WVTK Local & State News August 25, 2011

The lifting of the center arch span for the new Lake Champlain Bridge has been postponed by predicted bad weather. Vermont transportation officials said the lift should happen on Friday. The New York state Department of Transportation had originally said the 400-foot arch would be floated on barges from its construction site in Port Henry starting around dawn today. The public can watch the work tomorrow but some marine and vehicle traffic restrictions will be in place. Ferry service will remain operational during the work.

FairPoint officials say a spam email is circulating and it could compromise your online security. Customers say they have received an email, which appears to be from my FairPoint with a link asking them to fill out a verification form saying it will enable the company to serve their customers and increase their performance. FairPoint officials say it's a spam email, and they are unsure how hackers got the email addresses of their customers. FairPoint Communications will never contact customers or employees asking for their login name and/or password via email.

In Vermont those people who help during emergencies are preparing if Hurricane Irene does hit the area. The staff at the American Red Cross in Burlington says it's monitoring the hurricane's latest projected track. While it is still early, the Red Cross says it's already taking steps to make sure people and resources are ready to go if the hurricane causes problems across our area. The Vermont National Guard says it is also ready if the governor needs them. The guard says it actually practiced last year for a hurricane hitting Vermont.

State Police conducted a motor vehicle stop on Lincoln Road in Bristol yesterday, which was operated by Walter Bell. During the stop it was found that Bell's privilege to drive in Vermont was criminally suspended. Bell was also found to be in Possession of Marijuana. Bell was processed at the New Haven Barracks and released on a citation to appear in court in Middlebury.

Vermont State Police are currently investigating a theft involving of a 12 foot white Sunfish sailboat from private property in the Town of Panton. The Sunfish was stolen sometime between the Fall of 2010 and August 21, 2011. The estimated value of the sailboat is $2,000. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Vermont State Police New Haven Barracks. (802-388-4919)

In recognition of Labor Day, Addison County Transit Resources will be closed Monday, September 5th. There will be no bus service and ACTR’s administrative offices will be closed. This applies to: Tri-Town Bristol, Tri-Town Vergennes, Middlebury Shuttle, Snow Bowl Shuttle, Burlington LINK and Rutland Connector. Normal service resumes Tuesday, September 6th. For more details visit www.actr-vt.org.

Another controversy has erupted in Killington. Despite members of the public urging the town's three-member Select Board to not hire Seth Webb, the town's economic development and tourism director as the interim town manager, the chairman of the board said it wasn't the public's decision. Current Town Manager Kathleen Ramsay resigned last week for a job as the assistant town manager in Middlebury.

Police investigating a domestic fight in Pittsford last week ended up making an arrest for cultivating marijuana. Police were called to a home on Whipple Hollow Road on Thursday where a woman told police that 37-year-old Rodney J. Kenny injured her by hitting her in the elbow with an ashtray. The woman also told police that Kenny had marijuana plants growing behind the house. Pittsford police said they seized five marijuana plants found on the property. Bail was set at $5,000 for Kenny.

The chimes of the Westport Library have been silenced. The Westport Library Association will hold a meeting in September to vote on a resolution of an issue between them and the Inn at the Library Lawn regarding the chimes. Both sides expressed hesitation to speak on the matter, only to say that there was an issue that was heading toward resolution concerning the chimes.

Rutland's Downtown Partnership is moving. The office will relocate from its current space on Wales Street behind City Hall to a vacant space at the corner of Merchants Row and West Street. Downtown Partnership officials say it's a cost-saving move that gives them the ability to work next door to the Rutland Region Chamber of Commerce. The new location is right in the center of downtown, which officials’ hope increases visibility. The move is expected to take place by October.

Two cranes have toppled in separate incidents in Vermont, injuring the driver of 1. A 75-ton crane tipped over in Calais Wednesday afternoon, trapping the driver. He was extricated from the crane and flown by helicopter to Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington. His condition was unknown. Earlier in the day in Georgia, a crane fell into Georgia Market on Route 7 at about 8:30AM. No one was injured. Workers were about to put a truss on the frame of the building when the crane operator felt it start to tip.

A high school chemistry and physics teacher at Vermont's Thetford Academy is 1 of 50 educators from around the country to have been selected for a special weeklong program on science, technology, engineering and math education. Marc Chabot spent a week earlier this month in Silver Spring, MD at a program that focused on real-world applications in the classroom of science and related subjects. Chabot says he's grateful to have been given the chance to participate, because it's important for teachers of technology to stay up to date with changes in technology.

Teacher evaluations in New York can no longer be based solely on standardized test scores. That's according to the state supreme court, which issued a ruling on the matter Wednesday. The justices ruled that 40 percent of a teacher's evaluation can still be based upon test scores, but those tests must be chosen by local school districts through collective bargaining with their union.

The Shumlin Administration is bracing for the possibility that all highway construction projects in Vermont might have to be suspended at the beginning of October. The Transportation Secretary says that step would be needed if Congress fails to reauthorize the federal gasoline tax. The 18-cent federal gas tax will sunset on October 1st unless Congress votes to extend it. Revenue from the tax goes into the federal Highway Trust Fund and this year Vermont received $210 million from the Fund to finance hundreds of transportation projects. Congressman Peter Welch says he's concerned that there's going to be strong opposition from the House Republican caucus to reauthorize the tax.

As cities and towns across Vermont battle the rising cost of health insurance for their employees, the Vermont League of Cities and Towns is pushing a special program that's supposed to help municipalities lower it. The program is supposed to be cheaper because the league has more leverage by covering more people. Traditionally, the league's Health Trust contracted with a private insurance company for the coverage, but 15 percent of the league's members have opted out over the past three years because the average premium rate increased by between 7 and 20 percent. Now, the league has reorganized its Health Trust program. Instead of limiting towns to one insurer, towns will have a choice of insurance companies.

New Hampshire health officials say their tests for radioactive tritium in Connecticut River water so far are turning up negative. The announcement follows one last week from the state of Vermont that samples of river water taken from near the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant had turned up positive for the substance. Both state health departments have been conducting stepped up tests for tritium since it was announced last year that it had turned up in groundwater monitoring wells on the grounds over Vermont Yankee.

The large-scale Kingdom Community Wind project in Lowell is coming under fire from critics who say it's too expensive and environmentally damaging. About 80 people protested yesterday, saying the cuts in carbon emissions coming from the 21 turbines will cost more than $100 per ton of carbon saved.

Central Vermont Public Service Corp. is looking for power wherever they can find it. The utility announced Monday it has applied to the Public Service Board to spend roughly $340,000 from an insurance refund on grants for a variety of renewable energy projects. The largest single proposal listed Monday was $50,000 to develop two solar electrical hybrid vehicle-charging stations. The company will issue a request for proposals to schools, nonprofits and other organizations that might be interested in hosting such a site. The hosting organization will be expected to come up with some money of its own.

A suspected thief caught on camera has turned himself in to police in South Burlington. Surveillance cameras at Small Dog Electronics caught images of a man who police say walked out with a computer he didn't pay for. Police say, 18-Year-Old Tyler Corwell of Richford turned himself in. He was cited into court to face a retail theft charge.

Colchester residents are going to decide whether the Vermont community should buy a 26-acre summer camp on Lake Champlain's Malletts Bay from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington. The Burlington Free Press reports the church is selling the property to help pay the settlement from a series of priest sexual abuse cases.

Tips to investigators and donations to a reward fund continue to flow as New Hampshire officials try to unravel how an 11-year-old Stewartstown girl died. Lead prosecutor Jane Young says investigators in recent days received a dozen new tips and an additional $2,300 in reward money in the case of Celina Cass of Stewartstown.

Ausable Valley Habitat for Humanity has hit double-digits. The organization held an open house at the site of it's 10th home, located on the Goff Road in Westport, on Saturday. The home has been modeled after the European LEEDS standards, creating a very energy-efficient dwelling. The walls are 10 inches thick and extremely well insulated. There are triple glazed windows in the four-bedroom house. Ausable Valley Habitat for Humanity is preparing for its 11th home, and welcomes new volunteers not only in the construction process, but also to facilitate in the family selection process, public relations, fund raising and other administrative activities. Visit www.avhabitat.org.