Thursday, July 26, 2012

WVTK Local & State News July 26, 2012


State officials say Vermont filmmaker Malcolm "Mac" Parker has agreed in civil court that he defrauded hundreds of people who thought they were investing in a movie out of a total of $28 million.  Parker, of Addison, this spring had pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges of conspiring to commit wire fraud and filing a false tax document. He's awaiting sentencing. Meanwhile, he has admitted to the allegations made in a civil suit brought by the state Department of Financial Regulation, which oversees the securities industry.  Authorities say a substantial amount of investors' money went not for the movie project, but to pay off earlier investors or to a silent partner of Parker's, Louis Soteriou.  Soteriou is facing federal criminal charges for his involvement in the alleged fraud.

The Vermont State Police in New Haven are investigating the theft of an inspection sticker from a dump truck owned by the Town of Salisbury.  At the time of the theft, earlier this month, the dump truck was parked at the Salisbury landfill located on Upper Plains Road.  Police estimated that the theft occurred between July 4 and July 17.  Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Vermont State Police in New Haven at 802-388-4919. Information can also be submitted online at www.vtips.info or text "CRIMES" (274637) to keyword: VTIPS

Officials at a newly revamped VA clinic in Rutland are hoping the new look will bring in more patients.  The 5,300-square-foot Veterans Affairs outpatient facility on West Street is much bigger than the former clinic.  Health care workers hope that convenience will make it easier for veterans to tend to their health care needs without having to travel.  There are 1,400 veterans assigned to the clinic, but doctors estimate that there are a few hundred more in the area who have not yet set up any primary health care services.

Green Mountain Power Corp. is cutting a break for its commercial customers in Proctor who were hit with a mammoth rate increase last year.  Green Mountain Power is working on a proposal to phase in rates for Proctor’s 62 commercial customers.  Officials say their goal is to phase in the new rates over three years to reduce the cost impact on local business. The Public Service Board will hold a workshop in Proctor on Monday, at which time GMP will provide details of its proposal.

The New York State Police in Lewis arrested two Moriah residents after an altercation in front of their Witherbee Road residence on Sunday.  At about 5PM Jessica Crane of Moriah was involved in a verbal dispute with Robert N. Brown when she was assaulted several times by Sara Nunez-Mendez. Brown was charged with second-degree robbery, second-degree menacing and third-degree assault and arraigned in Elizabethtown Town Court. He was committed to the Essex County Jail.  Nunez-Mendez was charged with third-degree assault, issued an appearance ticket and released.

For the third consecutive year, Ticonderoga Federal Credit Union will host its back-to-school supply drive for area students.  From July 30th through August 31st the credit union will collect donations of school supplies through collection bins in all branches and ATM locations to benefit students in these areas. All supplies will be distributed by the credit union to the schools, which will be able to direct the resources where they are needed most. Visit TFCU’s website, www.tfcunow.com or contact any branch at 585-6725 for more information.

Homeless and at-risk veterans will be offered a helping hand through almost $2 million in grant monies to help them get back on their feet.  Through a Soldier On grant, homeless and at-risk veterans in upstate Eastern and Central New York will be provided $1,976,402 in grants awarded to Soldier On by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Over the past year, SO grants have helped 12 veterans and their households in Clinton County, six in Essex County, 11 in Franklin County and 68 in a grouped district of Warren, Saratoga, Washington, and Hamilton county.

The ProAct Prescription Discount Card Program is saving users 10 to 20 percent on brand names and 20 to 70 percent on generic medications.  It has been available to Essex County residents for just under one year now. Clinton and Franklin counties also make the card available to their residents.  The discount card was introduced to ensure that local residents with little or no prescription coverage can obtain their medications at an affordable price. The Essex County program covers every medication, including some pet medications. Cards are accepted at most pharmacies within Essex County and at more than 60,000 pharmacies nationwide.

A new poll shows New Yorkers still love Gov. Andrew Cuomo. But as president? Not so much. The Quinnipiac University poll finds 73% of New Yorkers approve of the job the Democrat is doing in Albany. But just 36% of those polled want Cuomo to run for president in 2016.

With the first sighting of a new aquatic species in the Lake Champlain water basin, officials are moving into action in hopes of preventing the creature from entering the lake.  Scientists studying the invasion by the spiny water flea believe action should take place immediately.  The tiny animal, originally from Eurasia, feeds off plankton and can severely impact the food chain in a body of water it invades; it was identified earlier this month in the Champlain Canal.

There's a lot of celebrating going on for users of the Internet in Lamoille County.  That's because the first-ever high-speed Internet service kicked in to about eight-hundred addresses in Cambridge, Waterville, Jeffersonville and parts of Fletcher.  Governor Peter Shumlin checked out the service at the Jeffersonville town library, and thanked FairPoint Communications for its work.  A grant of 778-thousand dollars from the Vermont Telecommunications Authority paid the bulk of the 950-thousand needed for the hookup.

Construction finally starts Monday to a key section of the bike path and pedestrian walkway linking Burlington to the Lake Champlain islands.  The Colchester Causeway still needs repairs after the devastating spring flooding last year.  It's this section, which usually brings in millions of dollars' worth of spending into the area.  Most of the three-and-a-half mile path is in disrepair with washouts in some areas as deep as three feet.  Reconstruction starting next week is due to wrap up the first week of November, with federal funds covering 75-percent of the costs.

Vermont schools, towns, cities and nonprofit groups will get another chance at surplus office equipment that's being removed from the Waterbury State Office Complex before it's rebuilt.  The so-called tag sale takes place tomorrow in Waterbury starting at 8AM.  The state has replenished its supply of furnishings after a sale to nonprofit organizations last week.  State officials expect all the surplus inventory to be out of the complex by the end of August so that work can start on buildings that were flooded by Tropical Storm Irene last August.

Residents of Rutland have a unique opportunity to learn about how their water is treated and the options that are available to meet EPA’s more stringent regulations.  This evening at 7 at the Rutland Intermediate School on Library Avenue the chief environmental investigator for Erin Brockovich, Bob Bowcock who is a drinking water expert, will be speaking about national water disinfection problems and solutions.

The state says the release of more than half a million gallons of chlorinated water from a water treatment facility into Lake Champlain is not a threat.  The St. Albans City Water Treatment Facility says a chlorine pump malfunctioned Tuesday, causing the bleach water to release prematurely into Stevens Brook. The water missed the final step in the dechlorination process. Officials say water levels were high in the brook because of storms during the discharge.

The private company that operates Vermont's electric transmission network will soon get new board members appointed to represent the public.  The change is happening as a result of the merger between Vermont's two largest utilities. The Shumlin Administration insisted - and the utilities agreed - that the new merged company would not hold a majority interest in the Vermont Electric Power Company.  So a new non-profit corporation was created to ensure more public involvement in the operation of Vermont's electric grid.  The other job for the new non-profit corporation is to disperse an estimated $1 million annually for low-income energy projects. The money will come from the non-profit's share of VELCO's stock dividends.

Vermont's U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy has cast his 14,000th roll call vote.  Leahy's office says just six other senators in history have reached that milestone.  And no other sitting senator, except for one in Hawaii, has cast so many votes.  The vote came Wednesday afternoon on a bill about extending tax cuts that are set to expire at the end of the year.  Leahy joined the Senate in 1975.

Jazz returns to the Brandon Music CafĂ© this evening on Country Club Road in Brandon!  This week they present bassist John Menegon at 7:30PM. John Menegon started his career as a bassist in Montreal. After working for several years on the Canadian jazz scene he went on to hone his skills in New York City in the mid-80s.  General Admission is $12. Brandon Music offers an Early Bird dinner special, which includes a ticket for the jazz performance, for $22 per person.  Get details HERE!

The 20th Annual Ticonderoga Area Car Show will be held Sunday, August 5th in Ticonderoga’s Bicentennial Park from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM. There will be 27 classes with awards in each class. The show is a judged show and a “SuperWheels Showdown” Qualifier.  The first 150 People registered will receive a goody bag & dash plaque! During the Car Show there will be food, vendors, a 50/50 Raffle, silent auction raffle tent, Car Show Raffle and music by Jerry’s Juke Box as well as the Kiwanis Duck Race, a Piston Toss, Muffler Wrap and a Hoola Hoop Contest.  Visit www.ticonderogany.com for full details.

Excellent weather, fresh Vermont air, and non-stop musical sets described the 2012 Vermont SolarFest, which was held in Tinmouth last weekend.  This annual “Sun-Powered Woodstock Event” also included camping, environmental and energy workshops, a musical-petting zoo, daily yoga sessions, and an abundance of local foods.  While attendees enjoyed the music, Dark Star Lighting and Production, a Hinesburg-based business, illuminated the solar-energy powered festival.  Dark Star is also known for its high-end event lighting design and professional audio production services.

The ninth annual Heritage 10K road race will take place on Sunday August 19th.  The 6.2-mile run will be held in conjunction with the Penfield Homestead Museum’s annual Heritage Day celebration.  Starting and finishing near the museum, the course covers country roads, about half of them dirt. The first four miles are up and down with a very fast two-mile downhill finish.  Late registration will be 8:30-9:45 a.m. race day on the museum porch. Runners can pre-register by mailing a check made out to the LaChute Road Runners to Dave Burrows at PO Box 454, Castleton, VT 05735. Entry fee is $10.

From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice in Vermont & New York:

Burlington parks staff members hope to again allow swimming at two city beaches after being shut down for two days because of E. coli concerns.  New test results could allow the water to reopen Thursday.  Tests found E. coli above safe levels in the water near North and Leddy Beaches in Burlington.  That forced swimmers out of the water on Tuesday and Wednesday.  "We're very cautious and take very seriously high counts with E. coli," says Maggie Leugers, Parks & Recreation superintendent.  Leugers blames recent storm water runoff for spiking the E. coli levels in parts of Lake Champlain.  She says it's rare for the water to be closed because of E. coli.  "We want to make sure people have a good, safe time. It affects our revenue too. We want to have it open a lot of reasons," says Leugers.  But she says keeping the water closed for now is the safe bet to make sure no one gets sick from the bacteria.  While there were few people on the sand at North Beach Wednesday, those who were there agreed staying out of the water was the best idea.  "I'd rather not risk any poisoning to my body," says Dan Dailey, a beach goer.  Though some were not in a rush to go back into the water, even if allowed.  "I don't know probably not. I would probably give it a week or two before I really trusted it," says Kenny John, a beach goer.  The results of the new tests are expected Thursday morning.  That's when Parks and Rec will announce whether the water at both North and Leddy will reopen.