WVTK Local & State News October 18, 2012

The River Task Force will me meet on Friday at 9AM in the Middlebury Town Offices.  Items to be covered include a review of the Engineering RFP and Schedule as well as the remaining tasks and schedule for the River Task Force.  Get an up-to-date list of meetings and agendas anytime by visiting the Town of Middlebury’s Website.

SunCommon, a new initiative to get homeowners using solar energy with no money down, will host a solar seminar in Middlebury this evening. This will be a chance to learn more about how solar works, what makes a good solar site, and how incentives and innovative financing have finally made it affordable for all Vermonters.  The seminar will be held at the Ilsley Library at 6 PM.  The event is co-sponsored by the Middlebury Energy Committee.

Moving the Essex County Fair to start earlier next summer is expected to boost attendance.  Attendance was down this year, and its mid-August dates conflicted with other local fairs, necessitating the change, fair officials said.  Supervisor Daniel Connell said next year’s event is tentatively set for July 31st to August 4th.  It was August 8th to 12th this year, overlapping some days of the Franklin County Fair and Addison County Field Days.

A book detailing the history of the Lake Champlain Bridge is available to the public for free.  A limited number of copies of “Spanning the Decades: The Lake Champlain Bridge Story” are being distributed at no charge.  The books can be picked up at the Crown Point State Historic Site operations building Monday through Friday 8 AM to 3 PM and at the Lake Champlain Visitors Center in Crown Point Monday through Saturday 8:30 AM to 4 PM and on Sunday from Noon to 4 PM while supplies last.  The sites also have indoor and outdoor interpretive displays about the 1929 Lake Champlain Bridge. The book is also available in electronic (PDF) format on the commemoration website.

Over the summer the Ti-Alliance applied for a Consolidated Funding Application Grant from the State of New York that could provide up to $450,000 in funding to renovate some of the buildings along the Montcalm Street corridor.  If they are successful in their bid for the grant, the funds will be used to turn several buildings into new retail space, apartments, and a theater.  Response from the state is expected before the end of the year.

With the success of the Ticonderoga Downtown Gallery, the Reale Family has made the other side of the Montcalm Street building available to Ti-Alliance to extend the cultural activities of our mission.  Additional art will grace some of the walls, but the space will also be available to TRA and the public for other uses.  The community is invited to utilize the space for events, classes, workshops, performances, or holiday parties.  Donations to help cover the cost of heat and electricity will be gratefully accepted.  Contact the Alliance for more information. 

A $7 million project to construct a senior citizen housing complex in Ticonderoga is on schedule, but there has been a major change in the plan.  Liberty Affordable Housing Inc. had planned to renovate the old Moses-Ludington Hospital into 31 apartments, but the firm has decided that is no longer feasible.  As a result Liberty has decided to raze the long-vacant building and construct a new building in its place. It will be called Moses Circle Senior Apartments.  Work is expected to start soon with completion scheduled at the end of 2013 as originally planned.

Vermont Corrections and Sex Offender Registry officials said yesterday that a high-risk, untreated sex offender who was released from jail on Tuesday has taken up residence in South Burlington.  But in Rutland County, one of the places considered a possible destination for 56-year-old Calbraith MacLeod, some officials said they had concerns about the notifications they received — or didn’t — before the release.  Corrections officials confirmed yesterday that MacLeod had contacted the Sex Offender Registry after his release and provided them with an address where he is residing in South Burlington. Officials say most of the communities were notified six weeks ago but communities in Rutland County weren’t notified until a little later because the Brandon connection where MacLeod held a bank account wasn’t known earlier.

An interest in making Fair Haven a more bicycle-friendly community has prompted the creation of a new committee.  The committee was formed after resident Marty Irons asked town officials to consider an initiative to promote the use of bicycles in and around town. Select Board Chairman Christopher Cole said looking for ways to make Fair Haven a bicycle community is positive.  The logistics of the committee are still being discussed and letters of interest will be accepted soon.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin has declared October "Tech Month." Shumlin was at a meeting at the Champlain Mill in Winooski yesterday with representatives of some of the state's high-tech businesses to talk about the importance of high technology to the state and how important it is for the state's economy.

A northeastern New York road has reopened after a massive rockslide dumped debris over a 200-foot stretch of pavement.  State transportation officials say Wednesday afternoon a contractor worked round the clock to clear Route 4 in Washington County, a key link between New York and Vermont.  Massive boulders tumbled onto the road Monday morning in Fort Ann.  The transportation department is still trying to determine why the hillside collapsed.  Searchers determined that an initial report an SUV might have been trapped under the rocks was unfounded.

The New York Air National Guard is headed south.  Several planes are headed to Antarctica.   It's a 5-day 1,110 mile annual journey.   The planes and crews will be on the continent through February supporting the National Science Foundation's research. They'll run supplies and people to field camps across the continent and the South Pole station.  The planes they're using are the only aircraft in the United States military capable of landing on snow and ice.

Two members of the Vermont State Police are now on paid administrative leave, but the department is not saying why.  Senior Trooper David Shaffer, a seven-year-veteran, who fired a Taser at a Thetford man last June, killing him was put on leave last month.  Detective Sergeant James Claremont who has been with the department 24 years and worked as a criminal investigator in northwestern Vermont was put on leave October 5th.  The department will not comment, saying only that they are internal investigations.

Construction on a new private ski lodge is anticipated to start in about two weeks, once the Wilmington Development Review Board decides on plans and artist renderings before it now.  The Haystack Club is a private ski mountain, where memberships range from 20-thousand to one million dollars.  The owner's calculations have construction jobs adding up to about 100, with 50-to-75 more jobs inside the lodge once it's finished.  According to the "Brattleboro Reformer," the lodge would open in December 2013.

Governor Cuomo says a pay raise for Albany lawmakers won't be a top priority for any special session.  Cuomo says he won't even consider the issue until the "people's agenda" is resolved.  That agenda allegedly concerns an increase in the state minimum wage and the governor's proposal to decriminalize small-scale marijuana possession.  Speculation remains that Cuomo might call lawmakers back to Albany after the November election for a special session.

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand continues to maintain a heavy lead over her Republican challenger.  Gillibrand's lead over Wendy Long remains well into double digits, even following the pair's debate in Saratoga Springs Wednesday night.  Long spent much of the debate attacking Gillibrand's record, claiming the senator is partially responsible for the loss of jobs in the Empire State.

The inaugural Relay for Life of Crown Point exceeded all expectations.  The American Cancer Society benefit attracted 250 participants and raised more than $36,000.  Held at Crown Point Central School, the relay featured teams walking on a track from 7 PM Saturday, October 6th to 7 AM Sunday the 7th. Walkers raised money through pledges, fund-raising events and other activities to be donated to the American Cancer Society.

This Sunday from 10 AM to 2 PM, the Middlebury Snow Bowl will host an open house with a pancake breakfast, lift rides, retail and pass sales.  The Middlebury Ski club will be selling breakfast for $5 featuring pancakes, sausage and local Vermont maple syrup with proceeds to benefit the club.  New members are welcome and will be served breakfast on the club! The Worth Mt. Chair will be operating and season passes will be sold and processed.  The ski shop will be open for retail sales and equipment leases, and Snow School staff will be available to answer any questions about or registrations for our many Snow School programs.  Come on up to the bowl and enjoy a view from the top!!

Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will present drummer Yoron Israel and his High Standards Quartet this evening at 7:30. 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. Yoron Israel is a drummer, composer, bandleader and educator. While serving as a professor at the Berklee College of Music, Israel consistently records and performs.  For Information & Reservations just visit their Website!

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

Vermont Gas struck an agreement to sell natural gas to International Paper Ticonderoga Mill.  It will require laying a new pipeline under Lake Champlain.  The companies say this deal is good for everyone, including the environment by cutting greenhouse gases.   "Very exciting, very positive project for us," say Donna Wadsworth, International Paper spokeswoman.  Wadsworth says by 2015 they hope to be fueling the plant with natural gas.  Right now they use expensive oil.  "We anticipate that we'll see a significant reduction in our energy costs," says Wadsworth.  To get the natural gas to Ticonderoga will require laying a new pipe under Lake Champlain. Vermont Gas spokesman Steve Wark says they will use a process called horizontal directional boring.  "What we really like about this technique is that it has a minimal environmental impact. It doesn't disturb the lake bottom or any of the bodies of water that we cross under. It protects the pipe," says Wark.  Vermont Gas says this agreement will also benefit Vermonters by speeding up the plan to bring natural gas to Rutland.  That's because Vermont Gas says adding the mill will mean a longer, bigger pipeline than originally planned to go to Addison County.  The mill says it will pay for the $70-million upgrade, not Vermont Gas ratepayers.  "This is a win for Vermont and New York," says Wark.  Lake Champlain International while they support projects like this, they want to make sure they are done with the lake environment in mind.  The project still needs permits from both states and the feds.  Vermont Gas says it plans to start applying for them later this year.

A debate held at Saint Michael's college featuring "experts" on both sides of the F-35 issue, square off Wednesday night. In less than 2 months the United States Air Force will decide whether or not its F-35 planes will call the Burlington Airport home. The issue is very divisive, which is why so many showed up to see both sides go head to head.  "Seeing the two sides going up should be a good conversation to have," said Thomas Grace, who opposes the fighter jets coming to Burlington.  Rosanne Greco with the ‘Stop F-35' group spoke at the debate and came prepared with data opposing the jets, "Areas exposed to DNL above 65 decibels are generally not considered suitable for recreational use."  But when it comes down to the facts, it's hard for the average Joe to know who has the correct information.  "A lot of what's been said, a lot of what you heard, the negative is simply not true," said supporter Tom Torti.  Which begs the question, if the United States Air Force will make the ultimate decision in the end, what is the point of holding debates and forums such as this?   Thomas Grace, a ‘Stop F-35' supporter says it puts on public pressure, "There are people of power who can influence the decision and does the air force really want to put a base in and divide a community?"  The decision on where the F-35 jets will be placed is expected to be determined in December.

The candidates for Vermont treasurer are vying to win the position that manages the state's surplus money.  Now the Republican challenger says too much overtime is being paid to some employees.  Republican challenger Wendy Wilton obtained the salaries and overtime pays of Treasurer office employees and is now asking the state to perform an independent audit of the treasurer's office. Employees in the Retirement System Re-Engineering Project tended to work much longer hours than others in the years 2010-2012, the period released. Those 9,000 overtime hours across the last three years was worth more than $250,000 of work. But Treasurer Beth Pearce said the Treasurer's office gets an independent audit every two years. It's part of the state annual audit. There are no findings and they've done the correct things.