Vermont Gas Systems and
the Town of Middlebury will hold a public informational meeting this evening at
7:00 at the VFW on Exchange Street in Middlebury. Vermont Gas Systems will present the latest plans for
construction of the planned natural gas pipeline to Middlebury in 2014 and 2015
including the proposed general areas of service, and routes of proposed future
extensions to Rutland and Ticonderoga.
Vermont Gas will also have information on the procedure for permitting
and right of way acquisition. For
additional information citizens may call: Steve Wark, Director of
Communications, Vermont Gas Systems, Inc. (802) 951-0373, wark@vermontgas.com. Fred
Dunnington, Middlebury Town Planner 388-8100 x 208, dunnington@townofmiddlebury.org.
In a county where Democrat
politics dominate, two Republican state legislators found themselves reelected. Addison County representatives Harvey
Smith of New Haven and Greg Clarke of Vergennes were reelected and will
continue representing their districts in Montpelier. Smith is a Republican representative for Addison 5, Vermont
House of Representatives. Harvey began
his career as a dairy farmer, and now raises soybeans and co-owns Smith Family
Beef with his granddaughter.
Meanwhile Greg Clarke, a popular local high school teacher, is a
Republican politician who was elected and currently serves in the Vermont House
of Representatives. He represents the Addison-3 Representative District.
Despite being at a nearly
2-1 disadvantage in voter registration, Democrats dominated elections in Essex
County this week. President Barack
Obama, a Democrat, carried the county over Republican challenger Mitt
Romney. In the race for U. S.
Senate, Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand topped Republican Wendy Long in Essex
County. Bill Owens, a Democrat
seeking re-election to New York’s 21st District in the U.S. House of
Representatives won Essex County over Republican Matt Doheny. The only Republicans to win Essex
County were Dan Stec, running for the state’s 114th Assembly seat, and Betty
Little running for re-election to the state Senate.
Rutland Town voters
approved $2 million for a new firehouse Tuesday night but turned down a ballot
item that would have cleaned up the abandoned and depressed Flory’s Plaza in
Center Rutland for $250,000 of public money. The firehouse measure passed by a vote of 1,262 to 969. The Flory’s measure was defeated by 33
votes, with a total tally of 1,150 to 1,127.
This week voters in
Rutland have rejected a $5.5 million water filtration system to help the city
meet EPA drinking water standards. That leaves the city with using a less
costly alternative, adding the disinfectant chloramine to the water. Some
people worry that that poses health risks.
A bridge at the
intersection of Route 30 and Monument Hill Road was closed to traffic Monday
and it will remain closed until November 21. The bridge is closed due to construction work to remove the
existing culvert and replace it with a new concrete culvert. A marked detour is in effect while the
bridge is closed. Monument Hill Road is accessible from the north side of the
bridge only. For information visit
www.roadworkupdates.com.
The Addison County Chamber of Commerce
congratulates Linda Cook and her staff as the Men’s Corner at Linda’s Apparel
& Gifts celebrated its grand opening last Saturday. The Men’s Corner is
located in the retail space adjoining Linda’s Apparel & Gifts, which was
previously occupied by Addison Outfitters at 179 Main Street, Vergennes. The Men’s Corner will carry men’s
business casual clothing, work wear and outerwear from manufacturers such as
Carhartt, Columbia, Woolrich, Darn Tough Socks, and others.
The new Moriah town budget easily stayed under the
state’s 2 percent tax cap. The tax levy in the 2013 budget is up 1.9 percent,
from $1.84 million to $1.89 million, excluding fire districts. The budget
totals $4.08 million, including all special districts. The public hearing on
the tentative budget is at 6 this evening in the Moriah Town Courthouse on Park
Place in Port Henry.
Crown Point’s new town budget stays under the
state’s 2 percent tax-levy cap. The
$1.84 million budget for 2013 has an $877,000 tax levy that is only 1.8 percent
higher than this year. The total tax levy, with the Fire District figured in,
is $1.07 million. The Fire District is not used for purposes of calculating the
tax cap. The public hearing on the
proposed 2013 budget is at 5:45 this evening at the Crown Point Town Hall.
The Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce held their
annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner and Awards Ceremony on Thursday, November
1st at the Best Western Plus Ticonderoga Inn & Suites. The Volunteer Appreciation Dinner and
Awards Ceremony gave the Chamber & community members a chance to honor and
thank all those who give of themselves for the betterment of the community and
the area. Over 125 people were in attendance. Ti Chamber Executive Director Matthew Courtright thanked the
many businesses, committees, organizations, and individuals who work so
diligently to provide opportunities, growth, support, and events for the
Ticonderoga area. Assemblywoman
Teresa Sayward was the Chambers special guest for the event. She also received
a TACC Appreciation Award for her service to the Ticonderoga Area, the North
Country and for attending the Volunteer Appreciation Dinner and Awards Ceremony
for the last several years.
Winter will be embraced in downtown Ticonderoga this
season. The Ticonderoga AreaChamber of Commerce will join with the Ticonderoga Montcalm Street Partnership,
PRIDE of Ticonderoga and the Ticonderoga Revitalization Alliance to create a
“winter wonderland” in the business district. According to the Ti Chamber
Executive Director, Matthew Courtright, Merchants are being asked to create
winter-theme displays for their storefronts. The displays will remain in place
throughout the winter. People who would like to display a product or
information on a business can email chamberinfo@ticonderogany.com
or call 585-6619 for more information.
Thirty-three northern Vermont residents who live
near a newly constructed wind-power project on Lowell Mountain have complained
to the state about what they're calling "horrendous noise." Barbara Stone, who lives about 2½ miles
from the project, says the spinning turbine blades create a noise that sounds
like a jet engine. Don Nelson of
Lowell says he and his wife, Shirley, could have gotten 100 signatures on the
letter to the Public Service Department. He says it sounds like "a big jet
engine landing at an airport."
A committee of the Vermont State Board of Education
has picked three finalists to become the secretary of education in Vermont. They are: Daniel French, superintendent
of the Bennington-Rutland Supervisory Union in Manchester; Brent Kay,
superintendent of the Orange Southwest Supervisory Union in Randolph; and
current Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca of Westford. 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 education board. The secretary will be a member of the
governor's cabinet. The search
committee announced its recommendations on Wednesday. The three candidates will
be proposed to the full state Board of Education on November 13th.
A book about Tropical Storm Irene written and
compiled by Mendon residents won an award last Friday. The Mendon Historical Society received
an “Award of Merit” from the League of Local Historical Societies at its annual
meeting held in Woodstock. The
award, in the category of Publications/Oral History, commended the book “Irene
Storms through Mendon: You CAN Get There from Here.” The 50-page book with 60 full color photographs is available
for purchase at the Mendon Town Office and several stores and bookshops in the
area.
This evening’s jazz concert at BrandonMusic on Country Club Road in Brandon with pianist Lenore Raphael has been
cancelled. The weekly jazz series
will resume next Thursday. For more information call (802)
465-4071 / info@brandon-music.net.
Middlebury College’s favorite celebrity faculty
member, François Clemmons is coming to Middlebury this month. During the 1970s,
Clemmons entertained us as Officer Clemmons on PBS-TV’s “Mister Rogers'
Neighborhood”. A singer,
performer, playwright and university lecturer, he is best known for his
appearances on entertainer Fred Rogers’ popular show. Clemmons will perform at Middlebury College, Friday November
16th at 8 PM in the Mahaney Center for the Arts Concert Hall.
Clemmons will present a joyful evening of songs with sass and soul. The event
is free.
Temperatures dropped into the teens Monday night
and that was plenty cold to make snow at the Gore Mountain ski center. Opening day is coming up on Friday,
November 23rd and crews at Gore Mountain began making snow this week
in hopes of creating a deep enough base to give them an edge when warmer
temperatures arrive. Whiteface
Mountain in Wilmington also began making snow this week. The Olympic Regional Development
Authority based in Lake Placid operates both facilities.
A public discussion will be held in Rutland to talk
about synthetic drugs such as bath salts and the practice of huffing to get
high after a teenager was killed this fall in a crash allegedly caused by a man
huffing chemicals. A Vermont State
Police drug recognition expert and a panel of drug treatment and prevention
experts are planning to gather this evening at 6 at the PEG-TV studio in
Rutland. The police chief in
Rutland said last month that the death of a teenager in a crash allegedly
caused by a man huffing chemicals has the city searching for answers to the
broader problem of drug and chemical abuse. This discussion is open to the public.
Now that he's been assured of another two years in
office, Governor Peter Shumlin has a whole list of projects to work on. He spoke with reporters Wednesday at
Dynapower Corporation in South Burlington, as one of the things on his list is
renewable energy. He also stated
he wants to create more jobs, improve education and health care, and getting
the tough things done. He was very
firm that he has no plans to run for any other office in the future.
After 160 years on the same spot, the St. George
one-room schoolhouse now has a different view. Yesterday it was packed up on a truck and hauled down the
highway to the St. George Town Center.
Plans are now being developed to transform it into a museum and
community space, hopefully in time for the town's 250th birthday next
year. Volunteers are relying on
donations to pay for the project, which could cost up to a hundred-thousand
dollars.
New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has won
re-election, and now there is talk about her headed toward a bigger stage in
2016. There are rumblings that the
junior senator from New York would make a "formidable" 2016
Democratic presidential candidate should Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
decide not to seek the office.
ABC's Matthew Dowd says Gillibrand is popular in her state and says a
female candidate would have a great shot as 60-percent of Democratic primary
voters are women.
New York's continued study into whether or not to
allow hydrofracking in the state has taken a back seat to dealing with
Hurricane Sandy. Supporters on
both sides of the argument had been hoping for a decision come January on whether
or not the state would approve the controversial drilling process. Health experts that were due to
evaluate the hydrofracking study have been told to stand down on the topic and
direct all their efforts to health issues triggered by Sandy.
From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice in Vermont
& New York:
A majority of Burlington voters decided to
"support the legalization, regulation and taxation of all cannabis and
hemp products." But reading over the ballot question too quickly caused
some to misinterpret what the meaning of a "yes" vote is. Ward 2 city councilor Max Tracy pushed
for the Cannabis question to be added to Burlington's ballot to start a
dialogue on marijuana reform. "In
this case we found that Burlingtonians are really ready for that conversation
and overwhelmingly so," Councilor Tracy said. Tracy said he's expecting the Vermont state legislature to
tackle the question of decriminalizing marijuana in the next session but hopes
it will go even further. Some Burlington residents thought legalized pot was
already a reality after the vote on ballot question four received more than 70%
"yes" votes from voters. Council Tracy made it clear though that this
vote did not legalize marijuana. "It's
important to be clear about that. Nothing has changed," Tracy said. While most understood the question some
tweeters quickly jumped to the conclusion that Burlington had legalized
marijuana, much like Colorado and Washington State did in this election. Legalization isn't supported by
everyone in Vermont but it's something Tracy believes is worth standing behind. "I already have stuck my
neck out as far as I'm concerned with this whole thing," Tracy said. "And you know it certainly was a risk and one that I was
more than happy to take."
Long lines are the sight many of us are used to
seeing at stores the day after Thanksgiving. "Black Friday" is known for its deals. It's a day Judi Jacobs and her daughter
look forward to. "It became a
family tradition, you'd get up really early and get out to those stores at
4," said Jacobs. But now
that's too late for many stores. It
started last year with a push to open at midnight. Now this year University Mall official says more stores than
ever will open then, or on Thanksgiving.
"I'm not too happy about it!" said Jacobs. This year Kmart gets the shopping
started at 6 Thursday morning. Sear's
opens at 8 Thursday night. Kohl's
and the majority of other stores will open at midnight. JCPenny though isn't budging; it won't
offer deals until 6 Friday morning.
University Mall officials aren't happy with the shift. They've told Sears, their entrance
inside the mall is off limits and told other stores not to follow Sear's lead. "The University Mall's doors will
not be unlocked until midnight and that's our stance going forward for years to
come," said University Mall spokesperson Jamie Polli. One thing that some shoppers do like
about the earlier opening is when they find themselves outside there's not so
many people waiting in line so when they go inside there's not the chaos to get
the items that you want. And they
say, last year, you could definitely notice a difference. "It was still crazy, but it wasn't
as crazy," said Joni Carr. Anything
shoppers say to get out of waiting in lines, even if it costs them
Thanksgiving. To give you an idea
of just how many stores will be opening at midnight at the University Mall. Last year it was 35. This year mall leaders expect that to
climb to 50.
