State police helped a Salisbury resident on Monday
who had received an email that threatened consequences if funds were not sent
to the email sender. Investigation found that this was a scam similar to one
sent to many Vermont politicians last year. No criminal activity was found, but
state police encourage people to contact authorities if they believe they have
received a scam.
The Middlebury Business Development Advisory Board
meets tomorrow at 2 PM with the Gym Task Force of the Community Center Steering
Committee following at 3:30 PM.
Visit the Town Of Middlebury’s Website for a current list of meetings
and agendas.
British pianist Paul Lewis will perform the last
three piano sonatas written by Franz Schubert on Friday, Oct. 26. at Middlebury
College’s Mahaney Center for the Arts. The non-profit concert setting is a
finale to his run of five concerts featuring all of Schubert’s mature piano
works. Lewis is internationally recognized as one of the leading pianists of
his generation. Lewis began his
Schubert project in 2011, and Middlebury was thrilled to be among fewer than 15
venues worldwide to present the entire cycle. This fifth and final concert features
a tremendous program: Schubert’s D. 958, 959, and 960. Lewis has already
garnered significant critical acclaim for his Schubert performances. For
tickets of information, call (802) 443-MIDD (6433) or go click HERE.
A third municipal board wants a temporary halt on
commercial wind projects in the region until more studies can be completed on
the potential impacts of large-scale turbines. Town officials in Pittsford recently unanimously signed a
resolution requesting the Rutland Regional Planning Commission executive board
pass a resolution calling for a three-year moratorium on wind development in
Rutland County. They have joined
the towns of Clarendon and Danby, whose Select Boards sought a moratorium
resolution by the regional commission last month.
The Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce will host
a Fall Chamber and Insurance Open House tomorrow from 10:00 AM until 3:00 PM.
The Open House will take place at the Chamber office. The open house is open to all Chamber members who want to
learn more about their benefits and any businesses or organizations interested
in becoming a TACC member. Light refreshments will be available. For more
information visit www.ticonderogany.com
or the Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce Facebook page.
Political signs are being stolen in the Moriah
area. Political signs supporting a variety of candidates have been stolen throughout
the area. Moriah residents are
disappointed and encourage anyone with information regarding these sign thefts
to contact police.
Essex County’s November 6th general election will
have only four races in the county’s 18 towns. There are Town Council contests in Elizabethtown, Moriah
will elect a town justice to replace Jeff Farnsworth, who resigned and Chesterfield
voters will also elect a town justice, but only the incumbent is running. Polls
will be open on the 6th from 6 AM to 9 PM.
A proposed meat processing plant in Ticonderoga has
received a major boost. Adirondack
Meat Co. has received a $900,000 loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. The money will help construct and equip a $1.4 million plant
planned for the Ti industrial park.
The developer said there is no timetable for construction. Financing
remains to be completed before the project becomes reality. While Adirondack Meat Co. awaits word
on further financing; it has all the necessary permits to start working just
east of the Tractor Supply store on Route 74.
The North Country Regional Economic Development
Council says improvement projects at three North Country airports are
officially moving forward on the strength of $1,082,650 in awards from Gov.
Andrew Cuomo’s Regional Council initiative. Ticonderoga Municipal Airport is ready to begin a project
that will provide a self-service fuel station with the assistance of $270,000
in state resources.
Pay that was withheld from Essex Town Clerk
Catherine DeWolff was released Friday after she submitted two months' worth of
delayed town financial reports. Essex
Town Supervisor Sharon Boisen had enacted the measure, under state law, after
the reports were not presented to the Town Council. DeWolff met with representatives of the State Comptroller’s
Office in late September for guidance on preparing the reports, which she said
had been delayed because of cumulative errors in some accounts.
The Burlington School Board now has policies in place aimed at diversity. The board unanimously approved policies Tuesday night combating race and other potential biases which some say are in the classroom. This past spring, African-immigrant and refugee high school students claimed teachers and other students were treating them unfairly. The plan for diversity, equity and inclusion involves not only monitoring it, but also getting the community on board with it as well.
The Burlington School Board now has policies in place aimed at diversity. The board unanimously approved policies Tuesday night combating race and other potential biases which some say are in the classroom. This past spring, African-immigrant and refugee high school students claimed teachers and other students were treating them unfairly. The plan for diversity, equity and inclusion involves not only monitoring it, but also getting the community on board with it as well.
The earth moved near the Vermont/Canadian border
overnight. Shortly before 12:30
this morning, an earthquake struck near Beloeil, Canada, about 20 miles from
Montreal, and it was enough to shake up some Vermonters. The U-S earthquake monitoring system put
the magnitude at three-point-nine, while Canadian monitors have it at
four-point-five. While many
Vermont residents reported they felt the quake, there are no reports of damage
in the state.
Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders says cuts in a
federal emergency hunger program have resulted in a 50% reduction in food
supplies from that program for the Vermont Foodbank. Sanders appeared Tuesday with representatives from the
Vermont Foodbank and Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf to highlight the issue. The Emergency Food Assistance Program
provides food at no cost to low-income Americans in need of short-term hunger
relief, through organizations like the Vermont Foodbank. During fiscal 2012, the Foodbank saw a
50% reduction in its allotment of food from that program, amounting to a drop
of more than 1 million pounds of food.
Sanders says more cuts likely are coming that could affect food stamps
and other programs.
The Vermont Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms office is
launching a new crime tip line that will offer money for useful information on
guns and drug activity. The ATF is
now focusing its efforts in Rutland, where it says narcotics are a big problem. The ATF does not always deal with drug
trafficking crimes, but because firearms are often related to those crimes it
crosses into that area. The tip-line
number is 802-865-4016.
A Vermont town is getting more money to help
replace an iconic covered bridge famously destroyed by flooding from Tropical
Storm Irene. The Vermont League of
Cities and Towns recently sent the town of Rockingham almost $200,000 to help
replace the Bartonsville Bridge, whose destruction was caught on video and
became one of Vermont's most defining images of the August 2011 storm. The town had a $1 million insurance
policy on the bridge through the league, which initially said the policy didn't
cover the full amount. The project
is estimated to cost at least $2.4 million.
Cuomo administration officials are speaking out about the Tax Foundation's recent report that said New York's tax climate is the worst in the country. A Cuomo spokesman says the governor recognized early on that the Empire State's taxes on residents and businesses were too high and Cuomo has worked to improve the fiscal picture. Administration officials point to Cuomo's enactment of New York's first ever property tax cap, and say the governor has established the "lowest tax rate for the middle class in 58 years."
Cuomo administration officials are speaking out about the Tax Foundation's recent report that said New York's tax climate is the worst in the country. A Cuomo spokesman says the governor recognized early on that the Empire State's taxes on residents and businesses were too high and Cuomo has worked to improve the fiscal picture. Administration officials point to Cuomo's enactment of New York's first ever property tax cap, and say the governor has established the "lowest tax rate for the middle class in 58 years."
The 2014 race for governor in New York State could have at least one unconventional candidate. Former High Times Magazine editor Richard Stratton has launched a campaign committee to investigate a "possible" run for the governor's office two years from now. Stratton spent eight years in federal prison on a drug trafficking conviction. In a statement, he says New York "simply can't afford" to spend millions on jailing non-violent drug offenders.
Anti-tax groups are criticizing Albany as Governor
Andrew Cuomo proclaims nationally that a "new New York" is once again
"open for business." The libertarian Cato Institute in its annual
Fiscal Report Card gave Cuomo a "D'' yesterday for taxing and spending
policies over the past two years. The national Tax Foundation ranked New York
49th in its business tax climate index.
A top Senate Democrat is pushing to raise taxes on
the wealthy while preserving many tax breaks benefiting the middle class in a
challenge to a traditional tax reform model that lowers tax rates for all and
finances the cuts through a broad assault on tax breaks and loopholes. New York Democrat Charles Schumer says
any money from curbing tax breaks should go to reducing the deficit. He also
says the top tax rate should go back to Clinton-era levels.
The Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society
in Middlebury will formally install Rev. Barnaby Feder as its new Minister on
Saturday, October 27th at 2 PM. Both
the installation service and the celebratory reception that will immediately
follow are open to the entire community.
Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will
present clarinetist and saxophonist Ken Peplowski this Thursday at 7:30pm.
General Admission is $12. Brandon Music Café offers a concert and dinner package, which includes dinner and a
ticket to the show for $27 plus tax per person. The late Mel Torme said,
"Since the advent of Benny Goodman, there have been too few clarinetists
to fill the void that Goodman left. Peplowski is most certainly one of those
few. The man is magic." For
Information & Reservations (802) 465-4071 / info@brandon-music.net
When Mother Nature hands you frozen lemons, turn
them into frozen lemonade and sell it.
That's what tourism interests hope to do with a new marketing campaign
being launched in Saranac Lake, the Adirondack village often recognized by the
National Weather Service as the coldest spot in the nation on many winter days. Tourism officials tell the Adirondack
Daily Enterprise that Saranac Lake's Winter Wonderland Festival will highlight
the area's notoriety as the "coldest spot in the U.S." by using the
tag line "Come to the Adirondacks' coolest place!" Temperatures in the region can plunge
to minus 30 or colder during the winter. Saranac Lake and the nearby Lake
Placid area are popular wintertime destinations offering skiing, skating,
snowshoeing, snowmobiling and other outdoor activities.
From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice In Vermont
& New York:
Binge drinking on college campuses... it's not new,
but the push to combat the problem is stronger than ever. People dedicated to that fight got
together today at Norwich University to talk about solutions. The good news is, they're realists, and
they know that binge drinking unfortunately isn't going to stop, but if even
one life can be saved, they say the energy they're putting toward the problem
is worth it. "A car full of
kids, a drunk driver, an unbelted passenger gets thrown from the car, he's now
paralyzed for the rest of his life," Health Commissioner Harry Chen said. It's one story of many the Commissioner
Chen shared with me about his time as an emergency room doctor. We also see it
on the news, far too often, alcohol is the cause of a crime or a crash. People
between the ages of 18 and 25 are at the greatest risk. "Vermont perennially has some of
the highest binge drinking rates in the country," Commissioner Chen said. "Around one o'clock they'll come
back after they get busted and then cause trouble," College Student
Michael Shalginewicz said. The
student from Castleton State College sits on the alcohol and drug task force.
His message isn't no drinking, it's responsible drinking. "How many is enough for you? And
how many is not too many?" Shalginewicz said. The policies vary from school to school but students at
Norwich know the consequences are a bit more severe. "If you're caught, you're out," Commissioner Chen
said. "Your academics should
come first, so you really shouldn't be drinking on campus anyway's," a
Norwich college freshman said. Other
colleges make kids pay up, complete community service, or write another paper.
Police aren't brought into the mix unless someone's seriously ill, hurt,
violent or off campus. If there are multiple offenses, a substance abuse
counselor steps in. "What we see are students affected by academics, not
making it to class the next day, they're not prepared, a dry campus, it rains a
lot because students try to get away with stuff," Southern Vermont College
Director of Counseling, Mike Goodwin said. But if the group can reduce some of that, college campuses
will be safer... and if even one life is saved, it's worth it. Many of the school representatives who
I spoke with today say partnering with the community is another important asset.
