WVTK Local & State News February 16, 2011

The Vermont Agency of Transportation says the Route 74 Bridge between Shoreham and Cornwall that was closed due to safety concerns is expected to reopen next week. It was closed Monday after a hole was found in the bridge deck. The Transportation Agency said Tuesday that repairs to the bridge would be completed this week. The bridge is expected to reopen on Monday. Until then, Vermont Route 74 will be closed from the intersection of Quiet Valley Road in Shoreham to North and South Bingham Street in Cornwall.

The Addison Central Supervisory Union will form a study committee to consider the question: Is it in the best interests of the students and citizens of our community to reorganize local school districts as a Regional Educational District? In the coming months community members will be invited to share concerns and visions for the future of education, including a discussion of possible frameworks for governance that could provide the best path forward. Complete details on the formation and function of the committee can be found online, CLICK HERE.

Vermont Lt. Gov. Phil Scott has already rolled up his sleeves and made Vermont jobs, business and public participation in state policymaking his top priority. Scott started his Vermont Everyday Jobs initiative two weeks ago. Last week, as part of that initiative, he spent the morning hours and lunchtime at Porter Hospital and the neighboring Helen Porter Health and Rehabilitation Center. He worked alongside a doctor on-duty who was providing patient care in the emergency department and then moved on to serve lunch to residents at the Porter rehab center's 's memory loss unit.

An alleged sex offender was back in court yesterday on charges he forced a 15-year-old girl to engage in inappropriate behavior with him. The girl was found at 21-year-old Phillip Martin's apartment early Tuesday morning, a place police say they have responded to many times for reports of juveniles as young as 13 inside. If convicted the charges could keep him in jail for over 20 years.

Police in St. Albans are looking for the two men they say tried to kidnap a teenage girl off the street. The incident happened Tuesday afternoon, when one man tried to pull the 15-year-old girl into a pickup truck through the window, but she managed to get away. The truck is described as being white and mid-sized, while the two men in it were said to be in their thirties. The man grabbing the girl was said to have dark hair, a mustache and an orange winter jacket with a hood. Police say the girl was not hurt.

Police in Chester are looking for a man wanted on multiple counts of aggravated domestic assault. Investigators say 24 year-old Evan Cox does not have a car, so he rents them or gets rides from friends. He's described as an African-American man, about 6'2" and 200 pounds. He has a tattoo on the left side of his neck. Police say Cox should be considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information on Cox is asked to call Chester Police.

The Castleton Select Board unanimously voted to assist the Lake Bomoseen Association in applying for an aquatic nuisance control grant providing it comes at no cost to the town. The Department of Environmental Conservation requires the municipality where a lake is located to apply for them. The grant will help the Lake Bomoseen Association hire up to four people to help monitor boats going in and out of the lake during the summer months.

Vermont State Police say 1 of their troopers has been charged with domestic violence. Thirty-1-year-old Timothy Newton, of Sandgate, was arrested Monday over a Feb. 6 incident that occurred when he was off-duty. Newton, a 7-year veteran of the force who's assigned to the Shaftsbury barracks, was arrested without incident at his Sandgate home and cited for domestic assault. He was released on conditions, pending an appearance today in Windham Superior Court criminal division. He's on leave with pay now.

The head of the Vermont National Guard says someone is using his name and photographs of him as part of Facebook and Skype frauds, and one woman says she lost more than $3,000 to the scam. The guard says at least three people in Canada, Taiwan and Germany have responded to pleas from someone they believed to be Maj. Gen. Michael Dubie.

Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy tells New York lawmakers that even the best public schools have waste and inefficiencies to cut before they resort to laying off teachers. Duffy made the charge at a hearing Tuesday morning while defending Gov. Andrew Cuomo's proposed 7.8 percent cut in school aid. Duffy also says schools should freeze wages for a year, just as Cuomo has proposed for state workers.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's popularity has reached an all-time high. Seventy-seven percent of New Yorkers are giving Cuomo a thumbs up after just over a month in office. A new Siena Research Institute poll also shows 72 percent of voters support the Democrat's budget, which includes deep cuts to education and health care programs.

With all the extreme weather we've been having this winter, our roads are suffering more than usual. Potholes are popping up all over the state and car repair shops are extra busy trying to keep up. The Vermont Agency of Transportation said several snowstorms are behind the increase in potholes. The storms have been so close together and that means the potholes don’t have much time to dry out. They hope the warm up at the end of the week will give them plenty of time to get some of them filled.

Registration is under way for a career-planning workshop at Castleton State College. Vermont Student Assistance Corporation has announced that the 10th annual College Pathways program will be held at Castleton on April 2, It’s a free day of college planning workshops for high school sophomores and juniors and their parents. College Pathways will also be held at St. Michael’s College in Colchester on March 19 and Lyndon State College in Lyndonville on April 9. For more information CLICK HERE.

The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department is launching a national search for a new deer project leader. The position is responsible for leading the department's efforts to manage the state's deer population and to maximize hunting opportunities. The former deer project leader, wildlife biologist Shawn Haskell, recently stepped down after three years.

Shares of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters plummeted yesterday after a deal with coffee giant Starbucks fell through. Starbucks instead announced partnership with Green Mountain's rival, Courtesy Products coffee systems. Starbucks wants to become a big player in the fast-growing single-serve coffee segment, and there had been market speculation that the company had been negotiating a deal with GMCR.