The Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce November
“After Business Mixer” will be held today at Inter-Lakes Health from 5:30 PM
until 7:00 PM. Sponsors providing door prizes will be Alexander R. Shmulsky
Attorney At Law, Glens Falls National Bank, the Wagon Wheel Restaurant and
Inter-Lakes Health. Not only is this mixer a perfect opportunity to network but
a chance to get an update from Inter-Lakes Health as well as tour their
facility. Learn more at www.ticonderogany.com.
You are invited to join the Addison County Chamber
of Commerce tomorrow for the after hours business mixer which is being held at
Vergennes Opera House. There will be plenty of great door prizes, food &
beverage, plus a chance to win the Pot of Gold—which is valued at $650! The mixer takes place from 5 – 7
PM. If you would like to attend,
please RSVP by sending Sue an email, or calling 388-7591 x2. Learn more by visiting the Chamber’sWebsite.
Policy adoption and an audit presentation are among
the items the Westport Central School Board will discuss at a regular meeting
set for 6 PM today in the school library.
Westport Central School Board meetings are open to the public.
Shots were fired yesterday afternoon at a home in
Cornwall. Police say the Curtis
family was given an eviction notice, and then a fight broke out between Roger
Curtis and his daughter's boyfriend. They say Curtis fired 6-10 shots, but they
aren't sure if he fired them at anyone. No one was hit. Curtis is charged with domestic
assault. More charges are possible.
A hunting rifle is missing from a local residence
and is presumed stolen at this time. On Monday a resident of New Haven
attempted to locate a personal hunting rifle and discovered it had been stolen
from his residence at 21-65 Pearson Rd.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Vermont State
Police New Haven Barracks at 802-388-4919. Information can also be submitted online at www.vtips.info
or text CRIMES (274637) to keyword VTIPS.
The cost of trash disposal has gone up in Moriah. The town board has voted to increase
the cost of trash stickers from $2 to $2.50, effective immediately. It’s the
first fee increase since 1999. The
Transfer Station is currently losing money. The trash station is about $40,000 in the red according to
the Town Supervisor, but the fee increase should eliminate that debt.
The new Essex County Communications system is
coming together. During last
week’s regular board meeting, the Essex County Board of Supervisors passed
several resolutions to award bids and proposals to several companies to work on
the new system. The county is
currently looking at project costs around $10.5 million, which includes the
original project to replace the radio system and now includes purchasing new
equipment for local first responders.
Champlain Centre Mall will, for the first time
ever, open its doors at midnight on Black Friday, along with all other Pyramid
Management Group properties. To
add to the excitement, the mall will be holding a drawing for gift cards from midnight
to 6 a.m. Entry forms will be available at each mall entrance. The mall will be closed Thanksgiving
Day, excluding Regal Cinemas, and will reopen at midnight on Black Friday. The hours for anchor tenants on
Thanksgiving and Black Friday may vary. Visit www.champlaincentre.com
for information.
Gov. Peter Shumlin will soon pick the person to
fill the new position of Vermont secretary of education. The state Board of Education on Tuesday
approved the three finalists recommended by the board's search committee. They are: current Education
Commissioner Armando Vilaseca of Westford; Daniel French, superintendent of the
Bennington-Rutland Supervisory Union in Manchester; and Brent Kay,
superintendent of the Orange Southwest Supervisory Union in Randolph. A new state law calls for the creation
of a Vermont Agency of Education and authorizes the governor to appoint a
secretary from three candidates proposed by the board. The secretary will be a member of the governor's
cabinet.
Gov. Peter Shumlin is shaking up the top ranks of
his administration, with the announcement of 7 senior staff changes. Chief of Staff Bill Lofy is leaving to
join the Democratic Governors Association, which Shumlin hopes to chair after
an election in that group next month.
Elizabeth Miller, currently Department of Public Service Commissioner,
will replace Lofy. She'll be replaced there by Chris Recchia, who's currently
the deputy secretary of natural resources. Mental Health Commissioner Patrick Flood is stepping down,
to be replaced temporarily by his deputy, Mary Moulton. Alex MacLean is leaving her job as
Shumlin's deputy chief of staff to work in the private sector. Steve Kimbell, whom Shumlin coaxed out
of retirement to head the Department of Financial Regulation, is leaving, too.
Both the state and lawyers for Vermont Yankee now
have filed written arguments to a federal appeals court as the legal battle
continues over the future of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. Lawyers for plant
owner Entergy Corporation are continuing to argue that the state Legislature
improperly waded into issues of nuclear safety when it gave itself the
authority to block future operations of the plant and then tried to do so.
A teacher at the Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School
in South Burlington is Vermont's 2013 teacher of the year. Jay Hoffman, a
technology education teacher, was honored today during a special meeting of the
state Board of Education. As teacher of the year, Hoffman will visit schools around
the state and work with teachers.
Vermont state revenues are running short of what
was forecast both for the month of October and for the first four months of the
fiscal year. Administration
Secretary Jeb Spaulding said Tuesday that the state took in nearly $102 million
during October, but that was still more than 2% below the target for the month. Year-to-date, general revenues are
running about a half of one percentage point shy of what forecasters had
predicted in July. Spaulding said
the personal income, the largest source of revenue for the state, is running
more than 4% behind its target for the year.
In New York a state investigation has been ordered
by Governor Andrew Cuomo into how utility companies prepared for and reacted to
Superstorm Sandy. Cuomo has repeatedly criticized the utilities for what he
considered slow progress restoring power to more than 2 million customers from
Long Island to the Hudson Valley.
Bells rang out Tuesday from St. Patrick's church in
Port Henry New York, as six people carried a casket, draped in an American
flag, holding the body of Staff Sgt. Dain Venne. The North Country native was 1 of 3 New Yorkers killed last
week in Afghanistan by a roadside bomb.
Those who served with Venne say he was one of the best. "He was a soldier's soldier,
that's why people looked up to him," said Army Captain Daniel McCarthy. McCarthy couldn't believe his eyes
Tuesday as he drove into the small Upstate New York community. "I was just blown away coming down
the main strip and seeing the flag out front and seeing every uniform you could
imagine," said McCarthy. From
the funeral home to the church and then to a Mineville cemetery, hundreds paid
tribute. The 2001 Moriah Central
School graduate enlisted in the army after 9/11. It's that selfless attitude that tugged on the hearts of
many as they tried to bring comfort to those who Venne has left behind. "I think it's a great way to show
respect and to that the family knows that the town comes together and
cares," said Beth Thompson. And
with many organizations represented, it was apparent, the thoughts and prayers
extended beyond Essex County to honor a man who paid the ultimate sacrifice. What makes this story even more
difficult? Venne was expected to
return home from Afghanistan this past weekend.
Governor Peter Shumlin is going to have a different
staff and cabinet this time around.
A week after winning re-election, he has a new chief of staff. Shumlin
announced Tuesday that Liz Miller, the current commissioner of the Department
of Public Service, will take on that job.
The current chief, Bill Lofy, is leaving to become a political
strategist. Also leaving the
governor's administration are Alex MacLean and Steve Kimbell. Mental Health Commissioner Patrick
Flood will leave his current job, but is staying on in state government.
Workers at the Brattleboro Food Co-op are voting
today on whether to form a union.
Employee union organizers originally asked the co-op and its trustees to
voluntarily recognize Local 14-59 of the United Food and Commercial
Workers. The co-op manager,
however, felt all the workers needed to participate in the decision, and not
just a majority. The co-op
recently opened a new nine-million-dollar building on Main Street, with mixed
income apartments on the upper floors.
The Burlington City Council is delaying a decision
whether to have an independent investigation into a violent clash between
protestors and officers last summer.
The police commission spent months looking at the incident, and in its
final review presented Tuesday night, concluded the police did not make any
mistakes, but there's still potential to improve policies and procedures. During the public forum at Tuesday's
city council meeting speakers questioned the police response in general along
with the investigation, with one calling the report extremely biased.
The eleven troopers from the Vermont State Police
who went south to help New Jersey following Superstorm Sandy are back. First responders in New Jersey needed
the assistance after being overwhelmed by the storm. For six days, the Vermonters worked at night to patrol
neighborhoods destroyed by Sandy, watching for looters as well as bringing
comfort to the survivors. The
Vermont troopers returned Sunday and went back to their regular schedules on Tuesday.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has created the
"Moreland Commission" to investigate the preparedness and response of
the state's utilities to Hurricane Sandy. The Moreland Commission will also
make recommendations to reform and modernize the regulation and management of
New York's power delivery system. Former Attorney General Robert Abrams and
Superintendent of the Department of Financial Services Benjamin Lasky will
co-chair the 10-person commission.
The New York State Bar Association is hosting a
statewide webcast this week to train attorneys on how to assist victims of
Hurricane Sandy. The November 15th
webcast is designed for attorneys and law students who want to lend a hand to
those devastated by the storm.
Some panelists will include attorneys who are experts on the legal
issues being faced by Sandy victims.
Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will
present vocalist Andrea Wolper this Thursday evening at 7:30. Andrea appears in
clubs, festivals and concert halls in the U.S. and internationally. General
Admission is $15. Brandon Music Café offers a concert and dinner package, which includes dinner and a ticket to
the show for $30 plus tax per person.
For Information & Reservations (802) 465-4071 / info@brandon-music.net
The Sound Investment Jazz Ensemble and the Middlebury
Swing Dance Club are coming together for a fantastic evening of swing this
Friday evening. The event runs from
9 to 11 PM at the McCullough Social Space on campus. Call 443-3168 for directions and details.
Middlebury College’s African Music and Dance
Ensemble will perform Wednesday the 28th at 8 PM in the Mahaney
Center for the Arts’ Concert Hall.
The ensemble will present a concert featuring a wide range of East
African instrumental, vocal, and dance repertoire. Ensemble members perform on various instruments from East
African drums to xylophones. The free event is sponsored by the Department of
Music.
Eleven members of the Vermont State Police are
getting back to their regular job after having spent almost a week in New
Jersey. That was part of the area
damaged by Superstorm Sandy about two-weeks ago. "Seeing images before we even went down there of some
of the areas that were affected, you just really didn't understand the whole
scope until you were right in it," says Lt. John Flannigan, Vermont State
Police. Flannigan was part of a
crew of eleven from state police that left Vermont more than a week ago. The call had come that first responders
in Jersey needed help. "To
give those agencies a break that had been working, throughout the week before,
very long hours," says Flannigan.
For six-days, the Vermonters worked during the night to patrol destroyed
neighborhoods, watch for looters, and provide a little comfort for those weary
from the storm. The troopers
returned to Vermont on Sunday. They had a day off and then it was back to the
regular schedule. For Flannigan,
who vacationed on the Jersey Shore, he's not sure the area will ever be the
same. But he says he was inspired
by the outpouring of support and the spirit of the people there. "Many of them had a very positive
outlook: our families are safe and we'll get through this and we'll
rebuild," says Flannigan. Flannigan
says there were no major problems, including with looting. He says as of right now there are no
plans for other troopers to travel south.
More help for sandy victims is on the way! The national life group charitable
foundation filled up a truck with supplies at its Montpelier campus yesterday. Cleaning supplies, baby formula, hand
warmers, and batteries are on board. Even a thousand pairs of socks donated by "darn
tough Vermont" are on the way to Staten Island, New York. “We went through Irene in Vermont and nobody
knows better than us how it feels to go through a disaster. We juts want to be
good citizens and help our surrounding states” the truck was fully loaded by 4 Tuesday
and employees were driving it down last night.
99,000 people in Vermont alone depend on 3squares
Vermont benefits. Government assisted payments to help put food on the table 3
times a day. Hunger Free Vermont hopes to highlight what it's like to eat on
the 3 squares benefit. "It's
really difficult for the average person to understand what its like to live on
a limited food budget," said 3Squares Vermont Advocacy manager, Angela
Smith- Dieng. Through the program,
one person is given a food budget of $38 dollars a week. For a family of two
it's $57 dollars a week, for three $84 dollars and for a family of four you're
looking at only $98 dollars a week.
"We're having a lot of toast, hummus avocado sandwiches, fair
amount of rice and beans," said Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger. Weinberger and his family are taking
the squares challenge and he says the hardest part is planning, "Just how
much time it takes to put together a healthy and nutritious meal for a week on
that kind of a budget." "People
are finding they have to cook more and are making a lot of soups and
stews," said Smith- Dieng. But
with one in seven Vermonters considered food insecure, Weinberger says the
experience will hopefully raise awareness, "For so many of us food is so
abundant and that many people have real limitations on what their budget is for
eating." To join the
challenge sign up at www.surveymonkey.com/s/3SVTChallenge2012
all participants will be entered into a drawing to a King Arthur gift card.
