WVTK Local & State News August 28, 2012

The Middlebury Select Board will meet this evening at 7:00 in the Ilsley Library Meeting Room.  There will be a Public Hearing on the Amendment of the Zoning & Subdivision Regulations concerning Flood Hazard Areas in Middlebury and Fluvial Erosion Hazard Areas in East Middlebury.  BMP President Ben Wilson will present the Partnership’s Quarterly Report.  Also on the agenda will be a discussion of purchase of the Co-op Fire Parcel at base of Chipman Hill with funding from the Town Conservation Fund, appointments to the Recreation Committee along with reports from various other Town Committees.  For the complete agenda and more information just visit the Town’s Website. 

The Willsboro School Board will meet at 6PM today in the conference room at the school.  Agenda items include a presentation by the Guidance Office and discussions about business, finance and policy.  Board meetings are open to the public.

Green Mountain Power crews worked to repair a series of downed electrical lines that cut power to more than 1,000 customers in Rutland Monday evening.  The lights went off in many city homes shortly after 6PM. A power company spokesman said that repairs were expected to be completed no later than 9PM.

The Addison County Chamber Of Commerce AnnualAuction continues.  Bidding will close next Tuesday evening. September 4^th at midnight. If you haven't checked out their auction recently, it's worth another look. Many new items have been added and continue to be added as quickly as they receive them. Plus there will be a few items available at the live auction that aren't available online such as bottles of wine from Lincoln Peak Vineyard and cider products from Champlain Orchards! It's not too late to RSVP for the annual meeting dinner! Please email Sue at sue@addisoncounty.com or call 388-7951 x2.

With the recent opening of the $22 million EastView Retirement Living complex on South Street, the Town of Middlebury is set to become the over-55 hub of Vermont. The Lodge at Otter Creek is another example of a large retirement community with a small-town feel.   The non-profit EastView, which is managed by Wake Robin of Shelburne, was a resounding success even before the doors opened officially.  When it opened quietly earlier this summer, 70 percent of EastView’s independent living cottages and apartments had already been reserved.  A ribbon-cutting ceremony at EastView marked the completion of the final phase of construction August 14^th.  Officials say they are looking forward to becoming one of Middlebury’s larger employers once EastView is fully occupied.

Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will present the Syncopation Vocal Jazz Ensemble this Thursday evening at 7:30. Syncopation performs jazz and pop music in four-part harmony with a style that is both timeless and contemporary. They have performed at the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, the Boston Globe Jazz Festival, and the International Association for Jazz Education Conference. General Admission is $12.  Brandon Music offers an Early Bird dinner special, which includes a ticket for the jazz performance, for $22 per person.

Jim Stewart has come full circle.  Forty years after starting work as a geologist with the Vermont Marble Company, Stewart has come home to Vermont as manager of Omya’s calcium carbonate plant in Pittsford.  His predecessor returned to France this month to assume another position with Omya.  Jim, a native of Barre and a graduate of the University of Vermont, has spent his entire career working first with Vermont Marble Company and then its parent company Omya Inc. Omya is one of the region’s largest employers. The company has 170 local employees: 124 at its plant in the Florence section of Pittsford and 46 at its administrative offices in Proctor.

One member of Lake Champlain Sea Grant, feels the recent discoveries of the invasive species in the Champlain Canal and on Lake George is a signal that more are on their way. In the last week, lawmakers in New York and Vermont have argued over whether a portion of the Champlain Canal near Glens Falls should be closed down in order to prevent the invasive species known as spiny water flea from getting into Lake Champlain. Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy has called on New York to close the canal, while the state Canal Corporation has refused, citing the potential economic impact of cutting off Lake Champlain from the Hudson River and state canal system.

North Country SPCA has broken ground on a new shelter.  The facility, which is scheduled to open in February 2013, is being built about 4 miles east of Elizabethtown off Route 9N. The Frances Miller Shelter, which is named for the mother of one of the major donors, is expected to care for at least 400 cats and dogs each year. It will house up to 65 cats, both in “colony” rooms where up to 10 cats can roam, and in individual “condos.”  Up to 25 dogs and puppies will live in quiet, cozy rooms instead of cramped wire cages. Individuals who wish to make a donation to help fund the final construction costs can send a check to: North Country SPCA, 23 Lake Shore Road, Westport, NY 12993 or donate online at www.ncspca.org. All donations are tax-deductible.

Essex County suffered the most extensive damage when Tropical Storm Irene struck the North Country. Repairs and cleanup have been extensive and expensive.  The external affairs representative for Region 2 of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said the agency approved $13.4 million for public-works projects in Essex County, of which $6.35 million has been released to New York State.  FEMA had also approved and paid $4.2 million in individual assistance to private homeowners. Much of the public-works money went to the county to cover repairs for the Essex County Department of Public Works, the Emergency Operations Center, Sheriff’s Department and the Town of Essex Fire Department.

Vermont voters across the state will be heading to the ballot box today to participate in the summer primary.  Democrat incumbent Attorney General Bill Sorrell is being challenged by another Democrat, T.J. Donovan, in one of the state's most talked-about races.  Secretary of State Jim Condos said he expects low voter turnout this year.

Rutland voters will decide today whether the city should adopt an industrial tax stabilization policy.  While there are no local primary races for city voters to consider, a municipal ballot at the polls will ask voters whether to give new and expanding businesses a tax incentive to do business in Rutland. Polls will be open from through 7 p.m. at the Godnick Adult Learning Center, Christ the King School, American Legion, and Calvary Bible Church.

Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger yesterday said he is proposing a nine-million-dollar bond to be voted on in November.  The bond would cost an average homeowner an additional 60-dollars each year for the next 15 years.  Weinberger said the tax increase is needed to replenish the city's dwindling cash reserves.

One year after Tropical Storm Irene, the town of West Windsor is celebrating the successful rebuilding of the Bowers Bridge.  The more than 100-year-old bridge had been washed away in the storm but was reopened on Saturday.  Several other traditional covered bridges across the state that were damaged by Irene are in varying stages of the rebuilding process.

A University of Vermont music professor and composer is bringing his musical remembrance of Tropical Storm Irene to the Vermont Symphony Orchestra.  David Feurzeig tells the "Burlington Free Press" his three-part piece "High Water" musically translates the ascendance of the storm and its aftermath.  The VSO commissioned Feurzeig to write "High Water" for its "Made in Vermont" tour running from September 21st through the first of October.

Police and firefighters in a Vermont town are investigating some school bus fires. Police said the fires in the town of Hartford are being classified as suspicious. The buses were found on fire Sunday night on Pine Street, across the street from the White River School. No injuries were reported. The first day of school is scheduled for today.

Vermont state officials say the cloud of uncertainty surrounding federal funding for Vermont's recovery from Tropical Storm Irene has grown thicker with the departures of 2 top officials with the Federal Emergency management Agency. Administration Secretary Jeb Spaulding says the state has been working for months with FEMA officials over the complicated issues of how much Vermont will be reimbursed for the destruction of the Vermont State Hospital.

Governor Peter Shumlin says Vermont has become a national leader in how to respond to natural disasters and there's little he'd change about the state's handling of flooding after Hurricane Irene. Shumlin said that forming partnerships among state agencies, state and local governments and the private sector were keys to Vermont's success in recovering from the storm and the subsequent flooding.

Robert Gannett, a long-time Vermont state lawmaker who served in the House in the 1950s and then after a 14-year absence, another 20 years in the state Senate, has died at age 94.  A funeral home in Brattleboro says he died over the weekend.  He was born in Boston and moved to Brattleboro after military service during World War II.  He began his career in the Vermont House in 1953 and served four terms.  Gannett was first seated in the state Senate in 1973. He remained in the Senate until 1992. In March the Legislature passed a resolution honoring his service.  The resolution said Robert was known for "his wealth of common sense, wise judgment and concern for the well-being of Vermonters."

Police are targeting drunk and aggressive drivers as we approach Labor Day weekend.  Vermont State Police, along with local and county law enforcement agencies, are beefing up patrols and setting up DUI checkpoints around the state.  Vermont has experienced more than 50 deaths on the roads so far this year. State police say that's about double the number from this time last year.

A major credit rating service has a more optimistic view of New York's future, which could eventually boost its credit rating.  Standard & Poor's revised its outlook to "positive" from "stable" on Monday.  New York's AA rating on general debt and AA minus rating on debt secured by legislative appropriations remained unchanged.  The ratings agency says more fiscally conservative, structurally sound budgets in the last two years show New York appears to be on the right track. 

More than 1,000 people marched to the state Capitol yesterday to demand that Governor Andrew Cuomo ban shale gas drilling and high-volume hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking." Cuomo is expected to decide in coming weeks whether to allow fracking after the Department of Environmental Conservation completes a 4-year review of health and environmental impacts.

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

As Isaac heads toward the gulf coast, several local Red Cross volunteers are on their way.  Here's the breakdown: 7 from the Vermont and New Hampshire Valley.  14 were sent from Northeastern New York.  They're heading to the northern gulf to help with food and shelter.  One of the volunteers, John Stark, says the days leading up to the storm and immediately after landfall aren't easy.  “I’ve been on several disasters and they're always very disorganized in the beginning no matter how they prepare and they do try to prepare.” the Vermont and New Hampshire Valley Red Cross will also be sending two emergency response vehicles. Volunteers will use the trucks to help distribute food and supplies.

Attorney General Bill Sorrell took to the streets yesterday.  The democrat has been Vermont's top attorney for 15 years and now he's doing what can to hold onto that position.  His opponent, Chittenden County State's Attorney TJ Donovan was busy too, but he choose to reach people a different way by making calls.  Although they had different tactics, both noticed voter confusion.  Sorrell said a lot of people don't even know that there is a primary today.   He was still running into people yesterday asking when the primary is. Voting times vary today, but each polling location must be open by ten and you have until seven before they close.