WVTK Local & State News September 6, 2012

The Vermont Health Department says a Chittenden County adult infected with West Nile virus has been hospitalized. The confirmation of a human case of West Nile virus comes after the first two cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis in the state, including the death of an 87-year-old Brandon man.  The state is planning to begin aerial spraying today as part of a broader effort to control mosquitoes in an area of Rutland and Addison counties where the two people with EEE lived.  On Wednesday the Health Department identified the person who died as 87-year-old Richard Hollis Breen of Brandon. He had been sick with the disease for five days before his death on Tuesday.  Both West Nile virus and EEE are spread by the bite of an infected mosquito.

The Middlebury Gym Task Force will conduct a walk through of the Gymnasium Building as a first step toward developing a prioritized list of projects for the building this afternoon at 1.  This walk-through starts at the ramp entrance located on the College Street side of the Municipal Building complex. 

Coming up on Monday you are invited to the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the ACTR Community Transportation Center.  The event takes place from 2 – 3PM at 341 Creek Road in Middlebury.  The ceremony will include introductions and a formal welcome from Jim Moulton of ACTR.  Also expected to attend are Ted Brady from the Office of Senator Patrick Leahy, Chris Cole with VTrans and Dean George the Chair of the ACTR Board Of Directors.  An opportunity to mingle with attendees and refreshments will be part of this event.

Vermont State Police are looking for the driver of a blue minivan, model unknown, after it struck an unidentified girl. The van had a spare tire mounted on its roof.  The van driver did not stop and sped off. The hit-and-run incident occurred on Tuesday at a few minutes after 6 in the evening along Lake Dunmore Road in Leicester. The girl, who apparently sustained minor injuries, told a VSP trooper that she was walking along Lake Dunmore Road when the van struck her. The passenger side mirror of the minivan was damaged after it struck the girl.  Eyewitness or anyone who have identified the minivan should contact the state police immediately.

Middlebury American Legion Post 27 will be holding their annual clambake fundraiser this Sunday at the post.  If you enjoy seafood – you’ll want to check this out!  Everything gets started at 11 AM with a buffet and clam chowder, then they bring out the steamers and a raw bar and everything culminates later in the day with lobster, chicken and corn.  If the food sounds good – it is – but it’s also for a great cause – the post gives out over $21,000 annually in college scholarships – and this fundraiser helps them do it. Tickets are not being sold at the door – so for more info – please call 388-9311.

Small Dog Electronics announced yesterday that they would open a store in Rutland.   This will be the regional chain’s fourth location. The store, which is projected to initially employ three to five people with the staff growing to five to ten, is scheduled to open in April.  The store will go in the former Aubuchon Hardware building, one of the largest vacant properties downtown.  Green Mountain Power CEO Mary Powell said Small Dog would partner with the utility on its planned energy innovation center, providing computer systems and technical support. Small Dog CEO Don Mayer credited Powell with helping convince him to open a store in Rutland.

Two Essex County residents, including the Minerva town supervisor, participated in the National Democratic Convention this week along with more than 6,000 delegates from around the country.  Essex County Democratic Chair and Minerva Town Supervisor Sue Montgomery Corey and Essex County Committee member Mark Whitney, of Schroon Lake, took roles in choosing the presidential ticket for Democrats.  Corey is serving as a member of the Platform Committee while Whitney is a delegate to the convention and will play an active role in nominating President Barack Obama and Vice President Joseph Biden.

The Grove/Rolling Mill Hill Bridge in AuSable Forks will be closed 11 AM to 4 PM today and 8 AM to 2 PM tomorrow for boring tests.   The bridge will be open to pedestrians during these times.  Local emergency officials have met regarding the temporary bridge closure and have implemented a public safety plan in the case of emergencies.  For more information, call the Town of Jay Supervisor’s Office at 647-2204.

The Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce is holding their Annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner and Awards Ceremony on Thursday, November 1, 2012 at 6:00PM. The dinner and awards ceremony will be held at the Best Western Plus Ticonderoga Inn & Suites.  The dinner and awards ceremony will be used as an opportunity to recognize the 2012 “Business of the Year”, “Chamber Volunteer of the Year” and the “Community Volunteer of the Year”, as well as give their Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce Appreciation Awards. Space is limited for this event. Please RSVP by October 18th by calling the Chamber office at 518-6619 or emailing chamberinfo@tionderogany.com.  If you wish to donate a menu item, please call or email the chamber office.

The Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce September “After Business Mixer” will be held on Wednesday, September 19th at the Best Western Plus Ticonderoga Inn & Suites from 5:30 PM until 7:00 PM. Sponsors providing door prizes include George Sperry Marine Survey, The Martin Agency and the Wagon Wheel Restaurant. Best Western Plus Ticonderoga Inn & Suites. The Chambers “After Business Mixers” provide a networking forum for area business people in addition to showcasing the site of the host as well as promoting the door prize sponsors.         All area chamber members, business people and their employees are invited to attend.  Learn more by visiting www.ticonderogany.com.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is pointing the country’s $16 trillion debt and the millions of people who rely on food stamps as proof that Americans aren’t better off than they were four years ago.  Stopping at a pizza shop yesterday in West Lebanon, NH Romney said, “The American people are not doing better.”   He says President Barack Obama understands that but doesn’t want to talk about it.   The tab on the nation’s debt hit $16 trillion on Tuesday. Romney also said 47 million people now use food stamps, up from 32 million when Obama took office in 2009.   Romney has been sequestered at an adviser’s home in nearby Vermont preparing for fall debates against Obama.   Obama arrived in Charlotte, NC, on Wednesday for the Democratic National Convention.

Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos says "errors were made" in the counting of write-in votes in the Progressive Party gubernatorial primary and the new results mean the challenger can ask for a recount.  Condos says he has called a special meeting of the Canvassing Committee for this afternoon to discuss the issue.  In a news release issued yesterday, Condos did not name the Progressive Party candidates. But on Tuesday his office confirmed that Progressive candidate Martha Abbott defeated write-in candidate Annette Smith by 17 votes, a margin greater than the 2% margin of error that would allow Smith to ask for a recount.  He didn't say what the corrected vote count was, but he said it was within the 2% margin.

The Burlington police chief says a man crashed a car through a gate into a restricted area of the Burlington International Airport. Chief Mike Schirling says the man from Winooski crashed through the Kirby Road gate Wednesday morning then drove off airport property. The suspect was later apprehended and taken to a hospital. Police say there does not appear to be an ongoing threat.

Longtime Vermont State Sen. Vincent Illuzzi says he'll rely on relationships with state officials and knowledge of state government to do an effective job if elected Vermont auditor of accounts. Illuzzi, a Republican who has represented Orleans and Essex counties in the Senate, kicked off his campaign yesterday at the Barre Granite Museum.

The state of Vermont is working with officials in St. Albans to sell the existing state office building and build a new state office building in the heart of the city's downtown. If approved, the St. Albans Messenger reports the plan would bring 200 state workers closer to the downtown restaurants and shops, but it could also prompt the redevelopment of the existing state office building.

Voters in Burlington may get a chance to weigh in on whether or not marijuana and hemp should be legal.  City Councilor Max Tracy, a Progressive from Ward 2, will introduce Monday night a proposal to put a non-binding question on the legalization issue before Burlington voters in November.  It would ask if they support the legalization, regulation and taxation of all cannabis and help products.  Tracy told the "Burlington Free Press" it's not an endorsement of drug use or a blueprint for legislative action, but a way to survey voters on the issue.

There's a debate of sorts over the gubernatorial debates scheduled for this fall in Vermont.  Republican candidate Randy Brock says he's very disappointed Governor and Democrat Peter Shumlin is agreeing to only five debates.  Shumlin says he's too busy being governor to participate in more, and says five issue-oriented debates are enough.  The governor is formally launching his re-election campaign next Monday.

A woman says a 6-week-old kitten hitched a ride on the outside of her vehicle as she drove about 100 miles over upstate New York roads. Stacey Pulsifer tells the Press-Republican of Plattsburgh she heard meowing coming from her Jeep during a coffee stop and found the kitten wedged behind a bumper and had to cut it free. Pulsifer has adopted the hitchhiker and named it Pumpkin.

Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will present the Michael-Louis Smith’s Left Ear Trio Thursday evening at 7:30. General Admission is $12. Brandon Music offers an Early Bird dinner special, which includes a ticket for the jazz performance, for $22 per person.  NYC guitarist Michael-Louis Smith plays with a sound that is warm and broad, echoing influences of Wes Montgomery, Grant Green and John Scofield. While an in-demand musician in New York City's vibrant jazz scene, Smith frequently tours the northeast circuit. He will perform at Brandon Music with Vermont bassist Rob Morse and NYC drummer Russell Carter.  For more information visit Brandon Music's Website!

Brandon Music in Brandon, Vermont, presents a chamber music concert by Point CounterPoint summer camp faculty members on Friday at 7pm. The program will include Beethoven’s Piano Trio in B-flat, Op. 11, Castanuevo-Tedesco’s Sonata for violin and viola, and Brahms’ Piano Quartet in c minor, Op. 60.  Tickets are $15 per person and proceeds will benefit the Compass Music and Arts Foundation. Compass Music and Arts Foundation is a new and developing non-profit organization, located in Brandon, striving to be the foremost venue in Vermont for all types of music and artistic media. Compass Music and Arts Foundation is dedicated to enriching life through a deeper appreciation of music and the literary, performing and visual arts. The purpose of Compass Music and Arts Foundation is to help bring art in all its forms to the people of Vermont and beyond.  Get more information about CMAC and Friday’s Benefit Chamber Music Concert by visiting www.brandon-music.net.

The Footrace at the Falls will take place in Ticonderoga’s Bicentennial Park Saturday, September 22nd.  The event, sponsored by the LaChute Road Runners Club, replaces the Footrace at Fort Ticonderoga. The race is being moved to downtown Ti this fall after seven years at the fort.  The 5-kilometer cross-country run will begin at 10 AM. It will be followed by a free children’s race at 10:30 AM. All children will receive a free certificate for an ice cream at the Wind Chill Factory. Parents must sign a waiver for each child running.  Registration for both races will be at the Ticonderoga Elks lodge from 8:30 to 9:30 that morning. For information call Matt Karkoski at 585-7206, Email mhski@verizon.net or go online at www.lachute.us.

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

Vermont families getting home heating assistance will get less this year. Cuts to the "Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program" better known as LIHEAP mean people in need will each lose more than three hundred dollars this winter.  Joe Bishop lost everything when Tropical Storm Irene hit last year - at the same time the storm washed away his home, Bishop's wife died.  "I'm disabled, I'm on social security, and I have the only income," he said.  So this year, heating the new mobile home is a big worry.  "I don't know where to go from there," Bishop said.  But a government assistance program, like LIHEAP could help people like Joe, if his income is below the required level.  "For a family of four is 3,554 dollars a month," Richard Moffi, the Fuel Assistance Program Chief said.   Moffi says in past years, 19 million federal dollars were given to Vermont, but this year, there's an eight million dollar shortfall. The state stepped up last year and filled the gap, but may not have the means to do so this year.  Last year 22,000 families in Vermont relied on the program to help them get through the winter in a warm home and already this year, the number of applications is continuing to rise.  Last year low income families received an average of nine hundred dollars to help heat their homes - this year, the average family will get only 543 dollars.  "That's only going to pay about 20 percent of the average home heating bill," Moffi said.  So while some people are still pumping the A/C, Vermonters know how quickly winter could be reality.  "It's going to be a difficult winter," Bishop said.  But LIHEAP gives Joe Bishop and others like him a better chance to keep warm.  LIHEAP won't turn away anyone who's eligible, but the more people that apply, the smaller each payout must be. Call 1-800-479-6151 to apply.

One of Vermont's top crops took a hit this year, which may mean you could be paying more for apple cider this fall.  Trees at Shelburne Farms are filled with the red fruit.  But state agriculture experts say Vermont orchards are down more than 20% from where they should be.  Part of that was caused by a mild spring with a late April freeze.  But it's not as bad as other places.  "Even though our crops are down a little bit we did fare a good bit better than especially around the great food banks around the Great Lakes in Michigan, especially Michigan and in Wayne County, New York," said Vermont Tree Fruit Growers Association President Terry Bradshaw.  To encourage people to pick apples, Vermont's department of tourism has put 20 wooden apples in trees.  Find one and win an Apple iPod.  You can also fill up special bags for the Vermont Food Bank to help feed nearly 90,000 people.