WVTK Local & State News November 23, 2010

McKernon Group of Brandon will be demolishing the Old Church at 6 Cross Street on the corner of Water Street today. There may be temporary short-lived traffic delays on Water Street. Building rubble will be transported to the Addison County Solid Waste Management District transfer station.

Governor-Elect Peter Shumlin is naming more staff to key positions in his administration. Lawrence Miller who is CEO for Danforth Pewter and the founder of Otter Creek Brewing Company is Shumlin's choice for Secretary of Commerce. The new deputy Commerce Secretary will be Patricia Moulton Powden. Chuck Ross of Hinesburg is named Secretary of Agriculture. And, Shumlin announced he is appointing Annie Noonan of Montpelier as the next Commissioner of Labor. All the appointees still have to be confirmed by the state Senate.

Turkeys at HOPE’s headquarters are already being distributed for the upcoming Holiday. Officials are concerned about being able to meet the demand of needy families this Thanksgiving and Christmas. So far this week 223 Addison County households had signed up for a turkey and related side dishes. HOPE has so far ordered a total of 325 turkeys to cover special meals for qualifying families on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The five Addison Northwest Supervisory Union towns are headed toward another vote on one-board governance on Town Meeting Day in March. Last week the full Addison Northwest Supervisory Union board met with the subcommittee that has been studying unification. The board then made a formal motion to approve what will be the fifth unification vote in six years. Almost all supervisory union board members are in favor of a vote on a proposal that would dissolve the five boards and replace them with one 12-member board.

Representatives of Mount Abraham Union High School teachers and school board members met for contract negotiations last Thursday night. Before the meeting a quiet picket was carried out by the teachers’ organization. The two sides left the meeting with only the promise of yet another meeting to continue discussions.

Vergennes aldermen have given permission for the 16-passenger tour boat “Moonlight Lady” to use the city’s free docks for overnight stays next summer. Aldermen debated whether the dock space reserved for the Burlington cruise boat might better be left open for boaters who make the seven-mile trip up Otter Creek from Lake Champlain or whether the publicity Vergennes receives from the cruises might be a greater benefit.

Vermont is not immune from national aging trends. Next year more than 8,000 Americans will turn 65 every day and before the 2050s, seniors will likely make up the majority of the Green Mountain State's population. To meet the growing needs of senior care, organizations such as At Home Senior Care of Addison County have been founded to provide dependable, responsive non-medical care so that seniors can maintain their quality of life and independence.

The Green Mountain Club recently won the Vermont Historical Society's prestigious Richard O. Hathaway Award for their book "A Century in the Mountains: Celebrating Vermont's Long Trail". This is a 190-page large format book of color photographs and essays celebrating 100 years of the Long Trail.

The Vergennes Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting the fifth annual Vergennes Holiday Stroll on Saturday, December 4th. Events begin at 7:30 AM with a pancake breakfast and wrap up at 7 PM with a holiday concert by the Otter Creek Choral Society. There are many events and activities during the day for young and old. A complete schedule is available here. In addition to these events, the Holiday Stroll is the kick-off for a weeklong collection of food items for the Community Food Shelf.

Forty Army National Guard soldiers returned to the state yesterday after a year away from home with nine months in Afghanistan. The soldiers are among about 1,500 Vermont guard members who have spent a year away from home, the last nine months in Afghanistan. The commander of the Vermont National Guard, Maj. Gen. Michael Dubie, says all the soldiers should be home by Christmas.

The Rutland School Board will have three new options for budget cuts presented to it tonight. The school administration is warning that taxes may not necessarily go down even if the board trims expenses. Superintendent Mary Moran said the board can now choose to cut from three new charts of prioritized expenses for 2012.

The leaders of Pico Mountain ski resort have declared it the state’s first smoke-free resort starting January 1. 

Smoking will be banned from the property, especially lift lines. Pico has partnered with the American Cancer Society to reduce the cancer risk from second-hand smoke for Pico employees, associates and guests.

Vermont's largest health care provider wants to sell its outpatient kidney dialysis services at five locations across the state. Fletcher Allen Health care announced Monday it has signed a nonbinding letter of intent to sell centers in South Burlington, St. Albans, Berlin, Rutland and Newport to Fresenius Medical Care North America. The five centers serve about 290 patients.

Vermont Legal Aid officials say delays in processing benefit applications for food stamps and other programs are violating state and federal law. In a stern letter sent yesterday, Legal Aid says the state Department for Children and Families must comply with a previous federal court ruling and process applications within 30 days with an error rate of no more than 3%.

A Progressive Party lawmaker will be returning to the Vermont House after a judge rejected a challenge to a recount that showed her winning. A recount Friday confirmed earlier election results showing Rep. Susan Hatch Davis ahead of Republican challenger Rodney Graham, of Williamstown, by four votes. Republicans challenged that recount result. But an Orange County Superior Court judge rejected that challenge yesterday.

New Hampshire farmers are now eligible for a rebate program aimed at preventing deadly tractor rollovers. The program, which already is in place in New York and Vermont, reimburses farmers for 70% of the cost of seat belts and roll bars for their tractors.