The next Addison County Chamber Of Commerce “After
Hours Business Mixer” is coming up this Thursday and is being held at Helen
Porter Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center in Middlebury. Plenty of great
door prizes plus a chance to win the Pot of Gold—which is valued at $550! The mixer will take place on the 21st
from 5 – 7PM. For more information
and to RSVP to Sue Hoxie just click HERE.
Addison student Peter Smith has been honored by the
Vermont Land Trust for his exceptional commitment to land stewardship in
agriculture. Peter is one of 12
outstanding students from around the state to be recognized by the land trust.
He received a $250 award that is not restricted and may be used towards
education, equipment or materials.
He is a Senior at Vergennes Union High School and works on his family's
dairy farm. Peter was a member of
the Future Farmers of America during his freshman and sophomore years, and
successfully competed in the FFA Vermont Dairy Foods Competition events both as
an individual and as part of a team.
The Town of Ferrisburgh will celebrate its 250the
birthday this Saturday from 10AM - 3PM.
Events will take place at the Ferrisburgh Elementary School off Little
Chicago Road. The celebration will
include antique cars and tractors, horse drawn wagon rides and old-fashioned
games for children and families. The
day will be crowned by the famous Ferrisburgh Volunteer Fire Department
Barbecue at 1PM. Off site events include an open house at the Ferrisburgh Fire
Station from 10 - 3 and an open house at the Ferrisburgh Historical Society.
The Rokeby Museum will also hold an open house. The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum will host Ferrisburgh
Days on Saturday and Sunday. All
off-site events are free to Ferrisburgh residents.
Former Vermont Gov. Madeleine Kunin will speak on
Sunday afternoon from 3 - 5 at the Weybridge Elementary School. Kunin will talk
about her book, “The New Feminist Agenda, Defining the Next Revolution for
Women, Work, and Family”. The talk
will be followed with a reception and a dessert of strawberry shortcake.
Autographed copies of the book will be for sale. The Addison County Democratic Committee is presenting this
event. Suggested donations are:
$20 in advance, $25 at the door, or what you can afford.
HOPE of Addison County was one of 17 organizations
from around the state selected to participate in the Benchmarks for a Better
Vermont Performance Institute, a grant-funded organizational development
program. The institute is designed to help Vermont’s nonprofits build
mission-appropriate and sustainable systems of performance measurement and is
offered at no cost to the selected organizations. Benchmarks for a Better
Vermont is a two-year initiative run by a consortium of organizations committed
to strengthening Vermont's nonprofit sector. Marlboro College Graduate School
serves as the lead agency.
Vermont State Police are investigating the report
of a burglary at the family residence of Alexander Smith of Panton, located off
of Lake Street. At the time of the call it was reported that a rear door window
had been broken and the residence had been entered. The victim was unable to
report at the time of the call if anything had been stolen. Anyone with
information is encouraged to contact Vermont State Police Senior Trooper Andrew
Leise at 1-802-388-4919. Information can also be submitted anonymously online
at www.vtips.info
or text "CRIMES" (274637) to Keyword: VTIPS
The town of Hubbardton became the second town to
officially take a stance against the proposed wind project on the Grandpa’s
Knob ridgeline Monday night. The
town’s Select Board unanimously approved a resolution opposing the project
proposed by developer Reunion Power.
Although the board members believe in the importance of renewable energy
options, according to the resolution it does not outweigh “the natural,
historic and economic importance this ridgeline represents to the town of
Hubbardton.”
Essex County lawmakers are advocating planting more
community gardens throughout the area.
The County Board of Supervisors recently OK’d using a $35,720 Creating
Health Places grant for such summer projects. The Essex County Public Health Department is managing the
grant, one part of which creates gardens on public plots in towns. People who
agree to maintain the gardens can share in the vegetables that are produced.
Environmental groups in northern New England are
raising an alarm about the potential for tar sands oil to be piped across
northern New England. The groups
say the Canadian energy firm Enbridge is eyeing an existing oil pipeline that
carries oil from Portland to Montreal with the idea of reversing the flow and
sending Canadian tar sands oil through Portland. Groups including the National Wildlife Federation, Natural
Resources Defense Council and state-based organizations in Maine and Vermont
say they'll fight the plan. A plan to move Canadian tar sands oil through a
pipeline extending through the Great Plains to the Gulf Coast has generated
heated national debate.
More than 1,600 people in the South Burlington area
have signed petitions asking the town's Council to reconsider its opposition to
locating new Air Guard jets at Burlington International Airport. They say the
Air Guard contingent at the airport could be downsized if the base doesn't get
the new jets.
Improvement for Vermont's jobs picture is having
another effect for those who've been without work for a long time. State labor
officials say the current jobless rate of 4.6% is below a federal trigger for
additional jobless benefits for people who've been without work for more than
46 weeks.
It's not the kind of damage the Cumberland Farms
Store in Barre sees every day, but then, this wasn't their normal
customer. Police got a call there
was a deer at the store, which apparently was spooked and ran right into the
glass doors. Once inside, it
looked for a way back out, trashing the store in the process. Authorities say the deer finally
escaped with minor cuts and bruises about 20 minutes later. Damage is estimated at several thousand
dollars.
A new list out by Fortune Magazine talks about places
to retire right now, and a familiar Vermont community made the top 20. The list was grouped into five
categories: sunny spots, small cities, big cities, foreign destinations and
mountain towns. It was the last
category, mountain towns, where Burlington was listed. The magazine mentioned the nearby
skiing and noted Burlington has four colleges and a vibrant art scene.
The New England Central Railroad between St. Albans
and the Vermont-Quebec border is going to be upgraded with help from a $7.9
million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The three members of Vermont's
congressional delegation announced the grant on Tuesday. The money will be used to install new
rail, ballast and ties and to make structural and deck repairs on six bridges. The
improvements also will accelerate efforts by the State of Vermont and Amtrak to
expand passenger rail service along The Vermonter line -- which currently ends
in St. Albans -- to Montreal.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo worked yesterday to
sell his proposal that would limit public disclosure of teacher evaluations to
parents. The Assembly is expected to approve the bill while the Senate's
Republican majority began discussing it yesterday morning.
Ticonderoga’s fourth annual StreetFest will be held
Saturday, July 28th from 10 AM to 3 PM. StreetFest, an annual community
celebration of arts and crafts, shopping, food, fun, entertainment, and family
activities to bring people to Ticonderoga's historic Montcalm Street district,
is a “must do” event for area residents and visitors alike. Montcalm Street
between Lake George and Champlain Avenues will close that day to traffic from
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. If you want to join the fun as a vendor, visit the
Ticonderoga Montcalm Street Partnership website www.timainstreet.org.
A musical tradition is returning to Moriah this
summer. The Moriah Chamber of
Commerce will again sponsor a concert in the park series. Concerts will be held
Friday evenings at 6:30 at the community bandstand in Place Park, adjacent to
the town hall and train station in Port Henry. Loose Connections will perform the first show on July 13th.
The Fritz Polka band will follow on July 20th, with the Moriah Baptist Church
choir on July 27th and RJ Walker on August 3rd. People are asked to bring lawn
chairs and blankets to the shows. Refreshments
will be sold. The Arts Council of
the Northern Adirondacks supports the concert series.
From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice In Vermont
& New York:
Police say a Crown Point, New York man is in grave
condition after he was intentionally shot in the head and police say the
shooter was the man's brother. Police
say David Lang appeared in a Crown Point courtroom to face charges related to
the shooting. They say his brother Russell Lang is at Fletcher Allen Health
Care where as of late Tuesday night he was in critical condition. When New York State Police troopers
arrived at a home in Crown Point, they found more than beer cans in the front
yard. "They identified a
suspect and a single victim suffering from a gun shot wound to his head,"
say Lt. Patrick Ryan, New York State Police. State Police Captain Robert LaFountain would not talk about
why 70-year-old David Lang might have shot his 63-year-old brother Russell. LaFountain says that alcohol appears to
be a factor and that David talked to police after the shooting. "The State Police have determined
that David intentionally shot his brother. It appears one time in the
head," says LaFountain. As
for the possible weapon, LaFountain says police did find a rifle at the home. He also says it was David who called
911 and that he was taken into custody without any issues. Police still closed roads around the
home and say they will be there for a while to finish their investigation. "We want to ensure the public that
there is no need for concern for their safety. We believe this was an isolated
incident," says LaFountain.
Prosecutors say an Essex Junction, Vermont
homeowner was justified in killing an intruder. On Tuesday, the Chittenden County State's Attorney T.J.
Donovan announced Shawn Garrett will not face any charges. "There is no evidence to support
that Mr. Garrett was engaging in some type of vigilante justice," says
Donovan. Donovan says, after
considering all the facts, he thinks the killing was justified. "The family is very thankful for
the end result obviously," says Kurt Hughes, Garrett's attorney.
"This event has really changed their lives forever." For the first time, Donovan laid out
what happened inside and outside the home in June. He says Garrett was woken up by noises, grabbed a knife, and
found 30-year old Ryan Morton-Lane inside his home, also armed with a
knife. That's when prosecutors say
Morton-Lane attacked. "He
warned Garrett that "I'll f****** kill ya" and made lunging motions
with his hands," says Donovan.
Donovan says the fight moved outside and that's when Garrett stabbed
Morton-Lane who eventually died. Prosecutors
say the killing on the front lawn was justified because Vermont law allows you
to defend yourself if you think you could be harmed. Though Donovan warned people not to take the law into their
own hands. "Certainly this is
not an invitation for people to take up arms," says Donovan. Prosecutors say their investigation
continues into the case, including other people that might be involved. They also say lab tests on Morton-Lane
are not complete but he might have drinking before the break-in.
The Vermont Community Law Center filed a lawsuit
against Pinnacle Food Group Tuesday morning. Lawyers Jared Carter and Kenneth Miller argue that Pinnacle
is misleading its customers by labeling its Log Cabin Syrup and Bird's Eye
brand frozen corm as "all natural". They claim that both products
contain synthetic or genetically modified ingredients. "The labels on these particular
products we think is unfair and misleading," Carter said. This comes after the last Legislative
session where Vermont's House of Representatives grappled over a bill that
would require all food companies to specifically label foods that contain
genetically modified ingredients. The bill died after a large food production
company threatened to sue the State.
One lawmaker says this new lawsuit against Pinnacle could re-ignite the
issue. "I was disappointed
that it didn't pass the House. So, my approach is to bring it through the
Senate this time. I sit on the Senate agriculture committee. We very strongly
support right to know," State Senator Philip Baruth (D) Chittenden said. A spokesperson for Pinnacle told us
that the company has heard about the lawsuit but has not received any information.
