WVTK Local & State News August 8, 2012

Work continues on Lake Shore Road in Essex, NY this week. Crews will be milling and paving. Traffic control will be present and motorists should expect delays.

A man driving a truck hauling a horse trailer managed to get the animals out before they were hurt in a truck fire.  Phillip Russell was driving along Route 30 in Sudbury when flames burst into the cab of his truck, burning his face, head, mouth and neck.  Authorities say he managed to jump from the moving vehicle, and when it stopped, he let his horses out of the trailer before he collapsed.  Russell is now in Massachusetts General Hospital with burns and a head injury.

Addison County Fair & Field Days is underway through Saturday on Route 17 in New Haven.  This year's fair features a new forestry building and exhibit, antique farm equipment, animal displays, horse shows, food, clothing, craft and gift vendors, as well as midway rides and amusements. Also look for the children's barnyard, cattle judging, tractor pulls, kiddie rides, crafts, exhibits, live entertainment, pony and ox pulling, midway, parade, youth activities, and Vermont products dinner.  Field Days is Vermont's largest agricultural fair.  Join us live each afternoon this week with special appearances from Hobbes on Friday and Saturday!  Get the scoop HERE. 

Thomas Dickerson of Bristol was one of 46 Saint Michael's College students to be awarded grants to do research with a professor this summer.  Dickerson, a senior computer science and physics double major, graduated from Mount Abraham Union High School before coming to Saint Michael's.  Dickerson is carrying out a project titled Math research position on the DnA design strategies project/Vermont Genetics Network grant.

Vergennes Day celebrates its 31st year on Saturday, August 25th. On the Friday evening before, the event kicks off with a street dance in City Park featuring the music of “Panton Flats” from 7 to 10 PM. Vergennes Day, hosted and sponsored by the Addison County Chamber of Commerce and area businesses, is a celebration of city and community and can be enjoyed by all ages. Full details of the event and a schedule of activities are available at www.vergennesday.com. 

A man injured in an accident at International Paper's Ticonderoga mill should make a full recovery.  According to Ticonderoga Police at about 9:25 PM Saturday the worker sustained a crush-related hand injury.  Ticonderoga Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Chief Matt Watts said the man, who looked to be in his 30s, had his hand stuck between two rollers. Police did not conduct an investigation because they determined the accident did not result from criminal activity. Before this incident, International Paper's Ticonderoga Mill hadn't seen any recordable injuries for 227 days. 

A red-flagged bridge in Moriah Center will likely be repaired before school starts.  The Essex County Department of Public Works Superintendent said the bridge at Moriah Center was the only one of four that didn’t collapse in flooding last year.  Meanwhile Essex County supervisors voted to withdraw pursuit of a $1.5 million transportation grant for new buses until they know what next year’s budget numbers look like. 

Green Mountain Power is no longer referring to its solar city initiative as the solar city initiative.  “Solar City” turns out to be the name of a solar technology company based in California.  Steve Costello said GMP recently got a letter from Solar City in California alleging that the Vermont utility’s use of the term infringed on the California Company’s trademark. He said GMP decided not to argue the point. GMP will now refer to their effort to make Rutland the “solar capital of Vermont.”

The Vermont Public Service Board has once again rejected arguments that ratepayers should get a windfall payment when the state's two largest utilities merged.  The board upheld a key provision of its June order that allowed Green Mountain Power to merge with Central Vermont Public Service Corporation.  Instead of requiring the utility to refund $21 million to ratepayers, the board allowed the utility to spend the money on weatherization programs. After the June order was released, AARP Vermont asked the board to reconsider the ruling.  The PSB rejected their argument in June. And it did so again in a new order this week. The board said that if it ordered the utility to refund the $21 million, the entire deal could unravel. The board said that was not a risk it wanted to take, because the merger overall will save customers money.

State officials say they're planning to appeal dozens of cases where the Federal Emergency Management Agency has refused to cover all the costs of town flood recovery projects.  The cases represent a small percentage of the total number of FEMA projects, but officials say they're concerned about how the decisions will affect future flood related coverage. The state is also going to bat for towns that have been denied the FEMA funding they sought.  Irene Recovery Officer Sue Minter says the state plans to file appeals for 40 town projects and more are expected.

About two dozen witnesses could be called in the Vermont trial of a Virginia man charged with helping a woman flee the United States with her daughter rather than share custody of the girl with her former lesbian partner. Attorneys in the case of Kenneth Miller listed some of the possible witnesses today during jury selection. Miller is facing a charge of helping Lisa Miller flee the United States to avoid having to turn over custody of her now-10-year-old daughter to Janet Jenkins of Fair Haven.

More than 100 Vermont schools will be required to use Green Mountain Star this coming school year, a pioneer data collection program that digitally directs school leaders and teachers through the process of improving their schools. The program, used by 21 other states, is an online continuous improvement tool for schools and districts based on 168 indicators that national research and studies show are the “best practices” for improving student academic achievement. It essentially makes a school do a self-assessment, then based on that, a blueprint for an ideal plan to better students’ education.

The farmer accused of turning a sheriff's department parking lot into a demolition derby with his tractor is still in jail, and pleading not guilty.  Yesterday Roger Pion entered the plea to a long list of charges, many of which his attorney tried to get dropped. Police say Pion drove a 15-ton tractor through the parking lot of the Orleans County Sheriff's Department in Derby last week, crushing six cruisers and a van. He has not yet been able to make his 50-thousand-dollar bail, but fundraising efforts are underway by friends and other supporters. 

The Ticonderoga Historical Society will host its largest event of the season this weekend.  The 10th annual Summer A-Fair will be held Saturday from 10AM to 3PM on the lawn of the Hancock House at 6 Moses Circle.  Summer A-Fair has become a local popular event.  The Ticonderoga Historical Society holds this annual event fundraiser to support the maintenance of the Hancock House and preservation of the archive holdings of local area history.  For more information contact the Ticonderoga Historical Society at 585-7868 or tihistory@verizon.net.

As many as several hundred local citizens of all ages picked up trash and litter last Saturday from the waters, beaches and watershed of Lake George.  The annual lake-wide event, titled Keep the Queen Clean — Lake George Cleanup Day, was organized by the Fund for Lake George and its associated agency, the Lake George Water-keeper. More than 100 people registered with the agency and about as many worked on the cleanup effort without officially signing up.

Five days of rides, entertainment, games and displays will take place for the 164th year at the Essex County Fairgrounds in Westport.  The Essex County Fair opens today and runs through Sunday. The opening ceremonies of the fair will take place at 5:45 this afternoon at the new cattle barn and show ring, located on the site of the former show ring near the Sisco Street entrance. The fair will continue to offer $10 admission to the fair, which will include the cost of rides, parking and most shows. For more information on the 164th Essex County Fair, visit www.essexcountyfair.org. 

Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will present N’goni and Fula Flute Project featuring Dave Kobrenski and Craig Myers on Thursday Evening at 7:30. These musicians bridges two distinct worlds of traditional African music and contemporary American music. General Admission is $12. Brandon Music offers an Early Bird dinner special, which includes a ticket for the jazz performance, for $22 per person.  For more information click HERE.

Governor Peter Shumlin says an event will be held in Randolph on the anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene to celebrate how far the state has come in recovering from one of the worst storms in the state's history.  "One Year Stronger: A Commemorative Gathering on the First Anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene" will take place on August 28 at the Chandler Center for the Arts.  The event will include musical performances by the Vermont Youth Orchestra and VYO Chorus, and Vermont musicians Jon Gailmor, Diane Martin, and Shyla Nelson. Shumlin, other state leaders and flood survivors and volunteers will speak. An exhibit will also be on display of artwork and photographs showing the impact Irene had on Vermonters.  For a listing of other Irene anniversary events, visit www.vtstrong.vermont.gov. 

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

The University Mall is suing the city over a denied application to expand commercially.  The mall planned to replace an existing outdated house near the property and convert it into a new 6,000 square foot building.  However, South Burlington has an interim by-law in place, making it more difficult to get approval. This is to ensure growth happens productively. The mall says the city failed to follow state law and its own by-law, when it looked over the malls application.  We reached out to South Burlington City Manager, Sandy Miller, who says the city is aware of the appeal and because it is pending litigation, it is unable to provide additional comments.

For the second time this summer, Burlington's popular North Beach was closed for swimming because of E. coli.  Burlington Parks and Recreation says high levels of E. Coli were found in the water.  It says more testing is being done before swimming can be allowed again.  Two weeks ago, the water at North and Leddy Beach was closed for several days because of concerns about the bacteria. Parks and Rec says to check its website for updates. 

These days stores will stand on their heads to attract shoppers.  And one major chain is really putting  "heads together" with free haircuts for kids at J-C Penney throughout the whole month of august.  Children in kindergarten through 6th grade are eligible.  Kids can even come back if they need *2* haircuts this month. The idea is of course to get parents in the stores by "trimming" their burden.  “We're trying to help out mom and dad for back to school ...these are tough times economically this is one way our company is trying to help.”  Walk ins are welcome, but you can also make an appointment by calling 1-855-JCP-KIDS.