an informational picket trying to gain more community support. For the second year in a row, the school board has imposed a work contract without any union support. Informational pickets will be held every morning this week. At this point, the union says it's considering all its options, including a strike.