WVTK Local & State News July 22, 2011

A Middlebury man was killed in a two-vehicle accident Wednesday morning in Alabama. 39-year-old Adam Myers of Middlebury was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. His wife, Caitlin, and his children, ages 2 and 4 were transported by ambulance to the Hospital.

If you own property in Ferrisburgh, Vergennes or Addison you will see your property tax bills go down this year, thanks largely due to lower school rates. Homeowners are due to get bills with decreases ranging from about 4.7 cents in Ferrisburgh to 9.1 cents in Addison. Non-residential taxpayers in those three communities are also looking at lower tax bills, with decreases ranging from 1.5 cents in Vergennes to 6.3 cents in Addison.

Middlebury College has named James R. Keyes vice president for college advancement. He will be responsible for managing fundraising and alumni operations of all of Middlebury's entities: the undergraduate college, the Language Schools, the Schools Abroad, the Bread Loaf programs, and the Monterey Institute of International Studies. He is a 1971 Middlebury Graduate. He is also the former president of Citizens Bank of Vermont and First Vermont Bank.

The Addison County Community Trust has reached a deal to buy the now-vacant, 14-unit Gevry Trailer Park in Waltham. It is located on the Vergennes city line and is a property the nonprofit agency hopes to use for affordable or senior housing.

There is good news for some broadband users in Addison County. Over the next three years more than 400 Addison County homes, businesses and schools connected to the Internet via Waitsfield and Champlain Valley Telecom will enjoy increased Internet speeds as the company expands its fiber optic network.

Yesterday, FairPoint Communications announced new broadband Internet access for 20,000 Vermont customers. The effort is part of a 3-year; $71 million plan to reach communities around the state. Gov. Peter Shumlin is praising the progress. He says expanding access is key to making sure Vermont's economy moves forward. In the last seven months FairPoint installed 300 new broadband stations and put down nearly 1,000 miles of new fiber as part of the expansion. Right now, it is working toward $7 million in additional service infrastructure.

Burlington-based Cross Pollination Inc. reached a major milestone toward its proposed 2.2-megawatt solar power project off Route 7 in New Haven. On July 8 the Vermont Public Service Board issued a certificate of public good. But New Haven resident John Madden, saying the project would ruin the aesthetics of the region and has asked the PSB to reconsider or alter its order.

Good-hearted folks in the Addison community were working this week to help out Val and Tim Birchmore and their five kids, who lost their home on Lake Street in West Addison to a fire last Saturday night. Around 75 firefighters from five towns rushed to the fire. Addison Fire Chief Chris Mullis said earlier this week that the fire was under investigation, but that it appears to have started with an outside gas grill on the back porch.

The National 9/11 Flag will be will make a special appearance at the VFW in Middlebury during the annual Vermont State Firefighters Convention today. Destroyed in the aftermath of the World Trade Center terrorist attack on September 11, 2001 it was stitched back together seven years later by tornado survivors in Greensburg, Kansas. The flag is a living testament to the resilience and compassion of the American people. The historic flag ceremony will take place at the VFW on Exchange Street in Middlebury at noon today.

Within the next week the Middlebury College Solar Decathlon team will complete the construction of a solar-powered home inspired by a historic New England farmhouse. The 980-square-foot house still needs side trimming, cabinets, appliances and subcontractors need to complete energy wiring. People are also painting and doing interior work. The college's Solar Decathlon team has been working on the project for about two years for the 2011 Solar Decathlon, a two-year competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy.

The Brandon Area Chamber of Commerce will host the SOAR Summerfest 2011 Stimulus Auction this evening during the Summerfest and a concert by Gene Childers. The event is sponsored by the Chamber and Lake Sunapee Bank. A SOAR Facebook page has also been established to keep Participants up to date. Also check out their website, www.SOARSummerfest.org, to see the entire list of items valued at over $2,000.

Ticonderoga Federal Credit Union will begin its second annual school supplies drive for area children in need on Monday, August 1. The campaign asks the public to drop-off new school supplies at any TFCU branch or ATM site throughout August.

Groups opposed to a wind power project planned for northern Vermont's Lowell Mountain say the project will hurt mountain streams and cause erosion. The groups say plans by project developer Green Mountain Power Corp. to protect upland streams and guard against erosion depend on experimental technology, which has failed elsewhere. They also maintain storm water runoff is being underestimated in the draft permit. A Green Mountain Power spokeswoman says what the groups call experimental is the most appropriate technology for the site, and that water quality in area streams will be subject to continued monitoring during construction and operation of the project.

A Rhode Island native who entered the Vermont political scene last year as campaign manager for gubernatorial candidate Deb Markowitz is heading out to Indiana to run a Senate campaign there. Paul Tencher managed the 2010 campaign of Markowitz, the former secretary of state who lost narrowly in the Democratic primary to Gov. Peter Shumlin. He says he'll be managing the U.S. Senate campaign of Democratic Indiana Congressman Joe Donnelly, and hopes to return to Vermont when that race is over.

A standoff has ended at the Veterans' Affairs Hospital in White River Junction. Police say an armed Hartford man who barricaded himself in a room for five hours has been taken into custody. Police say the standoff started after the man checked in as a patient Thursday but refused to give up a pistol and a knife found in his bag. A wing of the hospital was evacuated. No hostages were taken.

Two economists who advise Vermont State officials on what to expect from state revenues have upgraded their forecast slightly, but say economic worries remain. They say despite a range of problems, Vermont state revenues outpaced their January forecast by about $2.5%, ending $37.6 million ahead of their forecast for the just completed fiscal year. Gov. Peter Shumlin responded to Thursday's news by saying he wants to devote any excess revenues to shoring up the state's reserve funds and putting money aside to build a new Vermont State Hospital.

Governor Peter Shumlin says there's no need for a special session of the Legislature to clarify the state's position on the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. Shumlin's comments are a response to an essay this week by a former state environmental conservation commissioner who suggested a special session might help the state defend itself against a civil suit by plant owner Entergy Corporation.

Police in Vermont say they now know the identity of a man whose body was found under a railroad bridge in Burlington, and they say he was murdered. Police say Ralph Bell, of Burlington, sustained lethal injuries in an altercation and subsequently fell about 50 feet from the bridge.

The head of the union that represents thousands of Vermont state employees is stepping down to take a job as director of affirmative action and equal opportunity at the University of Vermont. Jes Kraus, director of the Vermont State Employees Association, announced yesterday he’d resign effective September 6th after three years in the job.

It's not often Vermont gets temperatures in the 90s, with high humidity. When it does, dairy farmers make sure their cows have plenty of water and shade and know to expect less milk. Many dairy farms use fans, sprinkler systems that spray mist and good old-fashioned shade to keep their milkers from overheating. The assistant state veterinarian for the state Agency of Agriculture says that when cows get too hot, they don't eat as much, and when they don't eat as much, they don't produce as much milk.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture is now accepting applications for grants to expand meat processing in the state. The Legislature created the program, which provides matching grants for investments that will result in increased capacity at meat and poultry slaughter and processing facilities. A total of $50,000 is available. Applications are due by August 22nd.

Vermont State Police and the Humane Society are investigating a suspected case of animal cruelty involving several horses in Jeffersonville. Pictures taken by a neighbor sparked an animal cruelty investigation. The investigation brought police to a farm on Junction Hill Road where Vermont State Police say the horses were in better shape then expected. Police say the horses don't appear to be abused or in any immediate danger. They had both food and water on the premises. However the police and the Humane Society say they are still investigating. Today a Veterinarian is expected to check on the horses and determine if they are healthy.